Today's Scripture Reading (March 13, 2021): Romans 11
"There
is nothing unforgivable and there are no secrets before an all-knowing merciful
God." At least, that is the truth, according to fiction author Jennifer
Spredmann in "An Unforgivable Secret." According to Spredemann, our
obsession with what is unforgivable is misplaced, in part, because of our lack
of belief in a merciful God. But Spredemann is writing fiction, so maybe we
should write off her ideas of what is unforgivable as just part of the pretend
universe.
We
are convinced that there must be an unforgivable sin, mainly because we know
that there are things that have been done to us in our lives that we are
unwilling to forgive. So, God must have his list. And Jesus himself said that "anyone who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will not be
forgiven" (Luke 12:10). And so, the search is on for the
one sin which cannot be forgiven. It is a subject of discussion and a frequently
asked question, "What exactly, in terms that we can understand, is the
unforgivable sin?"
That
is the question that Paul believes is on the minds of the Romans. Paul has
argued that Israel's rejection of the gospel was consistent with God's eternal
plan, and before the beginning of time, God was prepared for precisely that
rejection. But Paul also declares that Israel chose her own path. Paul quotes
Isaiah as he writes, "not all the Israelites accepted the
good news. For Isaiah says, "Lord, who has believed our message"
(Romans 10:16). God foresaw Israel's rebellion. He expected it and was prepared
for it, but Israel also freely chose their path to the point that Isaiah asks a
rhetorical question; who or, maybe better, has anyone believed our message? The
prophets had proclaimed the message, over and over again God sent his messengers
to Israel, and repeatedly Israel had rejected God's desire.
It is
a lesson that Jesus tried to relay to his followers during his ministry.
Listen to another parable: There was a landowner who
planted a vineyard. He put a wall around it, dug a winepress in it and
built a watchtower. Then he rented the vineyard to some farmers and moved
to another place. When the harvest time approached, he sent his
servants to the tenants to collect his fruit.
"The tenants seized his servants; they beat
one, killed another, and stoned a third. Then he sent other
servants to them, more than the first time, and the tenants treated them
the same way. Last of all, he sent his son to them. 'They will respect my
son,' he said.
"But when the tenants saw the son, they said
to each other, 'This is the heir. Come, let's kill him and take his
inheritance.' So they took him and threw him out of the
vineyard and killed him (Matthew 21:33-39).
So,
given all of this, isn't it just possible that Israel had already committed the
original sin. Israel had rejected God, just as God had expected. And now the game
was over.
Paul's
answer is unequivocal. No, "by no means!" God is still reaching out
to Israel, just as he is reaching out to the Gentiles, still pleading with them
to come home to him.
So,
what is the unforgivable sin? I believe it is just this; rejecting the message
of God to the point where you can no longer hear the Spirit's voice. If you are
wondering if you have committed the unforgivable sin, you haven't. If you had,
you wouldn't care, and the question would never even enter your mind.
Tomorrow's Scripture Reading: Romans 12
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