Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit

 

Mark 3: 20 – 30

 

“Then he went home, and the crowd gathered again so that they could not even eat.  And when his family heard it, they went out to seize him, for they were saying, “He is out of his mind.”

Mark's gospel gives us insight into Jesus probably coming back to Capernaum and the crowd was so big they could not even eat.  I cannot think of anything much harder to deal with emotionally than your family believes you are out of your mind, but that’s what Mark is sharing with us.  He does not at this point tell us how Jesus dealt with His family.

Blasphemy Against the Holy Spirit

“And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem were saying, “He is possessed by Beelzebul,” and “by the prince of demons he casts out the demons.”  And he called them to him and said to them in parables, “How can Satan cast out Satan?   If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.   And if a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand.   And if Satan has risen up against himself and is divided, he cannot stand, but is coming to an end.   But no one can enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods unless he first binds the strong man. Then indeed he may plunder his house.

The scribes that came from Jerusalem, it sounds as if they came as an official delegation with a predetermined reason, Jesus had such powers.  It does remind one of the last three years of our country and all the lies about our President.  One of the favorite lies they used is, he is a liar and if you ask for an example they are not able to give one.  These scribes had come up with, out of their small minds, that Jesus was getting His power from the devil.  Jesus did what He often did, he told a story or parable.  As stated above in red ink.  We the people of the United States better listen, we have never been more divided against ourselves, and It has been that way for many years, but that does not concern me till that division entered the Church, and it has, and we have ignored it.  When being a Democrat or a Republican become our identity, we have lost our way, we are the Church, not Baptist, nor Roman Catholics, but the body of Christ on this earth called to do our Father’s will.

“Truly, I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the children of man, and whatever blasphemies they utter,  but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness but is guilty of an eternal sin”—  for they were saying, “He has an unclean spirit.”

Jesus is telling these very foolish men that they have blasphemed against the Holy Spirit and that is the only sin that will not be forgiven.   When one says an act of God is the work of the devil or Satan.

 

From the Back Porch,

 

Bob Rice