Matthew 12:29-37

Matthew 12:29-37 NIV

“Or again, how can anyone enter a strong man’s house and carry off his possessions unless he first ties up the strong man? Then he can plunder his house. 
“Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters. And so I tell you, every kind of sin and slander can be forgiven, but blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come.
“Make a tree good and its fruit will be good, or make a tree bad and its fruit will be bad, for a tree is recognized by its fruit. You brood of vipers, how can you who are evil say anything good? For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of. A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him. But I tell you that everyone will have to give account on the day of judgment for every empty word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.”

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The confrontation with the Pharisees, who want to kill Jesus for what they believe to be heresy, continues after Jesus had healed a deaf and mute man in the synagogue. They told the people that Jesus can only drive out demons by the power of the prince of demons, Satan. They were publicly labeling Jesus as an evil man.

Jesus responds by saying that a kingdom that is divided will fall, so if Satan drives out his own demons, his kingdom of darkness will fall. Jesus continues in the same thought by saying that a strong man can protect his home from robbery, unless the thieves first overpower him and tie him up.

The deaf mute was possessed by a demon who stole his ability to hear or speak. Metaphorically the deaf mute represents the Pharisees who can neither hear Jesus' truth nor speak His praise. They are also under some sort of demonic captivity, or else they wouldn't be looking for ways to trap Jesus or kill Him.

Jesus is stronger than the demon. He is able to overcome the demon, with His divine power and authority, and take the man's abilities to hear and speak and give them back to him. In a sense the demon is the strong man overcome by the greater power of Christ.

Then begins a very difficult teaching, one that has been controversial throughout church history. It is the teaching known as "The Unforgivable Sin". Jesus says all slander and sin will be forgiven, but not blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. That will not be forgiven.

The Pharisees had said that the good work Jesus was doing, healing, liberating and giving hope, was of the devil. Jesus is able to do what He does because He is filled with the Holy Spirit who is God.

In trinitarian doctrine God is one God in three distinct persons. These three persons, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, live in such a perfect unity that they are one. They are the same and yet unique and distinct persons. It's a difficult concept for we have no easy examples in life to which to compare the trinity.

I teach children that the trinity is like clouds, rain and lighting. They all come from the same place. The cloud is high above us and mysterious in its ever shifting shape. Much like the cloud the Father is above us and shrouded in mystery. Clouds are filled with moisture. And when conditions are right, the moisture falls to the earth in the form of rain. The Son of God came to us in physical form, like the rain falls from the cloud. Sometimes lighting occurs when the rain falls. This also comes from the cloud. The Holy Spirit sometimes feels like electricity, an energy flowing through us. Each is very different in appearance and yet they all come from the same place and you cannot have one without the other. Lightning never strikes without clouds and clouds are never visible without moisture and rain never falls without clouds. And so it is with the trinity. If one of the three persons in the godhead is present, God is present.

Therefore to label Jesus and His ministry as evil is to call God evil. That blasphemy is unforgivable. How can we find an application to this teaching? Evangelicals have said that to deny Jesus' divinity and therefore refuse to place one's faith in Him, is the unforgivable sin. How can we be saved unless we believe? It's a popular interpretation. But I don't think that's what Jesus means.

Jesus is talking to His opponents who have publicly called Him evil. This teaching is to them first and foremost. But this is scripture so we look for ways to apply what Jesus says to our own lives. The Unforgivable Sin is to speak against, or blaspheme the Holy Spirit. Here's where the logic gets difficult. Jesus said that one could speak against the Son of Man and be forgiven, but. to speak against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven. Isn't Jesus the Son of Man? Isn't Jesus the Son of God? Isn't The Son of God the of the same divine origin as the Holy Spirit? In other words, isn't Jesus God? Since we believe Jesus is God then how can blasphemy against Jesus be forgiven, but against the Holy Spirit it cannot? There's no easy answer.

I read a United Methodist bishop write that if we were concerned about committing the unforgivable sin, then we had nothing to worry about. What he meant was that the unforgivable sin pertains to people who have no humility before God. If you don't care if you offend God, then you are surely in danger of committing the unforgivable sin.

But can we truly say that the Pharisees had no humility before God? Their whole way of life was built around strictly keeping God's law so as not to offend God! Yet Jesus labels these men as evil. He told them that a tree is known by its fruit and their fruit is bad, for their hearts are filled with all kinds of wickedness. They are plotting to kill Jesus. They are looking for ways to publicly discredit His ministry. They seem obsessed with tripping up Jesus. I would argue that they are doing so because they believe Jesus to be a false prophet. With good intentions they are trying to protect the people from what they believe to be heresy. They interpret Jesus' liberal views toward the law and His questionable company to be proof of His corruption. Jesus turns the tables on them and publicly denounces them as evil.

I have both sympathy and disdain for these Pharisees. On the one hand I admire their passion for living holy lives in order to please God. On the other hand, their rule keeping lifestyle has turned then into mean-spirited policeman. Their good intentions have become twisted somehow. Jesus says that their hearts are full of evil, for their mouths betray them. Out of the mouth the heart speaks. When your heart is full of hate and envy, your mouth will reveal it with all sorts of profanity, cursing and blasphemy. To vilify the Lord is blasphemy. The Pharisees, in their contempt for Jesus, have unwittingly spoken against God.

Jesus says that if you are not with Him, you are against Him. So no one can be impartial. An agnostic cannot be blameless by saying he or she doesn't know what to believe. To not believe in Jesus is to not be with Jesus, and therefore is to be against Him. And if you are not with Jesus you are not helping to gather souls for salvation. Therefore you scatter people to the wicked whims of this world.

Above all I'd say the application of this difficult teaching is beware. Be aware of where you stand with Christ. Are you for Him or against Him? You cannot be undecided. Know that we all will be judged. According To Jesus every empty word that comes from our mouths will condemn us. So guard your tongue. What you say about God is eternally important.

Yet let us remember that there is mercy in the Lord. He loves you and forgives all your sins. We did nothing to deserve this mercy. God gives it freely out of God's love for us. Even words against Jesus will be forgiven. But do not make the mistake of the Pharisees and join in rebellion against the advancement of the kingdom of heaven. You will not win. Instead you will lose everything. For there is no stopping what God has begun in Jesus Christ. This world is coming to nothing. All our earthly wisdom means nothing, nor our positions or power. In the end every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. For there is no strong man able to keep Him from seizing what is rightfully His, that is the dominion of this earth. An of His kingdom there shall be no end. Hallelujah!