HOW CAN CHRISTIANS SIN AGAINST THE HOLY SPIRIT?

Pastor Rick Jackson

There are two basic sins against the Holy Spirit involving Christians. By that I mean, there are many ways for a born-again believer to sin against the blessed Holy Spirit but they basically fall into two categories.

I. GRIEVING THE HOLY SPIRIT [Eph. 4:30]

And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.

When we know we should not do something by the Word of God or by the leading of the Holy Spirit and we do it anyway, it is a sin of commission. We are committing an act we should not be doing, we are sinning. This grieves the Holy Spirit.

1. Grieving the Holy Spirit leads to loss of joy [Ps. 51:12]

Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit.

2. Grieving the Holy Spirit leads to loss of fellowship [Ps. 66:18] If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me:

3. Grieving the Holy Spirit leads to loss of usefulness [1 Cor. 9:24-27]

Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain.And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible. I therefore so run, not as uncertainly; so fight I, not as one that beateth the air: But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.

II. QUENCHING THE HOLY SPIRIT [1 Thess. 5:19] Quench not the Spirit.

When we know we ought to do something, either by the Word of God or the leading of the Holy Spirit in another fashion and we don't do what we ought, it is a sin of omission. We are omitting something we should be doing. This quenches the Holy Spirit. When a lost person does this enough he sins against the Spirit, blasphemes the Spirit, and eventually God says, "My Spirit will not always strive with man." When a saved person does this, it is another matter.

1. Quenching the Spirit limits God in our lives. [Ps. 78:41]

Yea, they turned back and tempted God, and limited the Holy One of Israel.

2. Quenching the Spirit limits us in God's service [Rm. 8:4-13]

3. Quenching the Spirit limits the fruits of the Spirit [Gal. 5:16-25]

Continual quenching and grieving the Holy Spirit will lead to chastening [Heb. 12:6] and eventually an early death [1 Cor. 11:30-32]

For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth.

For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep. For if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged. But when we are judged, we are chastened of the Lord, that we should not be condemned with the world.

III. THE SIMPLE SOLUTION

When you get right down to it, sins of commission and sins of omission are two sides of the same coin. Both displease God by grieving or quenching the Holy Spirit. The solutions are basically the same.

1. Confess the sin [1 Jn. 1:9]

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

2. Forsake the sin [Proverbs 28:13]

He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy.

3. Yield to the Holy Spirit [Rm. 6:11-19, 8:1-4, 26-27]

JAMES 4