What is blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, and what the Bible teaches us about the topic? This is a topic that we probably struggle with or we just want to overlook, but it needs to be discussed. Even if we don’t struggle with this subject, we will probably meet people who do. My desire with this article is not to condemn but to clear as much as I can through the scriptures the ideas we might have on this topic. This is a topic discussed amongst many people, and people ask themselves about the Holy Spirit, if someone can sin against Him, and if they have blasphemed against Him or not. I’ll give you my opinion, and I’ll try to give you an answer based as much as I can on the scriptures and personal experience. There is much more information on this topic, and we must examine it all. I hope the few things you find here can be profitable for you.
Indeed, the Holy Spirit is the most sensitive part of God, and we need to respect Him. He is the part through which God manifested Himself to us. He is a part of the Holy Trinity, and it is God Himself with a particular function and role. His role is to teach us and guide us in all the truth.
“However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come.” (John 16:13)
As we see, this is essential because everything God wants to tell us, all His commandments, everything He is, is expressed to us through the Holy Spirit. This is the way He communicates with us. Even the words we read in the Bible are here with us because people inspired by the Holy Spirit have written them for us. Now, to the question of whether we can sin against the Holy Spirit, the answer is yes. In the scripture, we read that we mustn’t grieve the Holy Spirit.
“And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.” (Ephesians 4:30)
And to the other question, if we have blasphemed against Him, then we need to consider and understand what the scripture tells us about that. Even if we know that we cannot always understand everything. I’m sure that many believers have asked themselves if they have blasphemed against the Spirit. It happened to me, at least. Surely, sometimes they grieved Him, but to blaspheme against Him is something else. It is not only a question of words but also what stays behind those words. If you say a story or joke and use the name of God or the Holy Spirit in vain, God doesn’t like that, and you can grieve His Spirit, but I don’t think this is to blaspheme against Him. We obviously need to be careful not to grieve Him repeatedly.
I heard a comment from a preacher once saying that if we really have blasphemed against the Holy Spirit, we will never ask ourselves if we did or worry about it. Our hearts will be so hardened that we will not worry at all about it. So, if we are concerned about our spiritual condition and we are worried if we have blasphemed or sinned against Him, it means that the Holy Spirit is still working in us and showing us that something is wrong, meaning we haven’t blasphemed against Him. Let’s see the verse that addresses the topic directly.
“Therefore I say to you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven men. Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come.” (Matthew 12:31, 32)
Here, we see how Jesus plainly explained how serious this topic is. We would often avoid this part for its harshness, but we need to know that God takes this issue seriously. It is a matter of His Holiness. If in His word He takes so seriously the matter of His Spirit and holiness, we need to know that He also took seriously the matter of how lost we are, and He came here, descended here on the earth, and died for us to save us. If He did this for us, and this is written in His word, then we need to take also the other part of His word seriously, and this is His holiness and what His Spirit requires from us. He came and made this sacrifice for us. We are the ones who gain from it. He didn’t do it for Himself. He would be fine even without it. If what He did is for us, then we need to consider what the entire word says about each topic and situation. We need to face and consider each word from the Bible.
Why is the Spirit so important? We know that He is important, but from this verse, the offense against the Spirit seems to be harder than anything else. Why? Because if we look at any spirit, even the spirit of a man, it is what guides and drives a man to do things. It represents his being. Everything he likes, dislikes, or approves of. It is like the engine of a car. It is what guides us. The same is true with the Spirit of God. He expresses Himself through the Spirit. These are His thoughts, His words, His feelings. All this comes to us because of His Spirit.
As for the verse speaking about blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, we first need to know the exact situation in which this verse was said. Let us read the verses coming before it and see the reason in the context.
"Then one was brought to Him who was demon-possessed, blind and mute; and He healed him, so that the blind and mute man both spoke and saw. And all the multitudes were amazed and said, “Could this be the Son of David?”
Now when the Pharisees heard it they said, “This fellow does not cast out demons except by Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons.”
But Jesus knew their thoughts, and said to them: “Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against itself will not stand. If Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then will his kingdom stand? And if I cast out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your sons cast them out? Therefore they shall be your judges. But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, surely the kingdom of God has come upon you. Or how can one enter a strong man’s house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man? And then he will plunder his house. He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters abroad.
“Therefore I say to you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven men. Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come."(Matthew 12:22-32)
Here, we see Jesus healing someone who was demon-possessed, blind, and mute. Then the Pharisees, seeing this, accused Him that He casts out demons by Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons. It means they openly expressed what was in their hearts, that they didn’t believe in Him and despised His Spirit. And they meant what they said. Look at something. God looks at the intention of our words when we say something. He looks at what’s in our hearts. He looks at the intentions. And this is about the words we say in His favor or against Him. That’s why in the next passage coming after this one, Jesus expressed the importance of the words we say and the fact that we will be judged according to them. This passage is a continuation of the discussion He had with them about speaking against the Holy Spirit.
“Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or else make the tree bad and its fruit bad; for a tree is known by its fruit. Brood of vipers! How can you, being evil, speak good things? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things. But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment. For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.” (Matthew 12:33-37)
Notice that Jesus here was talking about the words we use but was placing all the attention on how our hearts are. He said that they spoke that out of the abundance of their heart and told them that being evil, they cannot speak good things. It meant that when they expressed themselves in such a way toward God’s Spirit, it was because their hearts were wrong. So, Jesus gives importance to the heart first. There is the problem. On account of those words coming out of our hearts, we will be judged one day. That’s why the change we want to apply in our lives cannot consist only of changing our vocabulary or the way we express ourselves. It needs to begin from the heart. Because if this doesn’t happen, we will sooner or later express with our mouths what is wrong. The sin of those persons doesn’t occur at that moment, but it has already started in their hearts.
He looks to see if we really believe what we say and judges us according to that. It is not this way when we say something to our neighbor. Then, even if we didn’t mean something wrong, we can still offend someone because he might understand it in the wrong way. But God scrutinizes our hearts. He looks at the very depth of it, and nothing can escape Him. So, when we say something toward man, it is one thing, and when we say something toward God, it is another. I do not include when we speak of God to someone. Then, we also need to be careful with our words because we need to represent God in the right way in front of others. The testimony we give is important. But this is more about other people’s consciences, and if we hurt someone or represent God incorrectly, we can also offend the Spirit of God because He is sensitive toward those things. But let’s go back to the topic of blasphemy against His Spirit, which is something different.
In the passage we showed above, we see that the Pharisees accused Him of casting out demons by Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons, and they really believed that. It means they didn’t believe in His words, in His Spirit, and in His way. They completely opposed themselves to His power and Spirit. This is a hard condition, as the way He must reach us and work in us is through His Spirit. He doesn’t have another way. It is through His way and Spirit. So, for someone to repent or believe, he needs to believe what the Holy Spirit is telling him. The words of the Holy Spirit are always confirmed by the words of the Bible, as the Bible is inspired by the Spirit.
Obviously, everyone is a sinner, and no one just believes. It is His work in us that helps us to believe. But when someone opposes himself completely to what the Spirit represents, then it is different. We are not speaking here to oppose ourselves to whatever might be but to oppose ourselves to the very basics of Christianity. In the Bible, it is written that it is the Spirit the one who convicts us of sin.
“Nevertheless I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you. And when He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment:” (John 16:7, 8)
Everyone in his natural condition opposes himself to the word of God, but if he still does that, even after being convinced repeatedly of God’s truth, then we speak about the hardening of that person against God. This is something different. No one can repent if the Spirit of God doesn’t convict him of sin. So, how can someone repent and accept Christ if he keeps hardening himself to the warnings of the Spirit and His convictions about sin? How could that happen if he completely rejects those warnings and convictions? He just cannot repent while being in that condition. That’s why Jesus also gives such importance to the Spirit and the blasphemy against Him. If one day, however, something happens and that person opens himself to the warnings of the Spirit and acknowledges his sinful condition, then obviously, he will be forgiven.
Sometimes, when we think about someone hardening against the Spirit, we think of someone living an explicitly sinful life, of someone who doesn’t even come close to a church, but it is not always that way. Here, we see Jesus talking to the Pharisees, who were apparently religious and had a zeal for God but still hardened to His voice and warnings. So, we can compare them to maybe religious people, hardened in their hearts toward the Spirit of God, telling them to repent. That could happen for many reasons. One of them is that someone might think that he already pleases God. Still, he does that in his own way and pays little attention when God’s voice talks to him. We need to hear God calling us to Himself; we need to hear Him convicting us of sin through His Spirit. That’s why Jesus said that we need to be careful how we hear. He said, “Therefore take heed how you hear…” (Luke 8:18)
He also told the parable of the sower (Mathew 13:3-9), in which he explains how important it is for the seed, which is the word of God, to fall on good ground. That’s the heart that hears the word and understands it.
The Bible speaks about different kinds of sin (1 John 5:16, 17). We are not giving as an example the situation on Friday when, instead of attending a prayer meeting in your local church, you decide to watch a football game. And you do it a couple of times. God surely won’t be happy, and there might be consequences in your spiritual life, but this doesn’t even come closer to what unforgivable sin might be. But what if you decide (I’m giving random examples) not to pray at all? Never again. Can God forgive you if you persist with that attitude? I don’t think so. Or you decide willingly to neglect certain things and topics of the Bible. I’m speaking about the very basics of Christianity. Let’s say someone commits adultery as much as he wants. I’m not talking about someone falling into it and then repenting, but about someone who just carries on doing it thinking it is something ordinary. We can see from the scripture how King David committed adultery and then repented, but there were anyway still huge consequences. We also see how other kings persevered in sinning and idol worshipping and ended badly. The unforgivable sin has to do with our perseverance in sinning and not listening and accepting His warnings and truth. There is a certain condition in which God cannot work in us. He just can’t continue until we don’t change our ways. I am talking about what depends on us and the attitude we show. Of course, many things and the way He works in us depend on God, but some things depend on us. They are obviously always connected to God and go together with the way He works. When we talk of obedience, for example, we speak of obedience to His word. We talk of submission to Him. It has to do with His way. We mustn’t persevere in the attitude of hardening ourselves. This means someone willingly neglects what His word says. Even if Jesus forgives us, He expects us to turn away from our sins. This is what He often said to people after forgiving them.
“When Jesus had raised Himself up and saw no one but the woman, He said to her, “Woman, where are those accusers of yours? Has no one condemned you?” She said, “No one, Lord.” And Jesus said to her, “Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more.” (John 8:11)
This is what He expects from us after forgiving us – not to sin anymore. I mean that it will still happen to sin in our lives as sin dwells in us and our members, but we mustn’t go stubbornly over and over repeating the same sin. We might even go back to the same one; I mean, it could happen, but what is our attitude toward it? Did we really try to keep ourselves from it, and then we slipped, or did we willingly go toward it? Did we try to repent sincerely afterward, or did we take it as if everything is all right again? Because when a believer sins especially over something that he knew was wrong, he feels the consequence of that sin, he feels the correction of God, and he gets to learn something from that painful experience. He doesn’t want to be in the same condition again, to hurt God’s heart, and to feel the pain and the consequence of sin.
When a child burns itself by touching something scorching, it doesn’t do it again. We also need to learn from the lessons we’ve received after sinning. I am not saying that sinning continuously is necessary, a factor concerning blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. I am just giving an example of how a heart is being hardened. We need to see that when this was said to the Pharisees, they were in a condition of not believing at all in His words and rejecting them; I mean not only rejecting them but also believing all-heartedly that what they were hearing was wrong. This is an important factor to know.
They couldn’t be forgiven if they continued and persevered in this condition. If I don’t believe in the Spirit of Jesus and don’t believe even when He warns me about something, then there is not much that can be done. If today you see yourself sinning continuously and you’ve lost all your hope and believe you’ve lost your chances, don’t worry; just lift your head and look toward God, ask Him for forgiveness with trust and faith in your heart. There is still hope if you feel this way. The problem is when you don’t feel any remorse after sinning, or you fight this feeling, try to numb it, and continue going the same way. We also need to know that the hardening of the heart applies to people who somehow already know the truth or have heard about it, and they still persevere with the same attitude and go back to sin as much as they want.
Can God go over that and forgive us while we have this kind of attitude – to continue sinning? He might do it for some time, but as He sees that we still carry on, then He will eventually stop, and we will harden ourselves. The Bible speaks a lot about not hardening our hearts and necks (Nehemiah 9:16, 17, 2 Kings 17:14, Psalm 95:8).
When I speak about this, I refer to the verses found in chapter 6 of Hebrews.
"For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted the heavenly gift, and have become partakers of the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come, if they fall away, to renew them again to repentance, since they crucify again for themselves the Son of God, and put Him to an open shame.
For the earth which drinks in the rain that often comes upon it, and bears herbs useful for those by whom it is cultivated, receives blessing from God; but if it bears thorns and briers, it is rejected and near to being cursed, whose end is to be burned." (Hebrews 6:4-8)
There is also another passage speaking seriously about sin.
“If anyone sees his brother sinning a sin which does not lead to death, he will ask, and He will give him life for those who commit sin not leading to death. There is sin leading to death. I do not say that he should pray about that.” (1 John 5:16)
Notice that in the passage in Hebrews 6, the Holy Spirit is mentioned in v.4. He is the way God has chosen to speak and minister to us, and the Holy Spirit is not a being apart from Him, but God Himself. It has to do entirely with His words because Jesus is the word, and the Spirit, Jesus, and the Father are one. His words are inspired by the Father. The Spirit is everything God is—nothing more and nothing less. So, if we harden ourselves against it, He cannot just forget about this sin and attitude because how is He going to show us something if not through His Spirit, and how is He going to forgive our sins if not through His power that comes from His Spirit? Yes, He forgives, but the Spirit convicts us of our sins and helps us to repent. It is His work. And how can it be accomplished if we reject it?
This is my opinion, but I think the unforgivable sin has to do with our persistence in not believing and hardening ourselves. I think that while in that condition, we cannot just be forgiven. Someone must always be careful if he continues in a particular sin, thinking to ask for forgiveness one day in the future. At that time, he can be so hardened that it will not come to his heart to believe or repent. He can have a different attitude then.
Generally, to this topic, we can add the sin of Judas as well, when he betrayed Jesus. What he did was premeditated; we can see from the scripture that he already had ongoing issues within his heart. He betrayed his master. This was something greater than denying Jesus, even if that can be severe sometimes, but here we speak about betraying Jesus to be condemned and prosecuted, meaning He would no longer be with them, and Judas knew what the outcome of his actions would be. It was something premeditated, while in Peter’s situation, who denied Jesus, it was reacted upon the moment. As Christians, we can deny Jesus sometimes and be like Peter. I’m not saying this is a minor issue. We can see how Peter cried afterward and had to repent. Surely, we will be corrected by God if this happens in our life, and if someone is a Christian, I’m sure that he has already experienced that in some situation and has learned something from it. And watch out – we can be like Judas as well. This is to exchange God with something else and to turn our backs completely to Him. In Judas’ case, that was the money. He was paid to betray His master. In another case, it might be something different. We are speaking about a permanent decision that will carry on and of a style of life here, not just about not paying attention sometimes and occasionally falling into sin. Judas and Esau have exchanged God for something else. Something that was going to change completely their direction in life. It wasn’t an exchange for something small or something for the meanwhile, but a great and huge exchange. Judas sent his master to death, and Esau sold his birthright, the one granting him the blessings.
"Pursue peace with all people, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord: looking carefully lest anyone fall short of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up cause trouble, and by this many become defiled; lest there be any fornicator or profane person like Esau, who for one morsel of food sold his birthright. For you know that afterward, when he wanted to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no place for repentance, though he sought it diligently with tears." (Hebrews 12:14-17)
There should be a reason the act of Esau here is given as an example that we mustn’t do and is spoken so harshly of. It is said that he sought repentance, but he couldn’t find it. Why? Because his condition and attitude were incorrect. It is like someone looking for repentance but then still going willingly in the opposite direction of God and hardening himself. This is what it means when someone hardens himself. He keeps on not listening. Obviously, there are cases when God hardens someone, but we are speaking now of when a person hardens himself. It is different. Otherwise, God wouldn’t warn us not to harden ourselves. It is something that He asks from us. We cannot accomplish His work or believe one hundred percent relying on our own strength, but at least we mustn’t harden ourselves and reject his word.
Esau left the blessings for something so insignificant, like a plate of stew with lentils. Anything we choose instead of Jesus is insignificant. Here, it is not the value and the importance of what we exchange Jesus for but the importance of Jesus. People like Judas and Esau didn’t just slip up into something wrong but took fundamental decisions that would have changed their direction. We are speaking about the “birthright” here. Is there something wrong with a plate of stew? No. Would he have stew afterward, even if he didn’t take it at that exact moment? Yes! As much as he wanted. But we see that what he did at that precise moment and his attitude of despising his birthright were wrong.
With all of this, I am not diminishing the importance of when we occasionally fall into any other sin. Of course, it is wrong, and if we keep on doing it, there might also be a hardening of our hearts, but I’m just focusing on the kind of sin or attitude that might be really dangerous. I don’t want to be harsh with my words or to condemn, but these things might happen. There is a difference between making a mistake and taking a drastic decision against God, which can change the course of our lives. Why, then, in the Bible, is given the example of persons like Judas or Esau? They are not to be considered only like historical figures, but also to give us an example not to be like them.
In Hebrews 6:6, we see the phrase: “if they fall away, to renew them again to repentance“. It says that it is impossible for them to find repentance. This verse always made me aware and comprehend how serious God is with His authority and word. This verse is not for a condemnation but for a warning. It happens if people permanently don’t listen to His Spirit. As we already said, whoever is hardened doesn’t bother to worry much about his spiritual condition. So, he won't be worried if he has sinned or not.
It is easy for us to accept the mercy and the grace, but the one who has truly accepted His mercy also knows His authority and severity. I often thought twice before committing a particular sin, and this scripture in Hebrews 6 often stopped me from doing it. Perhaps not everyone would agree with what I am saying, but I am trying to follow what the scriptures are saying and live accordingly. I also know that I am not perfect. We cannot survive without His grace. Still, we need to know that many people have comprehended and accepted the grace after seeing how guilty they are.
In Hebrews 6, we see something similar to what Jesus said about the unforgivable sin in Matthew 12:30. We see the same meaning here. And when it mentions the phrase, “if they fall away” in Hebrews 6:6, it doesn’t just speak about committing a certain mistake, but more like remaining there or taking a permanent decision going the opposite of what the Spirit is saying. A decision that will cause you to constantly reject what the Spirit is saying. I think it speaks about something very basic someone can neglect from the Christian life. It is not about a common sin (if I can call it this way, as this sin is also something to be aware of), but about something very fundamental that is important in the Christian life. Something that if we stop doing, we won’t be able to survive. It is so important. It is what the Spirit is telling us constantly to do. Like the example I gave before with the prayer. We can stop doing it for some time, and we will feel the consequences the same as when we make some other mistake. But if we stop doing it at all, then we cannot survive. I can go to the cinema instead of attending a Sunday meeting (I use a random example). It can happen. But if this becomes a habit, all the days and exactly when my devotional time with God and the church service is, then it is something different. I turned in the wrong direction. Completely. This is like reconverting myself, as a conversion means to change direction. Now I’m changing it but choosing the wrong direction and walking that way. The consequence here can be fatal, and it will result in hardening my heart.
That’s why God never approved when people hardened their necks. It means they persisted in the wrong direction despite His warnings. I think this is concerning the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit and crucifying the Son of God again as it is written in Hebrews 6:6. A person can still be forgiven after committing these sins but needs also to change his direction completely. God however sees the attitude we have when asking Him for forgiveness. He cannot be deceived. He knows if we are sincere enough when we ask Him for help and forgiveness. The other occasional and common sins can bring us consequences, and they can be harsh too, and we need to be careful, but it is different. And with this, I am not saying that we must worry only for some sins and not for others; here, we are trying to see the difference between different kinds of attitudes. Still, we mustn’t take any sin lightly because this is how it actually starts when we take sin lightly and slowly change our direction. Certain decisions in the Christian life and ways of living can be compared to this “common sin”. Certain people would still pray and dedicate themselves to others to preach the gospel, but less and without putting so much interest and effort into it. I’m speaking about those who are born again because those who are not, cannot do these things because they are not in their hearts. The people who do not put in much effort and desire to do those things will be less blessed and suffer consequences. This can be painful sometimes, but we are not speaking at all about unforgivable sin here. This is the difference.
We can also add to this argument the passage found in Mathew 12:31, 32, where Jesus, in a way, differentiated the sin against the Holy Spirit and against the Son of Man.
“Therefore I say to you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven men. Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come.” (Matthew 12:31, 32)
The sin against the Son of Man probably has to do with something that we neglect and do because of ignorance or something we do willingly, but then our attitude is to accept that we are wrong. Is God holding us accountable for the sins done in ignorance? Yes, He is, but He definitely judges them from a different perspective, and we can say that for one to be forgiven of these sins is much easier. It is not always the action that defines how sinful a certain sin is, but the attitude with which it is done. Whenever I fell into something that I really knew was wrong, I felt horrible afterward. For falling into things we don’t know of, we also need forgiveness because God, in His nature, cannot accept sin. He doesn’t like it, nor does He accept it. Darkness and light have nothing in common. They cannot stay together. This is the nature of God. This is the sin for which He will judge the people one day. That’s why it must be cleansed and not be part of us anymore. So, the sin against the Spirit goes completely against His voice and direction, and the sin against the Son of Man is more about something done in ignorance, something that He paid for already. When talking about ignorance, I speak about not knowing clearly the consequences of a certain sin or falling into it because of our weaknesses. Whit this, I am not justifying it at all. People need to repent of the sins done in ignorance because otherwise, they will be judged because of that one day. That’s why God’s desire is not to leave us in ignorance. Our weaknesses also don’t justify us because God has provided a way for us to fight them – through the power of His Spirit. That’s why the reason we might have them is because we haven’t fed ourselves spiritually through prayer and reading His word.
Sometimes, even Christians commit the same sins until they don’t fully understand their consequence. Then they need to stop doing that because they already know. This is a part of the sanctification in which each believer must participate. We mustn’t see sanctification as something far from us. We need to desire and aim toward it, realizing our present condition. Knowing our condition at the present time before God mustn’t discourage us from pursuing sanctification. It is something impossible for us to achieve. That’s why when we see our condition, we need to go with faith before Him.
It is important to see our attitude when we sin to define sometimes the severity of the sin committed. I also know that those who have the Spirit of God see the way He rebukes them after sinning and feel the weight in their hearts. They know well the gravity of sin. Another thing is when our heart condemns us, telling us that we have sinned a lot and there is no solution. When God convicts us of sin, He might rebuke us and show us how great that sin might be, but He will also always provide a solution and invite us to repent. That is the difference. Remember that we said those who have sinned against the Spirit wouldn’t even know or care about it. They will be so hardened. But those who have not will feel guilty because they care. This happens because the Spirit is working in them. What we need to do when we feel guilty is to pray and ask God for a solution. We cannot remain in condemnation. The only way to get out of that condition is through Him. We need to ask Him: “God, please show me. Is it something that I really have done wrong or not? And if I’ve done wrong, please show me what to do. Give me a solution.” In this way, we exercise our faith.
Important for us is not to lose hope. I also know that the devil has attacked many Christians, telling them that they have sinned against the Holy Spirit and they will not make it. This is a lie. I think that if we have really sinned in this way, we will not consider the matter. The devil is trying to steal our hope. We must pray and have faith and hope. In 1 John 2:1 it is said:
“My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.”
Important for us is not to go in the opposite direction and stop listening to the voice of God, and most importantly – not to remain and persist there. We will hardly find forgiveness while persisting in not paying attention to what He is telling us through His Spirit. For example – I cannot just be forgiven if I decide not to listen to the voice of the Holy Spirit on something fundamental to the Christian life. The Holy Spirit doesn’t always come with great visions in our lives, but it also reminds us daily of basic things of the Christian life and feels satisfied with us when we obey.
“He who is faithful in what is least is faithful also in much; and he who is unjust in what is least is unjust also in much.” (Luke 16:10)
A true believer rejoices together with the Spirit and mourns together with Him. A true believer has the heart and the Spirit of Christ in his life. God cannot cohabit with certain things and go over them. He can forgive them, but then He will tell us: “Do not sin anymore”. And if we sin, we mustn’t over-condemn ourselves, but we need to examine the attitude with which we committed that sin, and we need to go boldly but humbly to Him and ask Him for forgiveness.
With this topic, I didn’t want to let anyone feel condemned, but on the contrary, to release the burden of condemnation, if I can say so, which lies on some persons so that they can understand that their sins could be forgiven by turning to God and trust in Him. On the other side, I would like to call others to awaken and react to the word of God. We all need Him in our lives.
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