"He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters abroad. Therefore I say to you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven men. Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come.” (vv.30-32)
Here in our text, Jesus removed any illusions about a neutral response to Him or His work. If one is not for Him, then that one is against Him. If one does not work with Jesus, by either active opposition or passive disregard, that one works against Jesus (he who does not gather with Me scatters abroad).
Next Jesus solemnly warned the religious leaders against rejecting Him. Their rejection of Jesus – especially considering what they had seen of Him and His work – showed that they were completely rejecting the Holy Spirit’s ministry. That ministry is to testify of Jesus, "He will testify of Me" (John 15:26), hence the warning of committing the unforgivable sin (which is fatal).
The eternal consequences of this sin force us to regard it seriously. Therefore, how can one know if they have in fact blasphemed the Holy Spirit? The fact that one desires Jesus at all shows that they are not guilty of this sin. Yet continued rejection of Jesus makes us more hardened against Him and puts us on the path of a full and final rejection of Him.
The work of the Holy Spirit is to convict men of their sin, by revealing to man the answer for his sin, Jesus Christ. God has made only one provision for our forgiveness, one provision for the putting away of our sin, and that provision is in and through His Son. The Spirit of God then comes to bear witness of this fact to us. If one continually refuses that work of the Holy Spirit in their heart, there is no forgiveness. And without His forgiveness of our sin we are doomed. "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Jesus Christ our LORD" (Romans 6:23).
The Truth: “There is no other name (Jesus Christ) given among men, whereby we must be saved." (Acts 4:12 ).
