Just as the work of Christ is important in the accomplishment of salvation, so also is the work of the Holy Spirit. The deity and personality of the Holy Spirit were considered in Chapter 15. It was there noted that Holy Spirit is deity. It was further noted that the Holy Spirit is a person. Having considered His deity and personality, we move to His work.

This chapter, divided into eight major divisions, is a careful study of the work of the Holy Spirit:

1. We will provide a brief summary of the Biblical teaching of the Holy Spirit;

2. We will examine the work of the Holy Spirit in relation to the world;

3. We will examine the work of the Holy Spirit in relation to the Scripture;

4. We will examine the work of the Holy Spirit in relation to Christ;

5. We will examine the work of the Holy Spirit in relation to pre-evangelism;

6. We will examine the work of the Holy Spirit in relation to evangelism;

7. We will examine the work of the Holy Spirit in relation to conversion; and

8. We will discuss why blasphemy against the Spirit is the unpardonable sin (Matthew 12:12-32; Mark 3:28-30; Luke 12:10).

1. SUMMARY OF THE BIBLICAL TEACHING OF THE HOLY SPIRIT

The Biblical teaching of the Holy Spirit is summarized in the following tables:

1.1 Titles of the Holy Spirit

1.2 Names, Personality and Attributes of the Holy Spirit

2. THE WORK OF THE HOLY SPIRIT IN RELATION TO THE WORLD

The work of the Holy Spirit in relation to the world includes:

1. in creation;

2. in preservation; and

3. in the affairs of non-believers.

It is interesting that creation is ascribed to all three persons of the trinity:

1. the Father (Revelation 4:11);

2. the Son (John 1:3); and

3. the Holy Spirit.

Genesis 1:2 demonstrates the active involvement of the Spirit at creation. Elihu tells Job, "The Spirit of God has made me, and the breath of the Almighty gives me life" (Job 33:4), and Job responds to Bildad, "By His breath [Spirit] the heavens are cleared" (Job 26:13). The Psalmist suggests the work of the Spirit in creation, "By the word of the Lord the heavens were made, and by the breath [Spirit] of His mouth all their host" (Psalm 33:6).

The Spirit is not only involved in creation but also in preservation. Both are mentioned in Psalm 104:30, "Thou dost send forth Thy Spirit, they are created; and Thou dost renew the face of the ground." Isaiah 40:7 suggests the active involvement of the Spirit, "The grass withers, the flower fades, when the breath [Spirit] of the Lord blows upon it." In discussing the whole matter of the greatness of God's creative and providential activities, Isaiah asks, "Who has directed the Spirit of the Lord, or as His counselor has informed Him?" (Isaiah 40:13).

It seems, evident that expressions such as His Spirit (breath), Spirit (breath) of His mouth, Spirit (breath) of the Lord, Spirit of His Son, and Spirit of Jesus, all have reference to the Holy Spirit, the third person of the trinity (Job 26:13; Psalm 33:6; Isaiah 40:7; Galatians 4:6; Acts 16:7, respectively).

2.3 In the Affairs of Non-Believers

In addition to His providential governance in creation, the Spirit is active in the non-believing world. He actively works through individuals to accomplish His purposes, for examples:

1. God anointed Cyrus, the pagan king of Persia, with the Holy Spirit to accomplish His service, though Cyrus did not know God (Isaiah 44:28-45:6).
   
   

2. Concerning King Saul, there is no reason to consider Saul one of God's elect. After his anointing the Holy Spirit comes upon him, abides with him, and works upon him as long as he remains the Lord's chosen king over His people. But as soon as by wilful disobedience he forfeits that favor, the Holy Spirit departs from him and an evil spirit from the Lord troubles him.
   
   

3. It is no wonder that David, having sinned and knowing well what had happened to Saul, requested of the Lord, "Do not take Thy Holy Spirit from me" (Psalm 51:11).

This work of the Spirit upon Cyrus and Saul is something completely distinct from regeneration. We must also recognize that the Spirit came upon Old Testament believers in such fashion as this for special ministry (cf. Bezalel, Exodus 31:2f.; Othniel, Judges 3:9f.; Jephthah, Judges 11:29).

It is common knowledge that conscience, daylight, and government among other things serve as restraints for evil. The presence of godly people also confines and represses evil. The restrainer of 2 Thessalonians 2:6-8 seems to have reference to the Holy Spirit. During the Great Tribulation period, the Spirit's ministry of restraining evil and hindering the revelation of the man of lawlessness will be withdrawn. Evil will be allowed to run rampant.

The work of the Holy Spirit in relation to the Scripture includes:

1. author; and

2. interpreter.

According to the Bible, the Holy Spirit is the author of Scripture:

1. Peter indicates, "Men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God" (2 Peter 1:21).
   
   

2. At the close of each of the seven letters to the churches in the Revelation, Jesus said, "He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches" (Revelation 2:7, 11).
   
   

3. "It was the Spirit who was to guide the apostles into all the truth, and show them things to come (John 16:13)."
   
   

4. Such statements as "The Holy Spirit rightly spoke through Isaiah the prophet to your fathers" (Acts 28:25) and "The Spirit foretold by the mouth of David concerning Judas" (Acts 1:16), clearly reveal the apostles' commitment to the Spirit's authorship of Scripture (cf. also Hebrews 3:7; 10:15).
   
   

5. It was He who revealed to the New Testament apostles and prophets matters undiscoverable through human philosophy and the natural reasoning processes of the human mind (Ephesians 3:5).

According to the Bible, the Holy Spirit is also the interpreter:

1. Paul prayed that God might give to the Ephesian believers "a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of Him" (Ephesians 1:17; cf. Isaiah 11:2).
   
   

2. Paul also writes that God has given to us "the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things freely given to us by God" (1 Corinthians 2:12).
   
   

3. The Spirit takes Christ's words and discloses them to believers (John 16:14).
   
   

4. He teaches us, "combining spiritual thoughts with spiritual words" (1 Corinthians 2:13).
   
   

5. John reminds his readers that they all had "an anointing from the Holy One" (1 John 2:20), and he further writes, "The anointing which you received from Him abides in you, and you have no need for any one to teach you; but ... His anointing teaches you about all things" (v. 27). Thus the same Spirit who wrote Scripture, interprets it.

The work of the Holy Spirit in relation to Christ includes:

1. in the earthly ministry of Christ; and

2. in the power of Christ.

Several things can be noted which relate to the earthly ministry of Christ:

1. Our Lord was conceived of the Spirit (Luke 1:35).
   
   

2. He was anointed by the Spirit at his baptism (Matthew 3:16; cf. Isaiah 61:1; Luke 4:18). The Spirit, given without measure (John 3:34), equipped Him for His messianic ministry, and it was at this point that Jesus "began His ministry" (Luke 3:23).
   
   

3. Immediately after the baptism, "Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led about by the Spirit in the wilderness for forty days, while tempted by the devil" (Luke 4:lf.; cf. Matthew 4:1; Mark 1:12).
   
   

4. Further, the Spirit was active in His crucifixion and His resurrection (Hebrews 9:14; Romans 1:4; 8:11).
   
   

5. When Jesus ascended, He requested of the Father that He would send the Spirit (John 14:16, 26; 15:26). The Spirit was to be Jesus' replacement so that the disciples would not be left as orphans (John 14:18; 16:7-15). Before Jesus left, He prepared the disciples to receive the Spirit (Luke 24:49; John 20:22; Acts 1:8).
   
   

6. Peter informed Cornelius "how God anointed Him with the Holy Spirit and with power" (Acts 10:38). It was through the Spirit that Jesus performed His miracles (Matthew 12:28).

The work of the Holy Spirit in the power of Christ included:

1. performed His work in the conception of our Lord;

2. attended the unfolding of His human nature;

3. brought into activity every gift and power in Him;

4. consecrated Him to His office as the Messiah;

5. qualified Him for every conflict and temptation;

6. enabled Him to cast out devils; 

7. supported Him in His humiliation, passion, and bitter death;

8. performed His work in His resurrection, so that Jesus was justified in the Spirit (1 Timothy 3:16); and

9. dwells now in the glorified human nature of the Redeemer in the heavenly Jerusalem.

We have all been unwilling victims of men who usurp the role of the Holy Spirit in their preaching; they have condemned, and even terrified audiences in an attempt to bring about conviction and guilt. However sincere in their motives, what they fail to understand is that it is the Holy Spirit's role to bring about conviction in the heart of man. It is not the responsibility of a preacher, or an evangelist, or any believer for that matter!

The work of the Holy Spirit in evangelism falls into two categories:

1. pre-evangelism; and

2. evangelism proper.

By "pre-evangelism" we mean whatever truth and consciousness of need is necessary to enable a person to be prepared to understand the gospel message. Pre-evangelism is what the Holy Spirit does in the hearts and minds of sinners to enable them to comprehend the gospel message. If we define "gospel" as the good news that Jesus Christ died for sin and rose again (1 Corinthians 15:1-4), and we explain who Jesus is and that man's response should be repentance and faith, then whatever else is necessary for a person to understand the gospel is pre-evangelism.

In other words, the "gospel" of 1 Corinthians 15:1-4 is meaningless to a person who does not know why Jesus died for sin; and one cannot understand sin unless he understands that God is holy and just. Such things as who God is, what sin is, and man's need for righteousness would be part of pre-evangelism.

Based on this, we perceive two activities of the Holy Spirit in pre-evangelism by which He communicates truths about God, sin, and righteousness. We call them:

1. conviction; and

2. attraction.

Jesus summarized the Holy Spirit's work of conviction beautifully in John 16:8-11:

1. The essence of sin, this passage reveals, is unbelief ("because they believe not in Me"), which is an expression of man's rebellion.
   
   

2. Jesus Christ Himself is the essence of righteousness ("because I go to the Father, and you no longer behold Me"), the one of whom the Holy Spirit testifies (John 16:14).
   
   

3. And it is the judgment of Satan ("the prince of this world is judged") which makes it certain that all men are liable to judgment.

To summarize, only the Holy Spirit can make men aware that they are rebellious sinners, without a righteousness of their own, under the judgment of God. It is His work to bring about a sense of remorse in the sinner's heart. This we consider to be the negative element of pre-evangelism.

The Holy Spirit draws people to Jesus the Savior as the remedy for sin. This work is the positive element of pre-evangelism. The following Scripture speaks of the Holy Spirit's work of attraction in the unbeliever's heart to cause him to turn to the Lord:

1. Peter and the apostles said, "And we are witnesses of these things; and so is the Holy Spirit" (Acts 5:32).
   
   

2. Jesus explains to His disciples that the Spirit "will bear witness of Me" (John 15:26), and "He shall glorify Me" (John 16:14).
   
   

3. The enlightening of John 1:9 and the drawing of John 6:44 and 12:32 have reference to the work which the Father and the Son do through the Spirit.

It may be difficult to distinguish "attraction by the Holy Spirit" from "evangelism by a preacher." Let me give you an example to illustrate it:

In Acts 10:38 Cornelius the Centurion already knew certain facts about Jesus Christ (attraction). This knowledge provided a basis for Peter's preaching of the gospel to him.

It is the Holy Spirit's role to bring about conviction in the heart of man. It is much less than generally practiced today Evangelists are always tempted to "make it happen" by using dramatic, spectacular methods, tear-jerking sermons, hard-sell techniques, and entertainment of some kind in order to produce converts.

If it is the Holy Spirit's role to bring about conviction in the heart of man, then what is the believer's function in evangelism? In this section, we will deal with what the Holy Spirit does through us and for us in evangelism.

Once a person has a sense of need or guilt and sufficient knowledge of God, he is a candidate for evangelism. By "evangelism" we mean the presentation of the gospel by a preacher so that the listener is able to make a knowledgeable decision about Jesus Christ. As the good news of Christ and His provision is preached, the Spirit:

1. empowers the message; and

2. illuminates the truth.

Acts 1:8 is the key to the whole book, declares that when the Holy Spirit has come the disciples would receive "power" to witness about Christ. An examination of the rest of the book shows us the results of the power granted by the Holy Spirit to those witnessing so they were able to speak clearly courageously, and convincingly (Acts 4:13, 33; 6:8-10; 9:22; 13:43-49; 14:1-3; 16:14; 19:8). At the same time, the Holy Spirit brings the convicted listener to a willingness to "obey" the gospel, a removal of his natural instinct to resist.

Man is blinded by Satan to spiritual truth (2 Corinthians 4:4) and unable to "receive the things of the Spirit of God" in his "natural" state (1 Corinthians 2:14). Since the "spiritual" man is able to "judge all things," it is safe to infer that the difference is the Holy Spirit who gives to all believers this spiritual capacity. He illuminates the gospel message, and thereafter the words of Scripture to the believer.

The believer's function is to present the gospel clearly, simply, and compassionately with a sense of dependence upon the Holy Spirit (note the simplicity and lack of "gimmicks" in the sermons in the book of Acts). His personal life and devotion to the Lord Jesus Christ are far more important than his eloquence and experience (see Acts 4:13, and also 1 Corinthians 2:1-4).

The work of the Holy Spirit is summarized in the following table:

In this section, we will deal with what the impact the Holy Spirit has on our lives through:

1. regeneration;

2. spirit-baptism; and

3. sealing.

Webster's Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary defines "regenerate" as "formed or created again." Though this is not a theological definition, it accurately describes what happens to the believer.

It is through the ministry of the Holy Spirit that a person is born again (John 3:3-8), for it is the Spirit who gives life (John 6:63). Paul speaks of the "renewing by the Holy Spirit" and it refers to the "washing of regeneration" which many interpreters see as inner cleansing rather than water baptism (Titus 3:5).

This regeneration, being "born again," is accomplished in the believer by the Holy Spirit who imparts the divine life and nature to the believer so that he becomes a child of God, desiring to obey God. According to 2 Corinthians 5:17 the believer becomes a "new creation" in which he looks at life in a radically different way; "the old things passed away, behold new things have come." He receives a new perspective on every thing, and a new desire to please God.

Jesus told Nicodemus in John 3:3-8 that he must be "born again," for "unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God (v. 5)." Interpretations of the meaning of "water" in John 3:3-8 are several:

1. it teaches that baptism by church leaders is necessary to be regenerated;

2. it is symbolic of the Word of God;

3. it is a reference to human biological birth, the water that surrounds the fetus;

4. both "water" and "wind" are symbols of the Holy Spirit; and

5. it refers to the baptizing work of John the Baptist (i.e. repentance).

7.1.2.1 Baptism by church leaders is necessary to be regenerated

Some take it literally to mean water baptism and often include the idea that baptism by church leaders is necessary in some way to be regenerated. However, the problems of this view are as follows:

1. There are about 150 passages in the New Testament which teach that salvation is by faith alone, and these cannot be contradicted by a few verses which seem to teach that church baptism is necessary for salvation.
   
   

2. The thief on the Cross was not baptized, yet he was assured of being in Paradise with Christ (Luke 23:39-43).
   
   

3. The Gentiles, Cornelius and his relatives, who were saved in Caesarea (Acts 10:44-48) received the Holy Spirit when they believed. This means that they then belonged to Christ (Romans 8:9). After receiving the Holy Spirit, that is, after being saved, they were baptized (Acts 10:47-48). They were saved first, then baptized. Therefore, baptism was not necessary for their salvation.
   
   

4. It is unreasonable to assume that Nicodemus would have known anything about baptism by church leaders when he discussed this matter with the Lord Jesus Christ at that time.

According to the above reasons, this view is obviously wrong.

7.1.2.2 It is symbolic of the Word of God

Others believe it is symbolic of the Word of God, which certainly is involved in the event of conversion. In Ephesians 5:25-26, water is closely associated with the Word of God. Also, in 1 Peter 1:23, the new birth is said to take place through the Word of God. It is quite possible, therefore, that water in this verse does refer to the Bible. There can be no salvation apart from the Scripture. The message contained in the Word of God must be appropriated by the sinner before there can be the new birth.

The weakness of this view is that it repudiates the literal interpretation of the word "water." It is doubtful that symoblic interpretation should be applied here.

7.1.2.3 It is a reference to human biological birth

Another view is that it is a reference to human biological birth, the water that surrounds the fetus. This is quite plausible in this context, since Nicodemus refers to entering the mother's womb again; but it suffers from a lack of evidence that contemporaries of Jesus would have spoken that way.

7.1.2.4 Both "water" and "wind" are symbols of the Holy Spirit

Yet another view is that both "water" and "wind" (the actual word translated "Spirit" in the verse) are symbols of the Holy Spirit, since they appear this way in some Old Testament texts and in John's Gospel. Although Nicodemus professed bewilderment, there is indication that he could, and probably should, have known this basic truth from his acquaintance with the Old Testament (John 3:10). Possibly the central passage which the Lord Jesus had in mind was from Ezekiel:

"Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you. A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them" (Ezekiel 36:25-27).

In John 7:38-39 the Lord Jesus spoke of rivers of living water, and we are distinctly told that when He used the word "water" He was speaking of the Holy Spirit. If water means the Spirit in chapter 7, why can it not have the same meaning in chapter 3? The word translated "and" could just as correctly have been translated "even." Thus, the verse might read, "Except a man be born of water, even the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God."

The weakness of this view is that if water is taken to mean the Spirit, then it would appear on the surface that the Spirit is mentioned twice in this verse and it is doubtful that the word "and" should be translated as "even." 

7.1.2.5 It refers to the baptizing work of John the Baptist (i.e. repentance)

I believe it refers to the baptizing work of John the Baptist (i.e. repentance), something that Nicodemus would have been very familiar with. This would have related directly to repentance or faith, since John's baptism was commonly described as a "baptism of repentance" (Acts 19:4). Thus, repentance and the Holy Spirit brought about regeneration. Unless a man is willing to repent, he will not think that he needs to accept the Lord Jesus Christ as his personal Saviour. Therefore, repentance is a pre-condition to salvation.

Nicodemus is a Jew, a Pharisee, a member of the Sanhedrin (the highest legal, legislative and judicial body of the Jews), and a highly respected teacher of the Old Testament Scriptures. Nicodemus thinks that his birth alone (as a Jew) assures him of seeing the kingdom of God (see Matthew 3:9; John 8:39; Romans 9:6). But even beyond this, Nicodemus must feel as though he holds the keys to the kingdom. Pharisaism viewed itself as the "gate keeper" of the kingdom, governing it by the rules and regulations it had added to the law through oral tradition (see Matthew 23:13-15). However, the Scripture told us that Pharisees were actually sinners and hypocrites (Matthew 23:1-31), therefore they were not qualified to enter the kingdom of God by keeping the Law of Moses.

John's baptism was described as a "baptism of repentance," in preparation for Messiah's coming. By being baptized, one testified that he was renouncing Judaism (law keeping) as the means of their salvation. This is precisely why unrepentant Pharisees refused baptism:

"Now all the people who heard this, even the tax collectors, acknowledged God's justice, because they had been baptized with John's baptism. However, the Pharisees and the experts in religious law rejected God's purpose for themselves, because they had not been baptized by John" (Luke 7:29-30).

Jesus shocks Nicodemus by indicating to him that apart from being reborn from above, neither he nor anyone else will see the kingdom of God. In other words, Jesus teaches us that the correct procedure for regeneration is as follows:

1. repentance and acceptance of the Lord Jesus Christ by faith (i.e. born of "water"); and then

2. the Holy Spirit brought about regeneration (i.e. born of the "Spirit").

7.2 The Holy Spirit Baptizes the Believer

"Spirit-baptism" is the work of Jesus Christ whereby He gives believers the Holy Spirit, thereby:

1. incorporating them into the body of Christ;

2. indwelling of the Holy Spirit; and

3. identifying them with His death and resurrection.

7.2.1 Spirit-baptism grants us union with other believers

Paul writes, "for by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free, and we were all made to drink of one Spirit" (1 Corinthians 12:13). Both John the Baptist and Jesus (Matthew 3:11; Mark 1:8; Luke 3:16; John 1:33; Acts 1:5; 11:16) promised the baptism of the Holy Spirit which initially took place at Pentecost.

Since 1 Corinthians states that all believers were baptized in the Spirit, either Pentecost served as a once-for-all baptism for all believers (as the death of Christ applies to all believers, Romans 6:1-11), or the first of a series of baptisms that would occur at the time of each believer's conversion. That is to say, this baptism takes place at the moment of salvation. Hence Paul could say of all believers "we were baptized"; Spirit-baptism wasn't something that had not yet happened to some of them.

This Spirit-baptism brings believers into a new relationship with one another called "the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace" (Ephesians 4:3), and "fellowship" (1 John 1:3). Paul, in 1 Corinthians 12:13, employs the metaphor "one body" to illustrate believers functioning in mutual dependence on one another for spiritual growth. Later, Paul uses this unity as an appeal for living in harmony with one another for the sake of the gospel (Philippians 4:2-3). Finally, Jesus commands us to demonstrate our unity to the world as a testimony of our unity with Him (John 13:34-35).

The rite of water baptism symbolizes Spirit baptism (Romans 6:3f.; cf. also Ephesians 4:5; Colossians 2:12).

Pentecostal, or charismatic believers generally teach that in addition to the baptism of 1 Corinthians 12:13 which unites believers into a body, there is a second baptism subsequent to conversion which endows the believer with power. This baptism is associated with the "filling of the Spirit" which took place at Pentecost (Acts 2:4), and which they teach does not necessarily occur automatically at conversion; it is a kind of "second blessing." This baptism they call the "baptism in the Spirit" which Jesus bestows (Matthew 3:11). They explain 1 Corinthians 12:13 as a baptism by the Spirit into the body which the Spirit bestows at conversion. However, the problems with this view are:

1. it is a distinction between Matthew 3:11 (also Acts 1:5) and 1 Corinthians 12:13 based on what they perceive as differences in circumstances and descriptions rather than actual wording (the same Greek words, en pneumati, meaning in or by the Spirit, occur in all of the manuscripts); and
   

2. they equate "baptism in the Spirit" with "filling" of the Spirit, an identification that cannot be borne out by careful comparison (See Dale Bruner's thorough study of this whole issue in A Theology of the Holy Spirit, William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1970).

7.2.2 Spirit-baptism includes the reception and indwelling of the Holy Spirit

Closely related to the regenerating ministry of the Spirit is His indwelling. Concerning the coming of the Comforter, Christ said,

"And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not behold Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you, and will be in you" (John 14:16-17).

This Jesus promised to His disciples just before He went to the cross: that each believer would receive God's gift of the indwelling the Holy Spirit. Through Spirit-baptism each believer actually receives the Holy Spirit into his own body, making his body a "temple" (1 Corinthians 6:19). So important is the indwelling of the Spirit that if a person does not have him, he does not belong to Christ (Romans 8:9). To the scandal-torn Corinthian church Paul said, "The Spirit of God dwells in you" (1 Corinthians 3:16; cf. 6:19). The indwelling of the Spirit guarantees the resurrection (Romans 8:11).

This indwelling of the Spirit acts as a down-payment, a pledge, toward our eventual full inheritance in Christ (see Section 7.3 of this chapter), and with this indwelling come all the ministries of the Holy Spirit to be described in the next Chapter 27.

7.2.3 Spirit-baptism identifies us with Christ's death and resurrection

"All of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus have been baptized into His death ... For if we have become united with Him in the likeness of His death, certainly we shall be also in the likeness of His resurrection" (Romans 6:3-5).

Although this passage in Romans makes no reference to the Holy Spirit, it is probable that the "baptism into Christ" spoken of here is the baptism of the Spirit spoken of in 1 Corinthians 12:13 (for isn't it the Spirit who unifies us with other believers the one who unifies us with Christ?). Further, identification or union is inherent in the word "baptism" because the word originally meant to dip material into dye.

"Having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is given as a pledge of our inheritance, with a view to the redemption of God's own possession" (Ephesians 1:13-14).

God seals the believer with the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 1:13-14). This metaphor "seal" is taken from the practice of sealing secret documents with wax to insure that they were not tampered with or read by anyone but the addressee (in which case the seal would arrive broken). Thus, sealing speaks of several things:

1. security;

2. ownership; and

3. a guarantee.

The effect of this figure is to declare that the believer is confirmed as "God's own possession."

Paul writes that God "sealed us and gave us the Spirit in our hearts as a pledge" (2 Corinthians 1:22). The gift of the Spirit is also a "pledge" or "down-payment" of our future inheritance which, according to Ephesians 4:30, will be received on the "day of redemption." This becomes a source of assurance to the believer.

The Spirit is the spirit of adoption and He "bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God" (Romans 8:16; cf. Galatians 4:6).

7.4 Conclusion

These three works of the Holy Spirit occur simultaneously and at the moment of believing faith:

1. regeneration;

2. spirit-baptism; and

3. sealing.

The work of the Holy Spirit in relation to conversion is summarized in the following table and picture:

8. WHY BLASPHEMY AGAINST THE SPIRIT IS THE UNPARDONABLE SIN?

"Therefore I say to you, any sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven men, but blasphemy against the Spirit shall not be forgiven" (Matthew 12:12-32; Mark 3:28-30; Luke 12:10).

8.1 What is the Unpardonable Sin?

The Lord Jesus explained to the disciples that there is a difference between criticism of Him and blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. Those who speak against Christ can be forgiven if they repent and believe. But blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is the unpardonable sin. This is the sin of which the Pharisees were guilty (Matthew 12:12-32; Mark 3:28-30; Luke 12:10).

What is this sin? It is the sin of attributing the miracles of the Lord Jesus to the devil. It is blasphemy against the Holy Spirit because Jesus performed all His miracles in the power of the Holy Spirit. Therefore, it was in effect saying that the Holy Spirit of God is the devil. There is no forgiveness for this sin in this age or in the age to come. All kinds of sin can be forgiven, but this particular sin has no forgiveness. It is an eternal sin.

8.2 Why Blasphemy Against the Holy Spirit Is the Unpardonable Sin?

As I have mentioned in Section 4 of this Chapter, it is the Holy Spirit's role to bring about conviction in the heart of man. To resist the Spirit is a dreadful sin (Acts 7:51; cf. also Acts 6:10). Willful sin against the knowledge the truth is to insult the Spirit of grace (Hebrews 10:29).

The one sin that is unforgivable is unbelief or rejection of Christ. Note in the passage quoted below that the convicting work of the Spirit is related to giving demonstrable proof that it is the sin of rejection that is the issue:

"And He, when He comes, will convict the world concerning sin, and righteousness, and judgment; concerning sin, because they do not believe in Me; and concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you no longer behold Me; and concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world has been judged" (John 16:8-11).

To reject Christ and claim His works were from Satan was a clear evidence of both unbelief and an unrepentant heart. This demonstrated a heart that had become so hard that it precluded repentance because Christ's words and works were a clear evidence of the ministry of the Holy Spirit in Him as the Anointed One, the Messiah of the Old Testament. By regarding the Lord Jesus as a demon-possessed imposter, one cuts himself off from all hope of salvation. In repudiating the great Forgiver, he seals his own doom making forgiveness impossible. That's why it was considered unpardonable.

8.3 Can People Commit this Particular Sin Today?

If a man wilfully resists the Holy Spirit's role to bring about conviction in his own heart (i.e. he hardens himself), then he seals his own doom making forgiveness impossible. If he dies in unbelief, he can no longer be forgiven. His sin then, in fact, becomes unpardonable.  

8.4 Can True Believers Commit this Particular Sin Today?

The sin cannot be committed by true believers, though some are tortured by fears that they have committed it by backsliding. Backsliding is not the unpardonable sin; any backslider can be restored to fellowship with the Lord (see 1 John 1:9). True believers who worry that they have committed the unpardonable sin have not done so. The very fact that they are concerned indicates that they are not guilty of blasphemy against the Holy Spirit.

9. REFERENCES AND RECOMMENDATION FOR FURTHER STUDY

1. Lectures in Systematic Theology, Chapter XXVII, Eerdmans, Grand Rapids, 1992 Edition, by Henry C. Thiessen.

2. A Theology of the Holy Spirit, William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1970, by Dale Bruner.

3. The Holy Spirit: Lord and Life-Giver, Neptune, N.J.: Loizeaux, 1980, by John Williams.

4. Charts of Christian Theology & Doctrine, p. 66-69, Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids, Michigan, 1992, by H. Wayne House.

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