Introduction and Welcome
Welcome to Mountain Springs. The more astute among you may have noticed that I am not Pastor Joel. I appreciate no one ducking out the exit when you realized it wasn’t him—thank you.
He wanted to be here this morning to kick off our series in 2nd Corinthians, but due to a series of circumstances, he asked me to pinch hit, which I was more than happy to do. I’m always excited to get to teach on Sunday mornings. Last time I was up here, I briefly touched on the unpardonable sin, and I got some emails about that. So today, we’re going to tackle that light and happy topic.
If you need a Bible, put your hand up in the air. One of our handsome and talented ushers will make sure you get one. Then go ahead and stick your finger in Mark 3.
Personal Background
When I got saved, I got saved into a ministry where kids were king. It was like an inverted church. The kids’ ministry was probably 3 to 500 kids on a weekly basis, while the church was 50 to 70. Yeah. Basically, if you got saved in that church, you worked in the kids’ ministry.
I got saved at the age of 15, started volunteering in kids’ ministry, learned the ropes, earned responsibility, and eventually made my way onto the drama team. Every week they did a skit—an object lesson or Bible story. The guy in charge, Warren, was really sharp. He knew you never have volunteers, so every skit was designed for a maximum of three people. One person understood the story; the other two just supported.
This made improvisation critical. There was no time to practice because you had to pick up kids on buses. Meetings went like this: “Conrad, for this skit, you’re Joe Brown. I’m delivering you a package. You’re not gonna get it. Here’s some props. Convince me you’re Joe Brown. Be sad when I leave.” That’s what I got.
The Skit Illustration
That turned into the skit I’ll share here. Morin played Ralph, the latest employee at a parcel delivery company (like FedEx). The dispatcher said, “Make sure this package gets to Joe Brown. All packages go to the person on the label—no one else.”
Ralph says, “You bet, boss.” He comes to me (Joe Brown) in front of the house: “Are you Joe Brown?” I say yes. He goes to hand it over, then pulls it back: “Wait a second. How do I know you’re Joe Brown?”
I say, “Well, I’m in front of Joe Brown’s house.” He says, “Yeah, but I don’t know if that’s enough.” I show my driver’s license. He checks it: “Yeah, okay.” Then: “Wait—maybe you’re a different Joe Brown camping out to snipe packages.”
I show my passport with stamps from around the world. He says, “Okay, perfect.” Then: “Wait—what if this is a fake passport? I have no way of proving who you are. You’re not getting this package.” He leaves, and I’m sad.
Why? In spite of all the evidence, he has insistent intentional ignorance. He refuses to see the truth.
The Key Idea
So we’re going to take that thought and put it in our pocket. One pocket today—I thought about two, but I didn’t do it.
Scripture Reading: Mark 3:20-30
We’re turning to Mark 3, starting in verse 20:
“Then the multitude came together again so that they could not so much as eat bread. But when his own people heard about this, they went out to lay hold of him, for they said, ‘He is out of his mind.’ And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem said, ‘He has Beelzebub,’ and ‘By the ruler of demons He casts out demons.'”
“So He called them to Himself and said to them in parables: ‘How can Satan cast out Satan? If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. And if a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand. If Satan has risen up against himself, and is divided, he cannot stand, but has an end. No one can enter the strong man’s house and plunder his goods unless he first binds the strong man. And then he will plunder his house.'”
“Assuredly, I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the sons of men, and whatever blasphemies they may utter; but he who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is subject to eternal condemnation—because they said, ‘He has an unclean spirit.'”
Opening Prayer
Let’s pray. God, thank you for your word. Thank you for this challenging passage. I pray that as we tease it apart and examine it, you would help us understand that this is not particularly complicated. It’s very encouraging to us, and I think it lights a bit of a fire under us as to what our mission is in this world. Help us to leave here challenged and grown, and maybe a little bit different because of the work of your Holy Spirit. Amen.
Exposition: The Prologue
Normally I go almost word by word, but that would take too long—there’s too much here. I’ve broken it into four sections with P names (because Pastor Joel is rubbing off on me): prologue, protest, parables, and point.
First, the prologue (Mark 3:20-21): The multitude came together again so they could not so much as eat bread. When His own people heard about this, they went out to lay hold of Him, for they said, “He is out of his mind.”
This is His friends and family coming to grab Jesus. They think He’s lost His mind, He’s crazy. Why? Some say He was being a big weirdo: “Jesus, little bit much, bro.” Others say the mission was unclear, or He was working too hard.
I don’t think any of those are it. What it shows is that merely being in the vicinity of God, church, faith, or Jesus is no guarantee of anything. Put that challenging thought in our pocket.
This reminds me of David in 1 Samuel, pretending to be crazy to escape danger. Maybe Jesus’ family thought: “We’ll say He’s crazy so the religious leaders leave Him alone.”
But the bigger question: Do we really need to help God out like that? The thought process is: “God, maybe You overlooked this one. Let me step in. I got You, God.” It’s ridiculous on its face.
It reminds me of Jerry Seinfeld’s bit about a guy driving with a mattress on his roof, holding it with one arm: “If the straps fail, the arm.” That’s what it feels like when we try to help God. If you want to help God, submit to Him. Yield to what He wants. Let Him lead. Don’t say, “Hey God, I have a better plan. Let me fix this.”
In this case, rather than helping, it laid a foundation for what comes next.
The Protest
Mark 3:22: “And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem said, ‘He has Beelzebub,’ and ‘By the ruler of demons He casts out demons.'”
Beelzebub (or Beelzebul) means “lord of the flies”—indicating chaos, filth, decay—the lord of the dung heap. Note: The scribes aren’t denying Jesus’ power. They’re admitting healings and demon-casting happen. They’re just saying Satan is doing it.
They’re accusing Jesus of a false flag operation: Attacking yourself to blame the enemy and get what you want. As soon as you hear “false flag,” your scam alarm should go off.
They’re attributing the Holy Spirit’s works to Satan rather than admitting they were wrong. This is unyielding, dogmatic blindness to truth. It reminds me of modern scientism.
In a debate, William Lane Craig trounced Lewis Wolpert. Wolpert refused to admit it could be God: “It was a computer—a very special computer.” Sad.
Why isn’t God more obvious? Because evidence is only evidence if you want it to be. If you refuse truth, nothing convinces you. Jesus taught in parables so those who want truth will know it, and those who don’t can remain blind.
The Parables
Jesus replies with parables. First: “How can Satan cast out Satan? If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.” (Many know the phrase but not that it’s about Satan.)
This is life stuff: Collapse happens when what divides becomes what defines. Divisive issues become defining issues in marriages, families, empires. Political separation in the U.S. worries me—it’s the stuff that brings down empires.
In a church I consulted, elders aired grievances over one direct-communicator elder. It became Festivus: airing grievances. His “sin” was being terse. People got offended and said nothing “for peace.” But peace is not the absence of conflict—it’s the presence of love.
Like spinach in your teeth: The loving thing is to say something. Embarrassing now is better than all day. We divide ourselves when we serve two masters (Matthew 6). No one can serve God and self, power, pleasure, pride, the world, people, or fear.
Second parable: “No one can enter the strong man’s house and plunder his goods unless he first binds the strong man.” This is spiritual warfare. Satan is the strong man; the world is his house; we are his goods.
We can’t defeat Satan ourselves. But good news: He’s already lost. Join the winning team. (Like signing with the Blue Jays after Joe Carter’s walk-off home run—you get the ring without playing.)
The Holy Spirit binds the strong man and plunders his house. We pray, speak truth—that’s our part.
The Point
Mark 3:28-30: “All sins will be forgiven… but he who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is subject to eternal condemnation—because they said, ‘He has an unclean spirit.'”
Blasphemy is slander against God. Why is blasphemy against the Holy Spirit unforgivable? The Holy Spirit is the person of the Trinity at work tangibly on earth today: convicting of sin, indwelling, producing gifts and fruit, guiding, empowering for mission.
Slandering the Holy Spirit is looking truth in the eye and spitting in its face—insistent intentional ignorance.
If you’re worried you’ve done this, your concern shows a soft heart. You haven’t. But if you have loved ones who seem hard-hearted, now is the time to speak boldly. Don’t wait—eternity and hell damage relationships more than awkward conversations.
If you’re not a Christian and worried about a hard heart, talk to me, Steve, or Pastor Brady today. We’d love to have that conversation.
Closing Prayer
Father, thank you for your truth, for your love. As we think about this unpardonable sin of intentional ignorance, help us think about those around us who need your love, grace, and hope. Give us strength and courage to speak boldly your truth into their lives. Lead us to seek you on our knees constantly, spilling your love on others. Thank you, Jesus, for all you do. In your holy name, Amen.
Let’s worship together, church.