Good morning, guys. My name is Ed. If I haven't gotten a chance to meet you, I am a pastoral resident here at Trinity Cambridge.
! It's my joy and honor to preach God's word.
We're going to continue on in our Matthew series as we open up our Bibles.
We're in Matthew 12, verses 22 to 37.
Matthew 12, 22 to 37.
Let me pray for the reading and preaching of God's word.
Heavenly Father,
it is not lost on me
that someone who was once your enemy
is now seated at your table.
A man that is always running to the far country
is always welcomed back.
That's your mercy.
That's your kindness.
And it is your mercy and kindness to give us your word.
Lord,
and even to give us a passage like this
that has such a weighty
and serious warning for us
that there are consequences to sin.
And you warn us because you love us, Lord.
We pray,
give us soft hearts,
open ears,
teach us,
address us by your word.
May we not reject your Holy Spirit,
but let him move within us today
to cut us to the heart,
to lead us to repentance
for your glory
and for our good.
We look to you.
In Jesus' name we pray.
Amen.
If you are able,
please rise for the reading of God's word.
starting from verse 22.
Then a demon oppressed man
who was blind and mute
was brought to him
and he healed him
so that the man spoke and saw.
And all the people were amazed
and said,
can this be the son of David?
But when the Pharisees heard it,
they said,
it is only by Beelzebul,
the prince of demons,
that this man casts out demons.
Knowing their thoughts,
he said to them,
every kingdom divided against itself
is laid waste
and no city or house
divided against itself will stand.
And if Satan casts out Satan,
he is divided against himself.
How then will his kingdom stand?
And if I cast out demons by Beelzebul,
by whom do your sons cast them out?
Therefore they will be your judges.
But if it is by the spirit of God
that I cast out demons,
then the kingdom of God
has come upon you.
Or how can someone enter
a strong man's house
and plunder his goods
unless he first binds the strong man
then indeed he may plunder his house.
Whoever is not with me
is against me
and whoever does not gather with me
scatters.
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.
Either make the tree good
and its fruit good
or make the tree bad
and its fruit bad
for the tree is known
by its fruit.
You brood of vipers,
how can you speak good
when you are evil?
For out of the abundance
of the heart
the mouth speaks.
The good person
out of his good treasure
brings forth good
and the evil person
out of his evil treasure
brings forth evil.
I tell you,
on the day of judgment
people will give account
for every careless word
they speak.
For by your words
you will be justified
and by your words
you will be condemned.
This is God's holy
and authoritative word.
You may be seated.
Growing up,
one of my favorite things to do
was to play video games.
As Mario, Sonic, Mega Man,
you get lost.
You play for hours on end.
You can get stuck.
You can get lost.
You can die.
But rest assured,
because of video games
unique feature,
you can reset.
There is a reset button.
But life is not like video games.
You don't get a reset button
when you make mistakes.
And the longer you live,
the more instances
that you just collect,
you amass of
times you wish
you could hit rewind,
times you wish
you had that reset button.
We feel that most particularly
with our words,
don't we?
Words are easy to say,
but they're hard to hear often.
They're light on our tongue,
but fall heavy on our hearts.
There are a million things
that we wish
in our lifetimes
that we could take back,
but no,
those words are out in the open,
never to return back
to your mouth.
We know the power of words,
don't we?
You've seen this time and time again
in the news.
You can lose your job,
your status,
your friendships,
your marriage,
your ministry,
all because
of your words,
maybe even a single
utterance of words.
But what about
your state
for eternity?
Pastor John Piper,
he recounts a story
about a woman
who sought his counsel
desperately.
And she recounts
the story about
when she was a young teenager,
she got into
a really bad fight
with her mom,
who was a Christian,
and so to try to stick it to her,
she locked herself
in her room,
locked herself
in her closet,
and tried to come up
with every swear word,
every oath
against the Holy Spirit
that she could come up with.
And now,
decades later,
she's coming before Piper,
plagued with that memory.
because of this passage
that we just read
this morning.
Our passage
this morning
speaks about
how blaspheming
against the Holy Spirit
will not
be forgiven
either in this age
or in the age
to come.
Has she committed
the unforgivable
sin
before God?
Has she doomed
herself to
eternal hell fire
because of this
single utterance
of words?
How much
she wished
she could hit
that reset button?
And this woman's
not alone.
Many Christians
have shuddered
from this passage
at the thought
that your eternal destiny
is sealed
because
you may have committed
the unforgivable
sin.
Maybe you feared
that yourself.
but by the grace
of God
I believe
this passage
as weighty
and serious
as it is
it contains
hope.
Hope for all
of us
who repent
in the name
of Jesus Christ
by the power
of the Holy Spirit.
And that's the main
point of my sermon
today is
to respond
in repentance
when the Holy Spirit
points you
to Christ.
to understand
what the
unforgivable sin
is and isn't
we have to
understand it
properly
in its context.
And so we'll
break down
this passage
into the various
stages of this
conflict that Jesus
has with the Pharisees.
And first
we'll look at
the charge
where we see
the Pharisees
charge against
Jesus.
Then Jesus'
counter
against them.
And finally
the pronouncement
of the consequence
that Jesus
makes
against the Pharisees.
Let's
set the scene.
Right before this
Jesus withdraws
from a synagogue
because the Pharisees
decide for
the first time
in the book
of Matthew
to conspire
against him
how to destroy him.
That's what
verse 12 says.
Up to this point
in Matthew
there's tension
there's argument
there's debate
but never
was there
an intent
to cause
bodily harm.
You can see
their tension
their fighting
is only ramping
up now
and it'll
continue to
grow and
grow until
words
turn into
weapons.
And a conflict
that just started
in mere debate
ends up
with someone
dying.
Verse 22
with not much
detail
efficiently
and
effectively
explains
the setting
and the reason
for Jesus'
next clash
with the Pharisees.
A man
oppressed
by a demon
is blind
and mute.
A man
he's crippled
physically
and probably
financially
relationally.
He's brought
before Jesus
and we read
just
when we
just
read
how
Jesus
gentle
and lowly
he will
never
break
a bruised
reed
nor
quench
a smoldering
wick
in verse
20.
So holding
up to
that description
Jesus
looks upon
this poor
pitiful
man
and heals
him from
his blindness
and muteness
by exercising
by casting
out this
demon.
And let
not the
brevity
of this
account
take anything
away from
its
exceptionality.
In fact
I think
the simplicity
of the
description
is to
match
really
the ease
at which
Jesus
casts out
this demon.
As we'll
read later
on the
Jews
they were
familiar
with demon
exorcisms.
They've
heard of
them
they maybe
even have
witnessed
them
but
compared
to these
exorcists
there's
something
in particular
that the
crowd sees
in Jesus.
Something
that sets
him apart
from the
rest.
Because
Jesus
heals
this man
with
great
authority.
Authority
that the
Jews
have
never
seen
before.
And
that's
precisely
why
the
reaction
to
Jesus
is that
they
start
to
wonder
whether
Jesus
could
be
the
long
awaited
foretold
Messiah.
And you
have to
understand
really
the
grand
lofty
prophecy
that they
think
Jesus
is
fulfilling.
The Jews
believed that
David
would
usher
in
eschatological
eternal
everlasting
peace for
the nation
of Israel.
Only the
most
exceptional
extraordinary
man should
ever be
considered
to fit
that bill.
God
But as
crazy as
it is
to think
that this
Galilean
carpenter
this
nobody
could be
the next
David
the Jews
they're the
ones that
are right.
They're
the ones
that are
starting to
connect
the dots.
But
then
directly
compare
the crowd's
reactions
to that
of the
Pharisees
with their
new
founded
resolve
to
destroy
Jesus
they
start
speaking
insidious
lies
into the
ears of
the people
to deceive
them and to
drive them
away from
Jesus.
Crafty
and cunning
they know
that they
can't argue
against the
power of
Jesus.
No that's
too visible
for everyone
to see.
And so
they resort
to the
only line
of attack
that's
available
for them
to question
what is
invisible
the origin
of that
power.
They claim
that Jesus
only performed
this miracle
because he
is endowed
with the
power of
Beelzebul
by the
prince of
demons.
They claim
that he
is a
son and
a servant
of Satan.
This is
an ancient
example of
fear-mongering.
They influence
and manipulate
the crowd
telling them
don't be
swayed.
Jesus is
not the
son of
David but
he is
the son
of Satan
himself.
If you
follow him
he will
lead you
to eternal
hellfire.
Now it
seems like
this line
of accusation
was a
key play
for the
Pharisees
because this
is not the
first time
that you
read this
in the
book of
Matthew
but in
reality
the
third
time
but each
time
before this
Jesus
didn't
address
it
he
let
it
lie
but now
with their
conflict
ramping up
knowing their
malicious
thoughts
and their
wicked
intentions
as the
beginning
of verse
25
says
Jesus
knows
their
intentions
he
addresses
their
claim
head
on
and
he
does
it
without
pulling
any
punches
he
exposes
it
for the
wicked
lie
that it
is
he
does
so
by
countering
with
two
specific
reasons
that we
read
in
verses
25
to
29
first
Jesus
draws
on
common
sense
any
kingdom
city
house
divided
against
itself
cannot
stand
in
1858
Abraham
Lincoln
before he
was
president
he
quoted
this
passage
in a
speech
to warn
that the
United
States
could
not
stand
if it
was
divided
on this
issue
of
slavery
between
the
north
and
the
south
and
we
ourselves
know
in
our
history
the
damage
the
destruction
that the
civil
war
caused
how
much
blood
was
shed
it's
common
sense
this is
an
obvious
argument
it is
absurd
that
Satan
would
sabotage
those
in his
own
household
his
own
kingdom
Satan
isn't
dumb
it
makes
no
sense
that he
would
shoot
himself
in the
foot
like
this
and
then we
move
on to
the
second
reason
verse
27
where
Jesus
points
out
that
their
own
sons
cast
out
demons
again
this
was
a
known
part
of
Jewish
life
you
see
an
example
of
this
in
scripture
in
Acts
19
with
the
sons
of
Sceva
who
are
these
itinerant
Jewish
exorcists
and
they
unsuccessfully
try to
cast out
a demon
there
we
have
evidence
outside
of
the
Bible
in
the
famous
first
century
Jewish
historian
Josephus
when he
testifies
himself
to
witnessing
exorcists
or
exorcisms
If
these
Jewish
exorcists
cast out
demons
and they're
seen
generally
as doing
good
things
and if
Jesus
is
performing
the
exact
same
thing
then
what is
up with
double
standard
here
guys?
why is
what
they're
doing
of
God
and
what
Jesus
is
doing
of
Satan?
A
recent
New York
Times
article
explains
how
in
India
though
the
constitution
should
allow
and give
Christians
the right
to openly
practice
and preach
their
religion
anti-conversion
laws
which
in name
supposedly
ban
the
conversion
efforts
of
all
and
every
religions
in
India
are
specifically
prejudiced
against
Christianity
these
anti-conversion
laws
are so
loosely
written
that
virtually
any
church
activity
could
be
considered
illegal
with
up to
10
years
in
prison
one
Christian
said
you
could
get
thrown
in
jail
for
giving
somebody
ice
cream
these
laws
even
allow
Hindu
extremists
to
storm
and
raid
churches
and
attack
Christians
meanwhile
the
double
standard
in
upholding
these
anti-conversion
laws
allow
Hindu
Gar-Wapsi
campaigns
which
translates
in Hindu
returning
home
these
campaigns
to set
out to
reconvert
Christians
back to
Hinduism
and
it
does
so
without
any
hindrance
from
the
gospel
or
from
the
government
and
the
article
a
Christian
farmer
there
questioned
I
just
don't
get
it
what
is
what
we
do
that
makes
them
hate
us
so
much
and
Jesus
could
have
been
wondering
the
same
exact
thing
here
what
is
it
that
he
did
that
is
so
wrong
their
accusation
makes
no
sense
which
is
why
Jesus
says
here
that
their
exorcists
will
be
their
judge
they
stand
as
a
reminder
that
they
are
operating
under
a
double
standard
and
what
they're
saying
makes
absolutely
no
sense
and
so
if
Jesus
is
not
casting
out
demons
by
demonic
power
then
what
is
actually
happening
Jesus
asked
the
Pharisees
to
consider
a
different
possibility
by
clarifying
it
is
not
by
Satan
but
by
the
spirit
himself
that
he
casts
out
demons
again
last
week
we
read
how
Jesus
fulfilled
this
prophecy
in
Isaiah
42
and
specifically
verse 18
says
I will
put my
spirit
upon him
you
now read
of the
evidence
of that
prophecy
and
again
this
should
have
been
self
evident
what
happened
when
Satan
seized
this
man
his
health
his
well
being
his
life
suffered
dramatically
and that's
what
Satan
does
he
brings
ruin
destruction
to
anything
and
anyone
that he
touches
my
personal
experience
with
exorcisms
!
demonization
is
limited
but
in
every
instance
it is
clear
this
afflicted
person
is
seriously
struggling
it's
plain for
anyone
to see
Christian
non-Christian
that this
person
needs
help
their
families
suffer
their
life
suffers
their
health
suffers
they
can't
hold
a
job
they
can't
go
to
school
but
when
the
spirit
of
God
moves
do
you know
what
he
does
when
he
moves
he
brings
recovery
restoration
renewal
that's
what the
spirit
of
God
is
known
for
this
is
self
evident
and
the
Pharisees
should
have
known
this
and
if
it
is
by
the
spirit
of
God
that
Jesus
is
performing
these
miracles
then
he
explains
how
this
is
evidence
that
the
kingdom
of
God
has
come
the
kingdom
of
God
has
broken
in
Matthew
typically
uses
the
phrase
kingdom
of
heaven
throughout
his
gospel
over
30
times
he
uses
that
particular
phrase
but
on
rare
occasions
he
uses
the
phrase
kingdom
of
God
instead
to
emphasize
God's
personal
rule
over
his
kingdom
and
here
Matthew
is
intentionally
setting
up
a
contrast
between
the
leaders
of
these
two
kingdoms
!
that
you
read
about
on
the
one
hand
you
have
the
kingdom
of
Satan
and
the
other
you
have
the
kingdom
of
God
and
it's
clear
the
old
has
passed
and
the
new
has
come
because
the
kingdom
of
God
has
broken
in
Jesus
explains
that
the
reason
he
can
cast
out
Satan's
servants
is
that
he's
already
stronger
than
Satan
himself
and
if
you're
already
stronger
than
the final
boss
of a
video
game
it's
game
over
there's
nothing
left
to be
played
it's
an
argument
really
from
lesser
to
greater
!
in
his
words
we're
reminded
that
we
need
to
think
rightly
about
Satan
about
this
spiritual
war
that
we
wage
and
when
it
comes
to
thinking
and
dealing
with
Satan
Christians
today
make
one
or
two
errors
the
first
one
is
underestimating
Satan
Jesus
says
clearly
in
verse
26
Satan
has
a
kingdom
Ephesians
2
calls
him
the
prince
of
the
power
of
the
air
to
describe
his
spiritual
authority
his
pervasive
influence
over
the
world
the
entire
world
we
often
think
that
spiritual
warfare
demonization
it only
goes
on in
an
overseas
context
and
mission
fields
but at
home
in
the
West
it's
not
something
we need
to
worry
about
it's
not
something
we need
to
concern
ourselves
with
but
nothing
could be
further
from
the
truth
hear
how
Paul
describes
our
enemy
in
Ephesians
6
we
do
not
wrestle
against
flesh
and
blood
but
against
the
rulers
the
authorities
the
cosmic
powers
over
this
present
darkness
over
against
the
spiritual
forces
of
evil
in
the
heavenly
places
these
are
no
easy
light
small
descriptors
brothers
and
sisters
we
have
an
enemy
that
is
active
today
and in
any
battle
we would
be
at a
disadvantage
if we
did not
properly
size up
our
enemy
in the
same way
we ought
to not
flippantly
casually
think of
Satan
our
adversary
the devil
is prowling
around
like a
roaring
lion
looking
for
anyone
to
devour
but
if
the
first
error
is to
underestimate
Satan
the
second
is to
over
estimate
him
it's
clear
that
Satan
does
have
some
power
some
control
over
the
present
age
even
now
but
it
is
a
limited
controlled
authority
it's
like
he's
on
a
leash
he
never
does
anything
apart
from
the
sovereign
will
of
our
heavenly
father
and
while
he
does
wage
war
against
the
church
of
Christ
we
know
and
believe
that
he
who
is
in
us
is
greater
than
he
who
is
in
the
world
so
while
we
take
Satan
and
his
kingdom
seriously
there
is
absolutely
no
reason
to
fear
him
because
Christians
we can
put on
the
full
armor
of
God
and
wage
war
against
the
evil
one
and
have
victory
if
we
stand
firm
against
him
he
will
flee
from
us
German
theologian
Henrik
Schleyer
is quoted
saying
Christ
has
left
the
devil
only
whatever
power
our
unbelief
allows
him
so
we
wage
war
with
the
faith
and
trust
in
the
power
of
Christ
so
the
10,000
foot
overview
we've
now
seen
the
charge
now
the
counter
we'll
look
now
to
the
consequence
there
are
consequences
because
there
is no
neutral
ground
when it
comes
to
Jesus
it
is
entirely
binary
You
either
are
with
Jesus
or
you
are
against
Jesus
and
if
you're
not
with
Jesus
the
implication
is that
you are
on the
other
side
with
Satan
himself
and
this
passage
in
reality
is
soaked
in
divine
irony
the
Pharisees
who
accuse
Jesus
of
being
a
servant
of
Satan
are
actually
the
ones
they're
actually
the
ones
who
are
under
the
influence
of
the
prince
of
the
power
of
the
air
Jesus
speaks
a
scathing
rebuke
against
the
Pharisees
in
John
8
he
says
you
are
of
your
father
the
devil
and
your
will
is
to
do
your
father's
desires
he
does
not
stand
in
the
truth
because
there
is
no
truth
in
him
when
he
lies
he
speaks
out
of
his
own
character
for
he
is
a
liar
and
the
father
of
lies
in
our
passage
Jesus
even
calls
them
a
brood
of
vipers
and
he
straight
up
calls
them
evil
which
is
the
same
word
that's
used
to
describe
Satan
as
the
evil
one
and
if
you
are
truly
with
Jesus
you
don't
just
talk
the
talk
but
you
walk
the
walk
you
work
alongside
him
to
gather
and
to
seek
the
lost
just
like
his
chosen
disciples
are
doing
but
again
compare
them
to
the
Pharisees
see
what
they're
doing
right
now
the
crowd
they're
at
a
pivotal
moment
they're
beginning
to
wonder
if
Jesus
is
their
coming
king
but
right
when
they're
starting
to
connect
the
dots
you
know
what
the
Pharisees
are
doing
they
pounce
with
lies
with
manipulation
with
fear
mongering
not
to
gather
but
to
scatter
the
people
away
from
Jesus
this
is
evil
satanic
work
and
for
their
words
they
will
flee
and
they
themselves
will
be
scattered
on
judgment
day
with
that
context
set
we
now
come
to
the
difficult
verses
in
verse
31
32
which
are
about
the
unforgivable
sin
in
blaspheming
!
against
the
Holy
Spirit
because
of its
difficulty
some
try to
soften
Jesus'
words
in
saying
that
this
sin
is
just
really
hard
to
forgive
or
it's
really
rare
to
forgive
but
that's
not
what
Jesus
is
saying
his
words
are
decisive
He
says
this
sin
will
not
be
forgiven
in
this
age
or
in
the
age
to
come
it
is
eternally
unforgivable
!
But
this
passage
does
unreasonably
and
unjustifiably
strike
fear
into
the
hearts
of
many
believers
because
by
and
large
I
believe
this
passage
has
been
misunderstood
and
misapplied
out
of its
context
the
first
word
the
therefore
that you
read
there
reminds
us
to
connect
these
verses
to
the
context
that
we
just
read
about
to
look
upon
this
blind
mute
man
to
see
him
see
and
speak
again
to
see
him
released
from
demonic
bondage
to
call
the
amazing
self
evident
goodness
of
God
in
Jesus
Christ
through
the
power
of
the
Holy
Spirit
to
call
that
demonic
satanic
hellish
diabolical
vile
atrocious
there is
something
extremely
wrong
here
something
broken
in these
Pharisees
Isaiah
520
is apt
it says
woe
to
those
who
call
evil
good
and
good
evil
who
put
darkness
for
light
and
light
for
darkness
who
put
bitter
for
sweet
and
sweet
for
bitter
if
they
are
calling
evil
good
and
good
evil
truly
what
hope
is
there
for
them
if
to
them
two
plus
two
equals
negative
four
on
what
basis
can
you
reason
with
them
there
is
nothing
you
can
do
to
convince
them
for
if
down
is
up
and
up
is
down
in
their
warped
distorted
minds
though
their
eyes
might
see
good
it
gets
translated
into
something
evil
that
was
the
context
before
now
let's
look
at
the
context
after
these
verses
in
verses
33
to
35
Jesus
has
already
drawn
the
same
analogy
earlier
on
in
the
Sermon
on
the
Mount
where
he
condemned
false
prophets
and
this
time
he
uses
the
same
analogy
to
condemn
the
Pharisees
the
holy
and
the
esteemed
ones
of
Israel
pointing
to
the
fact
that
the
Pharisees
accusation
it's
not
a
simple
mistake
it's
not
a
momentary
slip
up
slip
up
bad
fruit
is
evidence
of
being
a
bad
tree
there
are
thrice
repeated
deliberate
and
heinous
accusations
come
out
of
an
evil
hardened
heart
for
out
of
the
abundance
of
the
heart
the
mouth
speaks
and
these
trees
are
consistently
persistently
bad
which
only
produces
bad
fruit
and
bad
speech
Jesus
even
switches
!
up
the
analogy
in
verse
35
to
a
secret
treasure
he
speaks
about
a
secret
treasure
there
but
the
idea
is
the
same
the
words
that
we
speak
the
visible
fruit
of
our
lives
bring
to
light
what
is
hidden
inside
and
from
that
context
I
think
we
have
to
understand
that
the
blasphemy
!
against
the
Holy
Spirit
seems
not
to be
the
cause
but
the
result
the
culmination
the
final
fruit
demonstrating
ultimate
persistent
hard-heartedness
and rebellion
against God
it's not
the cause
it's not that
you can
accidentally
slip up
and blaspheme
against the
Holy Spirit
and then
you're done
your eternal
fate is sealed
it's not like
that
but it
is the
final
confirmation
that you
are indeed
a bad
tree
bearing
bad
fruit
that's
ultimately
why this
particular
sin
won't
ever
be
forgiven
because
when one
blasphemes
against
the
Spirit
it's
confirmation
of his
eyes
cold
frostbitten
heart
that will
never
find
the
place
of
repentance
again
so the
reason
you
won't
be
forgiven
is
because
you
won't
ever
repent
for
truly
a
bad
tree
will
never
be
able
to
produce
the
good
fruit
of
repentance
that's
also
key
to
understanding
the
next
verse
in
verse
32
why
Jesus
says
that
if
you
blaspheme
against
him
it
will
be
forgiven
but
if
you
blaspheme
against
the
Holy
Spirit
it
won't
be
forgiven
I
spent
a
long
time
trying
to
understand
this
verse
it's
clearly
not
because
the
son
is
inferior
to
the
Holy
Spirit
so
then
what
does
this
verse
mean
I
think
the
key
to
understanding
this
verse
lies
in
the
differences
in
the
roles
that
the
Trinity
play
each
person
of
the
triune
Godhead
and
while
each
person
of
the
Trinity
is
fully
God
they
do
play
different
functions
they
play
different
roles
in
creation
and
in
salvation
for
example
the
father
did
not
die
on
the
cross
the
son
did
and
the
son
did
not
send
the
father
the
father
sent
the
son
succinctly
put
the
father
originates
the
son
accomplishes
and
the
spirit
completes
it
is
the
spirit's
unique
role
then
to
apply
and
to
complete
the
work
of
the
son
who
is
sent
by
the
father
to
spiritually
dead
hard
hardened
people
like
us
to
open
our
eyes
and
to
grant
repentance
to
breathe
new
life
into
us
so
if
we
blaspheme
against
the
holy
spirit
who
is
there
left
then
to
save
you
if
we
persistently
reject
all
of the
spirit's
appeals
to
repent
over
and
over
and
over
again
brothers
and
sisters
there
is
a
line
in
the
sand
that
if
you
cross
there
is
no
point
of
turning
back
in
extreme
cold
you
will
go
through
four
stages
of
frostbite
the
first
is
frostnip
where
your
skin
is
cold
turns
red
you
can
get
a
little
tingly
the
next
is
superficial
frostbite
where
the
skin
will
turn
pale
and
hard
then
you
progress
to
deep
frostbite
where
the
skin
and
the
underlying
tissues
turn
solid
if
you
still
cannot
get
warm
by
that
point
you
will
progress
to
fourth
degree
frostbite
where
you
are
frozen
down
to
the
bone
at
every
point
before
this
last
stage
there
is
at
least
a
chance
that
you
can
regain
feeling
if
you
can
get
warm
again
but
if
you
progress
to
fourth
degree
frostbite
there
is
no
return
there
is
permanent
irreversible
damage
in the
same
way
it
is
possible
to
back
slide
so
long
so
deeply
that
you
lose
the
ability
to
repent
if
you
continually
reject
the
work
of
the
Holy
Spirit
pointing
you
to
Christ
if
you
reject
the
warmth
that
he
alone
offers
you
get
closer
and
closer
to
that
point
of
no
return
so
putting
all that
we know
together
here's
my
definition
of
the
blasphemy
against
the
Holy
Spirit
it's
taken
largely
from
Jonathan
Pennington
it is
a
specific
informed
malicious
irreversible
and
final
rejection
of the
Holy
Spirit
in
declaring
that
the
work
and
person
of
Jesus
Christ
is
demonic
in
nature
so
if
you
are
here
today
and
you
know
you
haven't
repented
of your
sins
but
you
feel
the
Holy
Spirit
compelling
you
to
turn
to
Christ
to
believe
on
him
for
the
salvation
of
your
souls
do
not
delay
today
if
you
hear
his
voice
do
not
harden
your
hearts
if
you
feel
the
pangs
of
guilt
and
shame
though
it
is
painful
praise
God
because
sin
has
not
numbed
you
beyond
repair
medically
speaking
when you
deal
with
an
injury
feeling
pain
is
bad
but
feeling
no
pain
is
much
worse
only
truly
the
dead
feel
nothing
so
those
pangs
of
guilt
they're
a sign
of
life
and
life
always
has
hope
so
if
you
know
that
there's
something
you
ought
to
repent
of
but
you've
been
dragging
your
feet
make
no
more
delay
brothers
and
sisters
while the
spirit
compels
you to
turn to
Christ
make
no
delay
for
the
Puritan
preacher
Richard
Baxter
once
said
the
longer
your
delay
the
more
your
sin
gets
strength
and
rooting
if
you
cannot
bend
a
twig
how
will
you
be
able
to
bend
it
when
it
is
a
tree
given
our
definition
this
means
that
the
blasphemy
of
the
spirit
is
not
it's
not
just
an
instance
of
swearing
using
God's
name
in
vain
or
careless
joke
about
the
Holy
Spirit
nor
is
it
committing
a
grievous
sin
like
adultery
murder
or
abortion
nor
is it
a
sin
let
me
be
loud
and
clear
you
haven't
you
have
not
blasphemed
against
the
Holy
Spirit
if
you
have
any
sense
of
remorse
or
desire
to
repent
it
is
clear
that
you
nor
the
woman
that
John
Piper
counseled
haven't
committed
this
eternal
sin
for
if
you
commit
this
sin
it
is
always
paired
with
lifelong
stubborn
rejection
of all
things
good
and
godly
and
a
refusal
to
repent
forever
so
we
remember
the
context
Jesus
is
not
warning
his
devoted
disciples
or the
curious
crowd
but
to
the
fiendish
Pharisees
to
the
men
who
are
currently
conspiring
against
him
how to
destroy
him
this
is
what
the
warning
is
intended
for
this
is
who
the
warning
is
intended
for
it
is
a
warning
not
primarily
for
the
stumbling
believer
with a
tender
conscience
but
it's
for
the
blind
arrogant
proud
enemies
of
Christ
I
wonder
if
our
misapplication
and
our
misunderstanding
of this
verse
is
not
just
because
we've
ripped
this
passage
out of
context
and
thrown it
any
which
way
but
it's
because
we
actually
wonder
that
God
is
like
this
he's
really
this
vindictive
trifling
we
read
this
passage
and
tremble
in
fear
because
we
think
God
is
this
overly
scrupulous
all-seeing
eye
who is
all too
eager
to
pounce
upon
our
sin
all too
eager
to find
that
one
small
tiny
error
that
leads
to
damnation
and
death
but
that's
not
the
meaning
of
our
passage
nor
the
character
of
our
gracious
God
while
this
passage
is
sobering
about
what
will
not
be
forgiven
!
and
we
do
want
to
feel
the
weight
of
that
warning
it
is
important
to
pause
and
to
meditate
on
what
is
clearly
stated
of
what
will
be
forgiven
what
is
crystal
clear
in this
passage
is
good
news
for
us
repentant
sinners
very
good
news
indeed
for
we
have
the
assurance
that
if
we
repent
every
sin
and
blasphemy
will
be
forgiven
I
want
you
to
observe
the
imbalanced
ratio
of
what
will
and
won't
be
forgiven
Jesus
says
that
every
sin
but
one
will
be
forgiven
what
will
be
forgiven
is
vastly
greater
than
what
won't
be
forgiven
Satan
will
do
anything
we
talked
about
this
Satan
will
do
anything
to
attack
God's
people
and
he
does
this
by
manipulating
and
twisting
God's
words
it's
clear
that
you
see
it
right
in
the
beginning
of
scripture
in
the
garden
God
gave
Adam
and
Eve
the
freedom
to
eat
of
all
the
trees
in
the
garden
all
but
one
and
what
does
Satan
do
Satan
twists
that
into
saying
did
God
actually
say
you
shall
not
eat
of
any
tree
in
the
garden
when
in
fact
God
said
you
may
surely
eat
of
every
tree
all
but
one
in
the
same
way
Satan
can
twist
the
generosity
and
the
graciousness
of
Jesus
he could
twist
this
passage
in
saying
that
every
sin
and
blasphemy
except
for the
one
will be
forgiven
that's
what this
passage
says
but
he
twists
it
to
make
us
think
that
God
is
harsh
unforgiven
and
won't
forgive
us
of
any
sin
we
are
supposed
to
walk
away
with
a
sobering
warning
but
we'd
be
remiss
not
to
acknowledge
God's
radical
generous
mercy
if we
walk
away
thinking
that
God
is
so
strict
so
harsh
so
unforgiving
pitying
the Pharisees
rather than
thinking
that
blaspheming
against
the
spirit
is
such
a
wicked
and
heinous
sin
then
we
are
missing
the
point
this
passage
also
highlights
Christ's
radical
humility
when he
says
that
every
word
spoken
against
him
will
be
forgiven
he
is
the
son
of
God
incarnate
the
preeminent
one
the
alpha
and the
omega
the
beginning
and the
end
the
lord
of
heaven
and
earth
but
he
says
that
everything
spoken
against
him
will
be
forgiven
I
have
never
met
nor
will
I
meet
a
single
person
so
open
hearted
so
loving
so
secure
so
strong
so
patient
and
so
gracious
to
say
to
say
that
I
can
take
anything
that
you
throw
at
me
any
nasty
remark
any
betrayal
any
repeated
offense
even up
to
70
times
70
times
I
can
and
I
will
forgive
you
we
all
have
a
limit
of
how
much
we
can
forgive
and
without
the
spirit
supernatural
help
we'll
find
that
limit
is
embarrassingly
small
but
for
all
who
repent
the
grace
of
Jesus
Christ
is
a
well
that
we
can
draw
from
time
and
time
and
time
again
never
to
reach
the
bottom
and
there
is
no
greater
evidence
and
assurance
of
that
forgiveness
that
eternal
forgiveness
that we
have
in
Jesus
Christ
than
the
cross
because
only
Jesus
suffered
bled
and died
on the
cross
and he
resurrected
on the
third
day
do we
have
the
assurance
that
every
sin
every
blasphemy
will
be
forgiven
through
the
cross
Jesus
offers
us
that
seemingly
unfair
video game
like
reset
button
to wipe
away
all
our
sins
to
toss
them
to
the
bottom
of
the
sea
to
remember
them
no
more
and
throughout
our
Christian
life
it's
clear
that
we
have
the
complete
finished
work
of
Christ
and
because
of
that
the
forgiveness
that we
have
is
absolutely
complete
we'll
never
grow
in
forgiveness
we'll
never
get
more
forgiveness
whether
we're
saved
yesterday
or
50
years
ago
we are
completely
finally
justified
and
forgiven
all to
the same
degree
that
objective
forgiveness
doesn't
change
or grow
but
we
do
grow
in
the
subjective
feeling
of
being
forgiven
my
friends
do
you
feel
forgiven
today
do
you
feel
loved
or
do
you
feel
like
he
still
holds
something
against
you
that
God
might
still
be
disappointed
in
you
that
this
was
just
another
week
where
you
didn't
do
enough
you
didn't
read
your
Bible
you
didn't
pray
you
didn't
evangelize
enough
you
fell
into
that
same
temptation
you
couldn't
control
your
anger
you
still
can't
forgive
that
person
do
you
question
that
God
has
fully
completely
absolutely
forgiven
you
that
he
doesn't
hold
anything
against
you
that
there's
no
long
standing
grudge
that
he
has
against
you
that
if
he
prays
there's
nothing
in the
back
of
his
head
that
irks
him
about
you
there
are
those
who
are
walking
this
earth
who
have
committed
the
unforgivable
sin
but truly
only God
knows
who
they
are
we
are
not
the
final
arbiters
of
that
for
I
would
presume
that
many
would
have
thought
that
Paul
would
have
committed
this
sin
when
he
blasphemed
the
church
and
persecuted
Christians
much
like
these
Hindu
extremists
today
he
threw
Christians
to
jail
and
approved
when
they
were
executed
he
even
was
a
Pharisee
like
these
men
but
he
writes
in
1st
Timothy
1
of
the
amazing
mercy
of
Christ
Jesus
to
a
former
blasphemer
like
him
and
we
read
this
passage
for
the
assurance
of
pardon
I'm
going
to
read
it
again
though
formerly
I
was
a
blasphemer
a
persecutor
an
insolent
opponent
I
received
mercy
because
I
had
acted
ignorantly
in
unbelief
and
the
grace
of
our
Lord
overflowed
for
me
with
the
faith
and
love
that
are
in
Christ
Jesus
the
saying
is
trustworthy
and
deserving
of
full
acceptance
that
Christ
Jesus
came
into
the
world
to
save
sinners
of
whom
I
am
the
foremost
but
I
receive
mercy
for
this
reason
that
in
me
as
the
foremost
Christ
Jesus
might
display
his
perfect
patience
as an
example
to
those
who
were
to
believe
in
him
for
eternal
life
Paul's
story
my
own
story
displays
Jesus
perfect
patience
for
all
repentant
sinners
so
if
you
repent
no
sin
is
beyond
God's
mercy
so
when
the
spirit
points
you
to
Christ
make
no
delay
respond
in
repentance
our
ending
verses
teach us
that
by
our
words
we
will
be
judged
on
the
last
day
it
is
a
specific
final
warning
against
careless
empty
idle
words
like
blaspheming
the
Holy
Spirit
for
if
one
speaks
those
words
from
a
long
standing
rebellious
hardened
heart
God
hears
and
it
will
result
in
his
condemnation
but
by
our
words
brothers
and
sisters
by
our
words
we
will
be
justified
as
Paul
says
in
Romans
10
if
you
confess
with
your
mouth
that
Jesus
is
Lord
and
believe
in
your
heart
that
God
raised
him
from
the
dead
you
will
be
saved
for
with
the
heart
one
believes
and
is
justified
and
with
the
mouth
one
confesses
and
is
saved
thank
you
Lord
for
the
scripture
says
everyone
who
believes
in him
will
not
be
put
to
shame
for
everyone
who
calls
on
the
name
of
the
Lord
will
be
saved
let
nothing
hinder
you
from
coming
to
Christ
today
let's
pray
Lord
we
are
sobered
by
our
sin
by
this
warning
we
thank you
that it
reminds us
that we
are not
our
saviors
we
cannot
save
ourselves
but we
turn to
you
we
flee
to you
we
run
to you
Lord
Jesus
we
confess
your
name
we
believe
in
you
and
we
repent
turn
to
you
in
all
things
lead
us
through
breakthrough
today
for
those
who
haven't
repented
of their
sins
bring
breakthrough
for
those
who
are
dragging
their
feet
in
repentance
help
them
to know
that
it
is
your
kindness
that
leads
us
to
repentance
and
may
we
be
amazed
in
the
mercy
that
when
we
return
from
the
far
country
that
you
endow
us
with
the
best
gifts
you
throw
the
biggest
party
and
you
wrap
us
around
your
arms
we
turn
to
you
in
Jesus
name
we
pray
!
Amen!