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Further Thought:

The mere fact that people anxiously ask whether they have committed the unforgivable sin reveals that they most surely haven't. If they had committed it, they certainly wouldn't be worrying about it. Their worry is all the evidence they need that, indeed, they are still open to the Spirit's leading. What the person should do is claim the righteousness of Jesus and, clinging to Jesus' merits, press on ahead in faith and obedience. Only under the covering of Christ's righteousness, which is the "righteousness of God" Himself (Rom. 10:3), can they have the peace and assurance that they so sorely lack now.

There is, really, only one person God cannot forgive, and that is the person who persistently refuses to come to Jesus for forgiveness. "The sin of blasphemy against the Holy Spirit does not lie in any sudden word or deed; it is the firm, determined resistance of truth and evidence." - Ellen G. White Comments, The SDA Bible Commentary, vol. 5, p. 1093. "No one need look upon the sin against the Holy Ghost as something mysterious and indefinable. The sin against the Holy Ghost is the sin of persistent refusal to respond to the invitation to repent."-Page 1093.

Discussion Questions:

1- If someone were to come to you, afraid that they had committed the unpardonable sin, what would you say and what texts would you use to help? Why is an understanding of salvation by faith alone so crucial for helping someone who feels he or she is hopelessly lost?

2- We quench the Holy Spirit when we refuse to act or speak as He leads. Where are we in danger of quenching the Holy Spirit? That is, in what aspects of our lives (if any?) do we find ourselves resisting God's leading, and how can we learn to make the needed surrender?

3- Sometimes God allows certain circumstances to come into our lives that we resent or that we don't understand. Such was the case, for instance, with Job. Why can a resentful mind-set dampen the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives? How can we trust God more fully and submit our lives completely to Him, even during the most difficult times?

4- Fearful of being "tainted" by what they feel are corrupt influences in the church, some pull away completely from the body and strike out on their own. What's wrong with that idea, and why is it not the biblical model for a Christian to follow?