Gene’s Daily Scriptural Postings.
Reflective Bible Study.
Focus Passage: Luke 12:1-12 (GW)In today’s journal entry, we are discussing a passage that includes a verse that I don’t really understand very well. One of the previous times I was studying it, the idea for today’s journal entry was uncovered. Near the end of this passage, Jesus speaks the following words, “Everyone who says something against the Son of Man will be forgiven. But the person who dishonors the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven.” (v. 10) For a long time this passage has made me think and wonder about what makes one member of the Godhead (the Holy Spirit) better or different than another (Jesus)? Why would saying something against Jesus be any different than saying something against the Holy Spirit? This is one of those “challenging” verses, but that morning, while studying, my thoughts shifted to thinking about roles instead of positions. All three members of the Godhead are “God” (position), but what role does each member play – especially looking at the role of the Son (Jesus) and the Holy Spirit? Jesus came to take the punishment we deserved upon Himself and to pay a debt He did not owe, so humanity (who did deserve punishment for our sins) could be restored into a relationship with God. The Holy Spirit is sent to convict us of sin and point us to Jesus. If we were to make a diagram of this, we would see the Holy Spirit with an arrow pointing to Jesus, and we would be in the middle of that arrow. With this in mind, let’s look back at Jesus’ words. “Everyone who says something against the Son of Man will be forgiven. But the person who dishonors the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven.” (v. 10) The thought I had that morning while studying was this: If we reject the Holy Spirit, whose role is to convict us of sin in our lives, there is no way for us to even be able to see sin, which keeps us from asking (or thinking we even need) forgiveness, and we never move towards Jesus – the only One who can “save” us. This thought was inspired by studying the Walking With Jesus “Reflective Bible Stu