Monthly Archives: May 2022

WHAT IS FAITH?

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**Read the article and/or go to bottom and watch the video

Many of us believe we know what Faith is, but let’s learn how faith is acquired and demonstrated in the life of a Christian. It is not tangible, but it is real and life changing. Of course, there are those who believe good works are best. The dictionary defines faith as “complete trust or confidence in someone or something”. One definition of faith from the Bible is “strong belief in God or in the doctrines of a religion, based on spiritual apprehension rather than proof.” Both of these definitions, while offering some good thoughts, do not really give us what we as Christians find complete. Remember the man in the Bible who cried out “Help my unbelief”. Many times, we also may want to cry out those words. The question may be- “How do we know we have believed enough?” When eternity is at stake or in a crisis where do we go to believe & also how best to pursue it.

       There is a story of a man trying to fix his TV antenna on a slanted slate roof who needed to turn his antenna in the day when this needed to be done to watch a football game, or something, either later in the day or to get a station that is in a different direction than normal. In a hurry he lost his grip and began to slide down the roof. As he was slipping, he grabbed the edge of the roof. Slipping down the roof, the man caught himself by his fingers. He found himself hanging on three stories up. In desperation he looked down and cried- “Can any one down there help me?” No answer was heard! Finally, in desperation he looked up and yelled- “Is there anyone up there who can help?” Then out of the heavens came a deep resonate voice- “Believe and Let Go”. After a minute of thought the man cried out- “Is there anyone else up there who can help me?” This story illustrates that most people are willing to try most anything – but Faith!

       It is evident that in our world the word faith has fallen on hard times. Faith has become something that seems ignored. Hebrews 11:1 says- “Now Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. Also in Hebrews 3:2 it tells us how faithful Jesus is– “He was faithful to the one who appointed him, just as Moses was faithful in all God’s house.” By faith.  on earth operates by faith every day and in everything we do. Trust and faith aren’t simply Christian affairs. Faith and trust are a part of our lives from the moment we’re born. Everyone leads a faith-based life, and if someone ever ridicules you for a being a “person of faith”, when they point a finger at you there are three fingers points back at them. We all live our lives by faith. So, the question is, What is Faith, and are the objects of our faith trustworthy?

       I have found four slogan-filled philosophies about this that I want to share:

  1. When your faith is stronger than your fears, you can make your dreams happen.
  2. Faith is taking the first step even when you cannot see the whole staircase.
  3. Faith is the bridge between where I am and where I am going.
  4. Faith is the bird that still sings when the night is dark.

       Of course, there are many more of these types of slogans. There is no lack of motivational motto-makers or poetic positive thinkers. There is a much better slogan, and it is not as sentimental, but its more scriptural. I shared the first verse of it previously – Hebrews 11:1. So, here is Hebrews 11:1-3 & 6: “11 Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. 2 This is what the ancients were commended for. 3 By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible. 6 And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.” This scripture is from Hebrews 11, known as the Bible’s “Faith Hall of Fame”. The book of Hebrews was written to a group of people facing discouraging times, and chapter 10 calls on these people to persevere and to press on without giving up. The writer says in 10:38- “But my righteous one will live by faith. And I take no pleasure in the one who shrinks back.” This requires one to persevere and walk by faith. Hebrews wants to remind the readers of the heroes of the Old Testament who also faced great adversity but who trusted God, nevertheless. From their examples we learn what it means to live by faith and to walk by faith. Hebrews 11 is known by its recurring phrase, “By Faith…” This phrase occurs 24 times in Hebrews 11. What, then, is faith?

                               THE DESCRIPTION OF FAITH

Verse 1 of Hebrews 11, which we have already read, is the classic definition of Faith: “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen”. This is a very accurate definition of faith. It begins by telling us faith is the realization of things hoped for. The word “substance” means “assurance” or “realization’. We can substance the word “confidence”. Faith is the confidence or assurance that what we hope for- the promises and realities of God- are true and available.

       John MacArthur, Christian pastor and writer, explained it like this: “Faith transports God’s promises into the present tense. In other words, real faith implicitly takes God at His word. Faith is a supernatural confidence in- and therefore reliance on- the One who has made the promises. It is not an uncertain hope for something that may come to pass in a vague, indefinite hereafter. It is a trust that brings absolute here-and-now certainty to -things hope for”. In other words, faith says that what God has promised will happen, and it’s certain that it’s almost as if it has already happened. Faith treats things that are hoped for as a reality. The future is made real for men and women of faith. Faith is a concrete conviction. Faith is the solid, unshakeable confidence in God that is built upon the assurance that He is faithful to His promises.

       People can sometimes take one look at us and tell if we’re living with confidence or if we’re falling apart. As Christians we have certain expectations from what our Bibles say. We expect all of God’s things to work together for those who love the Lord. We expect Christ to come against any moment, like a thief in the night. We expect to live forever, for God has promised us everlasting life. We expect the Lord to take care of us, and when we go through life with confidence in these things- that is faith. So, someone with faith lives in the absolute confidence that things are factual, they are accurate, they are reliable, they are unfailingly true.

       The next part of this classic verse says that faith is “the evidence of things not seen”. The question is- what do we NOT see right now? We don’t see God; He is invisible to us. We don’t see don’t Jesus Christ; He is removed from us. We don’t see the angels- as a general rule. We don’t see the spiritual realm or the Golden City of New Jerusalem. We also don’t presently see all the solutions to all our problems, nor everything as everything should be. We do not yet see these things, but we have total assurance these realities and resolutions are just as the chair in which we are sitting or the building in which we live. This is the way the writer of Hebrews defines faith. Faith gives substance to the unseen realities. Faith is a kind of spiritual “sixth sense” that enables the believer to take a firm hold upon the unseen world and bring it into the realm of experience.

          Many people believe faith is vague and unreal, like trying to believe that fairy stories are actually true. Nothing can be more mistaken. Faith is a reality, and it reaches out to facts that are solid; The apostle Peter touched on this when he wrote: “whom   having not seen you love. 8 Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, 9 for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls.” (1 Peter 1:8-9) Faith is more real than your seeing and your hearing and your smelling and your tasting and your touching. Faith is far more real than any of the senses God has given you. “Faith is deliberate confidence in the character of God whose way you may not understand at the time.”-Oswald Chambers.

       Biblical faith is growing confidence in the unseen reality of God and His involvement in our lives, even in times of stress. In fact, were it not for times of trouble, we wouldn’t have as much reason to grow in our faith. In Hebrews 11, every single one of the twenty-seven or so people whose names are written there had one thing in common: By faith they surmounted unbelievable obstacles. God allows us to hear truth, and that truth comes in our mind, and that truth begins to interact with what you already know, and what we think. Faith involves intellect. It involves thinking. The word of God gets into the mind of a person and begins to intermingle with what’s already there. But perception itself cannot be faith. Just knowing something isn’t faith. We have to add the element of persuasion. What we are thinking must penetrate into our emotions. We become emotionally attached to that truth. As we think about the truth it begins to play upon our heart. Then it becomes part of our emotional makeup. Then it requires performance. We must act on our faith. We have to put it into action. It requires our whole being- mind, emotion, and will. Real faith grabs hold of the truth and hangs on. Real faith says, “I believe it. I receive it. I base my actions on it.”

                        THE DEMONSTRATION OF FAITH

      Hebrews 11 (verses 1-3) goes on to say that the object of our faith- Almighty God- is the Creator of the universe, and that our faith begins when we recognize His handiwork in what He has made: “Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. This is what the ancients were commended for. By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible.” In other words, faith sees the invisible; and faith realizes the visible world has come from the mind of the invisible God. This is incredible! Our culture is at war over this very topic, and one of the most provocative questions in our public discourse is: “Where did we come from?” We know that faith in God gives us an understanding of the universe. God created the worlds by His word. God, an unseen power, created what we see. The cosmos was made by God.

       Where did all of the substance and the processes come from to begin with? We have no explanation, and all of the atheistic evolutionists can reason all they want to until they get to the beginning of it all. They have no way of knowing. They say evolution is a scientific theory, but it really is unscientific. They have no way of testing their theory, and it cannot be proven. IT takes more “faith” to be an evolutionist than it does to be a Christian and believe it was God who created it all. “The heaven declare the glory of God”- this is the saying of the TBN series Creation in the 21st Century- which week-in-and-week-out proves God created the total universe. By faith we understand the worlds were formed by God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible.

                               THE DEMANDS OF FAITH

That brings us full circle to the demands of faith, for verse 6 of Hebrews 11 says: “But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is- and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.” Faith is essential. The Lord demands it as part of a healthy relationship with Him. We cannot please God without faith. We might say it is part of a Christians’ DNA. It’s important to God that we believe that He is -and that we seriously seek Him.

               The Bible says that if we seek God, He will be found.

 Isaiah 55:6 says. “Seek the Lord while he may be found; call upon him while he is near”.

Jeremiah 29:13- “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.”

Amos 5:4- “This is what the Lord says to Israel: “Seek me and live;”

Matthew 6:33 – “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all

          these things will be given to you as well.”

 If you tell me, you are not sure you really believe in God, my question is, “Yes, but are you really searching for Him? Are you really seeking after Him? How much do you care? How serious is your quest? What have you read that has helped you understand who God is and what God does? How seriously have you investigated the truth about God in the Bible?” According to Hebrews 11, God will reward those who seek Him, and those who seek Him will be found by Him. Another learning from Hebrews 11 is that God is telling to not get discouraged and don’t give up. There are so many things that this chapter is telling about faith. One of these key thoughts is that faith comforts those who are not delivered from suffering and death on this earth. The Bible, given to us by God, is filled with one story after another to teach us the importance of living and walking by faith.

       So, don’t let anybody tell you. “Oh, faith is just a feeling.” No, faith is something that happens. Faith acts. Faith empowers us. Faith pleases the heart of God. When we face difficulties, we are to trust the Lord and press on as joyfully as we can. When the devil knocks the wind out of you, regain your spiritual breathing and let the Lord lift you up. When you are overwhelmed in the flood, regain your emotional bearings and look up. God responded to the faith of the ancients, and He responds to us. Faith responds to the promise of the Father. And His most foundational promise is this: If we will place our faith in His Son alone for eternal life, He will save us from our sins and give us the gift of eternal life. We will spend eternity with Him in a place that is even now being prepared (or already finished) for those who will put their trust in Jesus Christ. That is the best place to begin the life of faith.

       To summarize: Walking in faith requires: 1. Learning to listen to God, 2. Learning to obey God, 3. Learning to depend on God, and 4. Learning to wait on God. Thus, faith is truly getting and staying as close to God as you can.

(Thanks to David Jeremiah, Charles Stanley and the Holy Spirit)

ONLY ONE WAY- TO GOD

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**Read this article and/or go to the bottom and watch the 2 videos (PT 1 & 2)

   Is there only one way to God?  This probably the most toxic and volatile question in our age of pluralism and tolerance. What is said most of the time is that we must be more tolerant and “permit all ways to go to God” or at the very least say that there has to be more than one way to God. A very popular author, Lee Strobel, that as an atheist he disliked John 14:6 that states “no one comes to the Father except through me (Jesus)”. Lee Strobel felt it was way too intolerant to say there was only one way to God, but after pouring over the evidence for truthfulness of Christianity, he became a believer and is now a follower of Jesus Christ. In his three books, A Case for a Creator, A Case for Faith, and A Case for Jesus, Mr. Strobel admits and tells of his conversion. I own all three of these books.

       There is a large group of people who shares Mr. Strobel’s previous thinking that it is too intolerant and not inclusive enough to talk against those who want many ways to God. There are many who not only talk against those who believe Jesus said- “there is only one way” but launch tirades, form organized groups to cause problems to Christians, or even harm some Christians for their views. Even way back in 1940 Walter Chaplinsky caused a real problem in Rochester, New Hampshire by consistently loudly denouncing organized religion as a racket and denouncing many Christian denominations by name. Since then, there are many that create real problems, violent situations, and attempts to harm those who just quote the Bible, like Steve McSwain a popular speaker and author in liberal circles and an ambassador to a Council for a Parliament of World’s Religions who does what he can to ridicule anyone who believes in John 14:6. Even Oprah Winfrey has been quoted as saying “One of the biggest mistakes humans make is to believe there is only one way.” She continues “actually, there are many diverse paths leading to what you call God”. While we are told not to judge, it sounds like Oprah needs to come to find a different position for her eternal benefit.

       Popular Jewish rabbi and television host Shmuley Boteach shares a similar conviction and states “I am absolutely against any religion that says that one faith is superior to another”. He further states- “I don’t see how that is anything different than spiritual racism. It’s a way of saying that we are closer to God than you are, and that’s what leads to hatred”. We are seeing and hearing that there a group who says if anyone does not agree with their position against Christianity “that they are racist”. In Lee Strobel’s book A Case for Faith, he says- “Many people consider it arrogant, narrow-minded, and bigoted for Christians to contend that the only path to God must go through Jesus of Nazareth. In a day of religious pluralism and tolerance, this exclusivity claim is politically incorrect. A verbal slap in the face of other belief systems.” However, Lee Strobel has completely changed this type of incorrect position in all three of his books. He now firmly believes in the truth of John 14:6.

        On the night of Jesus’ arrest, Jesus gathered His disciples around Him in an upper for what was called the Passover Supper. Jesus tells His disciples “Let not your heart be troubled, you believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also. And I where I go you know, and the way you know.” Jesus was telling His disciples that the way to God was certain and knowable, Thomas responded with a question of perplexity. This was in keeping of what we know about Thomas’ personality. Thomas was always skeptical and saying: “Show me”, but once convinced, Thomas was dauntless and a true believer. On this occasion, Thomas said to Christ, “Lord, we do not know where you are going, and how can we know the way?” Thomas had missed our Lord’s point in the earlier verses. Jesus was talking about going to heaven to prepare for us. Thomas evidently thought Jesus was announcing that He was going to take a trip to a hidden location, perhaps a secure spot within the boundaries of Israel or somewhere in the eastern Mediterranean region. Whatever the case. I am glad that Thomas asked the question. Jesus’ simple response was what

recorded in John 14:6- that he was the only way to God.

       In this simple answer, Jesus declared Himself to be the answer to the three greatest questions of the human heart.

     How can I be saved? Jesus is the way.

     How can I be sure? Jesus is the truth.

     How can I be satisfied? Jesus is the life.

In order to understand what Jesus was saying, we need to take our minds all the way back to the Garden of Eden. Before Adam sinned, he enjoyed three very special privileges with God his Creator:

     He communed with God intimately; we see him walking with God.

     He knew God in reality; we see him believing what God said.

      He possessed spiritual life fully; we see him living in paradise.

But when Adam fell in rebellion against God, he lost all three of his privileges with God. His communion was broken; he hid from God. His knowledge was corrupted; he believed Satan’s lies. His life was shattered, he was beginning to die.   Of course, Adam did not die immediately but he, like everyone since, needed a way “back” to God. The truth found in John 14:6 reverses those three tragic realities.

         Our present condition apart from God is a mirror of Adam and Eve’s condition after the Fall. We cannot comprehend God in reality. We are alienated from God. We don’t have fellowship with Him. We are ignorant of the truth of God. Everything that Adam lost is exactly the same state all humanity finds themselves without God. That is why we call the Gospel of Jesus the Good News. In Christ we can recover everything lost in the Fall. We can have fellowship with Jesus. Instead of alienation from God, we can know His truth. Instead of death, we can know life in Him. The early followers of Jesus were so convinced that Jesus was the only way to Heaven that they didn’t even call themselves Christians…they called themselves, “followers of the Way”.

       The way, the truth, and the life! Jesus is communion restored. Jesus is truth recovered. Jesus is life regained- the full and permanent reversal of Genesis 3. That is the meaning of John 1:6. Now, let’s look at it phrase by phrase.

                           JESUS IS COMMUNION RESTORED

The first phrase in verse 6 says, “I am the way.” Apart from Christ, we cannot have communion with God because of the impenetrable barrier of sin, but Jesus came to remove that barrier. Apostle Paul said in 1 Timothy 2:5: “5 For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus.” This is one of the most memorized, quoted, and useful verses in the Bible. Paul begins with the Old Testament truth that the God of the Bible is the only God who actually exists. This statement is the Shema, meaning “the saying,” the foundational saying of the Law: “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might” (Deuteronomy 6:4–5).

       The second phrase transitions to the concept of a mediator. A mediator is a person who serves as an intermediary between two people or parties. Jesus serves to bring people to God (John 14:6) and is the only way to God (Acts 4:12). Hebrews 9:15 mentions this same theme, saying, “Therefore he is the mediator of a new covenant …” Similarly, Hebrews 12:24 uses the phrase, “Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant.”
       Paul also highlights the humanity of Jesus, calling him “The man Christ Jesus.” He is God in human form, one hundred percent God and one hundred percent man (John 1:1–14). This verse not only speaks to the reality of the Christian God, but also that Jesus Christ is the only way to be reconciled to God. No other being, spiritual or human, is needed as a go-between for us and God. The symbolism of the torn temple veil (Matthew 27:51) applies here: Jesus is the way we communicate with God, period. There is no additional step, and there is no other channel. Jesus is certainly the teacher of the way. He is the guide along the way and the provider of the way, but He is more than that. He is the way. He is the way to restored communion with the heavenly Father. (Relate my directions story in Phoenix.)

                              JESUS IS THE TRUTH RECOVERED

The next phrase in John 14:6 says, I am…the truth”. Jesus is utterly dependable and trustworthy. We can take Him at His word. When we meet Him, we move from the false to the truth, from deception to reality, from relative confusion to absolute knowledge, Throughout his gospel, the apostle John stressed Jesus as the truth. Here are three of John’s scriptures that tell of Jesus’ truth: John 1:14: 14 The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. -The reality of the moral power and change wrought in those that believed recalls and is itself evidence of the reality of that in which they believed. Man came to be a son of God, because the Son of God became man.

John 1:17,“  17 For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.” This explains an important difference between the ministries of Moses and Jesus. Moses’ ministry brought knowledge of the law. But the law could only show us how sinful and broken we were (Romans 3:20). Rather than just bringing us truth, Jesus also brought us grace. Instead of simply telling us that we were broken, Christ gave us a way to fix what was wrong.  John 8:32, 32 Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” Here the, truth and holiness are spoken of as correlative. The light of truth dispels the darkness in which lies the stronghold of evil. Sin is the bondage of the powers of the soul, and this bondage is willed because the soul does not see its fearful evil. When it perceives the truth, there comes to it a power which rouses it from its stupor, and strengthens it to break the fetters by which it has been bound.

       There are several other verses that convey the truth of Jesus and His power. Here are just three others listed John 8:46, John 17:17, and John 18:37.

                                    JESUS IS LIFE REGAINED

Jesus is also the life. He is life incarnate, the opposite of death and darkness. Life is another of the great words that run like a golden chain through the Gospel of John. It’s a word that occurs more than forty times in this fourth Gospel, and it’s often modified by the adjective everlasting. Here are three of John’s scriptures that tell of Jesus’ life. John 1:4 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. This verse proclaims Christ’s role as the giver of eternal life. John will spend much more time later in his gospel explaining Jesus’ role in bringing life to mankind. This verse also refers to Jesus using the second of John’s seven names for Jesus: “The Light.” To a Hebrew, “light” was the ultimate value. All good things were said to be “light,” and evil was “darkness.” Light implies a revealing. John 3:16, “16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” John 3:16 is a widely quoted Bible verse that summarizes the cornerstone Christian belief that their God sacrificed his son for the salvation of humanity. This verse teaches us that anyone who believes in Jesus Christ, God’s Son, will be saved. John 3:16 gives us the glorious hope of eternal life. No other verse in the Bible so succinctly summarizes God’s relationship with humanity and the way of salvation. Some consider John 3:16 as the “theme verse” for the entire Bible. John 3:16 tells us of the love God has for us and the extent of that love—so great that He sacrificed His only Son on our behalf.  John 4:14 , “Whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” Jesus’ comments here present some interesting facts about the nature of salvation. In order to get literal water from a well, a person has to lower a bucket, then haul up the full container. This has to be repeated as often as required in order to get more water. The water Jesus promises will become a permanent spring within the person.  In fairly direct terms, Jesus is pointing out that salvation is neither obtained nor kept through works. In fact, Jesus is contrasting the nature of salvation with the nature of human efforts. One is temporary and requires work. The other is eternal and is obtained only as a gift.

       Three other outstanding verses about life are John 5:21, John 5:40, and John 6:35. The temptation is to list all forty-one references to “life” in John’s Gospel, but these more than gets the point across.  There is only one name by which we must be saved, and it’s the name Jesus, a name that literally means “Jehovah Saves”. He forged the way. He is our way, our truth and our life. John 14:6 is one of the central passages in the Word of God, and it gives us the answer to the question: Is there only one way to God. The answer is YES!!!His name is Jesus Christ, and I recommend Him to you.

IS THERE A SIN THAT GOD CANNOT FORGIVE?

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Most of the time this question is asked when the person thinks they have committed a grievous sin that certainly God can’t forgive. They even think they can’t even forgive that sin themselves. Many times, these people are not very close to God, but they are either trying to get closer to God or they are just beginning to think seriously about their salvation. Of course, they may be “lost” and don’t have any idea how to deal with that situation. Something likely has recently happened so profound that the thinking goes to a situation that certainly is out of the ordinary. That profound occurrence may be a challenge to our normal lifestyle or not part of what we believe. There is a story in the Bible that fits this description perfectly.

       The story is about a man who was possessed by a demon. The Book of Mark relates this story in many details. Out of this story comes three extremely prominent opinions about Jesus and who He really is.  These three opinions are that Jesus was 1) out of His mind, 2) an unreasonable radical, or 3) ruled by demons.

       Mark 3:20-21 states, “20 Then Jesus entered a house, and again a crowd gathered, so that he and his disciples were not even able to eat. 21 When his family[a] heard about this, they went to take charge of him, for they said, “He is out of his mind.” It is said here that family thought Jesus was crazy. When this news got back to His family that they wanted to get to Him and take control of Him because they were convinced He was “out of His mind”. What about others who were not His family?

        Mark 3:22, “22 And the teachers of the law who came down from Jerusalem said, “He is possessed by Beelzebul! By the prince of demons he is driving out demons.” Here those described as teachers thought Jesus to be a radical. These people thought Jesus was possessed- a demon Himself.  This opinion originated due to their thoughts that Jesus was acting like a demon when He cast out a demon. Then we see the third opinion in the Book of Matthew.

        Matthew 12:22-24 states, “22 Then they brought him a demon-possessed man who was blind and mute, and Jesus healed him, so that he could both talk and see. 23 All the people were astonished and said, “Could this be the Son of David?” 24 But when the Pharisees heard this, they said, “It is only by Beelzebul, the prince of demons, that this fellow drives out demons.” The Pharisees clearly felt that Jesus was the ruler of demons- Beelzebub Himself. They felt Jesus had the demonic power of Satan. As usual, Jesus had an answer to these terrible opinions, but also as usual, Jesus was NOT upset. He had strong, brilliant comments.

       Mark 3:23 begins Jesus’ answers, 23 So Jesus called them over to him and began to speak to them in parables: “How can Satan drive out Satan? So, Jesus was telling them His answer by asking another question – a habit that Jesus used often. So, He asked: Are you saying that Satan casts out Satan? This was Jesus’ secular answer. Jesus deals with the kingdom issue in Mark 3:24, “24 If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand”. Jesus is saying that a kingdom divided against itself is doomed and can’t stand. This is clearly stating that nations and secular organizations must not be divided. This, by the way, is a warning for all nations and countries to be united. America today is quickly failing to be united on almost all issues and God’s judgment may be close at hand. Then Jesus turns to the social and spiritual answers in the next two verses in Mark.

       Mark 3:25 says, “25 If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand.”

  This is Jesus’ social answer to demon situation. It states that a house or family need to be united and not against family members.

       Mark 3:26, 26 And if Satan opposes himself and is divided, he cannot stand; his end has come.”  This the spiritual answer from Jesus. It says that it is spiritually impossible for Satan to be divided from himself. So, Jesus provides the proof that He cannot be Satan if Jesus eliminates demons. Because He healed the demon possessed the man and drove the demon out of the man. This says that Satan cannot divide himself from himself- a demon.

       Mark 3:27, “27 In fact, no one can enter a strong man’s house without first tying him up. Then he can plunder the strong man’s house.” Jesus gives us some very good insight with this quote. A strong man must be bound to overcome him. So, Jesus reasons that the most terrible beast (Satan) flees at the appearance of Jesus. After the demon was removed from the man, the man wanted to go with Jesus, but Jesus told him to go tell others. The demon could not get back into the man because of the appearance and presence of Jesus. So, we learn that with Jesus us in us Satan flees and can’t get to us. The Apostle John reconfirms this in 1 John 4:4, 4 You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.” To followers of Jesus, He is divine. We must believe that Jesus is God, the Son of God.

        Then Mark records an answer to our question about is there a sin that cannot be forgiven. Mark 3:28-30, 28 Truly I tell you, people can be forgiven all their sins and every slander they utter, 29 but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven; they are guilty of an eternal sin.” 30 He said this because they were saying, “He has an impure spirit.” This is also recorded in Matthew 12:32, “Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come.” This is saying that the one who blasphemes or speaks against the Holy Spirit has an unclean spirit, a sinner uncleaned, and that person is doomed for eternity.

      So, back to our original question-“What is the unpardonable Sin?” Let’s start with, “What it is Not!” It is not cursing Jesus, adultery, murder, nor even suicide and many others. “What is it?” It is rare, it is rehearsed, it is repeated sin by some religious leaders of Jesus’ day. They kept it up by rejecting Jesus over and over. To be specific, it was religious sin by Scribes. They were denying the deity of Jesus. This very different from a person today who is anxious over a sin they have committed and may think that is the unpardonable sin. However, this anxiety is not that one that is unpardonable because they are not denying that sin- just concerned over it.

         Harden your heart against God and then God’s word makes no impact on us. We must believe in Jesus, who He is, that He died for our sins, and was resurrected. Then we must invite Him into our heart. Death makes it final for us if we confess and believe before that death. So, Believe!!!! We have been forgiven for all our sins. Romans 3:23, “23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;”. This tells us that All – not just some but all- have sinned and come short of the glory of God. So. ALL must confess our sins and believe in Jesus Christ as our Savior.

Thanks to Dr. David Jeremiah and The Holy Spirit