Sermon Overview

Scripture Passage: Matthew 12:22-32

Each of us faces a spiritual deadline that, if crossed, will result in the commission of unpardonable sin. This is not a moral, intellectual, or verbal sin; it is blaspheming the Holy Spirit.

Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is a sin against light; it is attributing to Satan the work of the Holy Spirit when one knows better.

Though we can commit this sin without saying a word, it is not accidental; we would do it knowingly and willfully, with our eyes wide open.

In Matthew 12, Jesus heals a demon-possessed man and opens his eyes and mouth to see and speak. Full of pride, the Pharisees claimed Jesus performed this miracle by the power of Satan.

In verse 31, Jesus says, “Therefore I say to you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven men.”

Blaspheming the Holy Spirit is a sin against redemption; Jesus was healing this man out of His love. It is a sin against reason; Jesus explained He couldn’t have cast out Satan if he worked for him. A kingdom divided will fall—even the devil’s. (See Matthew 12:25-29.) It is a sin against revelation; the pride in the hearts of the Pharisees prevented them from being able to see the legitimacy of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, performing miracles right in front of them.

Adrian Rogers says, “When men and women stand before God to be judged, they’re not going to be judged primarily by the sin they committed, but by the light they rejected.”

A person who commits blasphemy against the Holy Spirit opens himself up to deception. We cannot have our sin and God’s truth at the same time.

This sin also has a deadening power; if we reject the truth of Jesus Christ, something dies within us. Little by little, we’ll stop feeling the conviction of the Holy Spirit.

And if the Spirit’s presence in our lives fades out, we’ll see the magnitude of its destruction. This sin puts our hearts in a place where it is impossible to be saved.

This is why we must honor even the slightest desire or conviction to follow Jesus now, before it is too late.

Apply it to your life

Don’t sin against redemption, reason, or revelation. Come to Jesus, following the conviction of the Holy Spirit, before you cross a line you can’t uncross.