BURNING

QUESTION

What is the ‘unpardonable sin’ against the Holy Spirit the Bible talks about… and… is it unpardonable at all?

My Answer: Firstly, the ‘sin’ is insulting the Holy Spirit of Grace by trampling upon the universal redemption of the Blood of Christ…and secondly…it IS pardonable. (While reading the words, experience God’s Presence through the music accompanying them)

And the two golden key passages here? Hebrews 10:28-29 & Hebrews 9:14 First key… Hebrews 10:28-29 “²⁸Anyone who rejected the law of Moses died without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. ²⁹How much more severely do you think someone deserves to be punished who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, who has treated as an unholy thing the blood of the covenant that sanctified them, and who has insulted the Spirit of grace?” - New International Version Reality Back-up: I want to put the focus here on three parts in this passage… 1. “who has treated as an unholy thing the blood of the covenant”, 2. “the covenant that sanctified them”, and 3. “How much more severely do you think someone deserves to be punished”. In the first place… “who has treated as an unholy thing the blood of the covenant”... To treat something as being unholy clearly means to disregard it as something inferior…something of not much significance…not much worth. This is a very strong accusation…and justifiably so…because Paul refers here to Jesus Christ, the living God, Who is trampled upon. And where does Paul lead us to the very next? The Divine Blood of Christ…the most powerful Sacrifice God used to save all mankind…once ( 1 Peter 3:18-20 )…and for ALL ( Romans 6:10 ). The worst anyone can do is cheapening both the Blood of Christ and the severity of His excruciating suffering for the composite sins of ALL mankind of all ages. Doing that, one subjects these two Godly Exhibits of Grace to one’s mortal ‘choice’ and “free- will”…arrogantly insulting the Holy Spirit of grace! And in the second place… “the covenant that sanctified them,”… We see that sanctification had already materialized with the second covenant at the cross. What does this mean? At its core it means that it was a done deal of grace…a gift. And what does “gift” mean? It means it leaves the inheritor no power to nullify it. It means it cannot be made less powerful by the inheritor, subordinating it to his or her ‘so-called’ choice. A gift is NEVER conditional when given with Agape Love. God’s love is only always unconditional…and to ‘earn’ His Grace in the form of choosing it, is downright a slap in Jesus’ face…the most severe abomination possible. This is blasphemy in its highest form…making the ridicule of Jesus by Herod and his soldiers ( Luke 23:11 ) look like a trivial matter. But…let’s go to the second golden key verse in Hebrews 9:14 … …and please notice the exclamation mark at the end and the focus upon the “consciences” “How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God!”. - New International Version Here we see two critical focus points…”cleanse our conscience” and “so that we may serve the living God” Why is it so critical to understand this? Because our conscience keeps us away from God…keeping us busy with ourselves! That is why it has to get out of the way altogether. God wants us to be constantly busy with HIM…with our whole being. Of course we will carry on doing wrong things…no two ways about that. But, there is a BUT. Whenever we do wrong, we only need to go to Jesus’ breast and thank Him for having paid those very [present] wrongs already at the cross! But that is not all we need to do. No. While at His breast, we need to ask Him to help us not doing it again…asking Him this until He takes it away. Then we will notice that we are constantly busy doing introspection with Jesus…every occasion of a trespass being dealt with…every time experiencing His grace…in order to start anew. Then we will also realize that we have no time left pointing fingers to others. Nevertheless a painful affair… but oh so liberating! To re-cap… This verse means exactly what it says…the second covenant through Jesus’ sacrificial death cleansed the slate of our (and all mankind’s) conscience completely…once and for all…in HIS ‘books’. And in the ‘books’ of the vast majority Christians’…are their ‘conscience slates’ cleared as well? No. Not by the looks of it. Countless Christians are constantly beating themselves up upon their own trespasses…refusing to accept their weaknesses. They rather want to take responsibility to ‘earn’ their salvation…and have the satisfaction in patting themselves on their spiritual backs for ‘mastering’ piety. This is really all there is to it. Man cannot as a rule accept a gift…and in the case of ‘eternal-hell-believing’ Christians…no difference at all. Jesus’ gift was the doing away with the law. We died to the law with Christ’s death. See Romans 7:4 . And what does the Bible say about those still acting as if they are under the law…like the ones who cannot forgive themselves (AND others) for their trespasses…the ones feeling guilty…feeling inadequate all the time? The Bible says they are under the curse… according to Galatians 3:10 . And what is the #1 sign of being under the curse? Unhappiness! And it shows. People, calling themselves Christians, are showing signs of unhappiness on a daily basis…and why? Because they are still putting themselves under the law… too difficult a thing to accept this incredible grace of total freedom. They do not want to see themselves as not accountable. It’s an ego thing. See Romans 5:13b . This verse explicitly says that if there is no law, then no trespasses are charged against the trespasser! And this is exactly why the Christian world is in such a mess…keeping themselves under the law…rejecting Christ’s gift…therefore Christ Himself. Christians are too busy comparing themselves with fellow Christians…too busy observing other Christians’ weaknesses…feeling superior and good about themselves when another fails. Sad state of affairs. And, what’s more…this is exactly where the so-called “free will” comes in…where the Sovereignty of God, as well as the love of God is rejected. Bible believers in their ‘exclusivity’ think they cannot afford having feet of clay, especially ‘while the whole world is looking upon them as the very ones who are not supposed to miss the mark’. The pain they go through because of this, is SO unnecessary. And I’m talking here about visible ‘sins’ of whatever intensity and in whatever fashion…as well as the ones unseen by the outside world Christians privately experience. Whether it be ‘sins’ like murder, adultery, or fraud (to name but three of a myriad others)…or whether it be privately-suppressed emotions like hatred and jealousy. Both categories are the ‘little foxes’ within the conscience that ruin the vineyards of peace and freedom ( Song of Solomon 2:15 ). But, take heart, there is a way to silence these rascals…finding the Truth through prayer. Then the ‘aha’ moment will pop up…and as a result…the peace that surpasses all understanding in Philippians 4:7 . Of course we keep on missing the mark, but the beauty is…God does not reckon it any more ( Psalm 103:12 ). In 1 John 3:20 John says that God is greater than our conscience, because He knows everything. And yet sadly…man’s ego is ‘greater’ than God’s grace. This ego would rather be under the curse of the law than standing with the hat in the hand…and relax in Paul’s words in Romans 7:25 . This is the most pivotal characteristic that differentiates Christianity from all other religions…not having to earn one’s salvation at all through works. Jesus has earned it FOR us with His Blood. And this characteristic, in the form of a gracious peace, is to be radiated from Christians to enlighten the world…and make them also want to have that. But, is this the case indeed? No. When there is no peace in the heart…there is no peace to be radiated outwardly…logically. In an unforgiving heart there is no peace. Christians cannot forgive themselves and as a result they cannot forgive others as well. Company is always in demand…and when in a pit of self-chastisement…even more so. Pointing fingers at- and condemning others puts the mind somewhere else… away from the self…obscuring the conscience. No wonder Mahatma Gandhi’s words are so relevant…and not to be ignored… “I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.” This is what Christians radiate to the outside world…and only because of them not accepting the gift of freedom Jesus already gave to all…but this gift of freedom He will consequently keep for them until a later stage…and at a place where they WILL humbly accept it. And why? Because this very act of refusing Jesus’ gift in humbleness is making the ‘believer’ an UNBELIEVER…with grave consequences attached…the ones widening the gate even further. See Matthew 7:13 -14 . Please take some time and read the whole part in Hebrews 9, from verse 1 to 14. And now addressing the third ‘unpardonable’ part… “How much more severely do you think someone deserves to be punished …..?”… What is the ultimate punishment one can get in our carnal life on earth? The death penalty of course. And using this analogy, Paul wants to bring the message over…the message of the severity of such a trespass…trying to use a punishment that would fit such an abomination…a punishment that would be beyond the limit of carnal imagination. This threat of a transgression ‘NEVER to be forgiven’ is captivating billions of Christians, let alone haunting them. So then…where can one find this ‘sigh-of-relief’ puzzle piece that will end their agony? Simple. By starting to spend more time with the Holy Spirit, dissecting the Bible for clues. This is just one of countless sticky verses that are causing gnawing spiritual discomfort for too many people…for too long. It’s time for the Truth to surface. Please go check the meaning of the Strong’s number 863, reflected in this passage as “forgiven”. In Greek the root word is “άφίημι” (aphiémi). It means the following: I send away, I let go, release, permit to depart, I remit, I permit. So please rest assured and relax…what this passage really means is that the one who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will NOT get away with it. And forgiveness is not even relevant here. Simply because God has ordained EVERYTHING long before the foundation of the earth already…ordained in His incredible love! Here God’s love and grace comes into play once again…revealing what man reckons to be ‘punishment’…to be gracious correction…to be a Divine disciplinary regimen of purification. And…in none other dispensation…than the Lake of Fire, Revelation 21:8 is talking about. There IS no punishment in God’s Books…only loving corrective actions…albeit actions that hurt…for the divine outcome later on. We must stop clinging onto the fear of “hell”…the flaming fear stoked and continuously rekindled in the church. If the Bible says God is Love…then we must believe that to be the case in all aspects…indefinitely. We must never rest until we can rest. And when we make this awesome discovery of ‘eternal hell’ being a horrific myth, only then we become aware of the wonderful God we worship. Then we can nestle up against His breast in His loving arms…knowing that we are safe…knowing that we are loved, knowing that our anguishes are only temporary…knowing that all pain, all poverty, all hopelessness, all grief, all anxieties will soon become obsolete, null and void. And when God’s unfathomable Drama has come to its Grand Finale…then He will wipe every tear from our faces and we ALL will delight in His Presence with sheer joy and ecstasy…forever! Hallelujah! Praise His Holy Name! May the God of the Bible bless you abundantly… Whoever you are…wherever you are. AMEN

Biblical Back-up:

Romans 3:23-24 Romans 4:5 Romans 5:6 Romans 5:8-9 Romans 5:18 Romans 6:23 Galatians 2:21 Ephesians 2:13

Philippians 3:9 1 Corinthians 2:5 Hebrews 10:28-29 Hebrews 9:12 Hebrews 9:14 Hebrews 11:6 1 John 5:4 Revelation 1:5