Is There Unpardonable Sin?: Daily Thoughts from Mark (Mark 3:22-30)

Will Jesus forgive any and every sin?  Or can you go too far?

Jesus has been performing feats of power, healing people from diseases that had plagued them with no hope for healing in sight, casting out demons from those helplessly oppressed, and forgiving sins and thus providing the most important healing of all, the healing of the soul.  Why would anyone be upset about that?  Of course, he’s also been claiming to be the correct interpreter of the Law of Moses.

And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem were saying, “He is possessed by Beelzebul,” and “by the prince of demons he casts out the demons.” And he called them to him and said to them in parables, “How can Satan cast out Satan? If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. And if a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand. And if Satan has risen up against himself and is divided, he cannot stand, but is coming to an end. But no one can enter a strong man’s house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man. Then indeed he may plunder his house.

“Truly, I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the children of man, and whatever blasphemies they utter, but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin”—for they were saying, “He has an unclean spirit.” (Mark 3:22-30, ESV)

Once again the leaders in Israel’s religion cannot deny that Jesus is effective in casting out demons and healing people, but they are so hardened in their hearts and unwilling to see what is clearly before their faces that they disparage the source of his power to cast out demons.  They claim that what Jesus did by the power of the Holy Spirit was instead done by the power of Satan.  In other words, they are claiming Satan is trying to build up Jesus’ reputation by allowing him to appear to cast out demons, but in reality Jesus is a servant of Satan and is doing Satan’s work in order to mislead the people of Israel.  Satan is freeing people from himself, temporarily we may presume, in order to ultimately capture them.

Jesus challenges the logic of this.  If Satan is undoing his own work, tearing down his own kingdom, then his kingdom cannot last. Jesus presents another alternative, that he is one stronger than Satan and is plundering Satan’s house, fighting against Satan’s “kingdom” and winning.  The Messiah has come! 

If Jesus’ alternative is correct, then these scribes from Jerusalem have blasphemed the Holy Spirit.  They have attributed to Satan the work of the Holy Spirit.  Jesus did not cast out demons by his own power, but by the Holy Spirit’s power.  The spiritual hardness that the religious leaders of Israel have demonstrated is incapable of being softened.  They will never be forgiven.  They were responsible for pointing to the Messiah when he came and they have failed to do so even with clear evidence before their eyes.  We are not told why they are so hardened but we may guess that they see their own careers as leaders of Israel in jeopardy.  Jesus is showing up their weakness as leaders and challenging their interpretation of God’s Word, the Law.

As a side note, those who have taught that Jesus, the Father and the Spirit are one and the same person acting in different roles have a hard time explaining this passage, where Jesus clearly distinguishes himself from the Holy Spirit.  In Luke’s Gospel the distinction is even clearer.  Jesus says one can speak a word against him, can blaspheme him, and be forgiven, but the one who blasphemes the Spirit cannot (Luke 12:10).  The Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit are clearly three separate persons. [see Trinity articles]

It is still possible to commit this sin, still possible to see clearly the truth of Jesus Christ, experience his power and wisdom, and yet turn from it. Hebrews 6 describes this.  Such a person does not want and will never want to repent and believe the gospel.  This sin of hardness of heart becomes, therefore, unpardonable.  In the face of incontrovertible evidence this person has steeled his or her heart against the truth.  He or she has seen the sign that says, “This way home,” and has turned the other way.

What this also says, however, is that anyone who has a repentant heart and wants to repudiate their sin, can and will find forgiveness from Jesus.  Their very willingness to acknowledge their rebelliousness is evidence that they have not committed the unpardonable sin.