Back to the Bible: Matthew 12:22-37

The people were so shocked by Jesus’ power that they began to wonder out loud if He really was the fulfillment of the Son of David promise. But, the Pharisees tried to squelch that sentiment. The religious leader's accusation that Jesus worked by the power of Satan was serious. Here is Jesus, doing nothing but good, teaching the truth, and holding to the highest ethical standard. On the other hand, you have the scribes, who are bitter and perverse, saying, “He does it by the power of Satan!”

Jesus broke down their accusation by showing how foolish it would be for Satan to be at war with Himself. That kind of kingdom wasn’t going to stand. Some of the religious leaders’ own disciples were able to do this. Wouldn’t their accusation condemn them too? In reality, this was evidence of the kingdom of God. Jesus explained that His miracles were part of a process in which He would gain victory over Satan.

They blasphemed the Holy Spirit by denying the source of power by which He did His work.  Jesus warns them that their statement revealed their real character. They were hard, insensitive, unreachable, and unrepentant. When they saw Jesus’ miracles, they were not struck by His power, but immediately began to think, “How can we explain this away?” They were so crazed with jealousy and hatred that they would not even listen. That attitude was reflected in their accusation. Thus, they were in danger of never being forgiven because their words revealed the attitude of their hearts (cf. Mk. 3:5; 4:11, 12; Mt. 12:18, 22-32). Their words reflected who they really were.

Jesus says that the way you can know whether or not someone is good on the inside is by hearing their words on the outside. Jesus points to a day of judgment where we will be called to account for even the careless words. They will justify or condemn us because they reveal us.

Lessons to Learn:

Have you committed blasphemy against the Holy Spirit? My understanding is that it’s not a phrase you say, but a disposition of heart that our words reflect. There is no sin that God will not forgive… except the one that you will not repent of. If there comes a point where you’re rejecting God’s will and you’re so hard-hearted that you will not take His evidence and will not be moved by His will, then you’ll remain in your condemned position forever.

Our words reflect who we are. In this case, they reflected a person’s attitude toward Jesus and toward the Holy Spirit. Do our words reveal hearts of anger or immorality? Do they indicate that we think badly about others? James says that if we claim to be religious, but don’t get a hold of our tongue, we have deceived ourselves (Js. 1:26).

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