For the born-again child of God, there is no unforgivable sin. The believer’s sin was forgiven at the cross, and there is no longer any condemnation for those who are in Christ (Romans 8:1).
“God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him” (John 3:17). Throughout His ministry, Jesus bestowed the marvelous and surprising forgiveness of God. Zacchaeus (Luke 19), the sinful woman in Simon’s house (Luke 7), the paralytic in Galilee (Luke 5)—all of them were forgiven by the Lord. It didn’t matter what they had done; God was able to forgive. “Truly I tell you,” Jesus said, “the tax collectors and the prostitutes are entering the kingdom” (Matthew 21:31).
Jesus’ statement from the cross, “It is finished” (John 19:30), means that the penalty for sin is paid in full. The word translated “it is finished” is one word in the Greek: tetelestai. This is a wonderful word. Tetelestai was stamped on receipts to mark them as “paid in full.” And when a convicted criminal had completed his sentence and was freed from prison, a sign saying “tetelestai” was nailed to the door of his house as a token that he no longer owed a debt to society.
The Lord Jesus Christ became our sacrifice for sin and “the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29). His was the perfect sacrifice (Hebrews 9:14). The promise to those who believe in Christ is that every sin they’ve ever committed or will commit is forgiven. “The blood of Jesus . . . purifies us from all sin” (1 John 1:7, emphasis added). First Corinthians 6:9–10 lists a variety of scandalous sins that had at one time characterized the Corinthian believers. Paul uses that list to lead up to this truth: “But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God” (verse 11). Their sin was gone, removed from them “as far as the east is from the west” (Psalm 103:12).
It is important to understand the condition of God’s forgiveness of sin. We can come to God only through the Lord Jesus. Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me” (John 14:6). God’s forgiveness is available to all who receive Jesus (John 3:16; Acts 10:43), but for those who reject the Lord Jesus there is no forgiveness or remission of sin (1 John 5:12). God will forgive all sin in Christ. For those not in Christ there is no forgiveness: “Whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on them” (John 3:36).
John wrote his first epistle to born-again believers, and he included this promise: “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9). We all sin (1 John 1:8). But, when we do, God’s grace stands ready to forgive His children and restore the fellowship.
The if at the beginning of 1 John 1:9 indicates a condition: if we “confess.” This word in the Greek is homologia (literally, “same word”), and it means “to say the same thing.” To confess our sin means that we agree with God about it. God’s forgiveness does not give us carte blanche to continue sinning. We do not treat grace so lightly (Romans 6:1–2); rather, a born-again believer who is walking in fellowship with God will be sensitive to sin and quick to confess it to the Lord.
One of the most wonderful truths of Scripture is that God freely forgives sin. Because God’s grace is infinite, there is no limit to the sin God is willing to forgive in Christ. No sin is beyond the reach of God’s grace. “Where sin increased, grace increased all the more” (Romans 5:20). The apostle Paul was “a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent man” before his salvation (1 Timothy 1:13). He called himself the chief of sinners, but after he found the grace of God, he said, “Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst” (1 Timothy 1:15). If God can save Paul, He can save anyone.
Please also read our articles on the unpardonable/unforgivable sin, also known as the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit.
The unpardonable/unforgivable sin or “blasphemy of the Holy Spirit” is mentioned in Mark 3:22–30 and Matthew 12:22–32. Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, people can be forgiven all their sins and every slander they utter” (Mark 3:28), but then He gives one exception: “Whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven; they are guilty of an eternal sin” (verse 29).
According to Jesus, the unpardonable or unforgivable sin is unique. It is the one iniquity that will never be forgiven (“never” is the meaning of “either in this age or in the age to come” in Matthew 12:32). The unforgivable sin is blasphemy (“defiant irreverence”) of the Holy Spirit in the context of the Spirit’s work in the world through Christ. In other words, the particular case of blasphemy seen in Matthew 12 and Mark 3 is unique. The guilty party, a group of Pharisees, had witnessed irrefutable evidence that Jesus was working miracles in the power of the Holy Spirit, yet they claimed that He was possessed by the prince of demons, Beelzebul (Matthew 12:24; Mark 3:30).
The Jewish leaders of Jesus’ day committed the unpardonable sin by accusing Jesus Christ (in person, on earth) of being demon-possessed. They had no excuse for such an action. They were not speaking out of ignorance or misunderstanding. The Pharisees knew that Jesus was the Messiah sent by God to save Israel. They knew the prophecies were being fulfilled. They saw Jesus’ wonderful works, and they heard His clear presentation of truth. Yet they deliberately chose to deny the truth and slander the Holy Spirit. Standing before the Light of the World, bathed in His glory, they defiantly closed their eyes and became willfully blind. Jesus pronounced that sin to be unforgivable.
The blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, specific as it was to the Pharisees’ situation, cannot be duplicated today. Jesus Christ is not on earth, and no one can personally see Jesus perform a miracle and then attribute that power to Satan instead of the Spirit. The only unpardonable sin today is that of continued unbelief. There is no pardon for a person who dies in his rejection of Christ. The Holy Spirit is at work in the world, convicting the unsaved of sin, righteousness, and judgment (John 16:8). If a person resists that conviction and remains unrepentant, then he is choosing hell over heaven. “Without faith it is impossible to please God” (Hebrews 11:6), and the object of faith is Jesus (Acts 16:31). There is no forgiveness for someone who dies without faith in Christ.
God has provided for our salvation in His Son (John 3:16). Forgiveness is found exclusively in Jesus (John 14:6). To reject the only Savior is to be left with no means of salvation; to reject the only pardon is, obviously, unpardonable.
Many people fear they have committed some sin that God cannot or will not forgive, and they feel there is no hope for them, no matter what they do. Satan would like nothing more than to keep people laboring under that misconception. God gives encouragement to the sinner who is convicted of his sin: “Come near to God and he will come near to you” (James 4:8). “Where sin increased, grace increased all the more” (Romans 5:20). And the testimony of Paul is proof positive that God can and will save anyone who comes to Him in faith (1 Timothy 1:12–17). If you are suffering under a load of guilt today, rest assured that you have not committed the unpardonable sin. God is waiting with open arms. Jesus’ promise is that “he is able to save completely those who come to God through him” (Hebrews 7:25). Our Lord will never fail. “Surely God is my salvation; I will trust and not be afraid. The LORD, the LORD himself, is my strength and my defense; he has become my salvation” (Isaiah 12:2).
Luke 13:3 . Those who do not repent from their perpetual sins in their lifetime , those are doomed to Hell fire . To repent is not just ask God to forgive , it means to give up sinning .
