“Unforgiven,” based on Mark 3:20-35 June 10, 2012 Pastor Jurchen

The Unforgivable Sin! Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, all the sins and blasphemies of men will be forgiven them. But whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven; he is guilty of an eternal sin.” Did you catch that, NEVER BE FORGIVEN. Imagine that: a sin so terrible that we would be separated from God forever, never more able to receive forgiveness. Lost and hopeless. I know of so many people who don’t believe in Jesus because they either are afraid of confessing their sins or choose to reject the notion that God does punish sins and his wrath burns against sin. In both of these cases the ultimate fear is that they won’t be forgiven. And Jesus here says that there is an unforgivable sin. So how do you know? How do you know that you haven’t committed this egregious sin against God’s law, how do you know that you haven’t committed the unforgivable sin? Because if you’re unsure, if you don’t know if you’ve blasphemed the Holy Spirit, then do you have assurance of your faith? Do you know for certain that you’re saved, that you’re in the clear when it comes to the unforgivable sin? Your eternity depends on the answer.

So what does Jesus say about the unforgivable sin? Let’s unpack this. He says that it is blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. The high school youth would tell you that I’m a stickler for biblical vocabulary, so knowing what blasphemy is is critical, and knowing how it is done to the Holy Spirit is equally critical. Blasphemy is defined as insulting or mocking something that is holy. It is one thing to insult or mock a TV show or professional sports team, which is culturally acceptable. It is another thing to insult or mock a friend, which can be playful or serious, but in both instances, hopefully trust will overcome human weakness and trust can be rebuilt. But blasphemy is a completely different category of insulting or mocking something. It’s in a different category because holy things are holy. A fundamental truth of Christianity is that there is a God and He’s not you. So if you insult God then you’re in trouble. You’re helpless and hopeless. There is no reason why God should give a rip about us anyway, if He’s God and we’re not, and so any time He does care about us it must be charity. Not because He needs us but because He cares about us, right? So if we, silly human creatures, mock and insult our creator, our only hope both now and in eternity, then that charity runs out really fast. You know what I’m talking about? Have you ever done something great for someone out of charity, like helping them move, and all they can seem to do is put you down or insult you while you’re helping? What do you do in these situations? You leave, you get out of there! That’s blasphemy.

So is your sin against God blasphemy against the Spirit? Do you insult and mock God so He just leaves you alone? For clues to the reveal for this we look to the words of Jesus in this section. This is right at the beginning of His ministry, and Jesus, this young guy, about my age actually, is walking around, teaching, but importantly here driving out demons. He’s seeking out people possessed by evil spirits and driving the evil spirits out. He’s cleansing people of demons, and there are two reactions to this. His family says that He’s out of his mind, that he’s crazy or deluded or something, and the teachers of the law say that he’s in league with the devil. These are two reactions people have to this act of Jesus: he’s a lunatic or a liar. We too have this reaction to Jesus often, don’t we? But Jesus responds to this: a house divided against itself would not stand. It’s insanity to think that Satan would drive out his demons, get in the way of his own work. Instead, Jesus says the other extreme: You think I’m crazy or in league with the devil, I say that I am not crazy, I’m actually clear headed and know exactly what I’m doing. And what is that? He’s cleaning house. That’s right. He’s going to where evil spirits are and casting them out. He’s binding the power of Satan. He’s robbing Satan of Satan’s influence. He’s defeating Satan, and He’s doing it with supernatural power. Either Jesus is telling the truth or He’s a liar. People were saying that Jesus has an evil spirit. Well, they’ve taken their stand against Jesus’ words and His authority. And what is Jesus doing as He is casting out demons? He’s reclaiming souls from the devil, the world, and our sinful flesh, that’s what He’s doing. Jesus is going around and forgiving people their sins. And in doing so He’s making people who were once lost found. You don’t find yourself if you’re lost, right? You are found. You don’t adopt yourself into a family, right? You are adopted. That’s why Jesus says that those who do the will of God, that is those who are under the will of God, those who have been claimed by God, those are His brothers and sisters, mother and father. Those who have been reclaimed from Satan. Those people, brothers and sisters, are people like you and me. They are you and me. Jesus Christ came for you. To reclaim you. Though the Cross He ultimately bound the power of Satan over your souls and rescued you. Jesus Christ has given Himself for you to adopt you and you are His. You are forgiven. You are accepted and chosen.

And so herein lies the solution to the problem of the Unforgivable Sin. The sin is rejection of the claiming power of Jesus through the Spirit. Jesus Himself said that He forgives sins, but rejection of the Spirit, calling Christ to be a lunatic or a liar, rejects that forgiveness. We have a picture of the Unforgivable sin being something that, if we’re not careful, we could do and be damned forever. Like if we just keep watch and slip up once we could do something or say something that can’t be forgiven. Wrong. Jesus desires to pour our His Spirit on us. In the Word, the message of the Cross and forgiveness, in the Lord’s Supper, in the remembrance of our Baptism, these are all ways the Spirit is poured out on us. We are lost apart from this, but we are found and forgiven when we receive it by faith, this gift of the Spirit of God in Christ. And so the Unforgiveable sin is simply not receiving the Spirit. Period. It’s not wrestling with your faith, it’s not being lazy from time to time. It’s an outright rejection. Listen, if you worry that you’re committing this, I can boldly say that you’re not. Because when you worry about your faith you are wrestling with it, and the Spirit is preparing your heart to receive the Good News that you are forgiven and accepted by God despite your imperfection. Actually, because of your sin. To commit the unforgiveable sin is to call Jesus a liar or a lunatic and to harden your heart to the Spirit. And here’s the thing, only God knows those who do this. It’s not up to us. And only the Spirit, through the Word and Sacrament can melt hearts to receive forgiveness through faith, so again it’s not up to us. But you, you who hear the words and believe, those of you who receive, rejoice in your forgiveness and salvation.

So you who worry about this sin, relax. Don’t worry, it’s not part of your world. Don’t fret about God’s faithfulness to you or ability to forgive you, that’s the point of this section. Jesus is saying that He’s in the business of reclaiming people from Satan and making them His brothers and sisters, father and mother. Did you catch that? Jesus has claimed you and poured His Spirit on you to the salvation of your eternal souls. You may struggle with issues, but this reality is clear, God in Jesus is true and faithful. He has claimed you and you are His. There is nothing that can separate you from the love of God in Christ Jesus. There are those who reject Him, but that is for God alone to know. It is for us to be bold in proclaiming our hope to all people, sinners like you and me who need to hear. And may the peace of God which passes all understanding guard your hearts and minds in this very same Christ Jesus our lord. Amen.