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There's one verse in the Bible which, more than most others, has caused some heated discussions:

'Therefore I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven people, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. And whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come.' (Matthew 12:31-32)

Right. So, despite many Bible promises for eternal life and forgiveness, there seems to be a clause in there. The question, of course, is: What is blasphemy against the Spirit?

Something to bear in mind...

I've heard all sorts of conclusions drawn from this verse, but haven't heard this conclusion before. That doesn't mean it's 'the wrong one', and it doesn't mean it's 'the right one'. It's just my conclusion. If you disagree with my conclusion, great; let me know! If you haven't heard anyone else's conclusion on it, why not do some research on it? There's tremendous depth to God's Word so I doubt that a couple of hundred words here has answered the question that's been around for hundreds of years.

Therefore...

I was taught as a brand new Christian that when reading the Bible 'if you see a therefore, find out what it's there for'. That was a useful piece of advice, and it's just as true here as in other Bible passages. Have a look at verse 30: 'Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters.' Jesus' statement about blasphemy against the Spirit is a conclusion based on this verse, and that's important to understanding it. Blasphemy against the Spirit is about disunity with Christ.

Isolated

The single biggest temptation with this verse is a temptation which crops up again and again. We're tempted to read verses as if they stand on their own, but they simply don't. The Bible is not like other holy books, a gathering of useful informative statements. It is God's story, which means that you can't understand one verse properly without understanding the rest of the library. It would be like switching on a tennis match, watching one shot, and immediately drawing a conclusion about each player's careers and the history of the court.

Thankfully, the Bible makes this verse easy to understand thanks to that word: unity. Here is just one passage which can help us to better understand this: 'I therefore...urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called...eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit...' (Ephesians 4:1-3)

Unity

Put simply, blasphemy against the Spirit is to deny that unity. When we split God's church, we are committing blasphemy against the Spirit. When we claim that 'only we' truly meet with God, or when we claim that we are the 'true church', we commit blasphemy against the Spirit. When we refuse to attend a local church because we claim that we can do this Christian thing alone, we commit blasphemy against the Spirit.

"Inspiration For You" from Randy Mitchell

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