Hosting the Holy Spirit in Holiness

There is no greater privilege than hosting the presence of the Holy Spirit.

As believers, we know He dwells within us. But His indwelling presence isn’t something we should take lightly. We are His hosts. And as hosts, we must be careful not to grieve Him.

“And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.” - Ephesians 4:30 (NKJV)

That verse reveals something beautiful and profound: the Holy Spirit feels grief. He is not merely a force or power—He is a Person. And like any person, He can be hurt—not because He’s weak, but because He loves deeply.

Holiness, then, isn’t just about avoiding punishment—it’s about honoring a relationship. It’s saying, “Holy Spirit, I want You to be pleased with my life. Let my words, my choices, and even my daily habits say, ‘You are welcome here.’”

That’s what it means to be His temple.

“Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own.” - 1 Corinthians 6:19 (NIV)

Imagine that—your physical body is His dwelling place. So ask yourself:

• What am I doing with the Holy Spirit’s hands?

• What am I watching with His eyes?

• What am I saying with His mouth?

These aren’t questions of shame. They are questions of awareness. Because when you truly remember Who lives in you, everything changes.

The call to holiness isn’t just about what we stop doing. It’s about why we stop. We turn from sin not to earn God’s love, but to protect our connection with His presence.

“Who may ascend the mountain of the Lord? Who may stand in his holy place? The one who has clean hands and a pure heart…” - Psalm 24:3-4 (NIV)

Holiness is not a cold religion.
It’s an intimate reverence.
It’s not legalism—it’s love.

Make Him feel welcome.
Make Him feel at home.

For more about this topic, watch “The Holy Spirit Lives in You, but Does He Feel Welcomed? (How to Tell),” on YouTube by clicking here.

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Breaking Free From Bitterness

Bitterness is called a root because it grows and produces all kinds of unhealthy fruit.

Look after each other so that none of you fails to receive the grace of God. Watch out that no poisonous root of bitterness grows up to trouble you, corrupting many. - Hebrews 12:15 (NLT)

Bitterness is the root. Its fruit can be anger, cynicism, loss of joy, frustration, and a lack of patience. Do you carry an atmosphere of tension around you? Are you defensive, irritated, and moody? Do people feel as though they have to speak and act with extreme care around you?

Sometimes, the reason people project tension, moodiness, and anger is to protect themselves from being hurt or offended again. After all, if you can keep people at a distance, they can’t hurt you. Like the body naturally recoils or maneuvers to avoid contact with an injured part, so the soul develops a method of defense.

Why We’re Bitter

Perhaps you were legitimately hurt. It may very well be that you were truly wronged. Maybe something was done to you, maybe someone spoke something to you - it can also be that someone wasn’t there for you in the way they should have been. Your pain and anger may very well be justifiable. 

On the other hand, there are those who allow themselves to be offended by trivial things. I by no means am trying to belittle anyone’s pain. But you have to consider this angle too: perhaps you were just being too sensitive and emotional about something. Sometimes it’s not the experience but rather the way you perceive an experience that leads to bitterness and offense.

Only fools get angry quickly and hold a grudge. - Ecclesiastes 7:9 (CEV)

So there are some who have been truly wronged, and then there are some who only perceive themselves to have been wronged. But regardless of why you carry hurt, anger, and offense, it’s so important that you realize that there is freedom available to you. The answer is simple, but it is not easy.

The Answer

But when you are praying, first forgive anyone you are holding a grudge against, so that your Father in heaven will forgive your sins, too. - Mark 11:25 (NLT)

Forgiveness is the key to freedom. Now, again, it’s not my goal to be insensitive, but it would be terribly unloving of me to withhold the truth from you. If you want to be free, you need to forgive. There’s really no way around it. To forgive is to let go.

You may still feel the emotion of the offense. You may still feel the anger of the offense. Thankfully, forgiveness is not an emotion, it’s a decision. 

Twisted Teachings 

Just let it go. People don’t like that phrase: “Just let it go.” That phrase seems so insensitive, so harsh, so simplistic. But that’s the key. “Just let it go” isn’t what people want to hear. I know what people want to hear. They want to hear what modern preaching tells them. Modern preaching says, “You can’t just tell people to let it go. You don’t know their story. You haven’t been in their shoes.” Now, they never really come out right and say it, but some preachers are essentially telling you that you have a right to un-forgiveness. The problem is that’s just not the truth. As people who have been crucified with Christ, we have no rights to un-forgiveness. By telling you such lies, cowardly preachers are actually contributing to your staying in bondage.

As people filled with the Holy Spirit, should we not have the grace to forgive? Should we not be the most humble, forgiving people on earth? Again, it’s simple. But it’s definitely not easy. But I’m telling you this because I want to see you go free.

No Need to Wait

You might be waiting for that perfect apology. You might be waiting for them to acknowledge their wrong, to humble themselves and present themselves broken before you. But that perfect scenario might never come. So we must be like Christ. While being crucified, before He ever received an apology, He cried out, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.”

We must forgive faster than they can apologize. In fact, forgiveness doesn’t begin after we’ve been hurt; forgiveness is the state of your heart before the offense ever takes place.

Make allowance for each other's faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. - Colossians 3:13 (NLT)

Make allowance. Carry the grace before the offense takes place. We must live prepared to forgive. Anticipating offenses, we must be ready to let go.

Search Your Heart

So search your heart. Is there any un-forgiveness in you?

Bitterness seeks revenge.

Forgiveness seeks reconciliation. 

Bitterness lives in the past.

Forgiveness frees you to dream about the future.

Bitterness says, “Because they owe me.”

Forgiveness says, Because I owe God.”

Bitterness pushes guilt.

Forgiveness lifts burdens. 

Bitterness seeks to prove a point. 

Forgiveness let’s it go.

Bitterness accuses.

Forgiveness covers.

Perhaps now there is a phone call you need to make - a text you need to send. Maybe there was an argument, an offense. Maybe you need to go back to that church. Be reconciled to your brothers and sisters. It’s time to let it go.

No, I don’t mean that you should allow people to repeatedly take advantage of you, but what’s done is done. It’s time to move forward into freedom.

For the sake of your spiritual well being, for the sake of your soul, for the sake of your joy and peace, it’s time to let it go. It’s simple, but it’s not easy. The Holy Spirit will help you to do it.

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Repentance: Change Your Mind

A street preacher was boldly proclaiming the gospel at a college campus. He was talking about sin, Heaven, Hell, and repentance. As he lovingly and passionately warned the college students about the eternal consequence of Hell, a college student began to raise his voice against the street preacher. “I’m a christian,” the college student announced, “And what this man is doing is unloving! Jesus accepts you and loves you. Am I’m sorry this man is giving Christians such a bad name.” Just then, another college student, an atheist, spoke up. The atheist asked the student, “Does the Bible teach that there’s a Hell?” The student paused for a moment and then answered with a stutter, “Yes, the Bible teaches there’s a Hell.” The atheist replied, “I’ve seen you on campus almost every week for the past year. You say you believe in Hell, yet not once have you ever warned me about it. I can only conclude one of two things: either you don’t really care about me, or you don’t really believe the Bible.”

We need to begin living and preaching repentance again.

We need to live in repentance, because God has called us to be holy.

14 Work at living in peace with everyone, and work at living a holy life, for those who are not holy will not see the Lord. (Hebrews 12:14, NLT)

Prove by the way you live that you have repented of your sins and turned to God. (Matthew 3:8, NLT)

Repentance is the turning away from sin that comes about as the result of a changed mind. Far too many believers are stuck in sin because they imagine that repentance is simply feeling bad about wrongdoing. But to repent is to say, “God, I agree with you that this is wrong. I agree with you that it needs to be removed from my life, permanently, in every way. I will not return to it. I will not allow my flesh to try to keep it in small portions. I will cooperate with you in removing this from my life, for the rest of my life.”

To repent is to recognize that you’ll have to say “no” to what you desire.

To repent is to acknowledge that at no point in the future should you allow yourself even a taste of that which you sinfully desire.

To repent is to set aside whatever excuses you may have made for your wrongdoing. 

To repent is to walk in holiness by the grace of the Holy Spirit. 

And once we begin living it, we must preach it too, and boldly so.

When the Church is pure, the Church is powerful. When the Church is powerful, true and lasting transformation is brought about in the world.

I know it’s not popular to preach against sin. I know the trends of the day demand that we avoid the truths of the cross, the blood of Jesus, the evil of sin, and God’s ability to transform. But if we the Church don’t preach the gospel, nobody will. If we don’t warn the world about the consequences of its wickedness, nobody will. 

In the book of Acts, we see that Peter preached repentance as a part of the new testament message.

18 But God was fulfilling what all the prophets had foretold about the Messiah—that he must suffer these things. 19 Now repent of your sins and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped away. (Acts 3:18-19, NLT)

We see a similar message again in Acts 17:30.

God overlooked people’s ignorance about these things in earlier times, but now he commands everyone everywhere to repent of their sins and turn to him. (Acts 17:30, NLT)

We’re so afraid of “turning people off” from the gospel that we try to modify the message, as if God didn’t get it right the first time. But understand this: it’s not our preaching of truth that turns people away from the gospel; it’s their desire for sin.

19 And the judgment is based on this fact: God’s light came into the world, but people loved the darkness more than the light, for their actions were evil. 20 All who do evil hate the light and refuse to go near it for fear their sins will be exposed. (John 3:19-20, NLT)

Clearly, we are to both live and preach repentance. If you live repentance but don’t preach it, you’re being selfish. If you preach repentance but don’t live it, you’re being a hypocrite. If you both live and preach repentance, you’re being obedient to God.

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The Holiness Spirit

The Holy Spirit is not our reward for holiness; He’s our source for holiness. The Holy Spirit’s presence and work in you is what causes you to obey God.

God the Father knew you and chose you long ago, and his Spirit has made you holy. As a result, you have obeyed him and have been cleansed by the blood of Jesus Christ. May God give you more and more grace and peace. (1 Peter 1:2, NLT)

The Holy Spirit gives you the desire, but you must make the decision to respond to that desire. He provides the desire; you provide the discipline.

He has given you everything you need to live in holiness. Beyond just giving you the power to say “no” to temptation, the Holy Spirit changes your desires. The sins that once tempted you begin to disgust you, as the Holy Spirit does His work.

And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns. (Philippians 1:6, NLT)

So trust the Holy Spirit, for He is, indeed, the Spirit of holiness. There’s no amount of mistakes that you could make to cause Him to cease His work in you. Consider the children of Israel. After years of back-and-forth, after generations of idolatry and backsliding, God made a powerful promise to them. 

And I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart. And I will put my Spirit in you so that you will follow my decrees and be careful to obey my regulations. (Ezekiel 36:26-27)

When the Holy Spirit comes to dwell in you, the most stubborn and problematic areas of your character become refined. He can change anyone. He can free you from anything, no matter how long you’ve been bound.

The Holy Spirit makes you holy.

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Cleansing in God's House

Let he who has eyes to see, see. Let he who has ears to hear, hear. In this hour, God is cleansing His house.

For the time has come for judgment, and it must begin with God’s household. And if judgment begins with us, what terrible fate awaits those who have never obeyed God’s Good News? (1 Peter 4:17)

A distinct line is being drawn. While many are conforming to culture, others are standing strong for what is true. A remnant is rising.

24 Here is another story Jesus told: “The Kingdom of Heaven is like a farmer who planted good seed in his field. 25 But that night as the workers slept, his enemy came and planted weeds among the wheat, then slipped away. 26 When the crop began to grow and produce grain, the weeds also grew. 27 “The farmer’s workers went to him and said, ‘Sir, the field where you planted that good seed is full of weeds! Where did they come from?’ (Matthew 13:24-27)

Indeed, from where did all the weeds come? From where have deception and division come? From where have demonic doctrines come? The enemy has attempted to sow these things in the Church. There are those who look like us, talk like us, and pretend to believe the Word of God like us. But we can rejoice and rest in the fact that God Himself will take care of it:

28 “‘An enemy has done this!’ the farmer exclaimed. “‘Should we pull out the weeds?’ they asked. 29 “‘No,’ he replied, ‘you’ll uproot the wheat if you do. 30 Let both grow together until the harvest. Then I will tell the harvesters to sort out the weeds, tie them into bundles, and burn them, and to put the wheat in the barn.’” (Matthew 13:28-29)

Ultimately, it’s God Who will judge, God Who will separate the wheat from the weeds. We need to only wait and see. And while the final judgment comes at the end of all things, there are certainly seasons - even now - when God will clean house. 

What we’re seeing today is a separating, a revealing of truth. Truly, God is cleansing His Church. It is being revealed who truly believes the authority of the Word over the opinions of the world. It is being revealed who esteems Christ over culture. Take note. Sadly, many of the churches bowing to the systems of the world today could very well be the ones bowing to the system of the anti-Christ when it has fully come. 

For now, we just watch God do what He does. Who bows to culture? Who participates with the world’s systems at the cost of obedience to God’s Word? Who softens the message? Who winks at sin? God will bring separation.

This prophetic message is both a warning and an encouragement. Get ready. God is cleansing His house.

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The Holiness Spirit

The Holy Spirit is not our reward for holiness; He’s our source for holiness. The Holy Spirit’s presence and work in you is what causes you to obey God.

God the Father knew you and chose you long ago, and his Spirit has made you holy. As a result, you have obeyed him and have been cleansed by the blood of Jesus Christ. May God give you more and more grace and peace. (1 Peter 1:2, NLT)

The Holy Spirit gives you the desire, but you must make the decision to respond to that desire. He provides the desire; you provide the discipline.

He has given you everything you need to live in holiness. Beyond just giving you the power to say “no” to temptation, the Holy Spirit changes your desires. The sins that once tempted you begin to disgust you, as the Holy Spirit does His work.

And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns. (Philippians 1:6, NLT)

So trust the Holy Spirit, for He is, indeed, the Spirit of holiness. There’s no amount of mistakes that you could make to cause Him to cease His work in you. Consider the children of Israel. After years of back-and-forth, after generations of idolatry and backsliding, God made a powerful promise to them. 

And I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart. And I will put my Spirit in you so that you will follow my decrees and be careful to obey my regulations. (Ezekiel 36:26-27)

When the Holy Spirit comes to dwell in you, the most stubborn and problematic areas of your character become refined. He can change anyone. He can free you from anything, no matter how long you’ve been bound.

The Holy Spirit makes you holy.

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Don't Hurt the Holy Spirit

The Holy Spirit is a Personal Being. He has a mind. He has a will. He has feelings.

And do not bring sorrow to God's Holy Spirit by the way you live. Remember, he has identified you as his own, guaranteeing that you will be saved on the day of redemption. (Ephesians 4:30, NLT)

A startling reality - the Holy Spirit can be grieved by our actions. The way we live can hurt Him. With this in mind, those who love the Holy Spirit must ask, “What grieves the Holy Spirit?”

Whatever contradicts the nature or the Word of God grieves the Holy Spirit, especially when such contradictions are lived through God’s own children.

Disobedience to the Word of God grieves the Holy Spirit. Ungodly thoughts grieve the Holy Spirit. When we prioritize entertainment over prayer, we grieve the Holy Spirit. When we ignore His gentle voice, we grieve the Holy Spirit. When we are more committed to interacting on social media than we are to reading the Bible, we grieve the Holy Spirit. When we allow anger to get the best of us, lust to control us, and fear to dominate us, we grieve the Holy Spirit.

When we place our political preferences over God’s truth, when we hold grudges against fellow believers, when we live contrary to what we preach, we grieve the Holy Spirit. When we disconnect from the gathering of believers, when we twist the Scriptures to excuse our compromise, when we withhold the gospel from those who need to hear it, we grieve the Holy Spirit.

Sin grieves the Spirit. Compromise grieves the Spirit. Spiritual apathy grieves the Spirit. Let us become people Who know the Word. Let us learn what break His heart, that we might not grieve the Holy Spirit. 

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The Rain of Judgment

God is love. And because He is loving, He must righteously punish evil. There is coming a day of judgment, when God will judge the world.

But because you are stubborn and refuse to turn from your sin, you are storing up terrible punishment for yourself. For a day of anger is coming, when God’s righteous judgment will be revealed. (Romans 2:5, NLT)

Because God is merciful, He is giving us time to turn from our evil ways. Stubbornly, arrogantly, people persist in their sin. They mistake God’s patience for God’s absence; they mistake God’s mercy for God’s permission. 

36“But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only. 37But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. 38For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, 39and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. (Matthew 24:36-39, NKJV)

Like in the days of Noah: people were living life as usual. Calamity fell upon them unexpectedly, from seemingly nowhere. So it will be in our day. Many will be busy with their usual living - people will be marrying, graduating, raising families, starting businesses, indulging in pleasures, and carrying on with life as they know it. 

Then the rain of God’s judgment will begin to fall. Thankfully, God has provided a way of escape. By putting your faith in Jesus and what He accomplished on the cross, you, like Noah, can find shelter from the rain. 

May we turn from our evil ways and embrace God’s free gift of salvation.

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Purified for a Purpose

Where would you be had the Lord not rescued you from sin? Think of all the Lord has brought you through, and consider this truth: God delivered you unto a divine destiny.

25“Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean. Your filth will be washed away, and you will no longer worship idols. 26And I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart. 27And I will put my Spirit in you so that you will follow my decrees and be careful to obey my regulations. (Ezekiel 36:25-27, NLT)

Whatever your past, God has a future in mind for you. You are a recipient of God’s cleansing touch, and that touch has removed your guilt. Let go of the shame of yesterday, and, with gratitude toward God, step into newness of life.

You may feel as though you have been disqualified from being used by God, but remember this: Those who have been touched by the glory of God can be used for the glory of God. You have been purified for a purpose. 

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You Are a Miracle

Your life is a sign from God to those who do not yet believe. 

Daniel, along with three other Jewish young men, was taken captive by the Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar. During his time as a captive, Daniel was given food rations by King Nebuchadnezzar. There was an issue there. The food that was presented to Daniel was forbidden. For Daniel, to eat the food of the king was to dishonor God. So Daniel declined.

But Daniel was determined not to defile himself by eating the food and wine given to them by the king. He asked the chief of staff for permission not to eat these unacceptable foods. (Daniel 1:8, NLT)

Daniel eventually convinced the Babylonians to honor his request. Here’s what he told them:

12 “Please test us for ten days on a diet of vegetables and water,” Daniel said. 13 “At the end of the ten days, see how we look compared to the other young men who are eating the king’s food. Then make your decision in light of what you see.” (Daniel 1:12-13, NLT)

Note the boldness of Daniel and then ask yourself this pressing question: “Could I say the same?”

Could you tell people to examine your life to prove that God’s ways are better? Does the way you live testify of God’s higher standard? Does the way you behave attract others to the path of truth?

As someone who has been forgiven of sin, as someone who has had their nature transformed by the power of the Holy Spirit, you are a miracle. Your faith is proof of God’s existence. 

Indeed, your life is a sign from God to those who do not yet believe. 

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Other-Worldly Beings

All too often, the believer will trade the supernatural for the superficial, the sacred for the mundane, the heavenly for the earthly. One might object, “When have I traded the heavenly for the earthly? I would never do such a thing.”

Yet it’s done on the daily. When one takes no time to pray but has plenty of time for scrolling through social media, a trade is made. When one consumes hours of media yet reads not one word of Scripture, a trade is made. When one chooses to say “yes” to a sinful temptation and rejects the power to live holy, a trade is made. When one remains silent about the gospel and instead chooses to blend in with everyone else, a trade is made. Choices are made between the eternal and the temporary.

Everyday, we must choose to either live as citizens of this earth or as citizens of Heaven.

But we are citizens of heaven, where the Lord Jesus Christ lives. And we are eagerly waiting for him to return as our Savior. (Philippians 3:20, NLT)

We’re not from here. Literally speaking, the believer is an other-worldly being filled with God’s divine power, the Holy Spirit. So we must choose. For what world are we living? In what world are we investing? From which world do we derive our identity? 

15 Do not love this world nor the things it offers you, for when you love the world, you do not have the love of the Father in you. 16 For the world offers only a craving for physical pleasure, a craving for everything we see, and pride in our achievements and possessions. These are not from the Father, but are from this world. 17 And this world is fading away, along with everything that people crave. But anyone who does what pleases God will live forever. (1 John 2:15-17, NLT)

You adulterers! Don’t you realize that friendship with the world makes you an enemy of God? I say it again: If you want to be a friend of the world, you make yourself an enemy of God. (James 4:4, NLT)

Of course, we exist in this world, but that doesn’t mean that we are to move with the patterns of this world.

Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect. (Romans 12:2, NLT)

Choose a world. Jesus came not to bring peace but a sword - to divide His sheep from the goats. To which world do you belong? 

To invest your life in a temporary world is to embrace temporary life, but to invest your life in an eternal world… is life eternal. We are not of this world.

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Bold As Lions

Sin produces cowards. If you lack boldness in your life, consider the possibility that the lack of boldness may have come about as a result of a lack of righteousness. Here’s what the Bible says.

The wicked flee when no man pursueth: but the righteous are bold as a lion. (Proverbs 28:1, KJV)

When someone is living righteously, they have nothing to fear. Despite what superstitious preaching might try to make you think, the believer who walks in holiness before God does not need to live in paranoia, constantly wondering if some demon has gained influence over them. Despite what culture might teach, the believer who lives in righteousness before the Lord doesn’t need to be afraid of people. 

What can demons of darkness do to the one who walks in the light? What can mortal man do to the one who has gained the favor of Eternity Himself? 

When you live righteously, demons can’t deceive you and people can’t pressure you. Devils can’t handle you, and culture can’t cancel you.

When you live righteously, free of guilt, you can go before God in bold confidence.

21 Dear friends, if we don’t feel guilty, we can come to God with bold confidence. 22 And we will receive from him whatever we ask because we obey him and do the things that please him. (1 John 3:21-22, NLT)

When you stand righteously, you stand boldly before God. When you stand boldly before God, you live confidently before everyone and everything else.

Truly, the believer has only one concern: obedience toward God. Righteous living liberates the believer from all ungodly fear. So if there is any sin in your life, take this as a sign from God. Repent before the Lord of all sin, and allow the Holy Spirit to make you holy. All believers can be truly free from the immorality, the ungodliness of cowardice.

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Remnant Rising

Let he who has eyes to see, see. Let he who has ears to hear, hear. In this hour, God is cleansing His house. 

For the time has come for judgment, and it must begin with God’s household. And if judgment begins with us, what terrible fate awaits those who have never obeyed God’s Good News? (1 Peter 4:17)

A distinct line is being drawn. While many are conforming to culture, others are standing strong for what is true. A remnant is rising.

24 Here is another story Jesus told: “The Kingdom of Heaven is like a farmer who planted good seed in his field. 25 But that night as the workers slept, his enemy came and planted weeds among the wheat, then slipped away. 26 When the crop began to grow and produce grain, the weeds also grew. 27 “The farmer’s workers went to him and said, ‘Sir, the field where you planted that good seed is full of weeds! Where did they come from?’ (Matthew 13:24-27)

Indeed, from where did all the weeds come? From where have deception and division come? From where have demonic doctrines come? The enemy has attempted to sow these things in the Church. There are those who look like us, talk like us, and pretend to believe the Word of God like us. But we can rejoice and rest in the fact that God himself will take care of it:

28 “‘An enemy has done this!’ the farmer exclaimed. “‘Should we pull out the weeds?’ they asked. 29 “‘No,’ he replied, ‘you’ll uproot the wheat if you do. 30 Let both grow together until the harvest. Then I will tell the harvesters to sort out the weeds, tie them into bundles, and burn them, and to put the wheat in the barn.’” (Matthew 13:28-29)

Ultimately, it’s God Who will judge, God Who will separate the wheat from the weeds. We need to only wait and see. And while the final judgment comes at the end of all things, there are certainly seasons - even now - when God will clean house. 

What we’re seeing today is a separating, a revealing of truth. Truly, God is cleansing His Church. It is being revealed who truly believes the authority of the Word over the opinions of the world. It is being revealed who esteems Christ over culture. Take note. Sadly, many of the churches bowing to the systems of the world today could very well be the ones bowing to the system of the anti-Christ when it has fully come. 

For now, we just watch God do what He does. Who bows to culture? Who participates with the world’s systems at the cost of obedience to God’s Word? Who softens the message? Who winks at sin? God will bring separation.

This prophetic message is both a warning and an encouragement. Get ready. God is cleansing His house.

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What is the Blasphemy of the Holy Spirit?

What is the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit? Have you committed this unpardonable sin? 

The Word of God has the answers. Let’s take a look at the context. In Matthew chapter twelve, Jesus delivers a demon-possessed man.

Matthew 12:22-23

22 Then a demon-possessed man, who was blind and couldn’t speak, was brought to Jesus. He healed the man so that he could both speak and see. 23 The crowd was amazed and asked, “Could it be that Jesus is the Son of David, the Messiah?”

The pharisees, who had heard about the miracle, looked for a way to discredit the miracle that Jesus had performed. 

Matthew 12:24-29

24 But when the Pharisees heard about the miracle, they said, “No wonder he can cast out demons. He gets his power from Satan, the prince of demons.” 25 Jesus knew their thoughts and replied, “Any kingdom divided by civil war is doomed. A town or family splintered by feuding will fall apart. 26 And if Satan is casting out Satan, he is divided and fighting against himself. His own kingdom will not survive. 27 And if I am empowered by Satan, what about your own exorcists? They cast out demons, too, so they will condemn you for what you have said. 28 But if I am casting out demons by the Spirit of God, then the Kingdom of God has arrived among you. 29 For who is powerful enough to enter the house of a strong man and plunder his goods? Only someone even stronger—someone who could tie him up and then plunder his house.

After revealing the source of His power and authority (The Holy Spirit), Jesus gave the pharisees a sobering warning: 

Matthew 12:30-32

30 “Anyone who isn’t with me opposes me, and anyone who isn’t working with me is actually working against me. 31 “So I tell you, every sin and blasphemy can be forgiven—except blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, which will never be forgiven. 32 Anyone who speaks against the Son of Man can be forgiven, but anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven, either in this world or in the world to come.

Firstly, either the Pharisees had committed the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit or came very close to committing the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit. I suspect they came close to committing the unpardonable sin, otherwise, why would Jesus give them a direct warning? 

Secondly, look at the term that’s used here: blasphemy. Blasphemy is a sin that you commit by speaking something. So we know that the pharisees were being warned, because of the words they had spoken. In fact, in verse 32, Jesus warns, “anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven.” Since blasphemy is a sin that you commit through sinful words, we can rule out sins that are commonly mistaken for the unpardonable sin. The blasphemy of the Holy Spirit is not suicide, murder, cussing, witchcraft, backsliding, evil thoughts, or sexual sin. It is a sin that you commit by what you say. 

Thirdly, we know that the unpardonable sin can be committed in this lifetime, for Jesus said that the one who commits it will never be forgiven, “either in this world or in the world to come.” Some say that the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit is simply the rejection of salvation or the stubborn refusal of the gospel up until death. But that cannot be the case, since the unpardonable sin is unforgivable, even in this lifetime. So the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit is most certainly not just the rejection of salvation.

So judging by what Jesus said to the pharisees, we can conclude that the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit is speaking against the Holy Spirit or the attributing of the Holy Spirit’s power to demonic power.

But remember, we still don’t know whether or not the pharisees had already committed it or were merely coming close to committing it. The Biblical text implies a very deep-rooted form of sin. You can’t commit this sin on accident, yet we should still tread carefully. After all, I don’t want to inspire ease where Jesus sought to inspire fear.

And this is very important to note: Not all verbal expressions of skepticism, anger, disobedience, or disrespect toward the Holy Spirit can be categorized as the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit. The blasphemy of the Holy Spirit can only come from a conscience that is completely seared. I’ll prove that to you with scripture now.

So have you committed the unpardonable sin? Let me read another verse to you.

John 6:37

However, those the Father has given me will come to me, and I will never reject them.

Nobody comes to Jesus unless they are drawn by the Father. And the Father certainly would never draw someone who couldn’t be forgiven. Therefore, if there is a desire in you to be forgiven and to be right with God, then you are being drawn by God - and Jesus will not reject you. Comparing scripture with scripture, we discover that 

A.) it is not possible for the Spirit-filled believer to commit this sin and 

B.) those who commit it couldn’t possibly have any interest in repentance, nor would they have any fear of having committed the unpardonable sin. 

All scriptures have to be harmonious with one another. So think about it this way: if someone commits the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit, then they will always be rejected by God. And Jesus promised to never reject anyone who comes to Him, because those who come to Him have been drawn by the Father. If the one who committed the unpardonable sin ever came to the Lord, then the Lord would have to break His promise of never rejecting anyone who came to Him. Therefore, the one who has committed the unpardonable sin would never approach God in the first place. Indeed, such a person has no desire to ever again approach God. 

Bottom line: Are you afraid that you may have committed the unpardonable sin? That fear alone is proof that you haven’t. 

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False Prophets & Heretics

The Bible is perfectly clear. If anyone perverts the gospel or preaches another Christ, let that individual be cursed.

But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. (Galatians 1:8, KJV)

When it comes to the gospel, we must be unwavering. Salvation is found in Christ alone. There is no other way to the Father but through Jesus. We cannot change the gospel for the sake of anyone’s preference.

Jesus is God.

Jesus came to earth in the flesh.

Jesus died on the cross for sin.

Jesus rose from the dead and achieved victory over death, over all.

To be saved, we must put our faith in Him.

We must repent of sin.

Those are some of the fundamental doctrines of the faith. From those, we cannot waver.

But what happens when a believer disagrees with another believer on, let’s say, divine healing? Speaking in tongues? Financial prosperity? The sabbath?

Are those doctrines worth dividing over?

The Bible is the Word of God, the final authority. And what if, like Peter and Paul, two believers find themselves in a doctrinal disagreement? None of us would dare to call Peter or Paul a heretic, yet those two men had doctrinal disagreements.

We so easily throw around terms like “False Prophet” or “Heretic”. But the definition of heretic is not “anyone who disagrees with me on anything.” A heretic is one who teaches a direct contradiction to the fundamentals of the faith.

Finances are important, but finances are not the gospel. Divine healing is important, but divine healing is not the gospel. The sabbath is not the gospel. Bible version preference is not the gospel.

So long as we agree on Christ and the essentials of salvation, there is room for unity.

I’m not preaching relativism; I’m preaching truth. I know it’s difficult for some to accept, but not every doctrinal disagreement is cause for division or name-calling. My encouragement to all believers: don’t stone your brothers and sisters in Christ.

Call out the false prophets. Call out heresy. But don’t major on minors. It doesn’t matter your stream, so long as you are in the river of Christ.

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Resisting the Devil

Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded.
—James 4:7–8, KJV

We focus far too much on ourselves when we are tempted. Because self is the problem, relying on your own strength to secure victory over sin guarantees defeat. When we are tempted, we try to reason and rationalize. We try to enact disciplines, and we attempt to will ourselves all the way to holiness. But such battling only makes you linger in the place of temptation. Remember this: the longer you battle a tempting thought, the more likely you are to take an action that will fulfill it. There is a better way to battle sin than to bargain with oneself. The bargaining over whether or not to sin will occur in split seconds, and demonic beings will make full use of those split seconds. Demonic beings will debate with you, presenting the supposed benefits of sin—and that hides their tactic.

You see, when you’re weighing the pros and cons of sin in your mind, you are actually imagining the pleasure of the sin. Sure, seconds after considering the pleasure of sin, you counter such thoughts by considering the benefits of holiness. But the internal battle continues to nag at you. It is this back-and-forth contemplation that leads to a sinful fall. You may be genuine about your intentions to convince yourself into choosing holiness, but eventually your resilience will wear down. The sin itself will gradually dominate your thoughts as will the pleasures of that sin. And then you give in.

This is why demonic beings love a good debate in the moment you’re being tempted. They are like salesmen, answering your objections with convincing counter points. They know what you want and will pressure you to indulge.

How then can the believer successfully battle temptation? Jesus prayed, “Lead us not into temptation” (Matt. 6:13). He did not pray, “Give me strength when I put myself in a tempting situation.” Sure, there are times when temptation surprises you, but the Bible has one policy on temptation: flee from it! About this, Scripture is quite clear:

The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure.
—1 Corinthians 10:13,NLT

So flee youthful desires and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart.
—2 Timothy 2:22,MEV

When you regularly flee from temptation, resisting sin becomes a reflex, a seemingly involuntary action. Over time, the reflex to flee from temptation (rather than the habit to bargain over sin or holiness) becomes natural and well-developed.

Resistance, not confrontation, is the key to overcoming sin. We are supposed to flee from temptation, not linger to fight temptation. Willpower diminishes over time, and the strength of discipline is fleeting. God wants to give you a way out, not a battle. When it comes to temptation, the Holy Spirit prioritizes extraction—getting you out of the battle. We develop our resistance—our manner of fleeing—by drawing near to God. Therefore, drawing near to God, not exercising willpower, is the key to freedom.

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