Chapter 9: Sins Against the Holy Spirit

In this study we are going to find out what the Scripture says about sins against the Holy Spirit. I want to make the very important point at the beginning of this lesson that all sin leads to separation—particularly separation from God, but also from oneself and others. All of the precious and gracious promises to God’s covenant people are cancelled or at least diminished by sin because sin causes separation.  It isn’t that God stops loving us when we sin.  It’s not so much God Who separates Himself from us—though He does react to our sin; rather we separate ourselves from Him.  We take ourselves out from under His protection by our sins.   

Isaiah 59:1-2:  “Surely the arm of the LORD is not too short to save, nor his ear too dull to hear.  2 But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear.” 

Every sin, no matter how small, gives Satan just that much foothold in our lives and cuts off the flow of God’s blessing just so much. Only as we strive to obey God in all things do we qualify for all of God’s blessings.  Throughout the Bible we see that sin is not just against God but against ourselves as well, against our own self-interest. 

Proverbs 8:35-36:  “For whoever finds me [that is, Wisdom] finds life and receives favor from the LORD. 36 But whoever fails to find me harms himself [his own soul]; all who hate me love death.”  The fool, who rebels against His Maker, works against his own soul. 

God’s favor is like a giant umbrella. Nothing can touch us without God’s permission as long as we are in His favor, under the umbrella. But when we tolerate sin in our lives, we move out from under the umbrella. In that case, God has not separated Himself from us; we have separated ourselves from Him. 

To use another figure, when we remain obedient, it is as though we were staying very close to Jesus. You know that an object appears large when we are close to it, but it grows smaller as we move away from it. In a similar way, when we remain close to Jesus by our obedience, He is very large in our lives—large and powerful!  But if we become careless about sin, we move away from Jesus (so to speak); and he becomes smaller and smaller in our lives. If Jesus is large in our lives, then His power to bless and deliver is great also. But if Jesus is small in our lives, then his power in our lives is also small. Do we want a large Jesus or a small Jesus in our lives? 

The hostility that our rebel natures create keeps God at arms length and prevents Him from doing all for us, and in us, that He wants to do. As any rebellious child alienates himself from his parents, so do God’s covenant people take themselves out from under God’s protection by their sins and iniquities. 

The Apostle James tells us to draw near to God and He will draw near to us. But we cannot draw near to God without confessing and forsaking our sins. 

James 4:8: “Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double minded.” 

Since the Holy Spirit is the Agent of the Trinity Who executes all of the blessings that are in Christ, sins against the Holy Spirit will especially stop the flow of those blessings. With these introductory thoughts in mind, let us look at what Scripture says about the various sins against the Holy Spirit.  

Resisting the Holy Spirit: We have seen in previous lessons that it is the Holy Spirit Who convicts men of sin. By the Holy Spirit God prepares hearts to receive the Gospel, and draws them to Christ.  As long as men resist the Holy Spirit’s gracious moving upon their hearts, they will not receive the Gospel.  Hard and uncircumcised hearts shut out and block the entrance of the good news of eternal life. Like the hard-packed ground in the parable, such people resist the Holy Spirit. Such were the people who killed Stephen. 

Acts 7:51-54:  “‘You stiff-necked people, with uncircumcised hearts and ears! You are just like your fathers: You always resist the Holy Spirit !  52 Was there ever a prophet your fathers did not persecute?  They even killed those who predicted the coming of the Righteous One. And now you have betrayed and murdered him —53 you who have received the law that was put into effect through angels but have not obeyed it.’ 54 When they heard this, they were furious and gnashed their teeth at him.” 

Thus the Jewish nation, represented by its leaders, rejected first their Messiah and then the Good News of His salvation—because their hearts were hard.  Because they did not receive the word of God, immediately Satan came and took away the word.  

This sin is most common in unbelievers, those who do not respond to the Gospel: “When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart” (Matt. 13:19).  But we Christians can resist the Holy Spirit as well. When God’s Spirit stirs ours hearts to recognize our sin, we can either soften our hearts and repent; or we can resist and harden our hearts. 

Heb. 3:12-13: “See to it, brothers, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. 13 But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called ‘Today,’ so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness.” 

Grieving the Holy Spirit: Next let us look at how we Christians can grieve the Holy Spirit. Grief implies sorrow, not anger or wrath. Parents may be angry or hurt when their children rebel; but these emotions soon give way to grief as they see their beloved children bringing ruin and hurt upon themselves.  The following quotation from Paul shows why sin in the believer grieves the Holy Spirit. 

Eph. 4:25-31: “Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truth to his neighbor, for we are all members of one body.  26 ‘In your anger do not sin’: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, 27 and do not give the devil a foothold. 28 He who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with his own hands that he may have something to share with those in need. 29 Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. 30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. 31 Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. 32 Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.” 

We must assume that the cluster of sins mentioned here causes pain and grief to the indwelling Spirit of God—chiefly because they give Satan access to God’s beloved children. All bitterness, rage, malice, unforgiveness, all unwholesome talk, lying, stealing, idleness—anything, in a word, that "gives the Devil a foothold,” grieves the Holy Spirit.  We can see the main reason for the Holy Spirit’s grief if we sum up in this way: Sin gives the Devil a foothold, a semi-legal right of influence, in our souls and bodies.  Therefore our God, Who loves us, is grieved by sin. 

The Holy Spirit will not continue His benevolent influence in a life that is careless about the things mentions in this context—falsehood, anger, unwholesome talk, unforgiveness. The careless, worldly lives of many Christians guarantee that the influence of the Holy Spirit will be minimal. There is no thought here of open rebellion, but of loose, careless living. Paul is not speaking here to apostates, or people in danger of being lost. Even Christians, people who are presumably destined for heaven, can shut off God’s blessing and, in extreme cases, make God their temporary Enemy.  

Quenching the Holy Spirit:  Another sin that Christians commit is quenching the Spirit, putting out His fire, preventing Him from working in a supernatural way. In the New Testament the word ‘quench’ usually refers to putting out a fire. Paul says that the ‘shield of faith’ will ‘quench the fiery darts of Satan.”

Jesus said that in Gehenna “the worm does not die and the fire is not quenched.”  

The Holy Spirit could also be described as a fire that breaks out in supernatural manifestations as He wills. We can’t make the Holy Spirit act miraculously, but it is our duty not to put the fire out, not to suppress or quench the Spirit. 

1Thess. 5:16-20: “Be joyful always; 17 pray continually; 18 give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. 19 Do not put out the Spirit’s fire [literally, ‘quench the Spirit’]; 20 do not treat prophecies with contempt. 21 Test everything. Hold on to the good.” 

To my mind entire denominations regularly quench the Spirit when they deny that God works miraculously today through the gifts and demonstrations of the Spirit. Because of the context of this command not to quench the Spirit, I believe Paul is speaking of shutting out the operation of the supernatural gifts.  “Do not treat prophecy with contempt,” he says.  Yet “test everything.” 

There exists in many Christians an automatic suspicion of all supernatural manifestations. I believe that this suspicion is demonic and not spiritual. If the Devil can work lying miracles, and the Holy Spirit is not allowed to work real miracles, Satan has the upper hand. Nothing suits the Enemy better than for us to quench the Spirit, to refuse to avail ourselves of the Holy Spirit’s supernatural power.  The Bible is a very supernatural book and leaves every suggestion that the way God worked then is the way He will always work until Jesus returns. But where there is no faith for the supernatural there are few incidents of it. 

 In developing countries, where the supernatural in the form of spells, curses, and other demonic activity is commonplace, reports of healings and miracles apparently done by God are also frequent. Probably not all reports of miracles are true or accurate. Some may be the deceptive work of demons.  But because the people are not closed to the supernatural, God is able to do mighty things there that He cannot easily do in a skeptical, “enlightened” environment. 

With miracles, as with everything else, the Bible principle is “Be it unto you according to your faith” or “As you have believed so shall it be unto you.”  On one occasion Mark records that Jesus Himself “could not do any miracles there, except lay his hands on a few sick people and heal them. 6 And he was amazed at their lack of faith...” (Mark 6:5,6a).  Thus a person or generation raised to doubt God’s willingness to work mightily on their behalf will be double-minded about the miraculous; and a double-minded generation will not experience miracles (James 1:7). 

If Satan is unable to prevent the Holy Spirit from acting with power, he will immediately come in with counterfeits.  For that reason a certain amount of skepticism about claims of the miraculous is in order. For example, I firmly believe that the Spirit gives prophecies today; but I examine very carefully any claim before I receive it as being from God. John tells us to “test the spirits to see if they are of God” (I John 4:1).  Paul’s advice in the passage just quoted is to “test everything and hold fast to what is good.” But he certainly did not have the attitude of fear and hostility towards the supernatural that we often see in American churches. TEST THE SPIRITS, BUT DO NOT QUENCH THE SPIRIT. Do not treat prophecies and the other gifts with contempt. Expect God to act as He has always acted, and He will.  It will be unto you according to your faith.  But approach every claim soberly with sanctified, scriptural common sense. Discard the false but receive the good.  Do not put out the Spirit’s fire. 

Insulting the Holy Spirit:  Another sin against the Holy Spirit is insulting the Spirit. This we do by deliberately making a mockery of grace. When anyone treats the grace of God with contempt, or presumes that grace will cover willful sin, he is insulting the Holy Spirit, the “Spirit of grace.” 

Heb. 10:26-31:  “If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left, 27 but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God. 28 Anyone who rejected the Law of Moses died without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses.  29 How much more severely do you think a man deserves to be punished who has trampled the Son of God under foot, who has treated as an unholy thing the blood of the covenant that sanctified him, and who has insulted the Spirit of grace?  30 For we know him who said, ‘It is mine to avenge; I will repay,’ and again, ‘The Lord will judge his people.’  31 It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.” 

This terrible judgment is for Christians who are living double lives, pretending to be disciples while living in sin. For men who serve as deacons while sexually molesting their daughters, or abusing their wives; for ministers who use their office as a cloak for adultery or theft; for elders who are cruel tyrants at home or dishonest at the workplace. It is for all believers who go on in willful sin.

It is for people who presume upon the grace of God while living ungodly lives. I have known many people who make no pretence of living righteous lives; yet because they once made a profession of faith, they believe they are saved and on their way to heaven. The false doctrine of Once-Saved-Always-Saved has lulled them into a false hope. Such people “insult the Spirit of grace.” 

The denunciation is also for those who have known God in a deep way, have experienced His mercy, witnessed His supernatural power, and have turned again to sin. Such people “insult the Spirit of Grace [the Holy Spirit].”  They also subject their Savior to “public disgrace.” 

Hebrews 6:4-5:  “It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit, 5 who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age [i.e., miracles], 6 if they fall away, to be brought back to repentance, because to their loss they are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting him to public disgrace.” 

Because they have known the depth and fullness of Christ, and still have walked away, nothing remains in God’s treasury that would bring them back. And their offense against the Holy Spirit of Grace is so grievous, that no mercy can retrieve them.  

Blaspheming the Holy Spirit: Finally, we have the sin of blaspheming against the Holy Spirit. The Devil has worked much mischief on this subject by making many earnest Christians believe they have committed this “unpardonable sin.” But blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is not a temporary lapse, a momentary anger against God, or even a stubborn resistance to God’s love. These are all sins, dangerous sins, but they are not the unpardonable sins.  I believe that the blaspheming of the Holy Spirit refers to a specific condition of heart displayed by those Pharisees who accused Jesus of casting out demons by Beelzebub.

Let us look at the passage that refers to this sin against the Holy Spirit.   

Mt. 12:26-32:  If Satan drives out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then can his kingdom stand? 27 And if I drive out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your people drive them out? So then, they will be your judges. 28 But if I drive out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.  29 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 rob his house.  30 He who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with me scatters.  31 And so I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven.  32 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.” 

As I suggested, I believe this is Satan’s favorite verse in the Bible.  By a false interpretation, he has instilled doubt and condemnation into many earnest, but weak, Christians. But it’s been truly said: The very fact that one is concerned about committing the unpardonable sin is proof that he has not committed it. Christ is not speaking of some past moment of abominable sin; that can be forgiven. He is not even speaking of some time past when a person railed against God, or even cursed God; that too can be forgiven. The sin spoken of here seems to be a condition of heart so blind, so hostile to truth, that a person attributes the work of the Holy Spirit to the work of demons. It can’t be forgiven because the spiritual blindness is so absolute; the person can’t repent because he can’t imagine that he has sinned. These religious experts had seen Jesus healing souls and bodies, driving unclean spirits from the people; they had heard Him speak words “such as no man ever spoke”; they had seen the Kingdom of God coming before their very eyes (Matt. 12:28).  Yet all they could say was, “He has an unclean spirit” (Mark 3:30). 

Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit can’t be a mere questioning or doubting about miraculous works, for both Paul and John tell us to test everything to see if it might come from a false spirit. It does not, I believe, refer to people who sincerely wonder if certain miracles might not be done by demons in order to deceive. Christ Himself warns us that there will be many false prophets and false apostles who will perform marvelous wonders to deceive (Matt. 24:24).   

I contend that no one who is currently following Christ and seeking to obey Him is guilty of blaspheming the Holy Spirit.  If a voice out of Hell suggests to you that you have committed the unpardonable sin, rebuke that voice in Jesus’ name, commend yourself to the mercy of God, and walk on in grace. But men and women who shut their eyes to the light, who deliberately suppress truth, will end up calling evil good and good evil. That, I believe, is blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. 

SUMMARY:

--Unbelievers can resist the Holy Spirit unto the end, and so be lost.

--Believers can grieve the Holy Spirit by tolerating sin, and thus lose out on God’s blessings.

--Believers can quench the Spirit by suppressing His miracles, and fail to see His power working in their lives.

--Believers can insult the Spirit by willful and open sin, and so be lost.

--Unbelievers can blaspheme the Holy Spirit in spiritual blindness, and go to their graves without forgiveness.

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