What is the Unpardonable Sin?
You may have heard the term “the unpardonable sin” and wondered how that fits with our Christian theology. If we believe Christ died for all sins, is there an action so egregious it cannot be forgiven?
The origin of the unpardonable sin can be found in Mark 3:28-30, which reads:
“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”— because they were saying, “He has an unclean spirit.”
While there is debate in the Christian Church about the meaning of this passage, most conservative scholars agree that the “unpardonable sin” Jesus references in this passage is a sin that cannot be committed today. Specifically, the sin was rejecting Jesus and attributing His miraculous works to Satan while He was on earth doing ministry, as both the Holy Spirit and God the Father had testified of His Messiahship.
The Bible is very clear that Jesus died for all sins (past, present, and future) of all believers. There is no sin so vile that it is not covered by His blood that was shed on the Cross. No matter what you’ve done, if you are a believer and confess it and ask for Jesus’ forgiveness, it is forgiven, plain and simple.
Consider the Apostle Paul. Before his encounter with Jesus Christ on the road to Damascus, he was a terrorist of Christians. He rounded up Christians for them to be killed, often in excruciating ways. Despite this, Jesus appeared to him, and Paul repented and devoted his life to serving Christ. In fact, he wrote about half of the New Testament! If Paul can be forgiven after causing the brutal murders of hundreds of Christians, you can be forgiven, too!
There is only one sin that is unpardonable.
If by the time you reach the end of your life, you have ignored the prompting of the Holy Spirit on your heart and rejected God’s free gift of salvation, you will not be pardoned of your sins. The Bible is clear that you will spend eternity in hell separated from God. But that doesn’t have to be your destiny. Jesus is offering you a different eternity with Him!
Sometimes, I hear people say they have plenty of time to accept Christ and want to enjoy living in sin the way they want to live a little bit longer. Unfortunately, none of us are guaranteed another minute on this earth. Every day tragedy cuts lives short. Don’t wait until it’s too late to make your life right with Jesus. Once your life is transformed by Jesus and you experience the peace and joy of knowing where you will spend eternity, you aren’t going to want to go back to your prior way of living!
If you are not 100% sure if you will spend eternity in Heaven, please email me at larry@larryodonnell.com. I would love to speak with you to help you find answers to your questions, and if you so desire, I can explain how to accept Jesus’ free gift of salvation. Remember there is NO sin that is unforgivable as long as you confess that you are a sinner and need a Savior, and accept Jesus’ free gift of the forgiveness of your sins and eternal life with Him in heaven!