G15. Blaspheming God vs. Receiving Messiah & the Holy Spirit. [Make a Comment]
We are not to blaspheme God; instead we are to receive Him via Messiah & the Holy Spirit.
This precept is derived from His Word (blessed be He):
The following captions follow:
Commentary
CURSING GOD
Exodus 22:27(28)
(Maimonides RN60)
You are not to curse God, and you are not to curse a leader of your
people.
Leviticus 24:14-15
(Maimonides RN60; Chinuch C70)
Take the man who cursed [God] outside the camp, have everyone who heard him
lay their hands on his head, and have the entire community stone him. Then
tell the people of Isra'el, 'Whoever curses his God will bear the
consequences of his sin'
BLASPHEMING GOD
Leviticus 24:16
... and whoever blasphemes the name of ADONAI must be put to death; the
entire community must stone him. The foreigner as well as the citizen is to
be put to death if he blasphemes the Name.
1 Timothy 1:12-13
...and I thank the one who has given me strength, the Messiah Yeshua, our
Lord, that he considered me trustworthy enough to put me in his service,
even though I used to be a man who blasphemed and persecuted and was
arrogant! But I received mercy because I had acted in unbelief, not
understanding what I was doing.
Revelation 13:4-6
They worshipped the dragon, because he had given his authority to the beast;
and they worshipped the beast, saying, "Who is like the beast? Who can fight
against it?" It was given a mouth speaking arrogant blasphemies; and it was
given authority to act for forty-two months. So it opened its mouth in
blasphemies against God to insult his name and his Sh'khinah, and those
living in heaven
BLASPHEMING, CURSING OR OPPOSING THE HOLY SPIRIT
Matthew 12:30-32
Those who are not with me are against me, and those who do not gather with
me are scattering. Because of this, I tell you that people will be forgiven
any sin and blasphemy, but blaspheming the Ruach HaKodesh will not be
forgiven. One can say something against the Son of Man and be forgiven; but
whoever keeps on speaking against the Ruach HaKodesh will never be forgiven,
neither in the 'olam hazeh nor in the 'olam haba.
Mark 3:28-30
Yes! I tell you that people will be forgiven all sins and whatever
blasphemies they utter; however, someone who blasphemes against the Ruach
HaKodesh never has forgiveness but is guilty of an eternal sin. For they
had been saying, "He has an unclean spirit in him."
Luke 12:8-10
Moreover, I tell you, whoever acknowledges me in the presence of others, the
Son of Man will also acknowledge in the presence of God's angels. But
whoever disowns me before others will be disowned before God's angels.
Also, everyone who says something against the Son of Man will have it
forgiven him; but whoever has blasphemed the Ruach HaKodesh will not be
forgiven.
RECEIVING YESHUA & HIS MINISTRY
John 1:1-14
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was
God. He was with God in the beginning. All things came to be through him,
and without him nothing made had being. In him was life, and the life was
the light of mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness
has not suppressed it. There was a man sent from God whose name was
Yochanan. He came to be a testimony, to bear witness concerning the light;
so that through him, everyone might put his trust in God and be faithful to
him. He himself was not that light; no, he came to bear witness concerning
the light. This was the true light, which gives light to everyone entering
the world. He was in the world- the world came to be through him - yet the
world did not know him. He came to his own homeland, yet his own people did
not receive him. But to as many as did receive him, to those who put their
trust in his person and power, he gave the right to become children of God,
not because of bloodline, physical impulse or human intention, but because
of God. The Word became a human being and lived with us, and we saw his
Sh'khinah, the Sh'khinah of the Father's only Son, full of
grace and truth.
John 3:14-16
Just as Moshe lifted up the serpent in the desert, so must the Son of Man be
lifted up; so that everyone who trusts in him may have eternal life. For
God so loved the world that he gave his only and unique Son, so that
everyone who trusts in him may have eternal life, instead of being utterly
destroyed.
John 3:36
Whoever trusts in the Son has eternal life. But whoever disobeys the Son
will not see that life but remains subject to Gods wrath.'
John 14:6
Yeshua said, "I AM the Way - and the Truth and the Life; no one comes to the
Father except through me."
Acts 4:12
There is salvation in no one else! For there is no other name under heaven
given to mankind by whom we must be saved!
Acts 16:30-31
Then, leading them outside, he [the jailer] said, "Men, what must I do to be
saved?" They said, "Trust in the Lord Yeshua, and you will be saved - you
and your household!"
2 Corinthians 5:17-19
Therefore, if anyone is united with the Messiah, he is a new creation - the
old has passed; look, what has come is fresh and new! And it is all from
God, who through the Messiah has reconciled us to himself and has given us
the work of that reconciliation, which is that God in the Messiah was
reconciling mankind to himself, not counting their sins against them, and
entrusting to us the message of reconciliation.
1 John 2:23-25
Everyone who denies the Son is also without the Father, but the person who
acknowledges the Son has the Father as well. Let what you heard from the
beginning remain in you. If what you heard from the beginning remains in
you, you will also remain in union with both the Son and the Father. And
this is what he has promised us: eternal life.
RECEIVING THE HOLY SPIRIT
Joel 3:1-2(2:28-29)
After this, I will pour out my Spirit on all humanity. Your sons and
daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will
see visions; and also on male and female slaves in those days I will pour
out my Spirit.
John 7:39
(Now he said this about the Spirit, whom those who trusted in him were to
receive later - the Spirit had not yet been given, because Yeshua had not
yet been glorified.)
John 14:16-17
... and I will ask the Father, and he will give you another comforting
Counselor like me, the Spirit of Truth, to be with you forever. The world
cannot receive him, because it neither sees nor knows him. You know him,
because he is staying with you and will be united with you.
John 20:21-22
"Shalom aleikhem!" Yeshua repeated. "Just as the Father sent me, I myself am
also sending you." Having said this, he breathed on them and said to them,
"Receive the Ruach HaKodesh!"
Acts 2:1-4
The festival of Shavu'ot arrived, and the believers all gathered
together in one place. Suddenly there came a sound from the sky like the
roar of a violent wind, and it filled the whole house where they were
sitting. Then they saw what looked like tongues of fire, which separated
and came to rest on each one of them. They were all filled with the Ruach
HaKodesh and began to talk in different languages, as the Spirit enabled
them to speak.
Supportive Scriptures - Cursing God
Revelation 16:9-11
People were burned by the intense heat; yet they cursed the name of God, who
had the authority over these plagues, instead of turning from their sins to
give him glory. The fifth one poured out his bowl on the throne of the
beast, and its kingdom grew dark. People gnawed on their tongues from the
pain, yet they cursed the God of heaven because of their pains and sores,
and did not turn from their sinful deeds.
Revelation 16:18-21
There were flashes of lightning, voices and peals of thunder; and there was
a massive earthquake, such as has never occurred since mankind has been on
earth, so violent was the earthquake. The great city was split into three
parts, the cities of the nations fell, and God remembered Bavel the Great
and made her drink the wine from the cup of his raging fury. Every island
fled, and no mountains were to be found. And huge seventy-pound hailstones
fell on people from the sky. But the people cursed God for the plague of
hail, that it was such a terrible plague.
Supportive Scriptures - Blaspheming God
Isaiah 37:23
Whom have you taunted and insulted? Against whom have you raised your voice
and haughtily lifted your eyes? The Holy One of Isra'el!
Isaiah 52:5
"So now, what should I do here," asks ADONAI, "since my people were carried
off for nothing? Their oppressors are howling," says ADONAI, "and my name is
always being insulted, daily."
Isaiah 65:6-7
"See, it is written before me; I will not be silent until I repay them; I
will repay them to the full, your own crimes and those of your ancestors
together," says ADONAI. "They offered incense on the mountains and insulted
me on the hills. First I will measure out their wages and then repay them in
full."
Ezekiel 20:27
Therefore, human being, speak to the house of Isra'el; tell them that
Adonai ELOHIM says, 'Moreover, your ancestors blasphemed me by breaking
faith with me in still another way'
Hosea 7:13-14
Woe to them! for they have strayed from me. Destruction to them! for they
have wronged me. Am I supposed to redeem them, when they have spoken lies
against me? They have not cried out to me from their hearts, even though
they wail on their beds. They assemble themselves for grain and wine, yet
turn away from me.
Malachi 3:13-14
"You have spoken strongly against me," says ADONAI. "Yet you say, 'How
have we spoken against you?' By saying, 'There is no point in
serving God. What good is it to obey his orders or to walk about as mourners
before ADONAI-Tzva'ot?'"
Psalm 139:19-20
God, if only you would kill off the wicked! Men of blood, get away from me!
They invoke your name for their crafty schemes; yes, your enemies misuse
it.
Romans 2:23-24
You who take such pride in Torah, do you, by disobeying the Torah, dishonor
God? - as it says in the Tanakh, "For it is because of you that God's
name is blasphemed by the Goyim."
Supportive Scriptures - More Examples of Speaking Against God
Isaiah 40:27
Why do you complain, Ya'akov; why do you say, Isra'el, "My way is
hidden from ADONAI, my rights are ignored by my God"?
Jeremiah 20:7-8
Then I said, "Oh, Adonai ELOHIM! Surely you have sadly deceived this people
and Yerushalayim by saying, 'You will have peace,' when the sword
is at our very throats!"
Jeremiah 20:7-8
You fooled me, ADONAI; I have been your dupe. You overpowered me, and you
have prevailed. All day long I'm a laughingstock; everyone makes fun of
me. Whenever I speak, I have to cry out; I shout, "Violence!" and
"Destruction!" Thus the word of ADONAI becomes for me the cause of reproach
and derision all day!
Ezekiel 8:12
Then he said to me, "Human being, did you see what the leaders of the house
of Isra'el are doing in the dark, each one in the room of his own
carved image, because they say, 'ADONAI can't see us; ADONAI has
left the land.'?"
Ezekiel 9:9
Then he said to me, "The wickedness of the house of Isra'el and
Y'hudah is enormous, the land is full of blood, and the city is full of
justice denied; because they say, 'ADONAI has left the land, ADONAI
doesn't see.'"
Ezekiel 18:25
So now you say, 'ADONAI's way isnt fair.' Listen
(house of
Isra'el! Is it my way that is unfair? or your ways that are unfair?')
Ezekiel 33:17
Now your people say, 'Adonai's way isn't fair!' But it
is their way, theirs, that isn't fair!'
Psalm 10:13
Why does the wicked despise God and say in his heart, "It won't be held
against me"?
Psalm 73:9-11
They set their mouths against heaven; their tongues swagger through the
earth. Therefore his people return here and [thoughtlessly] suck up that
whole cup of water. Then they ask, "How does God know? Does the Most High
really have knowledge?"
Psalm 78:19
Yes, they spoke against God by asking, "Can God spread a table in the
desert?"
Psalm 94:6-7
They kill widows and strangers and murder the fatherless. They say, Yah
isn't looking; the God of Ya'akov won't notice."'
Job 34:5-9
For Iyov says, 'I am in the right, but God is denying me justice.
Against justice, I am considered a liar; my wound is mortal, though I
committed no crime.' Is there a man like Iyov, who drinks in scoffing
like water, who keeps company with evildoers and goes with wicked men, since
he thinks, 'It profits a person nothing to be in accord with
God'?
Job 34:35-37
Iyov is speaking without thinking; his words lack discernment. I wish Iyov
would be kept on trial forever, because he answers like wicked men. For now
to his sin he adds rebellion; he [mockingly] claps his hands among us and
keeps adding to his words against God.
See also: Job 15:13, 25-26; 19:6-7; 21:14; 22:12-14, 17; 30:21.
Supportive Scriptures - Blaspheming, Cursing or Opposing the Holy Spirit
Acts 7:51
Stiffnecked people, with uncircumcised hearts and ears! You continually
oppose the Ruach HaKodesh! You do the same things your fathers did!
Supportive Scriptures Yeshua Accused of Blasphemy
Matthew 26:62-66
The cohen hagadol stood up and said, "Have you nothing to say to the
accusation these men are making?" Yeshua remained silent. The cohen hagadol
said to him, "I put you under oath! By the living God, tell us if you are
the Mashiach, the Son of God!" Yeshua said to him, "The words are your own.
But I tell you that one day you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right
hand of HaG'vurah and coming on the clouds of heaven." At this, the
cohen hagadol tore his robes. "Blasphemy!" he said. "Why do we still need
witnesses? You heard him blaspheme! What is your verdict?" "Guilty," they
answered. "He deserves death!"
Mark 2:1-7
After a while, Yeshua returned to K'far-Nachum. The word spread that he
was back, and so many people gathered around the house that there was no
longer any room, not even in front of the door. While he was preaching the
message to them, four men came to him carrying a paralyzed man. They could
not get near Yeshua because of the crowd, so they stripped the roof over the
place where he was, made an opening, and lowered the stretcher with the
paralytic lying on it. Seeing their trust, Yeshua said to the paralyzed
man, "Son, your sins are forgiven." Some Torah-teachers sitting there
thought to themselves, "How can this fellow say such a thing? He is
blaspheming! Who can forgive sins except God?"
(see also, Luke
5:17-2102Sep15
John 10:31-33
Once again the Judeans picked up rocks in order to stone him. Yeshua
answered them, "You have seen me do many good deeds that reflect the
Father's power; for which one of these deeds are you stoning me?" The
Judeans replied, "We are not stoning you for any good deed, but for
blasphemy - because you, who are only a man, are making yourself out to be
God."
Supportive Scriptures - Receiving Yeshua & His Ministry
Isaiah 53:4-8
In fact, it was our diseases he [Yeshua] bore, our pains from which he
suffered; yet we regarded him as punished, stricken and afflicted by God.
But he was wounded because of our crimes, crushed because of our sins; the
disciplining that makes us whole fell on him, and by his bruises we are
healed. We all, like sheep, went astray; we turned, each one, to his own
way; yet ADONAI laid on him the guilt of all of us. Though mistreated, he
was submissive - he did not open his mouth. Like a lamb led to be
slaughtered, like a sheep silent before its shearers, he did not open his
mouth. After forcible arrest and sentencing, he was taken away; and none of
his generation protested his being cut off from the land of the living for
the crimes of my people, who deserved the punishment themselves.
Matthew 7:21-23
Not everyone who says to me [Yeshua], 'Lord, Lord!' will enter the
Kingdom of Heaven, only those who do what my Father in heaven wants. On
that Day, many will say to me, 'Lord, Lord! Didn't we prophesy in
your name? Didn't we expel demons in your name? Didn't we perform
many miracles in your name?' Then I will tell them to their faces,
'I never knew you! Get away from me, you workers of
lawlessness!'
Matthew 16:16
Shim'on Kefa answered, "You [Yeshua] are the Mashiach, the Son of the
living God."
Mark 1:8
I have immersed you in water, but he will immerse you in the Ruach
HaKodesh.
Mark 2:28
So the Son of Man [Yeshua] is Lord even of Shabbat.
Mark 16:15-16
Then he said to them, "As you go throughout the world, proclaim the Good
News to all creation. Whoever trusts and is immersed will be saved; whoever
does not trust will be condemned."
Luke 1:32-33
He [Yeshua] will be great, he will be called Son of Ha'Elyon. ADONAI,
God, will give him the throne of his forefather David; and he will rule the
House of Ya'akov forever - there will be no end to his Kingdom.
Luke 24:45-47
Then he opened their minds, so that they could understand the Tanakh,
telling them, "Here is what it says: the Messiah is to suffer and to rise
from the dead on the third day; and in his name repentance leading to
forgiveness of sins is to be proclaimed to people from all nations, starting
with Yerushalayim."
Luke 24:49
Now I am sending forth upon you what my Father promised, so stay here in
the city until you have been equipped with power from above.
John 1:33
I myself did not know who he was, but the one who sent me to immerse in
water said to me, 'The one on whom you see the Spirit descending and
remaining, this is the one who immerses in the Ruach HaKodesh.'
John 3:3-8
"Yes, indeed," Yeshua answered him, "I tell you that unless a person is born
again from above, he cannot see the Kingdom of God." Nakdimon said to him,
"How can a grown man be 'born'? Can he go back into his
mother's womb and be born a second time?" Yeshua answered, "Yes,
indeed, I tell you that unless a person is born from water and the Spirit,
he cannot enter the Kingdom of God. What is born from the flesh is flesh,
and what is born from the Spirit is spirit. Stop being amazed at my telling
you that you must be born again from above! The wind blows where it wants
to, and you hear its sound, but you dont know where it comes from or where
it's going. That's how it is with everyone who has been born from
the Spirit."
John 5:24-30
Yes, indeed! I tell you that whoever hears what I am saying and trusts the
One who sent me has eternal life - that is, he will not come up for judgment
but has already crossed over from death to life! Yes, indeed! I tell you
that there is coming a time - in fact, it's already here - when the
dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who listen will come
to life. For just as the Father has life in himself, so he has given the
Son life to have in himself. Also he has given him authority to execute
judgment, because he is the Son of Man. Don't be surprised at this;
because the time is coming when all who are in the grave will hear his voice
and come out - those who have done good to a resurrection of life, and those
who have done evil to a resurrection of judgment. I can't do a thing
on my own. As I hear, I judge; and my judgment is right; because I
don't seek my own desire, but the desire of the one who sent me.
John 6:44-45
No one can come to me unless the Father - the One who sent me - draws him.
And I will raise him up on the Last Day. It is written in the Prophets,
'They will all be taught by ADONAI.' Everyone who listens to the
Father and learns from him comes to me.
John 14:12-27
Yes, indeed! I tell you that whoever trusts in me will also do the works I
do! Indeed, he will do greater ones, because I am going to the Father. In
fact, whatever you ask for in my name, I will do; so that the Father may be
glorified in the Son. If you ask me for something in my name, I will do it.
If you love me, you will keep my commands; and I will ask the Father, and he
will give you another comforting Counselor like me, the Spirit of Truth, to
be with you forever. The world cannot receive him, because it neither sees
nor knows him. You know him, because he is staying with you and will be
united with you. I will not leave you orphans - I am coming to you. In just
a little while, the world will no longer see me; but you will see me.
Because I live, you too will live. When that day comes, you will know that
I am united with my Father, and you with me, and I with you. Whoever has my
commands and keeps them is the one who loves me, and the one who loves me
will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and reveal myself to him."
Y'hudah (not the one from K'riot) said to him, "What has happened,
Lord, that you are about to reveal yourself to us and not to the world?"
Yeshua answered him, "If someone loves me, he will keep my word; and my
Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.
Someone who doesn't love me doesn't keep my words - and the word
you are hearing is not my own but that of the Father who sent me. I have
told you these things while I am still with you. But the Counselor, the
Ruach HaKodesh, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you
everything; that is, he will remind you of everything I have said to you.
What I am leaving with you is shalom - I am giving you my shalom. I
don't give the way the world gives. Don't let yourselves be upset
or frightened.
Acts 1:6-8
When they were together, they asked him, "Lord, are you at this time going
to restore self-rule to Isra'el?" He answered, "You don't need to
know the dates or the times; the Father has kept these under his own
authority. But you will receive power when the Ruach HaKodesh comes upon
you; you will be my [Yeshua's] witnesses both in Yerushalayim and in
all Y'hudah and Shomron, indeed to the ends of the earth!"
Acts 2:16-21
No, this is what was spoken about through the prophet Yo'el:
'ADONAI says: "In the Last Days, I will pour out from my Spirit upon
everyone. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see
visions, your old men will dream dreams. Even on my slaves, both men and
women, will I pour out from my Spirit in those days; and they will prophesy.
I will perform miracles in the sky above and signs on the earth below -
blood, fire and thick smoke. The sun will become dark and the moon blood
before the great and fearful Day of ADONAI comes. And then, whoever calls
on the name of ADONAI [Yeshua] will be saved."'
Acts 2:38
Kefa answered them, "Turn from sin, return to God, and each of you be
immersed on the authority of Yeshua the Messiah into forgiveness of your
sins, and you will receive the gift of the Ruach HaKodesh!"
Acts 8:12
But when they came to believe Philip, as he announced the Good News
concerning the Kingdom of God and the name of Yeshua the Messiah, they were
immersed, both men and women.
Acts 8:35-38
Then Philip started to speak - beginning with that passage, he went on to
tell him the Good News about Yeshua. As they were going down the road, they
came to some water; and the eunuch said, "Look! Here's some water! Is
there any reason why I shouldn't be immersed?" [37 no Greek text] He
ordered the chariot to stop; then both Philip and the eunuch went down into
the water, and Philip immersed him.
Acts 10:47-48
"Is anyone prepared to prohibit these people from being immersed in water?
After all, they have received the Ruach HaKodesh, just as we did." And he
ordered that they be immersed in the name of Yeshua the Messiah. Then they
asked Kefa to stay on with them for a few days.
Acts 11:15-18
"But I had hardly begun speaking when the Ruach HaKodesh fell on them, just
as on us at the beginning! And I remembered that the Lord had said,
'Yochanan used to immerse people in water, but you will be immersed in
the Ruach HaKodesh.' Therefore, if God gave them the same gift as he
gave us after we had come to put our trust in the Lord Yeshua the Messiah,
who was I to stand in God's way?" On hearing these things, they
stopped objecting and began to praise God, saying, "This means that God has
enabled the Goyim as well to do t'shuvah and have life!"
Romans 5:1-2
So, since we have come to be considered righteous by God because of our
trust, let us continue to have shalom with God through our Lord, Yeshua the
Messiah. Also through him and on the ground of our trust, we have gained
access to this grace in which we stand; so let us boast about the hope of
experiencing God's glory.
Romans 5:8
But God demonstrates his own love for us in that the Messiah died on our
behalf while we were still sinners.
Romans 6:3-8
Don't you know that those of us who have been immersed into the Messiah
Yeshua have been immersed into his death? Through immersion into his death
we were buried with him; so that just as, through the glory of the Father,
the Messiah was raised from the dead, likewise we too might live a new life.
For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we will also be
united with him in a resurrection like his. We know that our old self was
put to death on the execution-stake with him, so that the entire body of our
sinful propensities might be destroyed, and we might no longer be enslaved
to sin. For someone who has died has been cleared from sin. Now since we
died with the Messiah, we trust that we will also live with him.
Romans 6:22-23
However, now, freed from sin and enslaved to God, you do get the benefit -
it consists in being made holy, set apart for God, and its end result is
eternal life. For what one earns from sin is death; but eternal life is
what one receives as a free gift from God, in union with the Messiah Yeshua,
our Lord.
Romans 8:3-4
For what the Torah could not do by itself, because it lacked the power to
make the old nature cooperate, God did by sending his own Son as a human
being with a nature like our own sinful one [but without sin]. God did this
in order to deal with sin, and in so doing he executed the punishment
against sin in human nature, so that the just requirement of the Torah might
be fulfilled in us who do not run our lives according to what our old nature
wants but according to what the Spirit wants.
Romans 10:8-13
What, then, does it say? "The word is near you, in your mouth and in your
heart." - that is, the word about trust which we proclaim, namely, that if
you acknowledge publicly with your mouth that Yeshua is Lord and trust in
your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be delivered [saved].
For with the heart one goes on trusting and thus continues toward
righteousness, while with the mouth one keeps on making public
acknowledgement and thus continues toward deliverance. For the passage
quoted says that everyone who rests his trust on him will not be humiliated.
That means that there is no difference between Jew and Gentile - ADONAI is
the same for everyone, rich toward everyone who calls on him [Yeshua], since
everyone who calls on the name of ADONAI will be delivered [saved].
Galatians 2:15-16
We are Jews by birth, not so-called 'Goyishe sinners'; even so, we
have come to realize that a person is not declared righteous by God on the
ground of his legalistic observance of Torah commands, but through the
Messiah Yeshua's trusting faithfulness. Therefore, we too have put our
trust in Messiah Yeshua and become faithful to him, in order that we might
be declared righteous on the ground of the Messiah's trusting
faithfulness and not on the ground of our legalistic observance of Torah
commands. For on the ground of legalistic observance of Torah commands, no
one will be declared righteous.
Galatians 3:26-28
For in union with the Messiah, you are all children of God through this
trusting faithfulness; because as many of you as were immersed into the
Messiah have clothed yourselves with the Messiah, in whom there is neither
Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor freeman, neither male nor female; for in
union with the Messiah Yeshua, you are all one.
Ephesians 1:13
Furthermore, you who heard the message of the truth, the Good News offering
you deliverance, and put your trust in the Messiah were sealed by him with
the promised Ruach HaKodesh
Ephesians 2:8-9
For you have been delivered [saved] by grace through trusting, and even this
is not your accomplishment but God's gift. You were not delivered
[saved] by your own actions; therefore no one should boast.
Ephesians 3:14-17
For this reason, I fall on my knees before the Father, from whom every
family in heaven and on earth receives its character. I pray that from the
treasures of his glory he will empower you with inner strength by his
Spirit, so that the Messiah may live in your hearts through your trusting.
Colossians 2:6-7
Therefore, just as you received the Messiah Yeshua as Lord, keep living your
life united with him. Remain deeply rooted in him; continue being built up
in him and confirmed in your trust, the way you were taught, so that you
overflow in thanksgiving.
Colossians 2:11-13
Also it was in union with him that you were circumcised with a circumcision
not done by human hands, but accomplished by stripping away the old
nature's control over the body. In this circumcision done by the
Messiah, you were buried along with him by being immersed; and in union with
him, you were also raised up along with him by God's faithfulness that
worked when he raised Yeshua from the dead. You were dead because of your
sins, that is, because of your "foreskin", your old nature. But God made you
alive along with the Messiah by forgiving you all your sins.
1 Thessalonians 5:23
May the God of shalom make you completely holy- may your entire spirit, soul
and body be kept blameless for the coming of our Lord Yeshua the Messiah.
2 Timothy 1:8-10
So don't be ashamed of bearing testimony to our Lord or to me, his
prisoner. On the contrary, accept your share in suffering disgrace for the
sake of the Good News. God will give you the strength for it, since he
delivered us and called us to a life of holiness as his people. It was not
because of our deeds, but because of his own purpose and the grace which he
gave to us who are united with the Messiah Yeshua. He did this before the
beginning of time, but made it public only now through the appearing of our
Deliverer, the Messiah Yeshua, who abolished death and, through the Good
News, revealed life and immortality.
Titus 3:4-5
But when the kindness and love for mankind of God our Deliverer was
revealed, he delivered us. It was not on the ground of any righteous deeds
we had done, but on the ground of his own mercy. He did it by means of the
mikveh of rebirth and the renewal brought about by the Ruach HaKodesh,
Hebrews 4:15
For we do not have a cohen gadol unable to empathize with our weaknesses;
since in every respect he [Yeshua] was tempted just as we are, the only
difference being that he did not sin.
1 Peter 1:3-4
Praised be God, Father of our Lord Yeshua the Messiah, who, in keeping with
his great mercy, has caused us, through the resurrection of Yeshua the
Messiah from the dead, to be born again to a living hope, to an inheritance
that cannot decay, spoil or fade, kept safe for you in heaven.
1 Peter 3:21-22
This also prefigures what delivers us now, the water of immersion, which is
not the removal of dirt from the body, but one's pledge to keep a good
conscience toward God, through the resurrection of Yeshua the Messiah. He
has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels,
authorities and powers subject to him.
Revelation 20:4
Then I saw thrones, and those seated on them received authority to judge.
And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for testifying about
Yeshua and proclaiming the Word of God, also those who had not worshipped
the beast or its image and had not received the mark on their foreheads and
on their hands. They came to life and ruled with the Messiah for a thousand
years.
Supportive Scriptures - Receiving the Holy Spirit
Judges 3:9-10
But when the people of Isra'el cried out to ADONAI, ADONAI raised up a
savior for the people of Isra'el; and he rescued them; this was
'Otni'el, the son of Kalev's younger brother K'naz. The
spirit of ADONAI came upon him, and he judged Isra'el.
Luke 11:13
So if you, even though you are bad, know how to give your children gifts
that are good, how much more will the Father keep giving the Ruach HaKodesh
from heaven to those who keep asking him!
Luke 24:49
Now I am sending forth upon you what my Father promised, so stay here in the
city until you have been equipped with power from above.
John 3:5-8
Yeshua answered, "Yes, indeed, I tell you that unless a person is born from
water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the Kingdom of God. What is born from
the flesh is flesh, and what is born from the Spirit is spirit. Stop being
amazed at my telling you that you must be born again from above! The wind
blows where it wants to, and you hear its sound, but you don't know
where it comes from or where its going. That's how it is with everyone
who has been born from the Spirit.'
John 14:25-26
I have told you these things while I am still with you. But the Counselor,
the Ruach HaKodesh, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you
everything; that is, he will remind you of everything I have said to you.
Acts 1:8
But you will receive power when the Ruach HaKodesh comes upon you; you will
be my witnesses both in Yerushalayim and in all Y'hudah and Shomron,
indeed to the ends of the earth!
Acts 4:31
While they were still praying, the place where they were gathered was
shaken. They were all filled with the Ruach HaKodesh, and they spoke
God's message with boldness.
Acts 8:38a-39
He ordered the chariot to stop; then both Philip and the eunuch went down
into the water, and Philip immersed him. When they came up out of the
water, the Spirit of the Lord snatched Philip away.
Acts 10:44
Kefa was still saying these things when the Ruach HaKodesh fell on all who
were hearing the message.
Acts 10:47-48
"Is anyone prepared to prohibit these people from being immersed in water?
After all, they have received the Ruach HaKodesh, just as we did." And he
ordered that they be immersed in the name of Yeshua the Messiah. Then they
asked Kefa to stay on with them for a few days.
Acts 11:15-18
"But I had hardly begun speaking when the Ruach HaKodesh fell on them, just
as on us at the beginning! And I remembered that the Lord had said,
'Yochanan used to immerse people in water, but you will be immersed in
the Ruach HaKodesh.' Therefore, if God gave them the same gift as he
gave us after we had come to put our trust in the Lord Yeshua the Messiah,
who was I to stand in Gods way?" On hearing these things
(they stopped
objecting and began to praise God)
Acts 15:7-9
After lengthy debate, Kefa got up and said to them, "Brothers, you
yourselves know that a good while back, God chose me from among you to be
the one by whose mouth the Goyim should hear the message of the Good News
and come to trust. And God, who knows the heart, bore them witness by
giving the Ruach HaKodesh to them, just as he did to us; that is, he made no
distinction between us and them, but cleansed their heart by trust.
Supportive Scriptures - Ministry & Gifts of the Holy Spirit
Judges 3:9-10
But when the people of Isra'el cried out to ADONAI, ADONAI raised up a
savior for the people of Isra'el; and he rescued them; this was
'Otni'el, the son of Kalev's younger brother K'naz. The
spirit of ADONAI came upon him, and he judged Isra'el.
Joel 3:1-2(2:28-29)
After this, I will pour out my Spirit on all humanity. Your sons and
daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will
see visions; and also on male and female slaves in those days I will pour
out my Spirit.
Micah 3:8
On the other hand, I am full of power by the Spirit of ADONAI, full of
justice and full of might, to declare to Ya'akov his crime, to
Isra'el his sin.
Mark 16:17-18
And these signs will accompany those who do trust: in my name they will
drive out demons, speak with new tongues, not be injured if they handle
snakes or drink poison, and heal the sick by laying hands on them.
Luke 24:49
Now I am sending forth upon you what my Father promised, so stay here in
the city until you have been equipped with power from above.
John 3:5-6
Yeshua answered, "Yes, indeed, I tell you that unless a person is born from
water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the Kingdom of God. What is born from
the flesh is flesh, and what is born from the Spirit is spirit."
John 14:25-26
I have told you these things while I am still with you. But the Counselor,
the Ruach HaKodesh, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you
everything; that is, he will remind you of everything I have said to you.
Acts 1:8
But you will receive power when the Ruach HaKodesh comes upon you; you will
be my witnesses both in Yerushalayim and in all Y'hudah and Shomron,
indeed to the ends of the earth!
Acts 2:1-4
The festival of Shavu'ot arrived, and the believers all gathered
together in one place. Suddenly there came a sound from the sky like the
roar of a violent wind, and it filled the whole house where they were
sitting. Then they saw what looked like tongues of fire, which separated
and came to rest on each one of them. They were all filled with the Ruach
HaKodesh and began to talk in different languages, as the Spirit enabled
them to speak.
Acts 4:31
While they were still praying, the place where they were gathered was
shaken. They were all filled with the Ruach HaKodesh, and they spoke
God's message with boldness.
Acts 10:45-46
All the believers from the Circumcision faction who had accompanied Kefa
were amazed that the gift of the Ruach HaKodesh was also being poured out on
the Goyim, for they heard them speaking in tongues and praising God.
Kefa's response was ...
Acts 19:6
... and when Sha'ul placed his hands on them, the Ruach HaKodesh came
upon them; so that they began speaking in tongues and prophesying.
Romans 5:4-5
... endurance produces character, and character produces hope; and this hope
does not let us down, because God's love for us has already been poured
out in our hearts through the Ruach HaKodesh who has been given to us.
Romans 8:1-2
Therefore, there is no longer any condemnation awaiting those who are in
union with the Messiah Yeshua. Why? Because the Torah of the Spirit, which
produces this life in union with Messiah Yeshua, has set me free from the
"Torah" of sin and death.
Romans 8:5-6
For those who identify with their old nature set their minds on the things
of the old nature, but those who identify with the Spirit set their minds on
the things of the Spirit. Having one's mind controlled by the old
nature is death, but having ones mind controlled by the Spirit is life and
shalom.'
Romans 8:26-27
Similarly, the Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we don't know how
to pray the way we should. But the Spirit himself pleads on our behalf with
groanings too deep for words; and the one who searches hearts knows exactly
what the Spirit is thinking, because his pleadings for God's people
accord with God's will.
Romans 12:6-8
But we have gifts that differ and which are meant to be used according to
the grace that has been given to us. If your gift is prophecy, use it to the
extent of your trust; if it is serving, use it to serve; if you are a
teacher, use your gift in teaching; if you are a counselor, use your gift to
comfort and exhort; if you are someone who gives, do it simply and
generously; if you are in a position of leadership, lead with diligence and
zeal; if you are one who does acts of mercy, do them cheerfully.
1 Corinthians 12:3
Therefore, I want to make it clear to you that no one speaking by the Spirit
of God ever says, "Yeshua is cursed!" and no one can say, "Yeshua is Lord,"
except by the Ruach HaKodesh.
1 Corinthians 12:7-11
Moreover, to each person is given the particular manifestation of the Spirit
that will be for the common good. To one, through the Spirit, is given a
word of wisdom; to another, a word of knowledge, in accordance with the same
Spirit; to another, faith, by the same Spirit; and to another, gifts of
healing, by the one Spirit; to another, the working of miracles; to another,
prophecy; to another, the ability to judge between spirits; to another, the
ability to speak in different kinds of tongues; and to yet another, the
ability to interpret tongues. One and the same Spirit is at work in all
these things, distributing to each person as he chooses.
1 Corinthians 14:1-3
Pursue love! However, keep on eagerly seeking the things of the Spirit; and
especially seek to be able to prophesy. For someone speaking in a tongue is
not speaking to people but to God, because no one can understand, since he
is uttering mysteries in the power of the Spirit. But someone prophesying
is speaking to people, edifying, encouraging and comforting them.
Ephesians 1:13
Furthermore, you who heard the message of the truth, the Good News offering
you deliverance, and put your trust in the Messiah were sealed by him with
the promised Ruach HaKodesh
Ephesians 3:14-16
For this reason, I fall on my knees before the Father, from whom every
family in heaven and on earth receives its character. I pray that from the
treasures of his glory he will empower you with inner strength by his
Spirit ...
Ephesians 6:17-18
And take the helmet of deliverance; along with the sword given by the
Spirit, that is, the Word of God; as you pray at all times, with all kinds
of prayers and requests, in the Spirit, vigilantly and persistently, for all
God's people.
Titus 3:4-5
But when the kindness and love for mankind of God our Deliverer was
revealed, he delivered us. It was not on the ground of any righteous deeds
we had done, but on the ground of his own mercy. He did it by means of the
mikveh of rebirth and the renewal brought about by the Ruach HaKodesh
1 Peter 4:10-11
As each one has received some spiritual gift, he should use it to serve
others, like good managers of God's many-sided grace - if someone
speaks, let him speak God's words; if someone serves, let him do so out
of strength that God supplies; so that in everything God may be glorified
through Yeshua the Messiah - to him be glory and power forever and ever.
Amen.
Jude 1:20
But you, dear friends, build yourselves up in your most holy faith, and
pray in union with the Ruach HaKodesh.
Supportive Scriptures - Baptism & Filling of the Holy Spirit
Matthew 3:11
It's true that I am immersing you in water so that you might turn from
sin to God; but the one coming after me is more powerful than I - I'm
not worthy even to carry his sandals - and he will immerse you in the Ruach
HaKodesh and in fire.
Matthew 28:19
Therefore, go and make people from all nations into talmidim, immersing
them into the reality of the Father, the Son and the Ruach HaKodesh
Mark 1:8
I have immersed you in water, but he will immerse you in the Ruach
HaKodesh
Luke 3:16
... so Yochanan answered them all, "I am immersing you in water, but he who
is coming is more powerful than I - I'm not worthy to untie his
sandals! He will immerse you in the Ruach HaKodesh and in fire."
Acts 1:5
For Yochanan used to immerse people in water; but in a few days, you will
be immersed in the Ruach HaKodesh!
Acts 1:8
But you will receive power when the Ruach HaKodesh comes upon you; you will
be my witnesses both in Yerushalayim and in all Y'hudah and Shomron,
indeed to the ends of the earth!
Acts 2:1-4
The festival of Shavu'ot arrived, and the believers all gathered
together in one place. Suddenly there came a sound from the sky like the
roar of a violent wind, and it filled the whole house where they were
sitting. Then they saw what looked like tongues of fire, which separated
and came to rest on each one of them. They were all filled with the Ruach
HaKodesh and began to talk in different languages, as the Spirit enabled
them to speak.
Acts 2:38
Kefa answered them, "Turn from sin, return to God, and each of you be
immersed on the authority of Yeshua the Messiah into forgiveness of your
sins, and you will receive the gift of the Ruach HaKodesh!
Acts 4:8
Then Kefa, filled with the Ruach HaKodesh, said to them, "Rulers and elders
of the people!"
Acts 4:31
While they were still praying, the place where they were gathered was
shaken. They were all filled with the Ruach HaKodesh, and they spoke
God's message with boldness.
Acts 7:55
But he [Stephen], full of the Ruach HaKodesh, looked up to heaven and saw
God's Sh'khinah, with Yeshua standing at the right hand of God.
Acts 11:15-18
"But I had hardly begun speaking when the Ruach HaKodesh fell on them, just
as on us at the beginning! And I remembered that the Lord had said,
'Yochanan used to immerse people in water, but you will be immersed in
the Ruach HaKodesh.' Therefore, if God gave them the same gift as he
gave us after we had come to put our trust in the Lord Yeshua the Messiah,
who was I to stand in Gods way?" On hearing these things
(they stopped
objecting and began to praise God)
Acts 13:9
Then Sha'ul, also known as Paul, filled with the Ruach HaKodesh,
stared straight at him and said..
Acts 19:6
and when Sha'ul placed his hands on them, the Ruach HaKodesh came upon
them; so that they began speaking in tongues and prophesying.
1 Corinthians 12:13
For it was by one Spirit that we were all immersed into one body, whether
Jews or Gentiles, slaves or free; and we were all given the one Spirit to
drink.
Ephesians 5:18
Don't get drunk with wine, because it makes you lose control. Instead,
keep on being filled with the Spirit
Blasphemy is communicating disrespect for something that is sacred or someone who is holy. Among believers, we often hear doctrinal statements espoused as though they have nothing or little to do with each other. For example:
These sayings are correct, but have we sufficiently considered how they are related to each other, and why they are correct in view of their raising perplexing questions? For example, statement #1 raises the question: "Why is blaspheming the Holy Spirit unforgivable, whereas blaspheming Yeshua or the Father forgivable?" And as to statement #2: "What is special about believing in Yeshua as compared to God the Father and the Holy Spirit? Is it not sufficient to believe in God broadly? After all, there are those in the world that have never heard of Yeshua." And a question that may arise regarding statement #3 is: "Why does God single out the Holy Spirit as the conveyer of His power and gifts? Can we not receive God's power and gifts directly from the Father and Yeshua without the Holy Spirit's intervention?"
The answers to these questions become clearer when we stop thinking of biblical doctrines such as these as standing on their own, and begin to appreciate them as interrelated. As a matter of fact, despite the prominence given in some quarter to sayings #1, #2, and #3, none of them are primary. What is primary and the umbrella for all of them is what is known as the "Sh'ma" - Deuteronomy 6:4-6 as explained by Yeshua in Matthew 22:34-40:
... but when the P'rushim learned that he had silenced the Tz'dukim, they got together, and one of them who was a Torah expert asked a sh'eilah to trap him: "Rabbi, which of the mitzvot in the Torah is the most important?" He told him, "'You are to love ADONAI your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.' This is the greatest and most important mitzvah. And a second is similar to it, 'You are to love your neighbor as yourself.' All of the Torah and the Prophets are dependent on these two mitzvot."
We cannot love God with all of our heart, soul and strength unless we know Him intimately, and we cannot know Him intimately unless God reveals Yeshua to us through the Holy Spirit (John 6:44). We cannot know Him by our own knowledge and virtue - even by the Words of Scripture if the Holy Spirit does not first soften our hearts and give us understanding (Ephesians 2:8-9). Then, once God and His nature are revealed to us, we have the choice of whether or not to receive Him. If we do, the Holy Spirit takes up residence in us, we are given a new spirit, our hearts become softened, and we become open to more of God. If we do not, we keep our old spirit, our hearts become hardened, and God becomes more distant to us over time.
But you say: "How do sayings #1, #2, and #3 fit into this? What about #1 for example? What about trusting in Yeshua to be saved?" Consider the totality of what John 3:14-18 says:
Just as Moshe lifted up the serpent in the desert, so must the Son of Man be lifted up; so that everyone who trusts in him may have eternal life. For God so loved the world that he gave his only and unique Son, so that everyone who trusts in him [some translations say "believes in Him"] may have eternal life, instead of being utterly destroyed. For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but rather so that through him, the world might be saved. Those who trust in him are not judged; those who do not trust have been judged already, in that they have not trusted in the one who is God's only and unique Son.
For anyone to believe and trust in Yeshua we must be brought to that belief and trust by the Holy Spirit, i.e. by God Himself who draws us near through the Holy Spirit (John 6:44). Man cannot perceive the invisible God by his natural senses so, without the Holy Spirit, there is no natural way to know Him, and therefore no reason to believe in Him since we (presumably) do not believe what the Bible says of Him either.
So, the Holy Spirit is needed in order for statement #1 above to be true. And the Holy Spirit is likewise needed for statement #2 but, as valuable as receiving power and spiritual gifts are, they are not as primary as knowing God for Who He Is; that knowledge can only be brought to us by the Holy Spirit. As for statement #3, if we blaspheme and therefore reject the Holy Spirit, we cannot be brought to the place of knowing either God the son or God the Father, and we therefore cannot be saved. On the other hand, if we blaspheme the Father or Yeshua (sinful to be sure) but do not reject the Holy Spirit, the Holy Spirit can eventually lead us to repentance and salvation. That is why Scripture refers to blaspheming the Holy Spirit (and not the Father nor the Son) as an eternal sin.1
Thus far, I have spoken of receiving Messiah and the Holy Spirit and of their respective ministries, but Scripture also speaks of an "immersion" or "baptism" (Matthew 3:11), and a "filling" (Ephesians 5:18) of the Holy Spirit as well. I believe that they are essentially the same, but perhaps the baptism is an initial filling. Apparently, the Holy Spirit is like a fluid, and we can have more of less of Him depending upon our willingness to receive Him, and our repentant condition. We can have a minimal amount of Him - just enough to bring us to the place of salvation, and we can also be filled with Him, the result being that He can give us spiritual power and spiritual gifts (1 Corinthians 12:8-10). Oppositely, we can lose a portion of the Holy Spirit (drip-by-drip) as a result of sin, and can be re-filled with the Holy Spirit if and when we repent (Ephesians 5:18).
This Mitzvah and its accompanying Scriptures clearly show that the triune persons of God work together, and that the Holy Spirit, along with Messiah, is key to our relationship with God and to our salvation.
1. I do not believe that Scripture teaches that a momentary blasphemous remark against the Holy Spirit leads to eternal unforgiveness. I believe that Stern translates Matthew 12:32 correctly in saying: "... but whoever keeps on speaking against the Ruach HaKodesh will never be forgiven ..."
Classical Commentators
This Mitzvah is not addressed by any of the classical commentators.
NCLA: JMm JFm KMm KFm GMm GFm