The Blasphemy against the Holy Ghost
INTRODUCTORY WORDS
In order to get the full view of our Scripture before us, it is necessary for us to study some of the accompanying scenes which lead up to Christ's statement, "But he that shall blaspheme against the Holy Ghost hath never forgiveness."
Scene 1: The man with the withered hand. In the last study we had the healing of this man. At that time it stood before us as one of the signs of the mighty power of the Living Christ The miracles of our Lord Christ shows forth His glory.
As the Lord Jesus moved among the people healing the sick, raising the dead, and casting out demons, Satan became more and more fearful of His power, so also did the scribes and Pharisees become alarmed. It was natural, therefore, that both Satan, and Satan-energized men would set themselves together against the Lord.
Scene 2: The call and mission of the twelve. Jesus Christ after His miracles of healing, and of the casting out of unclean spirits, went up into a mountain and called unto Him His followers, from whom He ordained twelve, that they should be with Him, and that He might send them forth to preach, and to have power to heal sickness, and to cast out the demons.
When the enemy saw these men sent forth upon their mission of good, they were the more alarmed. The power of Christ was growing day by day. His Name was being heralded afar. The fame of His mighty deeds was upon every lip.
Scene 3: The enlarging crowds who followed Him. The multitudes which came together to see and to hear Jesus, were so great that they could not eat bread. Had the scribes and Pharisees kept their hands off, the crowds would have followed the Lord in ever-increasing groups. The scribes, however, realized that it was necessary for them to get busy and antagonize the mighty Christ. In the scribes, Satan found his allies. He could use them to work out his will, and to fulfill his strategies against the Son of God.
To us, the saddest thing about the persecutions which befell our Lord was this; the men who led the fight were always the outstanding religionists of the day. They stood in Moses' seat, they paraded themselves as the lovers of God, and as the preachers of His testimony. It has always been so, the persecutors against the saints are still found within the church.
So far as Satan is concerned, he had from the beginning sought to make it impossible for the promised "Seed of the woman" to be born. Now that Christ had come, and now that Satan's kingdom was being shaken to the foundation, the devil was quick to join in with the scribes, if possible, to overthrow the Lord of glory.
Let us sum up the causes for Christ's words relative to the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost. (1) Christ's mighty power in healing. (2) The commissioning of the twelve. (3) Christ's ever growing popularity. This drove the scribes to almost any strategy, if that, by any means, they might stop the sweep of religious fervor.
(4) In Christ's exaltation to authority, they felt their own authority waning It was for these causes, that they, maddened by circumstances, designed to say that Christ was working under the power of Beelzebub, the prince of the devils.
We who love the Blood must not cease to contend for the faith once delivered.
I. A BITTER THRUST (Mark 3:22)
"And the scribes which came down from Jerusalem said, He hath Beelzebub, and by the prince of the devils casteth He out devils."
1. The assaults upon the Truth came from the men sent to herald the Truth. The scribes themselves, along with the Pharisees, made a great show to piety and to goodness. The Lord said of them, "They bind heavy burdens and grievous to be borne, and lay them on men's shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers."
The scribes and Pharisees did all their works to be seen of men. They boasted their religious superiority. They loved the uppermost rooms at the feasts, and the chief seats in the synagogues. They loved the "greetings in the markets, and to be called of men, Rabbi, Rabbi."
However, these scribes and Pharisees were hypocrites, shutting up the Kingdom of Heaven against men. They devoured widows' houses, and then covered their wickedness by the pretense of a long prayer.
They were deceivers of the people. They would carry out details of religious rites to the limit, but omit the weightier matters of Law, judgment, mercy and faith. They strained at gnats, while they swallowed camels. They "make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess."
Christ called them whited sepulchers, beautiful without, but full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness within. Such were the men who had made their thrusts against Christ.
2. The assaults against Christ were unfair and untrue. They said concerning the Master, "He hath Beelzebub." They also said that He worked under the power of the prince of devils. Nothing could have been more falsely stated.
The One who came down from glory, they acclaimed as having come from Satan. The One upon whom the Holy Spirit rested at His baptism, the One who was led of the Spirit, and filled with the Spirit, the Pharisees claimed was filled and energized by Beelzebub. The One who spake the "Words of the Father, did the will of the Father, and wrought the works of the Father, they insinuated was under the power of the devil.
The Pharisees sought to say that He who came down to undo the works of the devil, was in league with the devil.
We marvel at the depths of Satan. He tried to malign the Son of God, and God the Son, as His own vassal.
May God reveal unto those who deny the Virgin Birth, the sacrificial and substitutionary Death of Christ, the literal Resurrection of our Lord, and His glorious personal Return; may God reveal to them that they are walking in the footsteps of the Pharisees who were the dupes and slaves of Satan.
II. CHRIST'S REPLY (Mark 3:23-26)
As soon as the scribes had ceased to speak, Christ called them unto Him, and spake unto them in parables, saying "How can Satan cast out Satan?" Jesus had been casting out demons, the scribes said He cast them out by Beelzebub, the prince of demons. The Lord at once showed them the folly of their philosophy, because they had made Satan to fight against himself.
His parables included two things;
1. A kingdom divided against itself cannot stand. Where is the king which would sow the seeds of strife, or kindle any fire, that would destroy himself?
2. A house divided against itself cannot stand. Kingdoms are made up of houses. Would any house set its members in array, the one against the other, each member of the house, trying to subdue and to overthrow each other member of the house? Such a house could not stand.
We remember how the disciples, on one occasion, sought to stop a man from speaking for Christ, because he did not number himself among them. The Lord immediately bade them, "Nay." He said in effect, "He that is not with Me is against Me; and he that gathereth not with Me scattereth abroad." When men honor the Lord Jesus in their hearts, and call Him "Lord," we know that they are Christ's disciples.
To be sure Satan may put many into our camps who will say, "Lord, Lord," with their lips. We may find within our ranks many wolves, who are wearing sheep's clothing. They come, however, to destroy and not to build up. They come to darken, and not to illumine the minds of men.
Such men are spies, trying to get within the citadel in order to sow the seeds of discord and contention among saints.
We do not deny that there are many heretics who stand behind the pulpit. They use loud speaking words; they really are corrupters of the faith. Of these Jesus did not speak, when He said, "If a house be divided against itself, that house cannot stand." These men are in the house, but not of it. They may be clothed, outwardly, with the robes of saints, but they are within far from saints.
III. CHRIST'S SUPREME TASK (Mark 2:26-27)
Our verses read, "And if Satan rise up against himself, and be divided, he cannot stand, but hath an end. No man can enter into a strong man's house, and spoil his goods, except he will first bind the strong man; and then he will spoil his house."
1. We have the picture of a strong man. This strong man is none other than Satan himself. The present day mimicking of Satan is perverse. Satan is the king of darkness, he is the head of a tremendous force, Heavenly and earthly. He has innumerable fallen angels and demons under his power. In addition to these, he has an untold number of demonized men, under his authority.
He is the strong man. Even the archangel, Michael, durst not bring against him a railing accusation. People laugh at Satan, they call him the old nick, the old scratch, and any other name with which to scare children. They amuse grownups by their folly.
The truth is, no one can dare to face Satan alone. He goes about seeking whom he may devour; and, unless we stand clothed in the power of the Lord Jesus Christ we will fall beneath his onslaughts.
2. The picture of the stronger man. There must be some one stronger than the strong man, if he hopes to spoil the strong man's goods. There must be some one strong enough to bind the strong man. In these words, the Lord Jesus Christ was setting forth the fact that He and Satan stood against each other in a death conflict.
It was a question as to whether Satan could overwhelm our Lord, or, whether He could overwhelm Satan. All along, during the earth life of our Lord, the conflict was on. The conflict, however, came to its climax upon the Cross where Jesus Christ, alone, and unassisted, met Satan and all of his combined forces. There, the Bible says, He met principalities and powers and vanquished them; triumphing over them in it.
Let us plead with people to gather under the shadow of the wings of the Almighty Christ for protection from Satan and his wiles.
IV. THE SIN OF SINS (Mark 3:28-29)
We now come to the verses upon which we chose the naming of this study. Our verses read: "Verily I say unto you, All sins shall be forgiven unto the sons of men, and blasphemies wherewith soever they shall blaspheme: but he that shall blaspheme against the Holy Ghost hath never forgiveness, but is in danger of eternal damnation."
1. We read that all sins, including blasphemies against the Father and the Son, may be forgiven. How great is God's grace; how deep is His love; how rich is His mercy. All sins may be forgiven unto men but one sin. Mark these words: There is no promise of forgiveness to demons, or to angels, but to man. How comforting are the words, "Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool."
Sometimes men have come to me and said, "I am too great a sinner, God could not love me." With what joy do I answer him, "That whosoever will, may come." "The Blood of Jesus Christ, His Son cleanseth us from all sin."
If anyone reads these words and thinks himself excluded, we would like to quote the oft-used expression of Charles H. Spurgeon, the noted London preacher; "None are excluded thence, but those who do themselves exclude, welcome the learned and polite, the ignorant and rude."
2. We read of the sin which may not be forgiven to men. The Lord said, "But he that shall blaspheme against the Holy Ghost hath never forgiveness." How many have been troubled by these words. People try to read into them, many things that God never said, and never meant. The blasphemy against the Holy Ghost, is strictly against the Holy Ghost. It is not against God the Father, or against God the Son. It is not a sin against our fellow men. All of these may be forgiven. This sin is expressly against the Holy Ghost; it is a specified, definite sin. It is blasphemy against the Holy Ghost. It is not in grieving the Spirit; it is not in quenching the Spirit; it is not in resisting the Spirit; it is blaspheming the Spirit.
Jesus Christ wrought by the Holy Ghost. At His baptism, He was baptized by the Spirit. He was afterwards led by the Spirit, and filled by the Spirit. Therefore, we truly say, that Christ cast out demons, by the Spirit of God. Thus, when the scribes said, "By the prince of the devils casteth He out devils," they blasphemed against the Holy Ghost. They claimed the work of the Holy Ghost, was the work of the devil. They did not make a thoughtless statement to that effect; they made a dogmatic, malicious, statement, a statement backed with all the venom and wrath of Satan's engendered fury.
Let us faithfully give this warning to all. Never permit yourselves even casually to criticize the work of the Spirit of God. Let us even be cautious lest we decry what the Spirit does. When we come into the presence of God, let us bow the head, and reverence His Holy Name.
V. CHRIST REVEALS HIS INNER CIRCLE OF FRIENDS (Mark 3:34)
1. Of those who stood around Him, He said, "Behold My mother and My. brethren." What meaneth such words of tender compassion? We, who know Him, and trust Him, are welcomed into His loving fellowship. How near, how dear, to the heart of God, are those who trust him? He calls us His jewels, His crown. He thinks of us as, "the joy that was set before Him." We are His beloved, His very own.
What then, is He to us? He is our Saviour, our Lord, our King; He is our Elder Brother, the Fairest among ten thousand.
2. The nearness of saints to each other. We have spoken of how near, and of how precious are the relations of saints to their Lord. We go on to suggest that as we are near to Him, we become near to each other. There is no fellowship on earth so sweet, and so pure as the fellowship among believers. There is a comradeship and a fellowship between saints, that is more precious than family ties. Even the love of husband and wife, of parent and children, are made sweeter, and richer, when they have added fellowship, as Christians.
VI. THE CAPSTONE OF THE CHRISTIAN'S LIFE (Mark 3:35)
1. Sin means disobedience. God says, "Let the wicked forsake his way, and * * let him return unto the Lord." As long as we walk in our own way and will we are among the wicked. When grace changes us, we immediately deny ourselves, and everything in the realm of our own way, and we follow Him.
2. Salvation means obedience. If you would ask me to express, with one word, the result of being born again, I think I would use the word, "obedience." When we are saved, we take His yoke upon us; we follow Him in the way; we begin to live in Christ. Our desire, at once, is to exercise ourselves always to obey His every wish and command.
Jesus did not only say, "If ye love Me, keep My commandments," but, He also said, "He that loveth Me, keepeth My commandments." How then can we who are disobedient, walking in divers lusts, fulfilling the desires of our own flesh and mind, call ourselves His own? He has said, "My sheep hear My voice, * * and they follow Me."
3. Our highest ambition should be to know and to fulfill God's will. We should strive to stand perfect, and complete, in all the will of God. We should never seek our own, but Christ's.
One of the saddest phases of my ministry, is the necessity that is thrust upon me to call Christians to full consecration.
Why should God, the Holy Ghost, plead with us saying, "Present yourself to God"? We are not our own, for we have been bought with a price. Should we not, therefore, glorify God in both our bodies, and our spirits? Let us say unto God, "I am Thine, and all that I have is Thine."
AN ILLUSTRATION
Hear the pledge of Jesus Christ: "I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you." "Lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world." As long as God lives, and our souls live, so long does this pledge stand. It is true, we cannot always feel this presence. But we can always know that it is there, always think of it, so long as thought endures, always rest upon it forever and forever; and the reason why this promise is given is that we may hold fast to this truth. There may be a moment in the very depths of sorrow and anguish when the presence is hidden from us. But is it not because we are stunned, unconscious? It is like passing through a surgical operation. The time comes for the ordeal. The anaesthetic is ready. You stretch out your hand to your friend: "Don't leave me, don't forsake me." The last thing you feel is the clasp of the hand, the last thing you see is the face of that friend. Then a moment of darkness, a blank and the first thing you see is the face of love again. So the angel of God's face stands by us, bends above us, and we may know that he will be there even when all else fails. * * Amid the mists that shroud the great ocean beyond the verge of mortal life, there is one sweet, mighty voice that says: "I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. In all thy afflictions I will be with thee, and the angel of My face shall save thee." Dr. Henry van Dyke.