There are some folk who believe in an "unforgivable" or "unpardonable" sin. Consequently, they may worry that they have committed this sin, and that God refuses to forgive them. Where do people get the idea that there is such a thing as an "unforgivable" sin?

Five passages come to mind from which the idea of an unforgivable sin may be mistakenly drawn...

Unforgiven But Not Unforgivable

In no Bible passage can we find the terms "unforgivable sin" or "unpardonable sin." These are man’s terms. They are not inspired by the Holy Spirit.

Illustrations

I would like to illustrate the the important difference between calling a sin "unforgivable" (as men do) and "unforgiven" (as the scriptures do). I want to to drive home the point that when one speaks of an "unpardonable" or "unforgivable" sin one is not speaking as the scriptures speak.

The Unloved Orphan Boy Suppose you saw a documentary about the sad life of a forlorn little boy, an orphan from birth in a war-torn, disease-ridden village. The commentator describes the poor little chap as "unloved." Would you understand that to mean the boy is unlovable? There's a lot of difference between saying someone is unloved and saying someone is unlovable, isn’t there? Even if the commentator said, the boy "will never be loved", you’d still not think the boy was unlovable, would you?. Death might claim the little boy before a merciful person can rescue him. He was loveable, yet was never loved.

The Unused Hammer and Trowel Suppose I had just purchased a new hammer at the ironmongers. I could say my new hammer is unused. But I certainly would not mean it was unusable, would I? There's a lot of difference, isn't there, between a hammer being unused and unusable? A couple of years ago, I purchased a new trowel and put it in the garden tool bin. When I went to use it, I could not find it. Recently I found it in the garden by sheer chance, under thick mulch that I was pulling back to make a hole. That trowel was still perfectly usable, yet had it not turned up it would never have been used.

The Unforgiven Sin Jesus spoke of sin that is "unforgiven" and "never forgiven". He did not say it was unforgivable. Just as we do not assume that an unloved boy is unlovable, or an unused tool is unusable, so we should not say that an unforgiven sin is unforgivable. When Jesus calls a sin unforgiven, even when he says it can never be forgiven, let us not put words into his mouth and call the sin unforgivable.

Conditions Preventing Forgiveness

If a sin is unforgiven, there are conditions preventing its forgiveness. No sin is unpardonable when the barrier to forgiveness is removed. God never puts up a barrier to forgiveness, but sinners often do. So let’s now look at what the barrier to forgiveness actually is.

If you look at each of the passages mentioned at the beginning of this article, you will find that the problem is not in God's heart, or in the nature of the sin itself, but lies with the sinner's own heart and will. It is not the sin, but the sinner that creates the conditions preventing forgiveness.

Not Binding the Strong Man

Mark 3:27-30

To understand the meaning of verses 28 and 29, we need to think about the parable of the strong man in verse 27. To plunder the strong man’s house you first have to bind the strong man. Jesus had plundered the house of Satan when he cast out demons. He did this not by unleashing Satan’s power as he was accused of doing, but rather by binding Satan and rendering him powerless. Jesus also plunders the house of Satan when he forgives sins. But he can do this only if he first binds Satan. If something should prevent Christ from binding Satan, then he cannot plunder Satan’s house, he cannot forgive sin. What we have to discover, is what prevents Christ from binding the strong man?

Unwillingness to repent

Heb 6:4-8

There is one thing we know clearly and for certain about the conditions that prevent sin from being forgiven. There is an unwillingness to repent, and a determination to go on sinning. No contrite person, who approaches God in penitence and humility, is ever refused forgiveness. But the person of stubborn will, who refuses to yield to God, and refuses to ask forgiveness --that person's sin is not forgiven. Some people are so bent on evil that it is impossible to persuade them to repent. For them Satan cannot be bound and his house cannot be plundered of their sins. But note what is preventing forgiveness. It is the sinner’s determination to be a soil that brings forth thorns and briars. It is the sinner’s refusal to be a soil that brings forth useful herbs. Sin is unforgiven because the sinner is unwilling to repent.

Going on sinning wilfully.

Heb 10:26-31

The condition we have been talking about is clearly expressed in the words, "If we go on sinning wilfully..." Whether or not a sin is forgiven depends upon a decision we make, namely whether to continue in it or turn away from it. Everything else is in place. Christ has made forgiveness possible. However, a person who knows the truth and wilfully goes against it, is trampling underfoot the blood that was shed for him. He is not appealing to that blood or seeking its cleansing power. That's why his sin remains unforgiven. God never refuses forgiveness to those who wish to wash their robes white in the blood of the Lamb (Rev 7:14).

Sinning unto death

1John 5:16-17

When John speaks of "a sin unto death" he is referring to what he wrote at the beginning of his letter that "if we confess our sins God is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness" (1John 1:7-9). A sin unto death is a sin which one refuses to acknowledge, confess, and seek forgiveness for. God never refuses forgiveness to those who try to walk in the light, who bring their sins to him in penitent confession.

The cauterised conscience.

1Tim 4:1-2

Paul speaks of a "conscience seared with a hot iron." The conscience like that is beyond feeling. Its nerve endings have been killed and it is numb. The sinner who tosses and turns through the night troubled by his sin, is not like that. He or she is not the sort of person whose sin is never forgiven. Such a person, whatever their sin, may repent and pray and be forgiven.

Home | Topics | List | Next