Today on the verdict with Pastor John Monroe. We are people of hope. But There is a sin. which is not forgivable. It's so bad, it's so vile.
It's so premeditated, it's so wrong. That is beyond God's forgiveness. And Jesus describes it here in verse 31 of Matthew 12 as a blasphemy, the blasphemy against the Spirit. Welcome to the verdict with Pastor John Monroe. Do you think there's an unforgivable sin?
A sin so terrible, so wicked, that it would cause you to lose all hope of salvation? And is it possible for believers to commit this sin? Today on the verdict, we're continuing in the book of Matthew and we'll see what Jesus has to say about the unforgivable sin.
So let's join Pastor John Monroe as he begins this important message. Today, as we continue to look at the conflict between Jesus and the Pharisees, the subject is a controversial one. and one which probably all of us have thought of from time to time. The subject of the unforgivable sin. Is there such a sin?
If there is, can followers of Jesus commit this sin? Does it relate to the possibility of our losing our salvation? What is the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit which appears to be unforgivable? Is it possible For a Christian to do or say something and, as a result, be eternally rejected by God? If you have your Bible, Turn to Matthew chapter 12.
We're looking at verses 22 through 32. as we deal with this subject of the unforgivable sin. Is it possible to commit some sin?
some serious misdeed. Or is it possible to commit a sin so often So that there is no grace. No mercy, no forgiveness. from God. With the result that you are eternally rejected by God.
That's a question today. Is that possible? Over the years, as I've been a pastor, I've been asked this question many times. Have I committed the unforgivable sin? People sitting in my office.
Or I in their home. or over The lunch table, the dinner table, I've been asked this question as they have recounted something of their past. And have told me In confidence, some terrible sin that they believe they have committed, and this is their question: a very serious question, a very poignant question. Have I committed the unforgivable? Sin.
That's our subject today: the unforgivable sin, the unpardonable sin. what we could call as the eternal Send. Anyone here feel they've committed? the unforgivable Sen. Let me ask the question another way.
Could it be that while you, as you sit here today, you believe that in the grace of God you have eternal life, that you're saved by the grace of God, but is it possible that this time next year, you could have committed some sin so wicked, so blasphemous, that God will never forgive you? In the passage today, Jesus speaks of a sin which is unforgivable. If you've got your Bible, I invite you to turn to Matthew chapter 12. We began Our study of Matthew. And we're going consecutively through it.
People sometimes ask me why I choose such subjects. I don't choose these subjects, they're chosen. For me by the Lord. And this is a tough subject, one I must admit, I wouldn't naturally want to speak on. But as I've studied it, I'm very thankful that we have it in in the inspired Pages of scripture.
And in this passage, I believe there is an answer to these compelling questions. questions.
So let's hear the words of Jesus. Remember? They're coming. From our Lord Himself. Matthew 12.
Verse 22, you're listening, reading? Then a demon-oppressed man who was blind and mute was brought to him and he healed him so that the man spoke and saw. And all the people were amazed and said, can this be the son of David? But when the Pharisees heard it, They said It is only by Beelzebal, the prince of demons, that this man casts out demons. Knowing their thoughts, He, Jesus, said to them, Every kingdom divided against itself is laid waste.
And no city or house divided against itself will stand. And if Satan casts out Satan, he's divided against himself. How then will his kingdom stand? And if I cast out demons by Beelzebub. By whom do your sons cast them out?
Therefore, they will be your judges. But if it is by the Spirit of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. Or, how can someone enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods unless he first binds the strong man? Then indeed he may plunder his house. Whoever is not with me is against me.
And whoever does not gather with me scatters. Therefore I tell you Every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven people. But the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. And whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven. But whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven.
Either in this age Or in the age To come. Isn't that an intriguing passage of Scripture? I wonder what you You may cover it.
Well, first of all, as we look at this passage and look at the Gospel in a more general way, we can say that not understanding the true identity and mission of Jesus is not an unforgivable sin. Not believing. In the true identity of Jesus, not believing in the mission of Jesus is not beyond divine forgiveness. Look at verse thirty-one. For Jesus makes it clear that every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven people.
Therefore I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven people. Isn't that marvelous? That God in His grace forgives every sin. Every sin that you could imagine God can forgive murder. Sexual immorality.
theft, drunkenness, you name it, God can Forgive it. We have a wonderful example of this in 1 Corinthians 6. Ancient Corinth was a very immoral place. It's a very evil city. And many there in that city were converted to Jesus Christ.
And Paul is writing to them. In 1 Corinthians 6, Verse 9, and this is what he says. Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? The kingdom of God is a holy place. God is holy.
If you're unclean, if you're unholy, if you're unrighteous, you cannot enter the kingdom of God. That's the point. Do not be deceived. Neither the sexually immoral. nor idolaters.
nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality. Nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. I wonder if As you sit there, Anyone here? committed any sexual immorality. Any idolatry?
Any adulterers here? Any homosexuals, any thieves, any greedy? Anyone who gets drunk Anyone who is a reviler, Anyone who is a swindler, a cheater in their business, anyone like that here? I'm not asking for a hands-up. Be too embarrassing, wouldn't it?
Yes. Many of the Corinthians came into that category. But praise God what Paul goes on to say. You following his argument? Verse eleven.
Now he's talking to the church at Corinth. to those who have been forgiven. He says, And such were some of you.
Some of you, Paul says, were immoral.
Some of you were adulterers.
Some of you were real drunkers.
Some of you were cheats in your business. Such were some of you. Past. But You were washed. You are sanctified.
May tole. You are justified, declared holy by a righteous God in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God. That's the gospel, isn't it? Once you were like this. But then you met Jesus Christ.
And through the blood of Jesus Christ, you've been washed, you've been sanctified, you've been justified. This Is the wonder. This is the miracle of God's grace. Think of Paul himself. He said he was a blasphemer.
He was a man who hated the Church of Jesus Christ. as he persecuted the church. As he tried to imprison believers, as he thought they should be killed, Paul. was A blasphemer against the gospel. But one day on the road to Damascus, a bright light shone, and he was saved by the grace of God.
And Paul said that this is a worthy saying. Everyone should accept it that Christ Jesus came into the world. to save Sinners. That's hope for you. That's hope for me.
that Jesus Christ came. to save me. That's God's amazing grace. Amazing grace. That's not just a nice song with a nice tune.
It presents a profound truth. God's grace is amazing. One of the reasons it's amazing is that it saves wretches. Like you. We're wretches.
Not very That used to be described as a wretch, but when we think of our sin, when we think of a rebellion against God, that's how God sees us. But God's grace comes, and there is forgiveness. There is forgiveness even for a terrorist. Who's on the cross, the thief on the cross, who's a robber, he's a violent man. leading an insurrection.
We'd call him a terrorist today. And even As he's dying. He looks at Jesus. And Jesus says to him, Today Today you'll be with me in... Paradise.
A violent man, a robber. A despicable man, you might say, and he receives the forgiveness of God just as he is. Dying. Isn't that wonderful? Why is that?
Because God specializes in forgiveness. One of his specialities is forgiveness. Have you ever offended someone? Yes, you have, and you've gone to that person to ask their forgiveness. You've humbled yourself and you're going to say to the person, I'm sorry, I offended you, I did wrong, please forgive me.
And you sometimes wonder if they're going to forgive you, don't you? They might say, no, I don't forgive you. You don't deserve my forgiveness. And we wonder, don't we? Will we get forgiveness from that person?
You never need to wonder that about God. God's speciality. is forgiveness. He restores Our soul. Listen to the psalmists, for you, O Lord, are good.
And forgiving. One of the reasons why Jesus is so good is that he forgives. He doesn't come to point his finger and say, You're condemned, even although that is exactly what you deserve. He comes. to save.
He comes to forgive. For you, O Lord, are good and forgiving, abounding in steadfast love to all who call upon you. That's Psalm 86, verse 5. I love it that. God's forgiveness is for all who call upon Him.
Yes, God will grant forgiveness, but you must come in humility, acknowledging your sin. Turning from your pride and calling upon the name of the Lord. And whoever calls upon the name of the Lord will be saved. God is good, He will forgive you. Writing in the New Testament, Paul, now a follower of Christ, says, In him that is in Jesus Christ, we have redemption through his blood.
The forgiveness of our trespasses according to the riches of his grace. God's grace is infinite. Infinite riches. And through the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ, we can have redemption, we can be bought back, we can be freed from our sin, freed from our selfishness. As we come to Jesus Christ, He forgives our trespasses according, this is the basis of it, not by what you do.
Do you think you can get rid of your own sin? Do you really think you can atone for your sin? Do you really think that by yourself you can get rid of the guilt and the shame of your past? Absolutely not. We could never do it.
If all of us combined and tried to atone for the sin of one person here, we couldn't do it. But in the grace of God, He grants forgiveness. According to the riches. of His grace. Even as our Saviour is dying on the cross, He's praying, Father.
Forgive them. For they know not what they Two. asking forgiveness even for those who are crucifying him. No sin that you've committed. It's so bad, it's so vile.
It's so premeditated, it's so wrong. that is beyond God's forgiveness. Isn't that wonderful? Yeah. Isn't that hope for us?
We are people of hope. But There is a sin. Which is not forgivable. And Jesus describes it here in verse 31 of Matthew 12 as a blasphemy, the blasphemy against the Spirit. Verse 31 again: therefore I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven people.
That's what I've said. But The blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven.
Now let's think. Of the unforgivable sin.
Well, we see that the unforgivable sin is attributing the work. of the Holy Spirit. to Satan. The unforgivable sin is attributing the work of the Holy Spirit to Satan. This is what the Pharisees are doing.
Now in verses 22 and 23, there's this amazing miracle. There's a demon-oppressed man who was blind and mute. Was brought to Jesus, and Jesus healed him so that the man spoke and saw. And all the people were amazed and said, Can this be the son of David? Here's a man who can't see, a man who can't speak, who's demon-oppressed, and Jesus heals him.
And the people see this. They hear the man speaking. They realize that this man who is blind now can see. A miracle takes place right before their eyes, and they're amazed. No wonder this is a miracle.
And they wonder, and they ask the question. Is this, could this be Yeah.
Son of David. The son of David. is referring to the Messiah. David's greater son, David being the greatest of the kings of Israel, and now he has the son. Matthew introduces his gospel by reminding us that Jesus is the son of David, the son of Abraham.
It's referring to his Messiah. Could could could this be the one? Could this be the one that the prophets speak about? Because we know that when the Son of David, the Messiah, comes, he can do miracles, and we've just seen miracles. Could this be him?
Good question. The Pharisees are also there. They see the same miracle. Exactly, right in front of them. And the Pharisees recognize the power of Jesus, but they question the source of the power.
They can't deny that a miracle took place.
Something supernatural has taken place right before their eyes. The crowd got it right. Could this be the son of David? The Pharisees say Ah. We know why this happened.
He's casting out demons. By Beelzebub. The name the Prince of Demons. Another name for Satan himself. The accusation then is that Jesus Is the servant of Satan, and therefore, as the servant of Satan, as the Beelzebub, he is able to cast out these demons.
What an accusation. That's the accusation. Yes, we see the power of Jesus. It's not coming from God, it's coming from the devil. In fact, this fellow is in fact the Prince of Demons.
Do you get the? Do you get the setting? Do you get the context? It's very important that we interpret scripture in the context. Jesus answers.
Don't you wonder the brilliance of Jesus? as he answers them over and over again. Was Jesus answered. His answer, as we've read, is this. The accusation that I'm casting out demons by the prince of the demons, it's absurd, it's illogical.
For example, verse 25: Every kingdom divided against itself is laid waste, and no city or house divided against itself will stand. I mean, if you've got a kingdom with internal strife, it can't stand. If your home, if the people in the home are fighting against each other, that home will not last. If you go to city, where they're fighting against each other, that city will not last. Why Would Satan think of it, Jesus is saying to them and to the crowd.
Why would Satan worked through Jesus. to cast out the very demons that Satan sent to possess this man. Are you saying then, if what you're saying is true, Satan is fighting against himself? Verse 26: if Satan casts out Satan, he's divided against himself. You don't fight against yourself, it's absurd.
How then will his kingdom stand? But notice verse 28, a wonderful verse. But if it is By the Spirit of God that I cast out demons. Then the kingdom of God has come upon you. That must have shaken the Pharisees.
Notice what he's saying. The kingdom of God has come upon you. With Jesus, we could say the kingdom of God has overtaken them. Jesus is right in the midst. He's the king of kings.
and they recognize that something supernatural is here. And Jesus is the only one who is stronger than Satan. The only one who's stronger than the demons. He defeats Satan at the temptation. Remember in Matthew chapter 4, when Jesus is tempted by Satan, Satan is defeated.
Jesus demonstrates that he's stronger than Satan by casting out the demons. And he's also going to demonstrate the victory over Satan by rising from the dead. the resurrection of Jesus. And then in verse 29, Jesus gives an analogy, a kind of parable. We can understand that.
How can someone enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods unless he first binds the strong man? I'm going to rob your home. And there you are. And first, because I'm stronger than you, I tie you up. That's what some bad guys do, don't they?
They break into a house, someone confronts them, and they tie them up, or they may shoot them. Uh they may put them in a a closet and and lock them in, but you get rid of the strong man and then you're free to plunder the house. Once the owner is tied up The point is, the robber plunders the house. Jesus is able to bind Satan. Jesus is able to attack the kingdom of darkness because he's stronger than Satan and so casts out the demons.
So that brings us now in that context uh to the question of the unforgivable sin. The unforgivable sin is not some sin of the flesh, some sin of passion, such as murder or extortion or sexual liberality. No. But there is this one sin. which will not be forgiven.
The unforgivable sin is a determined, deliberate, and decisive attitude of rejecting Jesus and his works. Done in the power of the Spirit of God and attributing them. to Satan. That's what the religious leaders are doing. This is the verdict, featuring the Bible teaching of Pastor John Monroe.
There's still more to hear when John returns in just a moment, so stay with us. From matters of truth and identity, to the subjects of love and grace, our world seems more confused than ever. but to find truth and certainty about who we are and find peace, we must turn our attention away from the world and look to the Word of God. To help you do that, John wrote a booklet titled Eternal Security, Finding Certainty in a Chaotic World. Through this special resource, John shares his personal testimony, along with a careful examination of Scripture, to offer us clarity on matters of eternity.
Get your copy today by visiting our website at theverdict.org. While you're there, consider making an investment in this Bible teaching ministry. Whether it's $5, $50, or more, your gift today helps cover the cost of sharing these gospel messages to listeners around the world. And if you haven't already, be sure to subscribe to the Verdict Podcast, featuring John's weekly podcast exclusive called Avizandam. It's available wherever you get your podcasts, or simply go to our website.
Again, that's theverdict.org. The verdict is a ministry of Calvary Church in South Charlotte. We're located on the corner of Highway 51 and Ray Road. If you've been looking for a church home or a community to help you grow in your walk with Christ, We invite you to join us for our Sunday services. For more details about Calvary and our service times, visit theverdict.org.
Now, here's Pastor John Monroe.
Well, what's your verdict? Do you think that there is an unforgivable sin which can be committed by followers of Jesus? Do you sometimes wonder if you've blasphemed against the Holy Spirit or done or said something which is. Unforgivable? I want you to know.
that no sin you have committed is so bad. that it is beyond God's forgiveness. If you are an authentic follower of Jesus Christ, you cannot lose your salvation. No. Don't miss the next broadcast, where we continue to deal with this important subject of the unforgivable sin.
Thanks for joining us today on The Verdict. I'm Michelle Davies. Today's program with Pastor John Monroe was produced and sponsored by Calvary Church in Charlotte, North Carolina.
