the miracles and works of the Lord Jesus while here on earth, and the rejection of the offer of the kingdom, which was confirmed by these signs and wonders peri- formed by the Lord Jesus Christ. There is also the dispensational interpretation. Those who believe this tell us that there were two offers of the kingdom made to the nation of Israel: one before the Cross and one after Pentecost. The offer before the Cross was made by the Lord Himself, John the Baptist, and the disciples of our Lord. This was a sin against the Son of Man when they rejected it and, therefore, was forgiven in answer to the prayer of our Lord on the cross when He cried, “ Father, forgive them for they know not what they do.” But the second offer came through the apostles after Pentecost; when beginning at Jerusalem and all Judea, they once more offered the Kingdom to the nation through the Holy Spirit. This was rejected finally and definitely at the stoning of Stephen in Acts 7. After Stephen’s preaching, they brought him before the council where he made his memorable speech. This was the final rejection of the testimony of the Spirit of Pentecost by the nation offi cially. As a result, we have the conversion of Saul the Apostle to the Gentiles in the next chapter, and the Gos pel now goes for the first time to the Gentiles. We are told that this was the sin against the Holy Ghost of which Jesus spoke in Matthew 12. Now it is to be carefully noted that the word trans lated “world” in this verse is aeon in the original meaning “ age,” which refers to a definite period of time or dispensation. Jesus spoke these words before the Cross and Pente cost, and therefore the expression “neither in this age” would refer to the age of the Law which ended at Cal vary. The expression “neither in the age to come’’ would refer to the present dispensation, the age of grace. It is then pointed out that this is God’s pro gram: that the kingdom would be postponed and the nation rejected until after this present age of grace; then in the coming Kingdom age the sin of the nation would be forgiven; they would be restored and con verted and rehabilitated in their own land, for the glori ous millennial age of peace and righteousness. During the present dispensation of the gospel of grace the nation is in rejection, while the gospel goes to the indi vidual, so that any one who believes will be saved whether he be bond or free, male or female, rich or poor, white or black, Gentile or Jew. Another explanation held by a great many is that the sin against the Holy Spirit is resistance to His pleading until the Spirit ceases striving with the sinner altogether and he is left to his own destruction. It is pointed out that sin has a tendency to numb the con science and repeated exposure to any form of stimula tion tends to dull one’s spiritual sensibilities. This is true in the physical we know, and also in the spiritual. According to this interpretation, anyone who is guilty of this unpardonable sin would be neither conscious of it, nor concerned about it. As long as there is a fear of having committed the sin, the sin has not been com mitted.
Now you are asking the question, “Which of these interpretations is the correct one ?” Undoubtedly there is some practical truth in all of them. Each one of these various answers has some very able, Godly exponents and defenders who sincerely hold to their position. We must be very careful that we do not condemn all those who may not see eye to eye with us in all details. No greater damage has been done to the testimony of Christ than the quibbling among believers over differences of interpretation. The sinner is kept from coming to Christ because he sees so much carping and criticizing among us believers. If we differ, let us do so in love and regard for the other’s sincerity and devotion to the truth as he may see it. None of us can claim to know everything. When we disagree, it may be that you have not studied the matter through as you ought; the same may be true of me. Let us not judge one another any more, but judge this rather that no man put a stumbling block in a brother’s way. There may be many applica tions of the same truth and in this case the same may be true. We believe that the sin against the Holy Ghost was a particular national and dispensational sin of rejecting the offer of the Kingdom of Jesus Christ. Israel will be forgiven and restored as a nation after the age of law and the present age of grace have run their course. “ So shall all Israel be saved, as it is written.” While all Scripture may have but one primary inter pretation, we also know that it has many practical appli cations. The one we want to emphasize is the danger of rejecting the testimony of the Spirit of God in which the Spirit speaks to the hearts of men and women. First is by the Word of God through the Bible, for this Book is the Spirit’s Word concerning the Son. He wrote this Book through “holy men of old as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.” To ignore the Word of God and to refuse to believe the Bible is to reject the testimony of the Spirit. If this is persisted in until the end, there is no forgiveness in this life or in the life to come. Then, in addition to inspiring this Word written through human authors, the Spirit also takes this Word and convicts the sinner of the sin of rejecting the Saviour. The only sin in all the world which will condemn a man is the sin of rejecting the Saviour. John tells us so plainly in these words, “He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in himself: he that believeth not God hath made him a liar; because he believeth not the record that God gave of His Son” (I John 5:10). Salvation is believing. It is believing what the Holy Spirit tells us concerning the Son of God in this Book. To continue in your refusal to believe must end in damnation and coming finally to the place where the offer of grace ends for you, and there is no more for giveness. The Spirit tells us through Paul that we “all have sinned” and there is no one who can save him self. But Christ died for our sins, was buried and rose again the third day, according to the Scriptures. “ The Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And who soever will, let him take the water of life freely” (Rev. 22:17).
NOVEMBER, 1965
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