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Lev. 15-16. “Whosoever curses his God shall bear (the consequences of) his sin. And he that “blasphemes” the name of the Lord, he shall surely be put to death, and all the congregation shall surely stone him”
The sin of blasphemy (defamatory speech against God) in the Old Testament was punishable by death. Note the scriptures don’t say that the guilty one can pray for forgiveness or offer the blood of an innocent lamb or make any other kind of sacrifice. If you “blaspheme” God in the Mosaic Law you are to be punished with death… there is no forgiveness
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Which brings us to the New Testament, in Matthew 12:31 we find Jesus teaching that whoever “blasphemes” against the Holy Spirit cannot be “forgiven in this life or in the world to come (Heaven).” Let me suggest that Jesus affirms by this statement that the prohibition against “blaspheming” the name of God in the Mosaic Law carries over to the Law of Christ, i.e., Christians who “blaspheme”(directly) the name of God (or the Spirit of God) cannot be forgiven… ever.
Consider then the individual in Hebrews 6 (vv. 1-8), he was a Christian, believed in Jesus Christ, etc. but rejected (blasphemed) the name of God by his rejection of God. The text says it is impossible to renew him to repentance (v.6) and he will be “rejected and whose end it is to be burned” (v. 8). He was guilty of the unforgiveable sin of “blasphemy” against God.
Also, 1 John 5:16, “If any man see his brother sinning a sin not unto death he shall ask and God will give life…” Perhaps the visible sin that we are to evaluate as a “sin unto death” and decide not to pray for is the sin of” blasphemy” against the name of God because as God has instructed… there is no forgiveness for that sin… don’t waste your time praying for it.
The sin of “blasphemy” against God or the Spirit of God (Holy Spirit) is unforgiveable in the Old and New Testaments. The only difference is that in the New Testament God does not compel his people to mete out punishment for this specific crime against God… God will take care of that himself.
Of course we have to remember that the father lived under the Mosaic Law but he apparently was faithful to it. What about the two sons? The older brother apparently was a Jew in good standing and certainly faithful to the rule of his father but he had some problems… he lacked compassion. Still, no problem with him as far as his father’s Elder qualifications.
What about the younger son? He too was apparently a Jew in good standing and was faithful to his father’s rule. However like his older brother he too had a problem… he was enamored by what the world had to offer… drunkenness, sex, etc. And given the first opportunity acted upon those desires… although still in a manner respectful (superficially) of his father. He asked for his inheritance and left the country before acting upon his desires.
Get this… the only difference in the two sons was the “visibility” of their chosen sins and the “opportunity” to come up short of God’s word.
So based upon what we know of the father’s leadership in his family he could have qualified to be an Elder in the Lord’s church.
So… based upon the subsequent actions (drunkenness, fornication) of his younger son could he have continued as an Elder in the Lord’s church or would he have to step down?
Many would say he would have to step down because he has to “maintain” the qualifications and when the younger son went wild he was no longer qualified. In my opinion this concept is short sighted. The father exhibited the exact qualities one would want to find in an Elder of the Lord’s church… patience and compassion and the temporary failures of his two sons did not make him less of a servant in the eyes of God.
The father addressed both of his son’s sins as the opportunities presented.
One of my all-time favorite movies is “Ground Hog Day”. I bet I’ve watched it a 100 times. The movie centers on a local weatherman who travels to a city he despises to cover an event he despises… a groundhog who predicts the future weather. Weatherman Phil Collins (played by Bill Murray) is arrogant, condescending, and prideful.
While covering the event in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania he wakes up to find he is living the same day over and over again… in the same miserable city covering the same miserable event. At first he takes advantage of the situation and seduces women, steals money, flaunts the law and gets thrown in jail but every morning he wakes up bearing no consequences for his actions… but there is one woman who despite all his efforts he cannot seduce… Rita, his program manager.
Eventually he despairs of taking advantage of people and tries all kinds of methods to kill himself, but he wakes up every morning still alive.
Then one day gives up the futility of trying to seduce Rita and decides to start living to serve other people. He fixes flats for old people, he saves a kid who falls out of a tree everyday, etc. Women (not Rita) start trying to seduce him. Along the way he learns a foreign language and how to play the piano and becomes the type of caring, giving person that Rita falls in love with.
At the complete transformation from being arrogant, condescending and self-serving to being compassionate, caring and humble Phil finally wakes up in a new day… and wins Rita.
That, my friends, is a microcosm of the futility of life and the acceptance of Jesus Christ so that like Phil we can be transformed and find true happiness. The problem with Phil was… Phil.
