Question:
Good evening, Pastor Vasile! Thank you for your attention and for paying attention to my previous questions and for giving me an answer. I have a fear that bothers me a lot and I would ask you from the bottom of my heart to answer my question. I have read your articles on BLASPHEMY AGAINST THE HOLY SPIRIT. I would like you to explain more simply when and how this sin is committed, which I do not understand and did not realize and did not know about until recently. I read your articles and watched some more video sermons and I don’t really understand. I am knowledgeable of the Scriptures, I read, I watch sermons, I had a few moments of repentance, and I repented and then tried not to sin, but I slipped again. I want to tell you that I am not baptized, I have not taken communion, I do not attend church, I watch sermons at home with the computer, I have some Christian neighbors with whom I discuss many more things… I can’t know if I was really born again and if I have received the Holy Spirit. In 2009 I had a moment of repentance, after which for about a year I tried not to sin. Then I fell again and over the years it seemed as if the thought kept following me and did not leave me alone, I had such a state of anxiety… Some time has passed since 2009 and now last summer I had a state of conviction and repentance again and I felt an even easier release in my soul. I want to mention that I did not repent at church in front of the brothers or with the laying on of hands, it was not like that, it was at home alone. I had a period of peace and it was as if I was walking with God, and the worst is that that I fell again and I feel so stupid, sad and sorrowful, I did not know until now about BLASPHEMY AGAINST THE HOLY SPIRIT. Not long ago I found out and I was scared and I have a state of fear and dread. In fact, this is what I would like you to answer – have I blasphemed the Spirit through my activity and life so far? Pastor Vasile, please send me an answer because I am anxious and scared and do not know what to do… Thank you!
Before I answer the question, I want to leave to the other readers the links to the articles I published previously about blasphemy against the Holy Spirit:
It seems to me that I have explained in previous articles what blasphemy is against the Holy Spirit, but I will do it again. So…
What is blasphemy against the Holy Spirit?
The Gospel of Matthew 12:22-37 describes a confrontation that the Lord Jesus had with the Pharisees, who, seeing how Jesus healed a blind and dumb demon, said in the presence of witnesses, “This man casteth out devils except with Beelzebub, lord of the devils!” Jesus replied that Satan could not cast out Satan, and then added that He cast out devils with the Spirit of God, and concluded that blasphemy against the Holy Spirit would not be forgiven either in this age or in the future, letting the Pharisees and all the other people understand that the words spoken by the Pharisees when they attributed to Satan the work of the Holy Spirit was a blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. By the way, they said nothing about the Holy Spirit, but blasphemed against the Holy Spirit, for they denied the person of Christ and His saving work when they saw it clearly. They committed many abominations against them, because they were crushed by bitter envy. They did the same when looking for any other possible explanation, except to say that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God. Then, when the Lord Jesus Christ was resurrected, having the greatest proof that He is the Messiah, they still preferred to come to the soldiers to pay them money to lie, saying that the disciples had come to steal the body of Christ.
In the Gospel of Mark 3:20-30 another case is described when the relatives came to take Jesus, because they thought he was out of his mind. At the same time, the scribes who had come down from Jerusalem said that Jesus was ruled by Beelzebub and that he was casting out devils with the help of the lord of devils. Their statement was described by the Lord Jesus as blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, and the Savior once again stated that this sin would not be forgiven. The last verses give an explanation of why Jesus said these words and what blasphemy against the Holy Spirit means:
Truly I tell you, people can be forgiven all their sins and every slander they utter, but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven; they are guilty of an eternal sin.” He said this because they were saying, “He has an impure spirit.” (Mark 3:28-30 NASB)
Were your falls into blasphemy against the Holy Spirit?
I dare not say that. From what you have written to me, I do not see that you have ever denied the divinity of the Lord Jesus and the fact that He is the Savior of the world. At the same time, I believe that you have not experienced true repentance and rebirth, and therefore have not been baptized with the Holy Spirit. You desire to live a holy life, but you have no power, for we receive this power only when we are baptized with the Holy Spirit.
How can you free yourself from the fear of blaspheming against the Holy Spirit?
If you have not repented and experienced being born again, you are still under the burden of all your sins and go to eternal perdition. You must make a full decision for God and leave no reservations. I don’t know what reservations you have left so far, but obviously you have not decided to die to yourself and rise for Christ to live life to the fullest for Him alone. I urge you to make this decision right now. Kneel before God and tell Him about your decision. Then go to church tomorrow and tell the pastor that you have decided to be baptized and become a member of the church, for baptism is not optional, but is a command of the Lord Jesus Christ to all who have decided to be His disciples. Whoever does not want to be baptized should not believe that he is a disciple of the Lord Jesus, because he is not. Then, through baptism, you will become a member of Christ’s Church. Jesus gives us the Holy Spirit when we are fully determined for Him. There are many who are mistaken in believing that they have become Christians by repeating a prayer at an evangelism or at a Christian camp, etc., but who do not want to repent and live their lives as they please. No, my dears, do not be mistaken. You are not disciples of Christ and you are not worthy of Him. You are not saved and your sins have remained on your shoulders as they have been until now. Those who come to the Church “Buna Vestire” in Chisinau believe that you have noticed that for some time now I have not even called people to repentance, but I only invite those who have decided to be baptized. Whoever did not make this decision did not decide for God, but deceived himself. If you did the same, stop doing it. Go to the pastor and tell him that you want to be baptized and follow in all the teachings of Christ, whatever that would involve for the rest of your life. Only that way will you be a true disciple of Christ.
Do not delay repentance…
Do not be mistaken as others like you are, believing that the chances of salvation will never be exhausted. In the Epistle to the Hebrews it is written:
See to it, brothers and sisters, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called “Today,” so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness. (Hebrews 3:12-13 NASB)
The devil is the one who deceives you and constantly convinces you to postpone repentance, to have more fun, to take from this life what you still can. With each postponement of repentance you lose the blessings that God has prepared for you, and the devil gains time to do two things that ensure your destruction.
- He deceives you to postpone…
- He uses your procrastination to harden you, to make you insensitive to God’s call and Word.
Hurry to repent, be baptized, and cling to the church to serve with all your spiritual gifts. Hurry to save your soul.
Translated by Didina Vicliuc