Of all the sins humans commit against the Holy Spirit none is worse than that of blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. The reason for this is obvious: It is the only sin for which there is no forgiveness.
Before we consider this passage, I would like to make several observations. First, if you are a true Christian, you cannot commit the sin of the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. A saved person cannot commit the unpardonable sin. Second, Christians commit all other sins against the Holy Spirit. We can repent of them, be forgiven, and make a new start. Third, unbelievers commit the unpardonable sin. Sometimes when some Christians go through emotional distress, they conclude that they have committed the sin of blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. However, your distress and concern about it is a positive proof that you have not committed the sin of blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. Evidently, those who have committed such a sin have no concern or care about it. The blasphemy against the Holy Spirit was committed by enemies of Jesus Christ when they accused Him of casting out demons by the power of Satan.
Jesus had clearly stated that He cast out the demon by the power of God. What exactly did Jesus mean when He said that there is no forgiveness for the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit? In verse 31, Jesus promises that all manner of sin and blasphemy will be forgiven you and me. He says that God will forgive all kinds of sins, some of them quite serious. You and I that are Christians know this is true. For example, David committed many sins, some of them quite serious. He committed adultery with Bathsheba. He murdered her husband Uriah. Pride caused David to organize a census of the nation of Israel and the wrath of God came upon him and the people. But David confessed his sins and God forgave him. Think about Simon Peter who boasted of his devotion and commitment to Jesus, and then denied with curses that he knew the Lord Jesus. But Peter confessed his sin and God forgave him. The Apostle Paul said he was a blasphemer. He was also involved in the persecution and murder of Christians. But Paul repented and God forgave him. You and I can even include our names and sins, but when you and I confessed and repented of our sins, God forgave us.
But Jesus said there is a sin that a person can commit for which there is no forgiveness. This sin is the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. How can you know that you have not committed the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, which is the unpardonable sin? If you continue to be under the disturbing, convicting, and drawing power of the Holy Spirit, you have not committed the unpardonable sin. But if you have continually resisted the Holy Spirit that He no longer strives with you, then there is eternal danger. The unpardonable sin involves the total and irrevocable rejection of Jesus Christ.
God has three witnesses to the human heart (soul) calling you to salvation. There is the witness of God the Father. The Jews had heard the witness of John the Baptist. This was the Father’s witness to them and they rejected it. Then there is the witness of God the Son. The Lord Jesus came to earth. He walked among us. He lived a perfect life. The Jews saw the witness of the Son but they rejected Him. Now Jesus declares that there is one more witness. The Holy Spirit bears witness. He is God’s final call to the human soul. Therefore, the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is the deliberate, defiant, and definite choice to reject God’s offer of salvation. This is often done with the words spoken against the Holy Spirit. Now here is the caution: you and I should not be going around telling people that they have committed the sin of blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. Neither are we to label anybody as beyond the grace and forgiveness of God. You and I should urge people everywhere to repent and turn to Jesus, since we do not know when the Spirit has stopped dealing with them. The danger this poses for some of you who attend church is this: You may be attending church on regular basis but when the preaching of God’s word convicts you of sin, you deliberately leave the sanctuary as if you are looking for something. There are some of you that you come under the conviction of the Holy Spirit but when the invitation is given you continue to sit down instead of responding to God’s word. You know deep in your heart that you need to respond to the word of God, but you intentionally refuse. If this persists in your life, you are not far from eternal danger. After all, those who accused Jesus of casting out demons with the power of Satan were not “sinners,” prostitutes, murderers, and tax collectors. They were the religious people who had no room in their heart for Jesus and the supernatural. They frequented the Temple and yet they were spiritually bankrupt. Therefore, be careful that you do not resist the conviction of the Holy Spirit in your heart.
II. GRIEVING THE HOLY SPIRIT: EPHESIANS 4:30-32
We now come to the sins that Christians can commit. The first is the sin of grieving the Holy Spirit. The admonition “Do not grieve the Holy Spirit” is a command from God to Christians. God’s Spirit lives in believers to separate us from the world. As I have said often times, the only difference between Christians and non-Christians is the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is God’s seal or mark of the believer for the day of redemption. This is what we call sanctification, which means that God has set you and me apart from the lost world. The Holy Spirit wants to make real in your life everything Jesus has done for you. The Christian experience is intended to produce a Christian life. It involves a complete overhaul on the inside. He wants to cleanse and change you. The Holy Spirit comes in with dumpster and begins hauling out the garbage of your old life. Your life begins to show those characteristics, which will produce Christlikeness. However, it is possible to hinder the Spirit’s work in your life. The word of God in Ephesians 4:30 addresses this danger. You can grieve the Holy Spirit to the point that He will not be able to do what He wants to do in making you like Jesus. You may hurt or anger someone who has no affection for you, but you can grieve only a person who loves you.
God shows us how we grieve the Holy Spirit by our speech (telling lies), emotions (anger), our hands (stealing), and unwholesome speech. Speech is a wonderful gift of God. It is one of our human capacities, which reflects our likeness to God. For our God speaks, and like Him we also speak. Speech distinguishes us from the animal creation. Cows can moo, dogs bark, donkeys bray, pigs grunt, lambs bleat, lions roar, monkeys squeal, and birds sing, but only humans can speak. So the word of God says, “Let no unwholesome speech proceed from your mouth.” The word “unwholesome” (sapros ) is used of rotten trees and rotten fruit. When applied to rotten talk, whether this is dishonest, unkind, or vulgar, you may be sure that in some way it hurts the hearers. When you use your unique gift of speech destructively, you grieve the Holy Spirit. Jesus taught the great significance of speech. He said that our words reveal what is in our hearts, and He said that we have to give account on judgment day of every careless word we have uttered (Matt. 12:33-37). But the grieving of the Holy Spirit is not limited to unwholesome speech. There are many more. What Ephesians 4:30 reveals is that the Holy Spirit is a person, and as such He can be grieved. The word, “grieve” means “to cause sorrow, pain, or distress”, and only persons can feel these things. What grieves the Holy Spirit? Ungodliness grieves the Holy Spirit; disunity grieves the Holy Spirit.
However, every Spirit-filled believer desires to bring the Holy Spirit pleasure, not pain. When you grieve the Holy Spirit, He withholds His peace, joy, gladness of heart, and illumination of the things of Christ. You begin to experience a spiritual fog in the things of Christ. Job 35:6 ask a poignant question: “If you have sinned what do you accomplish against Him? And if your transgressions are many, what do you do to Him?” Have someone you love dearly done something that hurt you? Remember how it made you feel? When you hurt someone you love, you apologize or ask for forgiveness. Some of you need to say that to the Holy Spirit. Paul lists six things that grieve the Holy Spirit. This is not an exhaustive list. Bitterness, a sour spirit and a sour speech grieve the Holy Spirit. Wrath and anger, passionate rage and settled and sullen hostility grieve the Holy Spirit. Clamor describes people who get excited, raise their voices in a quarrel and start screaming at each other. This grieves the Holy Spirit. Slander is the speaking of evil of others, especially behind their backs to defame and destroy their reputation. The Bible says that this also grieves the Holy Spirit. Slander is the synonym of blasphemy (Blasphemia). Malice is ill will, wishing and probably plotting evil against somebody with the intention to hurt him/her. This also grieves the Holy Spirit. The list is endless. When you grieve the Holy Spirit your daily devotion and prayers are hindered.
III. QUENCHING THE HOLY SPIRIT: 1 THESS. 5:16-19
The blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is a sin that only an unbeliever can commit. Grieving and quenching the Spirit are sins that believers commit. What does it mean to quench the Spirit? Paul’s terse admonition is this: “Do not quench the Spirit.” The word, “quench means to put out, to stifle, or to smother.” It can be paraphrased, “don’t suppress the Spirit, or stop suppressing the Spirit.” The term quench is pertinent to the Scripture’s reference to the Holy Spirit as fire. When you quench the Spirit, you put the fire out. This does not mean you expel the Holy Spirit from your life, but you extinguish the love and power of the Holy Spirit in such a way that He cannot carry out God’s purpose in and through your life. To put it differently, you suppress the work of the Holy Spirit in your life. In order to serve God better, the Holy Spirit gives us spiritual gifts. The Holy Spirit then provides us with power to serve in these ministries and to exercise these gifts to the glory of God and for the good of others. One beautiful biblical symbol for the Holy Spirit is fire (Matt. 3:11). In the O. T. the prophet Isaiah refers to God’s Spirit as fire burning (Isaiah 4:4). However, you may quench the Spirit in a number of ways. Let me give you two examples by way of warning. First, a fire goes out when the fuel supply is withdrawn. When you don’t use the means of grace, when you fail to pray, witness, and read the Bible, the fire of the Holy Spirit is quenched. A second way to put out fire is to extinguish it by throwing water on it or smothering it with a blanket, or a shovel full of dirt. In a similar way, willful sin quenches the fire. When you criticize, act unkindly, belittle the work of others by careless and unappreciative words, you smother the fire and put it out.
You can render your service to the Lord Jesus Christ ineffective by suppressing the fire of the Spirit of God. Some believers put wet blanket of indifference and sin on the fire of the Spirit. God may have gifted you with music, as a teacher, or an encourager but you are not putting these gifts to use. Churches need more teachers to teach young boys and girls the truth of God’s Word. Churches need musicians but you are sitting on your gift. You are quenching the Holy Spirit in your life. In 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18, first it says, “Rejoice always.” Therefore, you quench the Spirit if you fail to rejoice in the Lord, as you should. All of us have burdens, but if you are not careful you can dwell on the burdens and forget the blessings. If you are a prayerless believer, if you do not demonstrate an attitude of gratitude, you are quenching the Spirit. Grieving and quenching the Spirit are what we call the sin of commission and omission.
A boy left home to work in a city. He promised his mom he would go to church on Sundays. The first Sunday his new friends invited him to go horseback riding. Remembering his promise, he refused at first. But then he relented at their insistence. Sunday morning came. As he began his horseback ride with his new friends, he remembered church back home. He could see his parents heading to the home church and remembered his promise. As he approached the middle of town on horseback, church bell invited him to the services. He continued to ride.
As he reached the outskirts of town, the bells grew fainter and fainter. He stopped. He said, Guys, I come from a Christian home. I promised my mom I will go to church today. I noticed the bells are getting fainter the farther we go. A little more and I will ride beyond the sound of the bells. Excuse me, but I’m going back while I can still hear the bells.
The bells of the Holy Spirit are ringing in your ears. Perhaps you heard them in childhood. The bells are ringing. As a young person, you heard the bells ringing—“Come to Jesus, come to Jesus.” Now you are older and wiser. You can still hear the bells, but they are getting weaker. You may be getting close to the point where you will never hear the bells again. Come to Jesus while you can still hear the bells!