(Matthew 12:22-33 ).................................."THE UNPARDONABLE SIN"
Intro: I cannot imagine anything more horrible than having to spend forever in the lake of fire apart from God. But here, Jesus tells us that there is a particular sin one can commit that will doom a person to Hell for all eternity. These days, you don't hear many messages on sin repentance or being lost.....but today you ARE hearing such a message!  Today I will be preaching a sin that Jesus said "would NEVER be forgiven!"  When something is deemed unpardonable, it simply means that there is no forgiveness possible.
Is Jesus really saying that it is possible to commit a sin so awful and so repulsive to God that He, the very God of Grace, cannot and will not forgive it? Yes He is!  In fact, there may be some of you in this very room that are in danger of committing this sin!   And, it's my job  to tell you that "the bridge is out ahead and you need to make a RIGHT TURN to avoid it!   Only a fool would want go on in sin and go so far down life's road that he became hopelessly, irrevocably and eternally lost.
I. THE FEAR SURROUNDING THIS SIN....(v.32-"but whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, neither in the world to come.")
The words, "unpardonable sin", do not appear in the Bible...but when Jesus says "no forgiveness in this WORLD or the next WORLD" we should pay attention!  We live in a relm of possibilities now--things can change...but Jesus said THIS sin reaches a point where it cannot be reversed!   Revelation 22:11 He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still. 
Nobody in their right mind wants to be found guilty of a sin so damning that it can never be forgiven.  Usually, the fear of committing this sin is grounded in falsehood, poor interpretation of the Scriptures and in ignorance of what this sin really is. My aim this morning is to shed some light on that very thing......we will look at what it IS and what it ISNT.  It IS NOT the "sin unto death" mentioned by Paul in the book of Romans, and also be John in his first letter.  The sin unto death is when a believer continues on in habitual sin until he is no earthly good in God's service.....so the Lord takes his worthless life fromthe earth!  As a believer, there is NO sin that cannot be forgiven...but unbelievers who continue to reject the Holy Spirit's call to recieve Christ have no forgiveness in place!
II. THE FALSEHOODS SURROUNDING THIS SIN---There are alot of ideas as to what this sin is, but most are wrong ideas.   Notice some things that men have classified as the unpardonable sin......
1. Murder – (Ill. What about David? – 2 Sam. 11-12) God forgave him – Acts 13:22!
2. Suicide – (This is the sin of self-murder and while it cannot be repented of, it is still covered in the atoning sacrifice of the Lord Jesus – Ill. Matt. 12:31; 1 John 2:1-2!.....You may not have time at your death to ask forgiveness for newly commited sins---but they are STILL COVERED!!!
3. Adultery – (Ill. David!) Most in the room would NEVER in a million lifetimes be unfaithful to your spouse; but you may have committed in a thousand times in your heart!   Matt. 5:28 Are you still saved?--YES!, You are Justified thru Christ!
4. Lying – (Ill. Abraham – Gen. 12:10-20; Gen. 18:17-19) (Ill. Simon Peter – Matt. 26:69-75; Acts 2:14-41!)..."What about Revelation 21:8 But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.???"  Those are the people who commited the UNPARDONABLE SIN of rejecting Christ, therefore, ALL of their sins are still on record!
5. Stealing – (Eph. 4:28)
6. Taking God’s Name In Vain – (Ex. 20:7; Peter – Matt. 26:74)
7. Failing As A Christian – (2 Pet. 2:21) (The Disciples – Matt. 27:56 – They all forsook Him and fled, yet all went on to glory in His Name and in his service!)
*Nor is it any other sin that you can name! Jesus died for them all – John 1:29; Col. 2:13-14; Heb. 9:26)  The death of Jesus on the cross paid for all sin forever! (Ill. The glory of being forgiven – 1 John 1:7; Psa. 103:12)   However, there remains one sin for which there is no forgiveness, now or forever!
III. THE FACTS SURROUNDING THIS SIN....... Who Can Commit The Unpardonable Sin?
1. Can A Saint Commit It? No!  
Because We Are Saved – (Rom. 5:9; 2 Tim. 1:9)  Even if we totally blow our Christian life and wind up in the gutter, even that does not negate our salvation – Not everyone gets it right! There was a guy in the Corinthian Church that liked to mess around with the ladies.  He was saved, but still had a stobborn-rebelious side to him.  Listen to what Paul said the church should do about it.... 1 Corinthians 5:5 To deliver such an one unto Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus. *The boy didn't LOOSE his salvation, just his life here!
b. Because We Are Sealed – (Eph. 4:30) We are indwelled by the Holy Spirit.. A believer may grieve the Spirit, but when He came in, He came in to stay – John 14:16-18. (2 Timothy 2:13)
c. Becuse We Are Secure – (1 Pet. 1:5) The saint of God is as certain for Heaven as if he were already there!...No! The saved person can never commit the unpardonable sin!
D. L. Moody told the story of an aged minister who believed he had committed the unpardonable sin. After much inner turmoil, he gave in to what he mistakenly thought to be God's will--for him to be lost. Then something within him whispered, "Suppose there is a hell for you, what would you, with your disposition, do there?' The quick answer was, "I would set up a prayer meeting." With those words came the light of God to show the absurdity of his fears. The very fact that he feared he had committed this sin, plus his deep concern, proved he had not.)
2. Can A Sinner Commit It? Yes! 
Why? Because he is outside the protective shield of the blood of Jesus!   We have seen what this sin isn’t and who can and cannot commit it, but we have yet to see exactly what it is. How can you know if you are guilty of committing this sin until you know what it is?
What Is The Unpardonable Sin?  In this passage, the Pharisees were attributing the work of the Holy Spirit in Christ to the Devil; and by doing so they were rejecting the witness of the Holy Spirit concerning Christ. The Holy Spirit is in the business of showing off Jesus – John 16:13-14! Jesus, by His miracles, had proven Himself to be of God. When these Pharisees rejected the witness of the Spirit, their rejection of God was complete and final!...People need to be cautious when they critisize the ministries of other churches and attribute it to the devil, because that is what the Pharisees did!

*Some of the people of Israel dinned this way in their rejection of the Almighty – John 1:11 
1. In rejecting John the Baptist, they were rejecting the Father
2. In rejecting the Person of Christ, they were rejecting the Son.
3. In rejecting the Apostles, they were rejecting the Spirit.
To reject the forerunner (John) was forgivable. To reject the pre-Calvary Jesus was forgivable, but to reject the witness of the Spirit was the final straw and meant absolute destruction and eternal damnation! 
Some have said that "Christ is no longer on the earth and these events cannot be duplicated, therefore this sin cannot be committed." That is correct, but only to a point!  Because, ultimately, their sin boiled down to a simple rejection of the witness of the Spirit concerning the truth of Jesus Christ’s identity!
*Can This Sin Be Committed Today? Yes! Here’s How!
1. The Holy Spirit still testifies of Jesus, declaring Him to be all that the Scriptures say He is – John 15:26 
2. The Holy Spirit still convicts of sin – John 16:7-10; John 6:44
3. The Unpardonable Sin is simply rejecting the Spirit’s witness of the Son and therefore, refusing to receive Him as Personal Savior – 1 John 5:12; John 3:36. No other sin can send you to Hell! Everything else was paid for at the Cross. But for you to be saved, you must receive the witness of the Spirit and ask Jesus into your heart!!
David tells us that the heavens themselves declare the existence of God – Psa. 19:1-3. But, you can reject that revelation for a while, and later on come to know Jesus. The Scriptures tell us that Jesus Christ is the "Son of God" – Mat. 16:16. Yet, you can reject that for a time and later on come to know the Lord-(For some it happens at 4 years old, for others at 70 years old) *You can deny all the evidence around you and refuse to believe and still not commit the unpardonable sin. Yet, when the Holy Spirit of God deals with your heart, and you see for yourself that the claims of the Scriptures are true. When the Spirit shows you that Jesus really is God and is the only hope for sinners. That He really did die and rise again and that you can be saved if you will only trust Him. When you say no to the Spirit of God, then you have crossed that line!! You are guilty of committing the Unpardonable Sin! That isn’t to say that God won’t give you 1, 2, 10 or even dozens more chances, but it doesn’t mean He will either! Saying "No" to the pleading of the Spirit is a serious thing! Eventually, it will lead to Hell, unless the sinner says, "Yes!" After all, Jesus is the only hope man has for salvation – Acts 4:12; John 14:6; Acts 16:31)
IV. THE FINALITY SURROUNDING THIS SIN.......
(v. 32)– Again, this verse plainly says that to reject Jesus is to condemn oneself to an eternity apart from God!   Somewhere, there is a deadline placed by the Lord past which no man can be saved. Please do not go on in your sins until you cross that deadline and go out into eternity lost having committed the Unpardonable Sin.
*What are those deadlines that a man can cross that if he passes, he can never be saved?
1. The Day Of Your Death – Eccl. 11:3 – That which is done in death cannot be undone in eternity
2. The Rapture Of The Church – 2 Thes. 2:11 – If you say no to Jesus now, you will not say yes then!
3. Sinning Away Your Day Of Grace – (Ill. Gen. 6:3) (Ill. "Quench not the Spirit." – 1 Thes. 5:19.) The day may come when the sweet Holy Spirit will never again testify of the saving power of Jesus. When He ceases to draw, you cannot come to Jesus – John 6:44. Ill. While He is knocking, why not just let Him in? – Rev. 3:20.
Is it your Lifestyle? Your Pride? Your Friends or Family? Is your sin really worth going to Hell over?  Don’t throw away the most valuable thing you have for what amounts to less than nothing – Mark 8:36-37....Once this sin has been committed, a line has forever been crossed. Some here today may be about to do this very thing! Don’t let it be you!