Confession of the Christ is set in antithesis to the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit in Luke 12:8-12. This passage delves into Jesus’ teaching on the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit and the contrasting power of giving testimony under the influence of the Holy Spirit.
Jesus sought to rally His disciples to stick with Him. He tells them, “Everyone who acknowledges me before men, the Son of Man also will acknowledge before the angels of God, but the one who denies me before men will be denied before the angels of God” (Lk. 12:8-9). [1] The disciples were being encouraged to acknowledge, profess, and confess their allegiance to the Christ (i.e., the Messiah).
The disciples were being given a call to action. They were to be prepare themselves to stand against those who opposed the way of the Christ. Why? Jesus exposed the corruption and hypocrisy of the religious apostates misleading the Jewish people (Lk. 11:45-52). Naturally, the opposition wanted to shut down their critic. “The scribes and the Pharisees began to press him hard and to provoke him to speak about many things, lying in wait for him, to catch him in something he might say” (Lk. 11:53-54). The religious leaders scrutinized His words in hopes to find a way to discredit the Christ.
But the disciples were not to allow themselves to be censored and hide their allegiance to the Christ according to the edicts of a corrupt establishment. There was too much at stake. Truth needed to be told and not hidden. The disciples who testify of Christ before men, Christ will testify of them to the angels and the Father in heaven (cf. Matt. 10:32). The Son of Man seated in glory will acknowledge the faithful but condemn the wicked (Matt. 25:31-46).
Jesus then turns attention to the opposition: “And everyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but the one who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven” (Lk. 12:10). What is the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit?
The blasphemy of the Spirit is the “unpardonable sin,” or “a sin that will never be forgiven.”[2] The Lord said to the apostates, “You brood of vipers! How can you speak good, when you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks” (Matt. 12:34). Put another way: the Pharisees’ blasphemy wasn’t a hastily uttered slip of the tongue or simply a mistaken apprehension of reality. Rather, it was a knowing, deliberate, and final rejection for which they will give an account of themselves on the Day of Judgment.”[3] Not just a slip of the tongue. Not just something terrible done in the past. Not just habitual sin. The blasphemy of the Spirit “adamantly, intently, and with finality rejects the Holy Spirit’s work, and therefore it puts one beyond repentance.”[4] Simply put: “To blaspheme against the Holy Spirit would be to deny God and the work of his Spirit in their lives, especially his ability to support them in trying times.[5]
The Gospel of Luke unambiguously tells of Jesus’ life and vocation being bound closely with the ministry of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit was the divine agent behind the virgin Mary’s miraculous conception of the Christ Child — the Son of God (Lk. 1:35). The Spirit descended like a dove and rested upon the baptized Jesus (Lk. 3:22). Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness wherein He fasted forty-days and battled against the Devil (Lk. 4:1-12). Jesus returned to Gailee in the power of the Spirit (Lk. 4:14; cf. vv. 16-21). Upon receiving the report from the seventy-two disciples who brought demons under subjection, Jesus rejoiced in the Spirit (Lk. 10:17-22).
It was an egregious offense of unparalleled proportions for the Pharisees to witness the works of Jesus, works that could only happen by the finger of God, the exorcisms in particular, and to brush them off as something done through the power of Beelzebub the prince of demons (Lk. 11:14-23).[6] Moreover, an unrelenting opposition to God and God’s prophets characterized the apostasy of the Pharisees and lawyers. “Therefore also the Wisdom of God said, ‘I will send them prophets and apostles, some of whom they will kill and persecute,’ so that the blood of all the prophets, shed from the foundation of the world, may be charged against this generation, from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, who perished between the altar and the sanctuary,” said Jesus (Lk. 11:49-51; cf. Matt. 23:34-36). The same apostates continually scrutinized the teachings of Jesus, yet never being illuminated by them, never learning their spiritual riches, but only paying attention so that they might find a way exploit them and discredit the Lord (Lk. 11:53-54).
Yes, offenses against the Son of Man can be forgiven. Heinous offenses can be committed against God; yet, forgiveness is extended to the repentant, as in the cases of the thief upon the cross (Lk. 23:32-43; cf. Matt. 27:32-44), Simon Peter (Matt. 26:69-75; Mk. 14:66-72; Lk. 22:54-62; Jn. 18:25-27, 21:15-19), and Saul of Tarsus (1 Tim. 1:12-14; cf. Acts 8:1-3, 9:1-9, 22:6-16, 26:12-18). The apostate Pharisees, on the other hand, cut themselves off from the source of forgiveness that restores union between God and man being testified by the Holy Spirit.
We are never alone in standing up to our critics, but the Holy Spirit gives us the power to testify. Jesus taught, “And when they bring you before the synagogues and the rulers and the authorities, do not be anxious about how you should defend yourself or what you should say, for the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say” (Luke 12:11-12).[7] Here the Christian is assured that “at the very moment when you need to know what to say, then and not before, the Holy Spirit will work within you in such an effective manner, illumining the mind and sharpening the power of speech, that you will know exactly what to say.”[8] This is testament to the transformative power of the Holy Spirit in the Christian life.
Giving testimony under the influence of the Holy Spirit is a profound demonstration of faith and surrender. It signifies our willingness to allow the Spirit work through us in speaking truth and love into the world. This way our testimony often carries an anointing and authority that can touch hearts, change lives, and bring others into a relationship with God. This is when we who are Christians find ourselves telling the good news that the Son of God has come to dwell among His people in the person of Jesus of Nazareth the Christ. This is that moment we must tell it like it is. It is when we must speak out against the tyranny of the darkness flooding the land. But it is not ourselves alone doing the talking but the inner working the Holy Spirit is energizing and animating us to speak the truth in love. Not by might nor by power but by the Spirit and Christ’s grace being perfected in our weakness (Zech. 4:6; 2 Cor. 2:9).
We want to acknowledge the Christ. Acknowledging the Christ brings us into fellowship with the incarnate Son of God, who forgives our sins, makes us whole, delivers us from the demonic powers that infest the world, and shows us the kingdom of God. The Son of God reunites us to the Father in heaven.
Testimonial under the power of the Spirit is the antithesis of the blasphemy of the Spirit.
Blasphemy of the Holy Spirit is a dangerous path because it severs the sinner from the source of forgiveness and salvation. This is a state of spiritual rebellion that, if persisted in, leaves no room for repentance. It behooves us to resist the Christ, especially when the Holy Spirit is wooing us to follow Him. On the other hand, giving testimony under the influence of the Holy Spirit is an act of humility and obedience. It invites the Spirit to work through the believer, allowing us to be a vessel for God’s message of hope and redemption.
— WGN
Notes:
[1] All Scripture cited from The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), unless noted
[2] Clay Jones, “What is the Unpardonable Sin?” Christian Research Journal, 34, 4 [2011]: https://www.equip.org/articles/what-is-the-unpardonable-sin-2a/
[3] Ibid.
[4] Ibid.
[5] G. H. Twelftree, “Blasphemy,” in Dictionary of Jesus and the Gospels, ed. Joel B. Green and Scot McKnight (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1992), 76.
[6] Matthew places Jesus’ warning against the blasphemy of the Spirit in the same context as the Pharisees convoluted statement about the Lord casting out demons using the power of Beelzebub, the prince of demons (Matt. 12:22-32). See previous post “Luke 11:14-26: Unmasking the Strong Man and the Power of God’s Finger”
[7] Jesus reiterates the work of the Spirit in giving testimonial in foretelling what the disciples will experience in the persecutions in the tribulation leading up to the fall of Jerusalem: “But before all this they will lay their hands on you and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues and prisons, and you will be brought before kings and governors for my name’s sake. This will be your opportunity to bear witness. Settle it therefore in your minds not to meditate beforehand how to answer, for I will give you a mouth and wisdom, which none of your adversaries will be able to withstand or contradict. (Lk. 21:12-15; cf. vv. 20-24).
[8] William Hendriksen and Simon J. Kistemaker, Exposition of the Gospel According to Luke, vol. 11, New Testament Commentary (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1953–2001), 657.
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