HopeLives365

Mark Finley: John 8:29. "I do always those things that" what? "Please him." That is the safest way to live: to make your decision that in everything in your life, you want to please God.

Guest (Male): This is HopeLives365 with Pastor Mark Finley. Today's message: "The Unpardonable Sin, Part One." Enjoy and remember you can always catch up with past messages and stay up to date with HopeLives365 and Pastor Mark by going to hopelives365.com. And now, Pastor Mark Finley.

Mark Finley: As I travel the world, I note that there is a heresy that is impacting many, many Christians. That heresy has to do with the Holy Spirit. Let me tell you what I mean. There are many people, Christians included, that believe that the Holy Spirit is simply an influence, not the third person of the Godhead. And I want to be very open with you: that's a heresy.

Now, why is this heresy so deadly? The heresy is deadly for this reason: If you think the Holy Spirit is an influence, simply a power that comes from God and not the third person of the Godhead, first, you deny clear biblical statements. Secondly, if the Holy Spirit is just an influence, then you want to use that influence for your own glory.

We're going to look today in our presentation at three things. First, who is the Holy Spirit? Secondly, what is the work of the Holy Spirit? And thirdly, the unpardonable sin. Now, I might surprise you today because I'm going to begin with dealing with the unpardonable sin, and that'll lead us into who is the Holy Spirit and how he works on the life. So let's pray.

Father in heaven, thank you so much for the clarity of your word on this topic. Thank you that we can clearly understand who the Holy Spirit is, the role of the Holy Spirit, and how to avoid ever getting near committing the unpardonable sin. So open our eyes. May your Spirit come and guide us. In Christ's name, amen.

It was right after a meeting. I was greeting people at the door as they left my evangelistic meeting. And a young man I'll call Todd came out. I could tell by the troubled look on his face that something was really bothering him. As we shook hands, Todd said to me, "Pastor Mark, can we talk?" I said, "Sure, Todd." He said, "But I mean right now. Is there something troubling you? Is there something urgent we need to talk about, or could it wait until tomorrow, or we could make an appointment this week?"

"No, Pastor, I need to talk to you about this right now. I'm really troubled about it." So I said, "Sure. Once I get through greeting people here at the door and they've left the meeting, the church will be empty, and let's go in and we can talk at the church." So after a few moments of greeting, we went in, sat down in one of the pews, and Todd looked at me. I could tell by the pale look on his face, his quivering lips, and shaking hands that something was really bothering him as he trembled.

And he said, "Pastor, I think I've committed it." I said, "Todd, I don't understand. What do you think you've committed?" "I think I've committed the unpardonable sin. I've gone so far in sin that I don't think that God could ever forgive me." "Todd, do you want to be forgiven?" "Oh yes, Pastor, I want to be forgiven." "Todd, if you have that desire to be forgiven, if you have that desire to know God, I can assure you you've not committed the unpardonable sin."

That night I studied with Todd about what the unpardonable sin is, how the Holy Spirit works in our life, and how to be filled with the Spirit. Let's look at that topic first, of the unpardonable sin. It's mentioned here in Matthew chapter 12, verse 31 and 32. And notice this is Christ speaking, and he says, "Therefore I say to you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but this blasphemy against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven men. Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it'll be forgiven him, but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it'll not be forgiven him, either in this age or the age to come."

Now notice verse 31, I think, is a key verse. It says, "Therefore I say to you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven unto men." In the King James Version of the Bible, it says, "every manner of sin and blasphemy will be forgiven." What's another word for manner? Another word for manner is type or kind. So the unpardonable sin is not a type of sin. It's not a kind of sin, but it's rather a degree in sin.

Let me explain it this way: The unpardonable sin occurs when a person persistently rebels against or rejects the influence of the Holy Spirit upon their heart and upon their life. The Holy Spirit is really the voice of God that speaks to our soul. It's the voice—you remember what it says in Isaiah? It says, "You'll hear a voice behind you saying, turn this way or that way." So the Holy Spirit convicts us. That's one of the roles of the Holy Spirit, one of the functions of the Holy Spirit.

So the Holy Spirit works through the Bible. In fact, in John 6, verse 63, it says, "the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit and they are life." So when Christ speaks to us through his word—John 6, verse 62 and 63—"What then if you should see the Son of Man ascend where he was before? It's the spirit who gives life, the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit and life." So God convicts us through his word.

All Scripture, Second Timothy chapter 3, verse 16: "All Scripture is given by inspiration of God." That is, all Scripture is God-breathed. In Second Peter 1, verse 21, it talks about the fact that the Holy Scriptures were given to us through the Holy Spirit. Holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit. So God speaks to us. Sometimes he convicts us directly in our minds.

Most often, he speaks to us through his word, revealing truth. As God speaks to us, let's suppose that you were speaking to me. And you're standing here on my left and I am walking in this direction. Could I ever come to a point where I walked out of range of what you were saying? I could. If I keep walking that way, and if you keep saying to me, "Come back, come back, come back," but I keep walking that way, what's going to happen?

Pretty soon, I'm going to walk beyond where I can hear your voice any longer. So the unpardonable sin is not the first step away from God, but it's the persistent walking from God and denying his voice, resisting the convictions of the Spirit on my mind, rebelling against what he said in his word, and coming to the place, not that God stops calling, but that I stop hearing.

Another way I can illustrate it is this: Let's suppose you and I are in a room. And let's suppose that room is 30 feet long. It's a very large room. And we decide that we want to make two rooms out of it. And what we're going to do is make a brick wall so that each section of the room is 30 feet. And so you're on one side and I'm on the other. And we begin putting bricks in the wall.

So we're building this wall. You see the picture? We're building the wall. Well, pretty soon there's only a hole with ten bricks left where we can put in. You put one in, I put one in. You put one in, I put one in. Then there's only room for one more brick. And I can see you there, and you can see me through that little brick hole. But then I put in the final brick. And we are completely shut off now from communication through the brick wall.

The unpardonable sin is not the first brick, but it's persistently putting those bricks in that we no longer hear the voice of God. Sin no longer appears sinful to us. We have placed that final brick in the wall, cut off all communication. There's another way we can look at the unpardonable sin, and it's this way: The Bible says—and let's take our Bibles and turn to First John chapter 1. Here's another way to look at the unpardonable sin, and I think it's very helpful as we look at it.

First John chapter 1, and we're looking there at verse 9. "If we confess our sins..." If we do what? If we do the confessing. "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us of our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar and his word is not in us. If we confess our sins." So if we do the confessing, God's going to do the forgiving and the cleansing.

But we must first do the confessing. So the Holy Spirit convicts us of sin. As we yield to the power of the Holy Spirit and confess our sin, God forgives them. So what's the unpardonable sin? The unpardonable sin is the one we won't confess. Why is it unpardonable? Because God cannot pardon it unless we do what? Confess it. How can God pardon something that we cling to? How can God pardon something that we hold on to?

Forgiveness is not simply some legislative act up in heaven where Jesus says, automatically, you can just continue in sin and your sins are forgiven. Not at all. If we confess our sin, he is faithful and just to forgive our sin and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. So confession carries with it the idea of repentance, of being sorry for the sin. Confession carries with it the idea of surrendering that sin to God, giving it up.

Confession carries with it the idea of opening our heart to receive the power of the Holy Spirit to be cleansed from the thing that we have confessed. So then, if the Holy Spirit persistently convicts a person, and over years of time they resist that conviction, they're continuing to put bricks on the wall and continuing to seal themselves off from the moving of the Holy Spirit.

Guest (Male): You're listening to HopeLives365. We'll be right back. And if you like what you're hearing, we invite you to check out our website, hopelives365.com. There you can find many ministry resources, encouraging messages, and even a link to our HopeLives365 YouTube ministry. And of course, an opportunity to sow into this valuable ministry. Find out more by going to hopelives365.com. That's hopelives365.com. And now, back to Pastor Mark Finley.

Mark Finley: So, what is the role then of the Holy Spirit? We find that in John chapter 16, verse 7 and 8. In the Gospel of John, Jesus is preparing his disciples for his leaving. And John 14, 15, and 16, with climaxing in 16, are the clear statements of Christ regarding his ascension, to his death, his resurrection, his ascension to heaven, and his inauguration in heaven and sending the Holy Spirit to his disciples.

In John chapter 14, Jesus speaks about the fact that he's going to pray the Father, and the Father's going to give them another helper. In John chapter 15, he says, "but when the helper comes who I'll send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, he'll testify of me." So Jesus promises the Holy Spirit will come. He calls this Holy Spirit the helper. The King James Version says the comforter. The Greek word there is Paraclete, Paraclete.

Para means "alongside of." You remember parallel, two lines that go alongside of one another. So the idea here is Paraclete: Para is alongside of, clete comes from a Greek word—Paraclete is this Greek word—clete comes from the Greek word called. So the Paraclete is one called alongside of. So the Holy Spirit is called alongside of us to convict us, to sustain our strength in Christ and our walk in Christ, to strengthen us to do that walk.

So the Holy Spirit is this Paraclete. You know, it's really interesting because in the ancient Roman world, when a person was condemned and they went to jail or prison, they were assigned a Paraclete, one that would come alongside, provide a blanket for warmth in prison, help to provide food in prison, help to encourage them and strengthen them, stand with them in court. In other words, the Paraclete in the ancient Roman world was not a foreign concept. It was one that stood alongside of you to provide every need that you had.

So the Holy Spirit is this divine helper, this divine comforter, this divine Paraclete who comes alongside of us to provide what we need. So John 14, 15 speak about the Holy Spirit, but the essence of the work of the Holy Spirit is spoken about here in the 16th chapter of John. And we want to take a look at John chapter 16 and look at the work of the Holy Spirit. John 16, we're starting there with verse 7.

"Nevertheless, I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I go away." Can you believe that? Jesus said to his disciples, "it's to your advantage that I go away." How could it be to an advantage that the living Christ personally with them for three and a half years went away? He tells you: "Nevertheless, I tell you the truth, it's to your advantage that I go away, for if I don't come, the helper—that is the Paraclete, the advocate, the counselor, the guide, the comforter, the strengthener—he will not come to you, but if I depart, I'll send him to you."

See, Christ could only be with one person or one group of people in one place at one time. But the Holy Spirit can be ever-present, universally, with all believers. So Christ was going to come and ascend to heaven and send his Holy Spirit to be present with all believers in every place, as the disciples would be scattered to preach the gospel: some staying in Jerusalem, some traveling throughout the Middle East, some going to Asia, some going to Europe.

As these New Testament believers went throughout the world, the third person of the Godhead, the Holy Spirit, would be present with them. Now notice, what would his function be? "When he has come, he will convict the world of sin." It is the Holy Spirit that is the still, small voice in your heart that convicts you that you've done something wrong. I remember on one occasion I was just becoming a Christian. And as I was becoming a Christian, I was in a restaurant one day with a friend of mine.

I had been working on the golf course; I was a caddy, carrying these big, heavy bags on my shoulder. The golf bags in those days—we never had a lot of golf carts, electric, that people use today. But anyway, I was carrying these big bags and I had worked all morning: hot sun, walking up and down in hills on the golf course. I was a young teenager, I had just begun reading my Bible, just becoming a Christian. I was carrying these heavy bags. So my friend said, "Let's go grab a break," after we were through with our first session in the morning.

We were going to eat and then come back and work again in the afternoon. Went to this little restaurant, and as we got there, we were eating. The restaurant was packed. And my friend looked at me and said, "Look, we can walk out and not even pay." I said, "That's a good idea. Let's go." And the restaurant was so packed we walked out. I was just becoming a Christian, just reading the Bible for some of the first time.

Well, that afternoon I put those heavy golf bags on my back and the bags never felt so heavy. As I was trudging up the hills, this little small voice was in me: "You shouldn't have done that. You cheated. You robbed. You stole. You should not have done that." And I will tell you, after walking around that golf course for four hours, those bags were so heavy I couldn't almost make it in the last part of the round of golf.

What do you think I did? After I collected my money from my work, I ran back as fast as I could to that restaurant, talked to the waitress. I said, "You know, it was crowded and we happened to leave without paying. Here's my money for my lunch today." She was astounded. "You came back?" "Yes, ma'am, I came back." Why did I come back? Because the Holy Spirit convicted my mind that day to do what was right. It is the Holy Spirit that's convicting you right now to do what's right.

What is it in your life that you feel is out of harmony with God's will? It's the Holy Spirit that's convicting you. So here, Jesus lists three workings of the Holy Spirit. First, verse 7: "Nevertheless, I tell you the truth, it's to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away the helper—that's the advocate, that's the comforter, that's the one that comes alongside, that's the sustainer, the strengthener, the convictor—will not come to you, but if I depart I will send him to you. When he has come, he will convict the world of sin."

So it's the Holy Spirit that's convicting you right now that what you're watching on the internet is not in harmony with God's will. He may be doing that for you: that all that time you're spending in front of the TV is not going to get you ready for heaven; that all that time you're spending watching that stuff on that computer is not going to get you ready for heaven. Now don't misunderstand me. Some things on YouTube—I hope you're watching HopeLives365 on YouTube—but there are some things on media that are good, obviously.

We need to be aware of what's going on with the news, etc. But I'm not talking about that. I'm talking about people that are so absorbed with the media in the world that they are living contrary to the will of God. The Bible says, "set not your affection on things on earth, but on things in heaven." Colossians 3:1 and 2. Now look, the Holy Spirit convicts us of sin. It may be some relationship that you're hiding from your wife that you know is not in harmony with God's will.

It might be some violation of the law of God and the commandments of God that you are secretly pursuing. It may be the failure to be faithful in your tithe and offering. I don't know what it may be, but is the Holy Spirit convicting you of anything? It may be that you've been angry and just burst forth with that anger. Maybe the lack of forgiveness. Is the Holy Spirit convicting you something?

Now the unpardonable sin is not the first denial of the Holy Spirit's impact on our lives. I'm so glad that God is so merciful. God is so gracious. God is so patient, he bears long with us. But if you never put the first brick in the wall, you're never going to put the last brick in the wall. The unpardonable sin is not that first brick; it's not that first denial, but it's that repeated denial. And once we develop a pattern of denial of the Holy Spirit, soon we no longer hear the convicting voice of the Spirit of God, and soon there is silence in the soul.

Notice the second work of the Holy Spirit. "When he has come, verse 8, he'll convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment." Notice what he does. Verse 8: he convicts the world of sin, of righteousness. The Holy Spirit convicts us not only of sin, but of righteousness. Here the Bible says that the Holy Spirit's role is to reveal righteousness. That is the righteousness of Christ. That is the grace and mercy of Christ.

That is how good Jesus is. So the Holy Spirit reveals to me my sin, and I see my sinfulness, but he doesn't leave me there wallowing in my sin. He leads me to see Jesus in all of his goodness, in all of his grace, in all of his mercy, in all of his righteousness. And I see that everything I am not, he is. Everything I need, he has. Where I have failed, he has achieved. Where I have fallen, he has stood firm.

Where I have yielded to temptation, he has resisted temptation. So I come to Jesus and say, "Jesus, I've sinned, and I confess my sin to you. Cover me with your righteousness. Cover me with the magnificent purity of your character. Lord, I want to live in Jesus. And Lord, cleanse me from those sins that cause me to fall. Cleanse me from all that, Lord." So the Holy Spirit's work: convicting us of sin, but to reveal the beauty, the graciousness of Christ, his righteousness.

Guest (Male): You've been listening to HopeLives365 with Pastor Mark Finley. We hope you've enjoyed today's message and remind you that you can find more in our many ministry resources at hopelives365.com. And you can support this ministry by going to hopelives365.com/donate. And now, a final thought from Pastor Mark.

Mark Finley: Righteousness also has another meaning. Not simply the righteousness of Jesus, as important as that is, that covers my sin, but the right living of Jesus. Righteousness is right living. The right living of Jesus that becomes the model or the example of my life, the pattern of my life, the example of my life. So the Holy Spirit convicts us of how to live. The Holy Spirit reveals to us the example of Christ's life. And then it says, he'll convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment. So you have conviction, you have instruction, and you have urgency of judgment.