Question: Dear Greg,

My question deals with blaspheming of the Holy Spirit. I have heard several pastors/teachers say that you cannot blaspheme against the Holy Spirit. They say that that was applied to the lawyers/scribes of the day. I use Matthew 12:31-33 as my base text and I see no time stamp on these verses. What I do see is a warning against doubts of miracles performed by the Spirit of God. I am concerned with the doubts and verbal attacks by certain pastors concerning certain "faith" healings. Previous to these verses Jesus is accused of casting devils out by Beelzebub and I see this very same thing taking place now. In verse 33 Jesus says "either make the tree good, and his fruit good, or else make the tree corrupt,. And his fruit corrupt: for the tree is known by his fruit." Later in 14:13 Jesus says that every plant, which has not been planted by God shall be rooted up. He added, "let them alone: they be blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch."

Is it possible to still blaspheme against the Holy Spirit? If so, are the pastors of today who denounce present day healings and miracles in danger of blaspheming against the Holy Spirit?

I thank you in advance dealing with this matter.

Yours in Christ,

Rodney

Answer: Dear Rodney,

I am not certain how anyone who purports to base his or her beliefs and statements upon the Bible could say that blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is impossible, since the Bible clearly says that we can blaspheme the Holy Spirit.

However, I do not necessarily follow the interpretation you seem to imply – that those who doubt the claims of faith healers may be doing just this. Blaspheming the Holy Spirit goes far beyond a reasonable inquiry into truth claims that are made in the name of God. After all, the Bible also says that not everyone who comes in Jesus’ name does so with his blessing.

The fact that some cast doubt upon what God alone can miraculously perform by "manufacturing" or "fabricating" certain "evidence" is an unfortunate fact. There are those who have claimed to heal others when nothing of the sort actually happened. To call attention to the false claims of such individuals is not blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, but rather simply reminding others that there are wolves who have always, and continue to, come in sheep’s clothing. To further point out unbiblical teaching of some who interpret the Bible using a health-wealth/Word-faith filter, actually helps believers learn and understand what the Bible actually says and who God really is, as opposed to the partial understanding which can lead to misunderstanding, hurt, pain and disillusionment.

In Christ,

Greg Albrecht