Is There Any Sin That God Will Not Forgive?
- True North Church
- Jun 10
- 4 min read
Let’s start with a basic, foundational principle of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Romans 10:9 says, "If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. That is the only qualification for salvation; BELIEF that Jesus is Lord, and that he died on a cross in our place for the forgiveness of our sin. If we truly believe that, there is absolutely no sin we can commit that God’s grace will not forgive. Unlike most warranties nowadays, it’s all-inclusive, no strings attached! And yes, that includes the sins we would consider the worst of the worst (murder, physical/sexual abuse, etc.).
And so that brings us to a verse that can cause a lot of confusion for people, Matthew 12:31-32;
"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."
Why Is Blasphemy Against the Holy Spirit Unforgivable?
In light of Romans 10:9 and what we know about God’s grace and forgiveness, this can raise some big questions;
If Jesus and the Holy Spirit are both God, why is speaking against Jesus a forgivable offense but speaking against the Spirit is unforgivable?
If even the worst of sins are forgiven through Christ’s work on the cross, why is speaking against the Holy Spirit the exception?
To answer these questions we must understand some important context surrounding this text. For starters, who Jesus is speaking to in Matthew 12 (the Pharisees) is of great importance. Throughout Jesus’ ministry the Pharisees have witnessed Jesus do miracle after miracle and seen the brilliant (divine) way in which he preached God’s Word. There was no denying the reality of what the Holy Spirit was doing through Christ. They knew his claims were true and yet they rejected him anyway.
In comparison, there are many who have rejected Christ but have never experienced the Holy Spirit's power through Him. They have rejected Jesus, but their rejection is different from the Pharisees. Their rejection is out of ignorance. A person who has rejected Christ out of ignorance or even just a hard heart can be forgiven assuming their unbelief turns to genuine repentance. Take the Apostle Paul for example. He vehemently rejected Jesus and blasphemed his name. But his zeal was actually out of love for God. As ignorant as he was, Paul really believed what he was doing was right. But, when he realized how wrong he was he repented and was immediately forgiven.
So, to answer the two questions above;
When we speak against Jesus without a full understanding or knowledge of who He is there is always hope for salvation through a genuinely repentant heart. No matter how many times we reject him all it takes is one moment of repentance and belief to change everything. That is why speaking against “the son of man” is forgivable. But when we speak against the Holy Spirit, we are ACTIVELY CHOOSING to reject the fully revealed truth of God, because the Spirit is the one who testifies that Jesus is the Christ and that he is the only way to salvation. To reject the Spirit is to HEAR the truth, BELIEVE the truth, and STILL choose to REJECT the truth. And there is no coming back from that.
Think of it like the difference between two bank robbers. Bank robber one, steals money from a bank. And even though they wanted to do it, and justified their reasons for it in the moment, they were remorseful once they were caught. Bank robber two on the other hand steals the money, and once they are caught, in spite of everyone telling them it is wrong, still believes they’re innocent and rejects the overwhelming truth.
The bottom line is this, all people sin. All people have rejected God and rebelled in one way or another. Many have rejected Jesus and questioned his deity. But if at any point in time a person realizes how wrong they were and turns to Him, all is forgiven. What cannot be forgiven, is rejection of the divine truth about Jesus Christ revealed by the Spirit. To put it in its most simple terms, there is only ONE SIN that can keep you out of heaven, rejecting Jesus Christ as savior.
How Pride Keeps Us From Forgiveness
This is why Satan’s number one strategy for trying to win his war against God and humanity is to get people to reject the truth of the Spirit and in turn reject the gospel. It is literally the only game plan he has with any hope of succeeding. Which, when you really stop and think about it shows just how incredible the gospel is. It doesn’t matter how great our sin is, if we will humbly admit we need a savior, JESUS FORGIVES ALL. The only thing that can keep you from being forgiven is to pridefully go on living like you don’t need it or that you can earn it for yourself.
So, if you have put your faith in Jesus as savior, know this, your eternity is secure! You cannot lose your salvation. There is no sin that is unforgivable, IN CHRIST! Romans 8:38-39 assures us of this promise;
"For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord."
That is the amazing, life-changing truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ. If you have never known that, may today be the day the Holy Spirit reveals that truth to you. And may today be the day you “declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead,” and finally surrender your life to Him!
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