Whoever Is Not With Me Is Against Me! Matthew 12:30-37
30 “Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters. 31 And so I tell you, every kind of sin and slander can be forgiven, but blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. 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. 33 “Make a tree good and its fruit will be good, or make a tree bad and its fruit will be bad, for a tree is recognized by its fruit. 34 You brood of vipers, how can you who are evil say anything good? For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of. 35 A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him. 36 But I tell you that everyone will have to give account on the day of judgment for every empty word they have spoken. 37 For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.”
Reflection: Today's reading raises two very important questions that have been much debated over the years. I hope to tackle both of them today. Or at least provide a context for understanding them. Jesus says that every kind of sin and slander can be forgiven and even those who speak against him can be forgiven, but whoever blasphemies the Holy Spirit cannot be forgiven. This has been commonly called the "un-forgiveable sin". Let's break it down. First, we need to understand that the Holy Spirit is one of the three persons of the Trinity and is fully God, just like God the Father and God the Son (Jesus). So it is important to say that there is no reduction of the divinity of Jesus going on here. The bible teaches us that unless the Spirit draws a man or woman to faith, they cannot come to faith.
John 3 says that unless a man is born from above, or born again they cannot inherit the kingdom of God. Then John goes on to say that this is to say a man or woman is born of the Spirit. We are all born once naturally and spiritual rebirth happens as a result of the Holy Spirit regenerating us through faith in Jesus Christ. Luther's explanation to the third person of the Trinity (the Holy Spirit) is helpful here. He says, "I cannot by my own understanding or effort come to know Jesus as Lord, but the Holy Spirit has called, gathered and enlightened me to know Jesus as Lord. So in what sense is blasphemy against the Holy Spirit unforgiveable? Because if one is blaspheming the Holy Spirit it can't work to lead one to Christ. By rejecting the Holy Spirit, we reject the means of grace. We cut off the power of God to lead us to faith.
Then the bible goes to say that only good trees produce good fruit. And we know that as we are given the gift of the Holy Spirit, the Spirit produces the fruit of the Christian life. So we can see how important the Holy Spirit is in our both coming to faith and producing fruit and character of Jesus' life as mature. Simply put, apart from the Spirit we can do nothing. This is the best possible construction of what it means to be spiritual or the spiritual life. The world uses the term "spiritual" or "spirituality" to refer to a broad range of things often unrelated to Christianity, but in the Christian sense it is related to the person and work of the Holy Spirit, who is God!
Come Holy Spirit lead us to faith and repentance in Jesus' name. Help us to be sensitive and aware of your presence and leading through the Word of God. Amen.
Reflection: Today's reading raises two very important questions that have been much debated over the years. I hope to tackle both of them today. Or at least provide a context for understanding them. Jesus says that every kind of sin and slander can be forgiven and even those who speak against him can be forgiven, but whoever blasphemies the Holy Spirit cannot be forgiven. This has been commonly called the "un-forgiveable sin". Let's break it down. First, we need to understand that the Holy Spirit is one of the three persons of the Trinity and is fully God, just like God the Father and God the Son (Jesus). So it is important to say that there is no reduction of the divinity of Jesus going on here. The bible teaches us that unless the Spirit draws a man or woman to faith, they cannot come to faith.
John 3 says that unless a man is born from above, or born again they cannot inherit the kingdom of God. Then John goes on to say that this is to say a man or woman is born of the Spirit. We are all born once naturally and spiritual rebirth happens as a result of the Holy Spirit regenerating us through faith in Jesus Christ. Luther's explanation to the third person of the Trinity (the Holy Spirit) is helpful here. He says, "I cannot by my own understanding or effort come to know Jesus as Lord, but the Holy Spirit has called, gathered and enlightened me to know Jesus as Lord. So in what sense is blasphemy against the Holy Spirit unforgiveable? Because if one is blaspheming the Holy Spirit it can't work to lead one to Christ. By rejecting the Holy Spirit, we reject the means of grace. We cut off the power of God to lead us to faith.
Then the bible goes to say that only good trees produce good fruit. And we know that as we are given the gift of the Holy Spirit, the Spirit produces the fruit of the Christian life. So we can see how important the Holy Spirit is in our both coming to faith and producing fruit and character of Jesus' life as mature. Simply put, apart from the Spirit we can do nothing. This is the best possible construction of what it means to be spiritual or the spiritual life. The world uses the term "spiritual" or "spirituality" to refer to a broad range of things often unrelated to Christianity, but in the Christian sense it is related to the person and work of the Holy Spirit, who is God!
Come Holy Spirit lead us to faith and repentance in Jesus' name. Help us to be sensitive and aware of your presence and leading through the Word of God. Amen.
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