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Is there an unpardonable sin?
First consider dictionary definitions...
Sin - to do something that is considered wrong according to religious or moral law. Unpardonable - too bad to be pardoned or forgiven. Biblical references... Matthew 12:31-32... “Therefore I say to you, every sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven people, but blasphemy against the Spirit shall not be forgiven. And whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man, it shall be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it shall not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come." Mark 3:28-29... “Truly I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the sons and daughters of men, and whatever blasphemies they commit; but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin” Luke 12:10... "And everyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but the one who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him." 1st Timothy 1:13-14... "even though I was previously a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent aggressor. Yet I was shown mercy because I acted ignorantly in unbelief; and the grace of our Lord was more than abundant, with the faith and love which are found in Christ Jesus." John 3:16... “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish, but have eternal life." John 5:24... “Truly, truly, I say to you, the one who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life." John 6:37... "Everything that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I certainly will not cast out." Acts 10:42-43... "And He ordered us to preach to the people, and to testify solemnly that this is the One who has been appointed by God as Judge of the living and the dead. All the prophets testify of Him, that through His name everyone who believes in Him receives forgiveness of sins.” 1st John 1:9... "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous, so that He will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness." Romans 10:9... "that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved;" Isaiah 1:18... (a vision from God to Isaiah)...“Come now, and let us debate your case, ”Says the Lord,“ Though your sins are as scarlet, they shall become as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall be like wool." 2nd Peter 3:9... "The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not willing for any to perish, but for all to come to repentance." Acts 2:21... "And it shall be that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved." Discussion thoughts... dictionary definition are interesting... it suggests that "unpardonable" is not "definable"! The words "too bad" would certainly be defined differently by different people! The dictionary definition of blasphemy is "the act of insulting or showing contempt of lack of reverence for God". Matthew 12:31-32 is quite clear that whoever blasphemes against the Spirit or speaks against the Holy Spirit shall not be forgiven... this statement was directed to the Pharisees... but it applies to everyone (both "yesterday" and "today"). Jesus had just healed a demon-possessed man who was blind and unable to speak... the crowds were amazed and this upset the Pharisees... the Pharisees claimed that Jesus used the power of the Devil to heal the man. At the time Jesus was on Earth, the Pharisees were the main religious power in Palestine... they were considered a sect that was excessively strict to keeping of the Law of Moses, to the extent that they added numerous trifling rules to the "Moses Law" (that they called "traditions") that made the "Moses Law" almost, if not wholly, replaced with "their law"! The Pharisees were known for their covetousness, self-righteousness and hypocrisy. The Pharisees did not like this "upstart" Jesus "upstaging" their religious dominance. Jesus loves everyone but he did not like the Pharisees man-made traditions, so it is understandable why he made the Matthew statement... however, Jesus used the word "whoever" which would imply that Jesus was not talking "just" to the Pharisees. What we need to understand here is that it was not the man Jesus who healed the demon-possessed man but it was the Holy Spirit that did the healing... so when the Pharisees spoke against the Holy Spirit it was unforgivable! Complicating this discussion are some scholars who say blasphemy is only unpardonable after a person receives the Holy Spirit and then blasphemes the Holy Spirit... other scholars point out that the Pharisees had not received the Holy Spirit but Jesus told them in Matthew they would not be forgiven! Mark 3:28-29 is a similar situation where Jesus healed a man with a withered hand and the Pharisees began conspiring against Him, as to how they might put Him to death. Jesus then spoke about the healing to the scribes (most scribes were Pharisees but some were Sadducces) and said "whoever" blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness! Luke 12:10 is another situation where Jesus was talking with the scribes and Pharisees and again Jesus said "the one" who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him. Matthew 12:31-32, Mark 3:28-29 & Luke 12:10 Jesus spoke these words; which are quite clear that blasphemes of the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven! 1st Timothy 1:13-14 Paul's letter to Timothy is very clear that since his (Paul's) blasphemy was before he became a Christian he was forgiven!
Notice that Paul did not say blasphemy of the Holy Spirit... there are many kinds of blasphemy... the dictionary definition of blasphemy is "the act of insulting or showing contempt of lack of reverence for God"... again going back to the Matthew, Mark and Luke scriptures they state that "other" blasphemy will be forgiven! As you read and study what scholars and pastors tell their congregations we find that most everyone tells their congregation that if a person is "fearful" that they have committed the unpardonable sin, they have not... being "fearful" means they have not committed the sin! (I am not sure I agree with their logic... I find no scripture suggesting their logic... I agree that sometimes the scriptures written 1000's of years ago are sometimes difficult to relate to "today's" needs!... the detailed specifics of the "unpardonable sin" are difficult to understand!) Let's take this one step further... but first read a separate study called ("When did the Holy Spirit first exist?")... that study explains that the "Holy Spirit" (sometimes called by a different name) has existed since time began... some people seem surprised at that... and the study also shows how the "trinity" fits in this discussion! And also read another separate study called ("When did Jesus first exist?")... this study may be a little harder to accept... it certainly is a story that has not been told by any sermon that I have heard. To put all this together... Matthew 12:31-32 says it best "... “whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it shall not be forgiven him"... the struggle here is that the many scriptures listed above are specific that blasphemy and many, many many "other" sins are forgivable... so exactly what makes "blasphemy of the Holy Spirit" sin unforgivable? My personal belief is that once a person understands what the Holy Spirit is and then "speaks against the Holy Spirit" he (or she) has blasphemed the Holy Spirit and they will not ever be forgiven! --- Saint Paul's conversion as described in 1st Timothy 1:13-14 quoted above seems to confirm my belief... it would appear that Paul was ignorant about the Holy Spirit even though he admits he was a blasphemer (the scripture is not completely specific about what he did or did not believe... but it does say he "acted ignorantly in unbelief")... my personal belief is that if he had blasphemed the Holy Spirit with knowledge of what the Holy Spirit was, God would not have forgiven him!
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