The Mice in the Piano

Pastor Joseph Clark
August 12, 2026

“He who denies the existence of God, has some reason for wishing that God did not exist.”

—Saint Augustine

“Whoever acknowledges Me before others, I will also acknowledge before My Father in heaven. But whoever disowns Me before others, I will disown before My Father in heaven.”

—Matthew 10:32–33

The Mice in the Piano

Once upon a time, there were two little mice. They were brothers, and they had lived their entire lives inside a piano. It was the only world they had ever known.

Their parents and siblings had died of old age, leaving the two brothers as the last members of their family. They spent their days exploring their strange little world and listening in wonder to the beautiful music that constantly filled the piano.

They could not see where the music came from.

Their parents had taught them that the music was produced by a great and mysterious being who lived beyond their understanding—the one who played the piano.

The two mice loved to think about this great player. They talked about him, wondered about him, and delighted in the beautiful music he produced.

Then, one day, one of the mice went exploring.

When he returned, he was thoughtful and unusually serious.

“There is no great player,” he told his brother. “It is all a myth. I have seen the inside of this piano. The music is produced by wires, hammers, strings, and mechanisms. I have seen them with my own eyes!”

The brothers abandoned their belief in the great player.

They were convinced that they had finally discovered the truth. They understood the mechanisms of the piano, and therefore they believed they had explained away the musician.

They examined the wires, hammers, strings, and mechanical workings repeatedly. The more they learned about how the piano worked, the more confident they became that there was no need to believe in a player.

But they had overlooked something very important.

Knowing how the piano works does not explain who is playing it.

And so, while the two mice congratulated themselves on their newfound wisdom, the great player continued to play.

The mice simply could not see him.

The Limits of Human Understanding

There is an important lesson in this little story.

Human beings are intelligent. We have learned extraordinary things about the universe. We have explored the depths of the oceans, walked on the moon, examined the microscopic world, mapped the human genome, and discovered astonishing laws governing the physical universe.

But our ability to understand something does not mean that we understand everything.

The Bible repeatedly reminds us that humility is essential when approaching God.

Jesus said:

“Unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.”

—Matthew 18:3

He also said:

“Let the little children come to Me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven.”

—Matthew 19:14

And again:

“Whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.”

—Luke 18:17

Jesus is not telling us to abandon reason or become intellectually childish. Rather, He is calling us to humility, trust, and dependence upon God.

Scripture says:

“Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.”

—Matthew 18:4

The Christian life begins with recognizing that God is God—and we are not.

“For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God.”

—Ephesians 2:8

And:

“The righteous shall live by faith.”

—Romans 1:17

Faith is not a rejection of reason. Faith recognizes that human reason has limits.

Living in a Skeptical Age

In 1897, Francis Pharcellus Church wrote his famous response to eight-year-old Virginia O'Hanlon concerning her question about Santa Claus. Church observed that people can become skeptical of anything they cannot see or fully comprehend.

Although Church was writing about Santa Claus—not God—the broader observation is worth considering.

We live in an age that often treats what can be measured as though it were the only thing that can be real.

But there are many things we accept as real without seeing them directly.

We cannot see gravity.

We cannot see thoughts.

We cannot see love.

We cannot see electricity itself.

Yet we observe their effects.

Likewise, Christians believe that although God cannot be placed under a microscope or reduced to a laboratory experiment, His existence can be considered through the evidence of creation, reason, morality, human consciousness, history, and ultimately the revelation of Jesus Christ.

The fact that we cannot see God with our physical eyes does not prove that God does not exist.

The mice could not see the piano player either.

That did not mean he wasn't there.

When People Mock Our Faith

A close friend of mine, an Archbishop, once told me a humorous story from his childhood.

He had been at a park with his mother when he ran over excitedly and told her that the sun was actually a star and that the stars in the sky were also suns.

His mother, apparently overwhelmed by the complexity of the information, responded with a blunt declaration that, in essence, the sun was the sun and the stars were the stars—and that was the end of the discussion!

Sometimes we can become uncomfortable when someone challenges what we believe.

That is particularly true when people we respect dismiss Christianity as foolishness.

Richard Dawkins, Woody Allen, Isaac Asimov, Mark Twain, Carl Sagan, and many others have expressed skepticism toward Christianity or belief in God.

But Christians should not respond with anger or hatred.

We should respond with grace.

Forgive them. Pray for them. Love them. And share the Gospel with them.

The Apostle Peter instructed Christians:

“Always be ready to give an answer to anyone who asks you for the reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect.”

—1 Peter 3:15

That is an important distinction.

We are called to defend the faith, but we are not called to be quarrelsome.

Jesus said:

“If anyone will not welcome you or listen to your words, leave that home or town and shake the dust off your feet.”

—Matthew 10:14

And He warned:

“Do not give dogs what is sacred; do not throw your pearls before swine.”

—Matthew 7:6

There comes a time when we must recognize that arguing louder will not make someone believe.

Our responsibility is to faithfully proclaim Christ.

The Holy Spirit is responsible for changing hearts.

What About Suffering?

One of the most common objections to belief in God is the existence of suffering.

People ask:

“How can I believe in a loving God when there is so much suffering in the world?”

This is a serious question, and Christians should never dismiss it with a shallow answer.

The Bible itself contains people crying out to God in the midst of suffering. Job asked difficult questions. David cried out in the Psalms. Even Jesus wept at the tomb of Lazarus.

Christianity does not pretend that suffering is imaginary.

Instead, Christianity tells us that suffering exists in a fallen world and that God entered that suffering Himself through Jesus Christ.

The cross is Christianity's answer to the claim that God is indifferent to human suffering.

God did not remain distant from our pain.

He entered our world.

He suffered.

He died.

And He rose again.

The Apostle Paul writes:

“For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.”

—Romans 8:18

C.S. Lewis famously described pain as God's “megaphone” to a deaf world.

Suffering does not prove that God does not exist. For many people, suffering instead becomes the very circumstance that drives them to ask the deepest questions about meaning, morality, mortality, and God.

What About Hell?

Another question frequently asked is:

“How can a loving God send people to Hell?”

The Christian answer begins with the extraordinary love of God.

Jesus said:

“For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.”

—John 3:16

God offers salvation freely through Christ.

The Gospel is not a message that God delights in condemning people. It is a message that God has provided a way of salvation.

Jesus came to seek and save the lost.

The seriousness of judgment is precisely what makes the offer of salvation so important.

God does not force anyone to love Him.

The Gospel calls us to repent, believe, and receive the grace of God.

Faith and the Evidence of Creation

The universe raises enormous questions.

Why is there something rather than nothing?

Why does the universe possess order?

Why are the laws of nature intelligible?

Why does human consciousness exist?

Why do human beings possess an awareness of moral obligation?

Science can investigate how many things work. But questions concerning ultimate meaning and purpose extend beyond the laboratory.

The Christian does not believe that science is the enemy of faith.

Quite the opposite.

The universe is intelligible because Christians believe it was created by an intelligent God.

The laws of nature can be investigated because Christians believe those laws reflect an ordered creation.

The human capacity to reason can be used to explore the universe because Christians believe human beings were created by God.

Science can tell us much about the mechanisms of the piano.

But science alone cannot answer the question:

Who is playing the music?

Believers in the Scientific Community

Christianity has never belonged exclusively to the uneducated or uninformed.

Throughout history, many highly accomplished scientists have believed in God.

Among them are figures such as:

Isaac Newton, whose work transformed physics and mathematics.
James Clerk Maxwell, one of the great figures in electromagnetic theory.
Gregor Mendel, whose experiments established foundational principles of genetics and who was also an Augustinian friar.
Georges Lemaître, a Catholic priest and physicist whose work on an expanding universe helped establish the foundation of what became known as Big Bang cosmology.
Francis Collins, physician-geneticist and former director of the National Human Genome Research Institute, who has publicly identified as a Christian.
Charles Townes, Nobel Prize-winning physicist and inventor of the maser and co-inventor of the laser, who was an openly religious Christian.

These examples do not prove Christianity simply because these scientists believed.

But they do demonstrate something important:

Faith in God is not incompatible with intellectual achievement.

A person does not have to abandon intelligence in order to believe in God.

Nor does becoming a Christian require someone to stop asking questions.

Christians should welcome honest questions.

The Problem With the Piano Mice

The two mice made a fundamental mistake.

They confused an explanation of the mechanism with an explanation of the ultimate cause.

They discovered the wires.

They discovered the hammers.

They discovered the strings.

They discovered the machinery.

And then they concluded:

“Therefore, there is no piano player.”

But that conclusion did not logically follow from their discovery.

In fact, their discovery of the piano's complexity could have led them to ask an entirely different question:

Who designed this?

And that is the question we must ultimately ask about our universe.

Where did everything come from?

Why is there something rather than nothing?

Why does the universe operate according to discoverable laws?

Why does consciousness exist?

Why do we have an innate sense that some things are genuinely right and others genuinely wrong?

And perhaps the greatest question of all:

Who are we, and why are we here?

The Christian answer is that we are creatures made by our Creator.

We are not accidents without purpose.

We were created by God, for God, and ultimately for relationship with Him.

We Are the Mice

There is another lesson in the story that we must not miss.

Perhaps the greatest danger is not being ignorant.

Perhaps it is believing that we know everything.

We are the mice in the piano.

We live inside a universe vastly larger and more complicated than our minds can fully comprehend.

We see only a fraction of reality.

We understand only a fraction of what exists.

And yet we sometimes look at the small portion we understand and confidently declare that nothing exists beyond it.

The Bible reminds us:

“For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways, declares the LORD.”

—Isaiah 55:8

And:

“Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and how inscrutable His ways!”

—Romans 11:33

The proper response to a God who is greater than our understanding is not arrogance.

It is humility.

It is worship.

It is faith.

The Music Continues

The two mice eventually stopped believing in the piano player.

They became convinced that they had explained everything.

But outside their tiny world, the musician continued to play.

The music never stopped.

The fact that they could not see him did not mean he was absent.

And perhaps that is where many people find themselves today.

They have examined the mechanisms of the universe.

They have learned about physics, biology, chemistry, mathematics, and astronomy.

They have become fascinated by the machinery.

But they have never stopped to ask whether there is a Creator behind it all.

The Christian message is that there is.

His name is Jesus Christ.

He is not merely an idea, a philosophy, or a comforting story.

He is the Son of God who entered human history, died for our sins, and rose from the grave.

And He calls every one of us to respond.

Jesus said:

“Whoever acknowledges Me before others, I will also acknowledge before My Father in heaven.”

—Matthew 10:32

The question is not merely whether we believe that God exists.

The deeper question is:

What will we do with Jesus Christ?

The piano is playing.

The music is all around us.

The question is whether we will remain convinced that there is nothing beyond the wires and hammers—or whether we will humble ourselves, listen carefully, and seek the One who is playing the music.

Do not be so certain that you have explained the piano that you never look for the Player.

—Pastor Joseph Clark

continuation chapter two 2.1
Today, let us talk about the gritty, determined, thoroughly human work that is required to be free from sin. On the path to perfection, there are roles to play. God's grace is the wind—a magnificent, roaring, endless gale of generosity, a hurricane of holy help. But we, my friend, must raise the sail. And raising a sail is not done by sitting in the hull, thinking positive thoughts about wind, and declaring, "I am a sail-raiser in Jesus' name!" It involves pulling ropes, untying knots, climbing masts, and probably getting a splinter or two in places you'd rather not mention. It involves calluses, not cushions. The sailor who refuses to touch the ropes but insists he's "trusting the wind" will stay in the harbor forever, growing barnacles on his bottom, and eventually becoming a tourist attraction: "Come see the Man of Faith, who believed so hard the boat hasn't moved in forty years."
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‎Let me paint you a simple picture, so absurd that its truth will be unavoidable. It's like a parable, but with more malaria.
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‎Imagine a man struck down by a severe case of malaria. His body is a furnace; his joints ache as if he's been tenderized with a mallet wielded by a very enthusiastic chef. He prays to God for healing. "Lord, with all my faith, I believe You will heal me!" he cries from his sweat-drenched bed, voice cracking with the kind of sincerity that makes angels pause and take notes. Then, the doctor arrives—a miracle in itself, a human being trained by human knowledge, arriving on time—and places the anti-malarial tablets on the bedside table. Little white pills of possibility. And the man refuses them. He waves a feverish, trembling hand and says, "No, no, take those abominations away. If I take the medicine, I'm not trusting God completely. That would be putting my faith in pharmaceuticals, not in the Almighty. My faith alone is enough. I'm just going to rest in the finished work of the cinchona tree. I'm going to 'stand on the Word'... from a horizontal position... while hallucinating from the fever." And he rolls over, shivering, smiling the smile of the profoundly deluded, the smile of a man who has confused stubbornness with sanctification.
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‎Now, tell me, what will become of that man? We all know the tragic punchline. His faith will be sincere. His prayers will be genuine. His theological position on divine healing will be impeccably orthodox, with all the right Greek words footnoted. And his funeral will be well-attended, with people standing around the casket whispering, "He's in a better place now," which is true, but he could have been in a better place here, too, namely alive and swallowing tablets. God, in His extravagant wisdom, provided the healing agent within the bark of that tree, hidden away for centuries like a love letter waiting to be opened by a scientist with a microscope. Grace grew the tree in some distant jungle. Grace guided the chemist who isolated the compound. Grace mixed the ingredients into a stable pill. Grace delivered the tablet to a pharmacy near you, probably via a truck driver named Grace, who was listening to Amazing Grace on the radio. But the man has a critical, indispensable role: he must rise from his bed—however feebly, however dramatically—pour a glass of water, lift the tablet to his lips, and swallow. Without that tiny, trembling act of human cooperation, the prayer, however beautiful, however poetic, however theologically sound and beautifully alliterated, ends in a coffin. Healing requires a partnership, a duet, not a solo performance with God as the backing track and man as the passive audience member waving a lighter.
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‎The struggle with sin operates on this very same divine principle. We pray, with great passion, with the kind of fervor that makes our prayer partners slightly uncomfortable, "Deliver me from this anger! Free me from this lust! Pry this greed from my cold, clutching fingers! Break the chains, Lord, break every fetter!" And then, having prayed, having exhausted ourselves with holy vocabulary, we lie back on the spiritual mattress and wait for the lightning bolt. We fold our hands over our chests like a corpse in training. But the prayer is the diagnosis, not the prescription. It's the X-ray, not the surgery. We must then pick up the "anti-malarial tablets" for the soul. The prayer opened the pharmacy; now you have to swallow the medicine. But we'd rather have the prayer than the pill, because the prayer feels spiritual and dramatic, while the pill just feels like hard work and you have to remember to take it three times a day with meals.
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‎Now, what on earth are those tablets? Let me show you through another picture, because I'm in a parabolic mood and the paint is still wet.
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‎You can own a library that groans under the weight of books on hydrodynamics. You can fill entire shelves with volumes on the physics of floating, the history of the backstroke, the biographies of Olympic champions. You can memorize the chemical composition of chlorine and write a doctoral thesis titled "The Ontological Significance of Buoyancy: A Theological and Biomechanical Analysis of Not Sinking." Your thesis can be peer-reviewed by the top swimming theologians of our time. You can attend lectures given by the world's greatest swimmers, sitting in the front row, nodding along to their PowerPoint presentations on breathing technique and the proper angle of hand entry. You can even acquire a certificate of swimming theory, beautifully framed in gold leaf, stating that you have believed in the principles of buoyancy with your whole heart and have successfully completed 120 credit hours of thinking about water. You can wear a T-shirt that says "I'm a Swimmer" with a little fish symbol. But the moment a mischievous friend—or an act of God, or a slippery pool deck—throws you into the deep end, that theoretical knowledge becomes spectacularly, hilariously useless. The books won't inflate and save you. The diploma is not a flotation device. The framed certificate will not turn into a life preserver and gently cradle you to safety. There is one thing, and one thing alone, that bridges the chasm between theory and survival: you must get in the water. You must flail, swallow a horrifying amount of chlorinated liquid, come up spluttering and embarrassed with your dignity floating somewhere near the diving board, and practice the strokes yourself. Again and again and again. The knowledge of swimming has never mastered a single stroke for a single human being. It has never pulled anyone to the side of the pool. It just sits there in the books, looking profound and smelling faintly of mildew, while the drowning man sinks to the bottom, his head full of elegant theories about the physics of arm rotation.

Chapter Two: The Noble Art of Doing Absolutely Nothing and Calling It Faith
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‎"There is a way that appears to be right, but in the end it leads to death." — Proverbs 14:12, and again in 16:25, because apparently we needed a divine echo.
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‎Now, isn't that just the most perfectly ironic verse in all of Scripture? It appears twice, almost word for word, as if the Author of the book knew we'd need the reminder. He knew we'd read it once, nod sagely with that "Amen, preach it, Solomon" expression, and then immediately proceed to do exactly the thing it warns against. It's as though God is saying, "I told you once, and you forgot. So here it is again, in bold, with an exclamation mark you can hear from heaven to earth." It's the biblical equivalent of a parent saying, "I'm not going to tell you again," except God actually does tell us again, because He knows His children are thick-headed enough to need a second dose. The book of Proverbs: divinely inspired, and also the original "per my last email."
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‎There is a way that seems right. Oh, indeed. It feels so wonderfully, deliciously right. It feels so comfortable. It feels like sliding into a warm bath after a long day of pretending to be holy. And comfort, my friends, is often the final confirmation that you are sitting in a trap. The most dangerous cage is the one that feels like a recliner. You don't realize you're imprisoned because you're too busy appreciating the lumbar support. The devil doesn't always build dungeons; sometimes he builds day spas. And we walk in, lay down our towel of discernment, and order a cucumber water of complacency.
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‎In the grand pursuit of truth, in the earnest, sometimes breathless craving to end this wretched business of sin, man has failed to realize the most elementary fact: he has completely neglected his own role in the pursuit. He has outsourced his holiness like a tech company sending customer service to a distant call center. His eyes are wide open, but they are fixed entirely in the wrong direction—staring, unblinking, at what God has supposedly done to perfect him, as if he's waiting for a cosmic Amazon delivery of sanctification. He checks the tracking number daily. "Your package—'Complete Freedom from Envy'—is out for delivery. Estimated arrival: any moment now, just after the Second Coming." He sits there, arms folded, perched on the throne of his own expectations, arrogantly judging how far God has reached in the project of saving him, like a foreman watching a construction crew. "Hmm, not quite finished yet, Lord. Still got that temper problem. I specifically requested the 'gentleness' add-on. When's the next update? Also, the 'patience' feature seems to be glitching, especially in traffic." He hopes to wake up one fine morning and—BOOM!—be surprised and astonished, leaping out of bed shouting, "Wow! I'm holy! I no longer envy, I no longer hate, I no longer bra-bra-bra... whatever that is!" and then dance off into a sinless afternoon, probably tripping over his slippers because he hasn't actually practiced holy coordination. He expects a spiritual lightning bolt, but what he's really waiting for is a divine anesthesia: put him to sleep as a sinner, wake him up as a saint, no recovery time needed. The only thing missing is the hospital gown and the little paper bracelet.
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‎Let me be very honest with you: it will sincerely be a wake-up, because you are, at present, sound asleep. You're not resting in faith; you're hibernating in delusion. But I would rather like to wake you up before the Bridegroom arrives and finds you snoring, before the surprise is not holiness but death. The five foolish virgins in Matthew 25 would like a word, except they can't—they're outside the door, frantically Googling "late-night oil vendors near me" and getting no results because the marketplace closed hours ago. Because here is the uncomfortable diamond of truth: though God's grace is indeed the foundation, the ground floor, the whole electrical grid, human effort is the essential, non-negotiable, roll-up-your-sleeves-and-get-sweaty response. Grace is the river, but you still have to swim. And some of us are standing on the bank, reciting poetry about water, composing haikus about the beauty of H2O molecules, waiting to turn into fish. Spoiler alert: you won't. You'll just be a very poetic, very dry human, eventually eaten by a bear who appreciates irony.
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‎There is a comfortable, popular, and terribly seductive idea that has lulled multitudes into a deep and dangerous sleep. It is a spiritual lullaby, a theological narcotic, the melatonin of the modern church. It whispers, ever so gently, "Freedom from sin is entirely God's work. Your only role is to believe that it is done. Any effort of your own is a sign of weak faith. Just relax. Just surrender. Just... do absolutely nothing, and if you feel bad about doing nothing, just remember that even feeling bad is you trying to work, so stop that too." It's the doctrine of sanctification by spiritual narcolepsy. Doesn't that sound lovely? It sounds like a gospel of rest. It sounds like the kind of thing you'd embroider on a cushion and then take a nap on—a very long nap, perhaps the longest, right through the wedding feast while the door is locked. But wait a moment. Weren't these the very same comforting words that the five foolish virgins must have whispered to one another while the wise ones were out, sweating and labouring to fill their flasks?
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‎I can see them now, the five foolish ones, lounging outside the wedding venue, their tiny lamps flickering with the pathetic flame of bare-minimum preparedness. One of them turns to the others, adjusts her "Let Go and Let God" headband, and says, "Don't worry, girls. My faith is strong. I have deeply believed that this little splash of oil is more than enough. After all, the Bridegroom wouldn't want us to be striving, would He? That would be so... ungracious. So works-based. So Old Covenant. We're under grace now, which means we sit here and look pretty while the oil multiplies by divine fiat." And the others nod, their faces serene with the peace that passes all misunderstanding, the kind of peace you get from skipping the hard parts. One of them even closes her eyes and starts humming a worship song, completely off-key, but it's the heart that matters, right? Meanwhile, the wise five are out in the marketplace, negotiating prices, hauling heavy jars, probably breaking a sweat and ruining their wedding makeup, but securing the fuel. They're not there being spiritual; they're there being practical, which is apparently the true mark of wisdom. They didn't expect the oil to teleport into their lamps by faith; they expected to carry it. The foolish believed their faith was enough to magically make a thimble of oil burn through the entire night—an entire night! That's not faith; that's a rejection of basic physics dressed up as theology. The wise understood the gritty partnership: the oil was a gift, yes, but they had to go get it, carry it, and pour it. Grace doesn't fill your lamp while you nap; grace made the oil available, but your legs still need to walk to the store.
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‎I must tell you plainly, because someone has to, and the people who usually do have been fired from the pulpit for being "too negative": that do-nothing view is not just incomplete. It is a masterpiece of deception, a beautifully baited trap with a sign on it that reads, "Welcome to Liberty Hall: Leave Your Responsibility at the Door. Complimentary Slippers Provided. No Heavy Lifting Required." It leaves men wrapped in chains while they dance about, celebrating an imaginary freedom, clanking with every step and calling the noise "a joyful sound unto the Lord." They've turned their prison into a praise party. They've decorated the cell with Bible verses about liberty while the door remains locked, and they've thrown away the key because "God will open the door if He wants to; I'm not going to force it, that would be striving." The Apostle Paul said, "Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you" (Philippians 2:12-13). Notice he didn't say, "Take a nap in your own hammock, for it is God who will tuck you in." Work out what God works in. That's a partnership. That's a divine-human joint venture. But we'd rather dissolve the company and wait for a heavenly bailout

I SAW THE NEW EARTH AND NEW HEAVEN AND THE GREAT WHITE THRONE JUDGMENT

by Thiago Owerton

Revelation of the rapture of the church, the Lamb supper in the New Jerusalem.

The revelation you hear was given to Brother Thiago Owerton by Jesus Himself on the Third of
May 2014 so that the world would wake up about what is to come. Jesus is coming back
On that Sunday night, I was on my knees around my bed asking for forgiveness for my mistakes,
thanking God for everything. Then I slept.

I remember that night I was very cold and it was raining a lot. Then I had fallen asleep around two
in the morning. It was around four in the morning, I knew it because I saw the clock in the kitchen
indicating the time. I do not know how to explain what followed.

Suddenly someone burst into my room and he woke me up. I did not feel my body which was
laying on the bed. I realized that I was awake and not in the body but rather in the spirit. Then a
supernatural force took me to the hill next to my house.

And when I opened my eyes, I realized that I was on the hill and it was day, but I did not understand
what was happening on the hill. There was still fog on top of the hill and the city was still sleeping.

I hardly heard noises, only the wind blowing and the birds singing. I suddenly heard soft music with
their sounds almost like a flute. It shifted my whole body.

I looked up from the city to the sky and I saw a being of light in the form of an angel. He was
descending from Heaven as if he was floating and hovering over. I was just curious to know who
was that brilliant and resplendent being who was coming towards me. I was still watching him
approaching close to me. He was floating without touching the ground. He wore a white robe, his
face shone brightly like the sun but I noticed an impressive radiance and glow on his face and my
eyes could look at him without getting hurt. His countenance was a great light.

Then he looked at me and smiled at me. His voice was the most beautiful that I've ever heard in my
entire life. It was sweet. At the moment he told me, “You invoked the Lord who searches the heart.

He sent me to show you things that are hidden and things that people never imagined.”
The moment he touched me, I was transported thousands of kilometers away. In seconds, I was
taken to many places of the Earth. And in seconds, from there, I have seen incredible things that
have changed my life forever.

The Angel of the Lord took my hand and we quickly flew out together towards the center of the
planet Earth to a country called Croatia. He took me to a street where I was seeing a procession. I
saw that there were many people worshiping idols there. I realized at that moment that people were
passing in front of me. They did not see me.

I was with the angel observing people from a window. They could not see us. I was not only
accompanied by the angel, I was also accompanied by my wife and my son Michael who today is
four years old, but in the vision, he appears to be seven years of age. I realized that in this vision we
were in the future time. We were observing the future from a window. There was also a child that
had white hair smooth with curly ends.

The angel instructed the 11-year boy and my son to step out of the window in the physical reality
and evangelize.

He said to them, “Chosen Ones, go to the midst of the people and evangelize.”
They both came out in the middle of the procession and began to preach the Word of God. But
people seemed to bother with the presence of little Michael, who was talking about the love of Jesus
and trying to deliver the brochures to all the people that were there. I saw people pushing him and
trying to assault my child who was so small and helpless.

The Spirit of God did not let that happen. My son returned to the spiritual window where I was and
he was sad with tears. He looked at me for comfort and he shook the head as if he was trying to tell
me, “Dad, I could not evangelize. They did not want to hear the words of salvation. They did not
want to understand the love of Jesus in their lives.”
Then the angel smiled at him and took the leaflets from his hand and caressed his head.

Then he looked at me and said, “Take the leaflets Son of Man, go to the crowd and evangelize.”
Immediately I was overwhelmed by a strong desire to speak of the love of Jesus to all without fear.

I went out of the window where I started to speak up in a loud voice, “Jesus is coming back, Jesus is
coming back. He is the hope of the world. Repent and accept Him as the Savior of your lives.”
But nobody wanted to hear that. Many of the people were heading in my direction to attack me.

They said, “Arrest this Christian. He deserves to die. We do not want your Jesus because we have
our gods.”
At that moment, I saw the crowd coming into my direction to kill me. I was very scared and when I
closed my eyes, I felt my body flying as fast as the speed of light. When I opened my eyes again, I
was inside the spiritual window with the angel who smiled at me. My wife, my son and my little
girl, were looking out from the window. I saw Croatia no more.

We were somewhere else in another country in a square full of people and there was a party. At that
moment, I realized that we were in France. We tried to evangelize. But the beautiful people called
me crazy and the crowd screamed, “Kill this Christian. And let's see if Jesus that he preaches will
save him. Because we don't need to be saved from anything. We are well.”
Then all these people began to run in my direction with great fury to kill me. I once again felt the
power of the Spirit of God pulling me into the spiritual window and took me to another place.

When I opened my eyes, I was in another place. I remember that the climate was hot. The day was
clear without clouds in the sky. I knew I was in the Middle East. When I looked in front of me there
was a multitude of bodies on the ground and I was in the midst of all those bodies. The bodies were
mutilated, and I saw decapitated heads. Charred bodies were rotting with very strong smell. I knew
that all these bodies belong to Christians, people who have been killed because they have
proclaimed the Word of God.

When I turned to look, I saw war. I saw people killing each other with machine guns and all kinds
of weapons. I went into the middle of the war and saw that those who fought were Jews and
Muslims and other peoples as well.

So I began to shout aloud the Gospel of the Lord Jesus, but no one cared. Then I saw men running
in my direction to kill me.

Suddenly, I was taken back by the Spirit to my city. I was in a small church near my house. I was
preaching God's Word to all those people that were there. I remember screaming loudly to everyone
to repent of their sins because Jesus is coming back. People here were saved but they were carnal.

They did not humble themselves to repent. I shouted to them to repent or they will be sentenced to
eternal death. But they were accustomed to hearing the Word of God so they did not pay attention.

They hardened their hearts.

Many of them didn't respect the house of the Lord. They were chewing gum while others gossiped.

They talked to each other and others were laughing and mocking me in their heart. I did not care
about that. I shouted louder so that they should repent. I shouted, “Jesus is coming back!” but they
did not hear. They were there only with their bodies, but their minds were far from the Lord.

In that moment, I began to feel a strong presence of God. My heart was beating fast, and I started to
shake while I was still preaching. Suddenly, I saw a strong light entering the gate of the church. A
couple sitting in the crowd saw it as well. Together, we began to contemplate that light. No one else
could see the light except the three of us.

Inside the light, I saw a white cloud heading in my direction. At that moment, I was sure that Jesus
had returned to take the chosen ones to eternal life. I started to cry and I shouted to the people with
all my strength, “Jesus has returned. Repent for the love of God. Repent from your sin.”
With a sad heart, I saw that crowd bursting into laughter and mocking me. Then I fell on my knees
crying out to God for all these people listening to me. At that moment I also saw the cry of the Lord
and the couple who were standing in the crowd. And then came a voice from Heaven like the sound
of thunder. It was heard throughout the whole planet.

The voice said, “The end is here.”
At that moment the Earth stopped turning, the time stopped and a great earthquake happened. Then
all the wicked and sinners fell to the ground with much violence.

I began to hear people in the church calling the name of the Lord.

They shouted to the Lord out loud for forgiveness, saying there were sorry, but it was too late.

For this reason, you also must be ready because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do
not expect Him.

The cloud of light in this church took two babies and also the couple that stood up. We began to
float within the church. People got scared when they saw this. At that moment, I felt my body
becoming light as if there was a force pulling me in the air in a horizontal trajectory out of the
church.

At that moment, despair took over all the people that were left there in the church. I saw young
adults, couples, and parents in and out of the church in all places in despair because they understood
that we were going up.

Then several people clung to my legs with their hands, saying, “I want to go. Take me with you. I
played with Jesus, please forgive me.”
I began to pray because all of them were on me. As a result, they were no longer able to bear the
power of God. A force dragged me outside the church and pulled me up.

When I looked down, I saw many that were left behind. They were in full agony and despair. I
realized that many were coming up beside me everywhere, but they were far fewer than those who
are left behind, maybe 1000 times less than those who were behind.

What I witnessed was scary. I saw people running from one side to another in total confusion. The
crowd was crying out for forgiveness, but there was no hope. I still cried for all the lost souls.

When I was rising in the clouds, a ray of light emerged and touched my forehead. As a result, I
receive a new name that was in that ray of light. I do not know what was written. But when I was
touched by this ray of light, I felt the power of God passing through my body. Suddenly my
garments were changed and I acquired a garment that was whiter than snow. And I noticed that I
was wearing sandals on my feet that were golden. From my forehead was flowing a glowing light
that went down throughout all my body like rain until it reaches the soles of my feet.

At that moment, I acquired the ability to fly in that very moment the same ray of light entered in my
eyes. As a result I was given the gift of the eye of an eagle. I could fly wherever I wanted to fly. The
Bible says that they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength. They shall mount up with
wings of eagles. They shall run and not be weary. They shall walk and not faint. (Isaiah 40:31)
I thought I was two meters away, but I noticed that I was already above the clouds. I noticed on my
left my son and my wife. I know some of my people were there, but most did not make it. There
were people from all parts of the Earth. I was seeing people of various races, languages, colors, and
cultures.

So I looked down to Portugal again, I saw a church that was in total despair because the shepherd
could not be caught in the rapture. He could not fly. I also saw people who never had entered an
evangelical church but were rising too and I did not understand.

The Angel of the Lord approached me and said, “Remember, the mysteries and the plans of God are
not to be understood, but they are to be accepted because He is the Master. The world has given
itself to religions. According to your choices, you will receive your reward.”
At that moment I saw radiant and resplendent angels of Heaven. They were standing around the
opening above the Earth's atmosphere, and they were sounding the trumpets. As a result, a light
descended from Heaven and from within the light was a rider and knight who appeared in the light.

He was riding a white horse and He was in His golden armor. I saw that it was written on His thigh,
“King of kings and Lord of lords.”
Then He raised His sword and said, “Everything is finished on the Earth. I'm the Morning Star.”
At that moment I saw Michael, the Prince of the Lord’s Armies on the Earth who spoke in an
unknown language that I never heard on Earth, but everyone understood his voice. In that tower, all
the hills of the Earth fell and there was a great earthquake. I was facing the light of the Lord and my
eyes ached. When he spoke, his explosive and thunderous voice was powerful in the ears of all
saints who were floating there above the Earth.

It was also possible to hear people shouting down on the Earth. They could not bear to look at the
light that was the Son of God Himself, whose explosive voice was also heard on the face of the
Earth. The wicked could not bear to hear the powerful voice that was so strong.

Then I saw behind the Lord objects in queer shapes that looked like spaceships but were not made
from a material of the Earth or known to man. The carriages were made of pure power. The celestial
chariots of light were made of flames of fire that were adorned with sheer glory and light. They
were thousands of thousands of them. Then the supernatural force of the Lord settled a million
saints into the carriages of the Celestial chariots of light and fire.

Once the angels sealed the doors of the chariots of fire, we started our trip to the eternal kingdom of
Heaven. I remember that I saw the sun stopped shining, the moon turned red as blood. We then
traveled in a blink of an eye at an incredible speed that it is impossible to describe.

Suddenly, we surged into a place similar to a planet that seems 10 times or perhaps 20 times the
mass of the Earth. We were beholding a world of glorious light before us. I saw that there was no
sun and no moon. There existed no night and no stars shone in the light of day. It was incredible and
extraordinary. So we all stood before a huge gate of pearl. The pearly gate there was an immense
garden with green grass and many fruits.

Then a radiant Angel approached and said, “Enter into the joy of Your Master.”
And everyone started going through this gate. I saw everyone entering the gate of the city. When it
got to my turn something surprising happened. When passing through the gate, I felt like I was
floating and I noticed that my body was transformed. The body that was perishable is raised
imperishable. It is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness, it is raised in
power. It is sown in a natural body but it is raised a spiritual body.

If there is a natural body there is also a spiritual body. I no longer had the body of flesh. I no longer
had a carnal skin since my skin became transparent light as a spirit of diamond color. I looked at my
hands and I saw that I could see through them. I realized that red blood was no longer flowing in
my veins. Instead, there was light and lightning raging strong in my system.

There was electricity in this immortal body. The light that was flowing in my glorified body was
golden as if it was fire. I realized that we were the same as Jesus Christ Himself. The Bible said, we
will be like him.

1John 3:2 Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be.

But we know that when He shall be revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is.

One difference is that His brilliance and radiance was stronger.

The wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness
like the stars forever and ever. (Daniel 12:3)
I looked at all the saints that were there. I realized that I knew the name of each one of them.

Moreover, I saw that it was no longer possible to see their faces because of the brightness that they
had.

But I knew who was who. We were entering this celestial garden, then we saw before us in the
middle of the garden, a huge and infinite table that went forever. I saw golden chairs aligned to this
unending table, then a banquet appeared on the same table. The taste of the smell of that food is
impossible to describe. There is nothing like that on the Earth smelling so tasty. And everybody
took a seat in order to be served the meal. We all sat and dined. Nobody was left standing and no
one was left without seat and food. Blessed are those who are invited to the Marriage Supper of the
Lamb.

I noticed that Jesus was not in one location, but He was everywhere at the same time. I have seen
Him in three places at the same time. There was a lot of joy and a lot of party and fun. This festivity
and banquet did not stop. It was a seven years party. Many will come from east and west and recline
at the table with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of Heaven. I noticed that during this
seven years period, the Christians were continually eating and drinking. No one became fat yet the
saints were eating and enjoying continually.

Many of the things that I saw during the seven years of banquet were beyond men’s imagination. I
saw glittering and radiant precious stones that do not exist on the Earth. I saw living and vibrant
colors that were beyond understanding. While the banquet continued for seven years, we did not
realize the time elapsing on Earth.

Actually our memories of the Earth were removed. They had been taken away by God. The Mighty
Lord was sitting on the Throne and that was the source of light that illuminated everything. He was
the Light lighting the whole celestial kingdom.

So after seven years of the banquet of the Lamb, the angel of the North, of the South, of the East
and of the West stood before God's Throne. They showed themselves before the Almighty Who
reigns forever, who is the Light of all the existence, the Master of all that exists. He is the Lord that
the saints have not yet contemplated nor the face of the Creator that had been worshiped by the
saints yet.

Than the angels blew the trumpets in a loud voice before the Mighty One who reigns eternally, the
One who is the light of all existence, the Master of everything that exists. As a result, in all the
Heaven the saints, the cherubim and angels all prostrated themselves before the Creator and they
pressed their faces to the ground and worshiped Him.

Then the Throne of God moved closer to the people, then He spoke in a huge voice, “Now all things
are subjected to My Son.”
Everybody worshiped Him, the saints of Heaven and the angels said, “Holy, Holy, Holy, the whole
universe is full of Your glory.”
Then I saw emerging from behind the throne, a huge city that was being created by God Himself. It
descended from God toward the saints and the angels of the Lord. I do not know how to describe its
full size or width. But there never was and never there will be a city like that. It was made of gold.

There was a river of crystal glass and streets of gold. The houses were made of precious stones. Its
walls impenetrable as they were very high.

The Angel of the Lord came down and led us to the gate of a city. We entered into the holy city that
the Lord Almighty prepared for us. The angels led us to the city and I flew over it. When everyone
was there in the holy city, admiring I saw the throne of God descending in the middle of the city. He
left the transparent dome like glass that sealed the whole city through the walls and filled all its
extension and its space.

At that moment, the order was given by the Lord to descend to the Earth. We were inside the holy
city that was descending. We were heading back to Earth. I saw the holy city, the New Jerusalem,
coming down out of Heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.

And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man,
and He will live with them. They will be His people, and God Himself will be with them as their
God. (Revelation 21:3)”
And when we got to the solar system, I looked up and I saw that the sun did not really shine, the
stars disappeared.

The sea no longer existed and there was no water anywhere. The ground was empty, but there was
still a man who was lying on the Earth. The holy city and the glory of God began to enter the Earth.

I was amazed to see the brightness of the city of glory.

The man who was lying in the middle, he lifted up his head and stood and shook his body and his
arms. At that moment the ashes that were around him fell and he turned into a cherubim of immense
wings.

Then the holy city landed on the Earth right in the center of the ancient Jerusalem, and the dome
kept the city open. The throne of the Lord and the Lamb were over the entrance.

The Lamb was sitting next to the Creator, and an immense crystal ramp came down from the
Throne to touch the Earth. And then at the end of the ramp was a light. Then I saw God standing
from the throne.

I was on the side of the Lord's throne, I saw something spectacular. A breath came out of God and
spread throughout the Earth. As a result, I saw the redemption of the Earth, the air and the sea. I saw
the sea rising again. Then I saw a new Heaven and a new Earth, for the first Heaven and Earth had
passed away and the sea was no more.

Romans 8:18-21 For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared
with the glory which shall be revealed in us. 19 For the earnest expectation of the creature waits for
the manifestation of the sons of God. 20 For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly,
but by reason of Him who has subjected the same in hope, 21 Because the creature itself also shall
be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God.

In a blink of an eye, God restored the Earth. I saw that the Earth and all that was in it, all the sin and
Satan and his demons were destroyed together in the Lake of Fire. They disappeared forever from
the whole universe and the Lord rebuilt the sky and the Earth and the land. There was a rock of
grass green with trees and crystal clear waters. All animals were good.

In this age, there was only one city and in the middle of the city, there was a river of crystal clear
water, and the tree of life that gave 12 fruits per year.

In this city in the new Earth and new Heaven I realized that I was very smart. I had superior
knowledge. I knew physics, chemistry, mathematics, biology, geology, astronomy. It was as if a part
of me that awakened, a part of us that died in the Adamic sin was restored. I was no longer hungry
and had no need to sleep. I could travel to wherever I wanted with the power of thought. I could
move to any part of the Earth in the speed of thought.

Then I saw Jesus sitting next to a source of water and playing with children. I approached Him.

When He saw me He hugged me. I looked into His flaming eyes and told Him that I had a request
to make. He looked at me in the eye and smiled.

I said, “You gave me so many revelations. You granted me to see God, and so many other
extraordinary things that I have experienced, but I still have a dream. I know the beautiful things
that God created far from here on Earth. I read one day in Your words that all that God created
would be revealed to men. I wish I can see the mystery of God that is yet to be revealed that is
hidden.”
Jesus was not willing to reveal more mystery. Then a breath came out of the mouth of God. As a
result, I saw the reconstruction of the bodies of all those who had died without Jesus. I saw the dust
of the Earth and water. I saw visceral arteries be reconstructed, bones were refitted, then blood in
their veins and organs, hair and skin, and the breath of God blew inside the nostrils of the dead, and
they came back to life the same way they had died with all the consciousness and conscience of
their past lives as if they were awakened from a deep sleep.

And I saw the dead great and small, standing before the Throne. And there were open books and
one of them was the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their deeds as recorded in
the books. I saw a being of light among the crowd of the dead. It was Satan and his demons who
were to be judged before the Throne of God and angels.

I saw angels with huge books, and I heard a voice coming from the Throne of God and that voice
called the first person. The man was in a suit and carried something in his hands that looked like a
Bible and he stepped to the Lord’s Throne and adored Him. When he raised his head, I saw terror in
him.

God had not yet said anything, but the sins of that man began to torment him right there in front of
the Creator. Then I saw Satan looking at him.

The man started to scream, “Lord, I am the pastor, I did Your will. I won souls for Your kingdom. I
built temples for Your name and made sacrifices. I walked all my life according to Your word, but I
am here being judged by You, instead of being rewarded with Your heavenly joy and glory.”
Then I saw God give a sign to the angel. Then the angel brought a huge book and touched the book.

The book opened and the angel said, “Here is your story where your most hidden secrets are
written.”
The man was filled with fear and despair.

The angel said to this pastor, “What you just said is true. However, later in your walk with God,
your heart changed. It was corrupted for money. You introduced doctrines in the church that were
not within the Word of God because you lived many lives. You are stealing the tithes and offerings
of the house of the Lord for your own benefit for greed. Money that can be spent on God’s house,
you spent it on your carnal desire. You ended up in fornication and drinking. Your wife inside the
house waited for forgiveness and reconciliation but you never asked her. Today the Creator has tried
you according to your works.”
Then I saw on the side, a river of fire that seemed like volcanic lava. It stretched across the land.

The angel of the Lord took the man and cast him to the abyss of the river of fire and he was
consumed.

Afterward, the voice that came out of the Throne of God called another man, and I saw someone
coming out from within the crowd on the ramp. And when arriving before God, he prostrated.

Another angel was called. The angel stepped forward and the book was opened.

In that book was written the whole history of that young man who began to speak desperately with
tears in the eyes almost without a voice.

He said, “Sir, I acknowledge that You are God. I've lived my whole life believing in You. I attended
church service every week to worship. I always prayed in the church. I was evangelizing. I did what
Your words told me. But why am I being judged by You? Why am I not in the holy city and Your
heavenly joy?”
Then God gave a signal to the angel who started reading the book and he said, “You often
worshiped God who blesses you. You read the Scriptures daily, but your heart was in the world but
not the Scriptures. You were praying to God but you did not regret your sins. You performed your
services in Church but you did not win souls for God. You despised your own family. You did not
love your family and your children because your friends were more important. One of them is the
love of money. It is written love one another as the Lord loves you. You forgot about the true
essence of God that is love. So you are being tried in the court of divine justice with truth and
wisdom.”
At that moment fire came down from Heaven and consumed the young man right there and he was
thrown into the fire.

Then I saw a young man of about 17 to 18 years old who came to the ramp. He was well dressed
and came forward and prostrated. Then he raised his head and beheld the glory of God. At that
moment he was filled with fear and started crying desperately. So once again, God called another
angel who came with a book in his hand and which was written the life of that boy who said
nothing. But I saw the terror in his eyes. He was terrified.

The angel started to read a book and said, “You were blessed since you were born and you were
raised in a rich family where you lacked nothing. You always had available drink and food. You had
all the wealth of the Earth. You had an issue of loving your neighbor. Your parents prepared
everything they had for you. But when your parents heard about the death of the Creator, they
accepted Him in their hearts, hoping that you will join them, but you rebelled against them. You
hardened your heart when the Lord was calling you. Is it not true that you preferred drugs? Alcohol
and prostitution dominated you. You preferred that lifestyle over the Lord and the love of God. Your
parents who were obedient though they had everything loved you and had affection for you. Later
in your life a believer offered you an invitation to accept Jesus Christ in your life. However you
thought nothing else matters, except to have fun, partying with friends. You did not care about your
family and God. One day a last chance of salvation came in your life. On that day the Lord Jesus
Christ made you the last invitation through your own parents. But you said, “I do not need this Jesus
Christ. I do not need this God of yours.” Despite the fact that time after time you fell victim of your
own drug poison, Jesus Christ brought you back to life, the same Jesus that you refused and denied.

Now you are being tried in God’s tribunal where there is no forgiveness to those who rejected His
name.”
At that moment. I saw God standing up and He looked at the young man and ordered his
punishment And the angels took him and cast him in the lake of eternal fire to be tormented for all
his sins.

The multitudes who were there before God knelt and adored Him. It was hard for me to see all this
judgment especially of seeing all those people who had the chance and opportunity of God's love.

The multitude of people that were before God were all judged according to their works. I do not
know how long that trial lasted.

Later on, we traveled towards my city and landed at the same place on top of the hill. I saw the
whole city from above and stayed confused at that moment. I did not understand what was
happening.

Then he touched my forehead and my memories came back. My head remembered everything I had
seen and felt. I wanted to go back. I wanted to stay there with Him in that wonderful place forever. I
wanted to be with my Lord forever.

Jesus said, “I chose you to be a witness of all these things I've shown you.”
But I wanted to go back anyway. I wanted to stay there with Jesus.

God's Creation, 100 / evolution, 0
One of the greatest mysteries in modern physics begins with a simple question:

Why does anything exist at all?

According to our best scientific models, the Big Bang should have created matter and antimatter in nearly equal amounts. Matter and antimatter are opposites. When they meet, they annihilate each other in a burst of energy.

If equal amounts were created, everything should have canceled out long ago, leaving behind a universe filled with little more than radiation.

Yet stars exist. Galaxies exist. Planets exist.

And so do we.

Scientists have spent decades searching for the answer. Experiments continue to reveal tiny differences between matter and antimatter, but the complete explanation for why matter ultimately won remains one of the deepest unsolved questions in physics.

The more researchers uncover about the universe, the more astonishing its precision appears. The fundamental forces of nature, the laws governing particles, and the conditions necessary for life all seem balanced within remarkably narrow ranges.

Many see this as a fascinating scientific puzzle.

For me, it points to something greater.

I don't see a universe that accidentally organized itself into such extraordinary order. I see evidence of purpose, design, and intention behind creation.

Science helps us understand how the universe works. Faith helps us understand why it exists.

"The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands." — Psalm 19:1

The deeper we explore the cosmos, the more it inspires wonder—not only at the complexity of creation, but at the Creator behind it.

Note: The statement that fine-tuning points to a Designer is a philosophical and religious interpretation, not a scientific conclusion. The scientific mystery about matter–antimatter asymmetry is real, but its ultimate explanation remains an active area of research.

Let's talk about it.
THE FLAT EARTH
A Compelling Biblical And Scientific Examination

What This Actually Reveals About Creation

Introduction
In recent years, a small but vocal movement has revived the ancient belief that the earth is not a sphere but a flat disc. Armed with passages of Scriptures from the Bible, they have build a modern argument for a flat earth.

Such a claim demands careful and honest examination. While the Scriptures were not written as a scientific textbook, they do contain many statements about the earth, the heavens, the horizon, the sun, the stars, and what are called the “ends” of the world. Some people have used such verses to argue for a flat earth, while others point to passages that imply a spherical, suspended earth.

A careful and balanced study of the biblical text reveals that the flat earth theory finds no genuine support in Scripture. Instead, the Bible contains remarkable statements that harmonize with a rounded earth suspended in space, while the so‑called “flat earth” verses are shown, upon examination, to be poetic, symbolic, phenomenological, or common idiomatic expressions. When the original language, literary context, and style of Hebrew writing are honestly considered, the Bible emerges not as a defender of flat earth theory, but as a divinely inspired revelation free from the primitive flat earth myths that surrounded the ancient world.

This study will examine the principal passages used by flat earth advocates and compare them with both Scripture and observable reality. We will also consider evidence from history, astronomy, geography, physics, and human experience itself. The purpose is not mockery or ridicule, but truth. God never asks His people to believe falsehood in order to defend His Word. Truth is strengthened by investigation, not weakened by it.

The God who inspired Scripture is also the Creator of the heavens and the earth. Therefore, genuine science and properly understood Scripture cannot ultimately contradict one another. Problems arise only when human beings misunderstand either the Bible or the natural world.

One of the most astonishing cosmological statements in all ancient literature appears in the book of Job: “He stretcheth out the north over the empty place, and hangeth the earth upon nothing.” — Job 26:7.

Consider the era in which these words were written. Ancient pagan civilizations often imagined the earth resting upon physical supports. The Egyptians spoke of pillars holding up the heavens. Hindu cosmology described elephants standing upon a giant turtle supporting the earth. Greek mythology imagined Atlas carrying the world upon his shoulders.

Yet Scripture declares something entirely different. The earth hangs “upon nothing.” This statement is extraordinary because it departs completely from the cosmological imagination of the ancient world. It does not describe a flat earth resting on pillars, floating upon a cosmic sea, or supported by mythical creatures. Instead, it describes the earth suspended freely in space.

Modern astronomy confirms precisely this reality. The earth floats in the vacuum of space, held in orbit through gravitational forces established by the Creator Himself. Thousands of years before telescopes, satellites, or space exploration existed, the Bible described the earth in language remarkably consistent with reality.

A flat earth model struggles greatly with this verse because a flat disc would logically require structural support. But Job says plainly that the earth hangs “upon nothing.”

The prophet Isaiah wrote: “It is he that sitteth upon the circle of the earth, and the inhabitants thereof are as grasshoppers; that stretcheth out the heavens as a curtain, and spreadeth them out as a tent to dwell in.” — Isaiah 40:22.

The Hebrew word translated “circle” is chug, meaning a circle, circuit, or horizon. While the word does not specifically mean “sphere,” it certainly does not describe a square or flat rectangular world. The imagery is unmistakably one of roundness.

When viewed from above, a sphere appears circular. The horizon itself also appears circular to the observer. Isaiah presents God enthroned above the earth while humanity appears tiny beneath Him “as grasshoppers.” The perspective is one of vastness, elevation, and curvature.

Interestingly, the same verse speaks of God stretching out the heavens “as a curtain.” Modern astronomy has discovered that the universe itself is expanding. While Scripture was not written to teach astrophysics, its language repeatedly harmonizes with truths later confirmed by scientific discovery.

If the Bible intended to teach a flat earth, one would expect direct and unmistakable statements declaring such a thing. Instead, Scripture repeatedly employs language of circularity, suspension, and cosmic order.

The book of Proverbs records wisdom personified speaking concerning creation: “When he prepared the heavens, I was there: when he set a compass upon the face of the depth.” Proverbs 8:27.

The word translated “compass” refers to a circular boundary or horizon. Again Scripture uses imagery connected with curvature and circularity.

Every sailor standing upon the sea witnesses this reality. Ships disappear hull first beyond the horizon because the earth curves downward. If the earth were flat, ships would simply grow smaller until invisible, yet this is not what occurs.

The Greek geographer and historian Strabo, writing in the first century before Christ, observed that ships vanish from the bottom upward over the horizon, and he used this phenomenon as evidence for the earth’s curvature. The Bible’s language aligns naturally with observable reality.

Perhaps one of the strongest biblical evidences harmonizing with a spherical earth appears in the words of Jesus Christ Himself. Speaking about conditions at His second coming, Christ declared: “I tell you, in that night there shall be two men in one bed; the one shall be taken, and the other shall be left. Two women shall be grinding together; the one shall be taken, and the other left. Two men shall be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left.” — Luke 17:34–36.

Notice the remarkable detail. One group is sleeping at night. Another group is indoors grinding grain. Another group is outside working in the field during daylight. These activities are occurring simultaneously.

This naturally fits the reality of a rotating spherical earth where different regions experience daylight and darkness at the same time. While one part of the world sleeps, another labors beneath the sun.

A flat earth model struggles greatly here. If sunlight illuminates a flat plane uniformly, simultaneous widespread night and day become difficult to explain naturally. Christ’s words harmonize beautifully with the existence of global time zones produced by a rotating sphere.

One of the greatest errors made by flat earth advocates is the failure to distinguish between scientific description and observational language.

Ecclesiastes states: “The sun also ariseth, and the sun goeth down, and hasteth to his place where he arose.” Ecclesiastes 1:5.

Flat earth proponents often argue that this verse proves the sun literally moves around the earth. Yet even in modern times, everyone still speaks of “sunrise” and “sunset.” Astronomers themselves use these terms because they describe appearance from human perspective. This is called phenomenological language , describing things as they appear to the observer.

The Bible uses this kind of language frequently. Joshua wrote: “And the sun stood still, and the moon stayed…” Joshua 10:13. Genesis describes the Flood by saying: “In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life… the same day were all the fountains of the great deep broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened.” Genesis 7:11. Job declared: “The pillars of heaven tremble and are astonished at his reproof.” Job 26:11.

These are descriptive expressions understandable to ordinary people. Scripture was written for humanity across all ages and educational levels, not as a technical scientific manual. God accommodates divine revelation to human understanding, just as a parent speaks to a child using familiar language.

Flat earth advocates frequently quote passages referring to the “four corners of the earth.” Isaiah wrote: “And he shall set up an ensign for the nations, and shall assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather together the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth.” Isaiah 11:12. Revelation declares: “And after these things I saw four angels standing on the four corners of the earth…” Revelation 7:1.

These are ordinary idiomatic expressions referring to the four directions: north, south, east, and west. Even today people speak of “the four corners of the globe” or say someone traveled “to every corner of the earth.” Nobody imagines the earth literally possesses square corners.

The British philosopher and historian David Hume observed that ordinary human language constantly employs such figures of speech without intending literal geometry. The Bible communicates through human language, and human language naturally contains idioms.

Scripture also frequently refers to “the ends of the earth.” Jesus declared: “And ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.” Acts 1:8.

This phrase means distant lands or remote regions. Even modern people still say things such as “I searched to the ends of the earth,” or “the edge of town,” without implying literal edges or cliffs. The Greek geographer Ptolemy similarly referred to “the ends of the inhabited world” without believing the earth was flat. These are figures of speech, not scientific descriptions.

Another commonly misused passage appears in the temptation of Christ: “Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them.” Matthew 4:8.

Flat earth proponents claim this event could only occur on a flat earth. But this argument fails immediately because no mountain on earth, even on a perfectly flat plane, can provide visibility of all kingdoms worldwide. Atmospheric limitations alone prevent such viewing. The event was supernatural.

The devil provided Christ with a supernatural or visionary display for the purpose of temptation. Scripture contains many supernatural visions that transcend ordinary physical laws. Ezekiel saw wheels within wheels. John saw prophetic beasts rising from the sea. None of these visions are limited by normal optics or geography. To force this passage into becoming a scientific statement about earth geometry is to misunderstand its entire purpose.

Several passages speak of the earth as stable or immovable. “The LORD reigneth, he is clothed with majesty… the world also is stablished, that it cannot be moved.” Psalm 93:1. “Who laid the foundations of the earth, that it should not be removed for ever.” Psalm 104:5. “The world also shall be stable, that it be not moved.” 1 Chronicles 16:30.

These verses do not teach that the earth lacks rotation or orbital motion. They teach that God has established creation securely and sustains it faithfully. The emphasis is theological, not astronomical.

The same Bible also describes mountains skipping like rams: “The mountains skipped like rams, and the little hills like lambs.” Psalm 114:4. Isaiah wrote: “The mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.” Isaiah 55:12. No reasonable reader imagines literal singing hills or hand‑clapping trees. Hebrew poetry employs vivid imagery to communicate truth powerfully.

Genesis records: “And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters…” — Genesis 1:6.

Some claim the Hebrew word raqia teaches the existence of a hard metallic dome over a flat earth. Yet Scripture itself explains the meaning by saying birds fly within this “firmament”: “And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life, and fowl that may fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven.” Genesis 1:20.

Birds do not fly through solid crystal or metal. They fly through atmosphere and open sky. The word raqia refers to an expanse or stretched‑out space. The Dutch theologian Herman Bavinck explained that biblical writers described creation using ordinary observational language understandable to humanity. The Bible does not teach the existence of a solid dome enclosing a flat earth.

Scripture sometimes speaks of the earth having “foundations” or “pillars.” “For the pillars of the earth are the LORD’S, and he hath set the world upon them.” — 1 Samuel 2:8. “Who laid the foundations of the earth…” — Psalm 104:5.

These are poetic construction metaphors describing God establishing the world securely. Matthew Henry, the respected eighteenth‑century Bible commentator, explained that such language is figurative and borrowed from the structure of buildings and houses.

The Bible frequently uses vivid imagery. “Let the floods clap their hands…” — Psalm 98:8. “Then shall all the trees of the wood rejoice.” Psalm 96:12. Literalistic interpretation of every poetic phrase leads to absurd conclusions. Understanding genre is essential to sound biblical interpretation.

Now the famous Galileo controversy was never about whether the earth was round. The debate concerned whether the earth revolved around the sun. Long before the modern era, educated Christians recognized the earth’s sphericity. The idea that Christianity historically taught a flat earth is itself largely a modern myth.

Science today confirms beyond reasonable doubt that the earth is an oblate spheroid, slightly flattened at the poles and bulging at the equator.

Around 240 years before Christ, the Greek scholar Eratosthenes measured the earth’s circumference with astonishing accuracy using shadows cast at different locations. At noon during the summer solstice, sunlight reached directly into a well at Syene while casting a measurable shadow in Alexandria. From this difference, Eratosthenes calculated the earth’s circumference to within approximately two percent of the modern value. This experiment can still be repeated today.

Additional evidence surrounds us constantly. During lunar eclipses, the earth casts a consistently curved shadow upon the moon. As travelers move north or south, different stars appear and disappear from view. The North Star changes elevation depending upon latitude. People living in South America see different constellations than those living in northern Europe.

Modern aviation, satellite communication, GPS navigation and weather systems, all function consistently with a spherical earth. Photographs from multiple nations and independent space agencies across decades all reveal the same reality: a rounded earth suspended in space.

The flat earth theory requires believing in a gigantic worldwide conspiracy involving governments, scientists, navigators, engineers, pilots, astronomers, telecommunications systems, and countless industries operating across hostile nations and competing political systems. Such a theory lacks rational reasoning.

Gravity itself presents a devastating problem for flat earth cosmology. On a spherical earth, gravity pulls everything toward the common center of mass. This explains why “down” is consistent everywhere on earth.

On a flat disc, however, gravity would behave very differently. Toward the outer regions of the disc, gravity would pull objects diagonally inward toward the center rather than straight downward. Water would flow unnaturally toward the center, and the atmosphere would accumulate unevenly. Yet this is not what we observe. Water behaves consistently around the globe because gravity pulls uniformly toward the earth’s center.

Sir Isaac Newton demonstrated mathematically that large bodies naturally form spheres under gravitational attraction. Modern physics continually confirms this principle.

Ultimately, Scripture’s purpose is not to satisfy human curiosity concerning cosmology. The Bible begins with the declaration: “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.” Genesis 1:1. And it concludes with the promise: “And I saw a new heaven and a new earth…” Revelation 21:1.

The Bible’s great themes are creation, sin, redemption, judgment, salvation, obedience, prophecy, and eternal life through Jesus Christ. The shape of the earth is never presented as a test of saving faith.

The apostle Paul warned believers against becoming consumed with speculative controversies: “Neither give heed to fables and endless genealogies, which minister questions, rather than godly edifying which is in faith.” 1 Timothy 1:4. The modern flat earth movement often distracts minds away from the central truths of the gospel and toward endless speculation.

When all the evidence is honestly examined, the Bible does not teach a flat earth. The passages commonly used to defend flat earth cosmology rely upon poetic language interpreted literally, symbolic prophecy misunderstood as scientific description, phenomenological language mistaken for technical astronomy, or ordinary idioms pressed beyond their intended meaning.

Meanwhile, several biblical passages harmonize remarkably well with the reality of a suspended, rounded earth long before modern science discovered these truths.

The flat earth theory is not a return to biblical faithfulness. Rather, it results from misunderstanding poetic language, ignoring literary context, distrusting overwhelming evidence, and reading modern conspiratorial ideas back into ancient texts.

Therefore let us read Scripture carefully, reverently, and intelligently, allowing each passage to speak according to its intended purpose and genre. The heavens indeed declare the glory of God, not as a flat disc beneath a solid dome, but as a vast and orderly universe sustained by the hand of the Almighty.

Gospel Angels Broadcasting

HEARING 'THE MUSIC OF THE SPHERES'
Over the past several months I've added some physical therapy exercises for my arthritis to my morning workouts. I count them in various langauges so I can also give my brain a workout. One exercise I count in Spanish, and at first I was mixing up the numbers because about all I know in Spanish are the numbers one to ten and some simple phrases like "Good morning," "Good evening," and "I don't speak Spanish" that I learned when my older brother and sisters were taking Spanish in high school. (I took German instead.)

But this morning a strange and wonderful thing happened: I could hear the music of the numbers! They were all in harmony, I didn't mix up or forget any: I heard their rhythm, harmony and melody! Numbers, you know, are what makes music "work"– musical notes are spaced at exact mathematical wave lengths relative to each other. Math, physics, and music make the world go around!

The blurb about the above book states – "The parallel histories of music and science – from celestial harmony to cosmic dissonance. For centuries, scientists and philosophers believed that the universe was a stately, ordered mechanism, mathematical and musical. The perceived distances between objects in the sky mirrored (and were mirrored by) the spaces between notes that formed chords and scales. The smooth operation of the cosmos created a divine harmony that composers sought to capture. With The Music of the Spheres, readers will see how this scientific philosophy emerged...."

God created the universe – and us – to be in harmony with each other. But the world is increasingly full of disharmony, chaos, wars, beeps, notifications, phones ringing... so many disruptions and interruptions that it's hard to regain that harmony. It takes real effort to learn math and music. Maybe you've heard algebra students say – "This stuff doesn't make any sense! It's really stupid!" But in fact, it's the student who's stupid, not the algebra. Or perhaps the student is just lazy and doesn't want to strain his/her brain... READ MORE: https://arc-news-blog.blogspot.com/2026/05/hearing-music-of-spheres.html

Who Is Jesus?

In chemistry,
He turned water to wine.

In biology,
He was born without the normal conception;

In physics,
He disapproved the law of gravity when He ascended into heaven;

In economics,
He disapproved the law of
diminishing return by feeding 5000 men with
two fishes & 5 loaves of bread;

In medicine,
He cured the sick and the blind without administering a single dose of drugs;

In history,
He is the beginning and the end;

In government,
He said that He shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Prince of Peace;

In religion,
He said no one comes to the Father except through Him;

So, Who is He? He is Jesus!

The Greatest Man in History

Jesus had no servants,
yet they called Him Master.

Had no degree,
yet they called Him Teacher.

Had no medicines,
yet they called Him Healer.

He had no army,
yet kings feared Him.

He won no military battles,
yet He overcame the world.

He committed no crime,
yet they crucified Him.

He was buried in a tomb,
yet He lives today.

I feel honored to serve such a Leader who loves us.

Join me and let's celebrate Him; He is worthy.

Remain in God and seek his face always.

Amen!

In God I've found everything!

Let someone know of the works of Our Lord JESUS.

Let the whole world appreciate the Lord of lords and King of kings.

Do not hesitate to spread the gospel.

Don't be tired of spreading it forth.
Edited. Shared.
Posted on Nov 24, 2021, 2:04am.

John 14:6
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.

God willing, more will be posted soon. All glory to Jesus alone.

A Little Light Reading.
BEYOND MERCY,
The unpardonable sin.

Doug Bachelor.

A man visiting Scotland for the first time went to
a place on the coast featuring a beautiful bay
beach. Up along the beach, soft, sandy hills rose
up sharply into a steep, rocky cliff that dropped down
right along the narrow shore. The man was enjoy-
ing his time, meditating and studying the shells. He
noticed the tide had gone out, exposing a lot of new
beautiful rocks and shells. So he continued to walk—
the ocean on one side, the beach beneath him, and
the sheer rock cliff wall that stretched for miles on the
other side.
As he traveled up the shore, he came to a rusted
steel post in the ground hoisting a metal sign that had
words painted in bold, clear letters:
“Warning!
Danger: If you go beyond this point, you will
not be able to escape the incoming tide.”
The man looked behind him and thought, “Well,
I might not be a marathon runner, but I can surely get
back to the safe zone before the tide overtakes me. I’d
like to go a little farther. These are some of the best shells
and tidal pools I’ve ever seen.” Besides, the tide was a
good way off.
He walked on, well past the sign—preoccupied
with the starfish, seashells, and curious little crabs
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that were now skittering from hole to hole. Along the
way, every so often, he would think: I’ll just keep an
eye on the surf and, when I see it start to change, I’ll
head back to the safe section of the beach.
But once he had gone beyond that sign, he had
already gone too far. He did not realize in that part
of Scotland, during certain seasons and moon phases,
the tidal cycle is often powerful and swift. So he kept
walking, meandering along the wet sand.
Not long after, he saw the tide had changed and
the waves were beginning to come in, so he turned
around. But the tide was surging very fast, charg-
ing in like a galloping horse. He’d never seen a tide
roll in so quickly! No sooner had he turned to make
a hasty retreat, than the waves were upon him like
miniature tsunamis. He began to run, but the rising
waves slapped against his legs, repeatedly knocking
him over. Soon the waves were dragging him right up
against the rocky cliffs!
People sightseeing above the cliffs saw him strug-
gling and watched helplessly as the man was pum-
meled time and time again against the unforgiving
sheer rock.
His lifeless body was found the next day.
What happened? He had gone beyond the warn-
ing sign.
Yes—he was alive and well for a while after he
passed the warning sign, but there actually was no
hope because he had reached the point of no return.
There is, in certain situations, a very clear point of
no return. The military even has a term for it: “PNR.”
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What Is the Unpardonable Sin?
And with good reason too. We hear about Navy he-
licopters that are sent on rescue missions. As they’re
flying out over the ocean from their aircraft carrier,
they have a special instrument labeled PNR*—the
point of no return. When they reach a certain point,
an alarm goes off. It tells them, basically, that it’s now
or never—they’ve reached the halfway point of their
fuel supply. It means that, even if they see the person
they’re trying to rescue just a little farther beyond, if
they continue to fly away from their vessel, as well-
intentioned as they might be, based on the laws of
physics, they are going to run out of fuel before they
can get back. They’ll be ditching in the ocean.
Like that man who died on the Scottish shore,
if they don’t turn around right then and there, they
might not make it home by air.
No Turning Back?
Along these same lines, the Bible teaches that there
is a point you can go to in sinning against God where
your life might still be active—your lungs are breath-
ing, your heart is beating—but you are doomed, just
as surely as if the gates of Hades had already closed
behind you. That is, it is possible for a person to have
gone so far away from God, from the promptings of
the Holy Spirit, that they have spiritually reached the
point of no return and, perhaps, even have gone well
past it.
It is called the “unpardonable sin,” and we’re deal-
ing with this because so many worried and confused
* Now also called “Point of Equal Time” (PET) or “Critical
Point” (CP).
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Christians are wondering, “Have I committed the un-
pardonable sin? What hope can you give me?”
No question, in our ministry, we frequently meet
those who have wondered if they have committed
this unforgivable sin. A man feels his prayers seem to
bounce back from the ceiling, or a woman feels there
is no hope of receiving God’s favor or forgiveness. Yet
they can’t identify any particular sinful act that severed
them from the hope of salvation. God just seems si-
lent. How can they tell if they have actually committed
the unpardonable sin? Can any person really know?
Why Does This Matter?
A few years ago the psychology department of
Duke University carried on an interesting experi-
ment. (It would never be allowed today.) They wanted
to see how long rats could swim based on hope. In
one container surrounded by sheer walls, they placed
a rat for whom there was no possibility of escape. He
swam in circles a few moments and then gave up, re-
signed to drown. In the other container, they made
the hope of escape possible for the rat. A little ladder
was placed just out of reach. The rat swam for sev-
eral hours before finally drowning. We usually say, “As
long as there is life, there is hope.” The Duke experi-
ment proved, “As long as there is hope, there is life.”
Some people believe they have committed the un-
forgivable sin and have lost hope and stopped living.
So before answering these troubling questions
about the unpardonable sin, a glorious truth first
needs to be recognized: We serve a God of infinite
love and compassion! It is not His will that anyone
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What Is the Unpardonable Sin?
be lost. He has made provision in His Word for every
soul to be forgiven and saved. The incredible promise
of 1 John 1:9 applies to every man, woman, and child
in the world today: “If we confess our sins, he is faith-
ful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us
from all unrighteousness.”
On the condition of a sincere confession, God
promises to forgive any sin, regardless of its nature.
“Come now, and let us reason together,” says
the Lord, “Though your sins are like scar-
let, they shall be as white as snow; though
they are red like crimson, they shall be as
wool” (Isaiah 1:18).
Here God is saying, “You have sinned. I know that.
But I still love you and want you to have salvation so
badly that I sent my Son to die on the cross for you, to
pay the penalty for your sins. Why, therefore, don’t you
accept what I have done for you?”
What a special assurance for those who have vio-
lated every law of God and man in their wild plunge
into degradation. God loves them still! There is no
guilt too great for Him to cleanse away. He waits with
outstretched arms to receive those who take the first
step toward His forgiveness and mercy. After all, look
at what happened at the cross! The ultimate price
was paid for our redemption from sin. The God who
would do that for us wants us to have the salvation He
offers, a salvation that cost Him so much.
At the same time, however, people can commit
the unpardonable sin, which will put them out of the
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reach of salvation and eternal life. What is this sin
which heaven regards with such abhorrence? Why,
too, will God deal so severely with those who are
guilty of it?
To the human mind, a great number of depraved
and cruel acts might fall into such a category, but
which one of them would God count so heinous that
it could never be forgiven? This is the crucial question
that we are going to explore in this short book.
A Fearsome Warning
Let’s first look at what the Bible specifically says
about this sin.
Indeed, the most fearful words ever spoken by
Jesus had to do with the fateful possibility of commit-
ting the unpardonable sin. He said,
“Therefore I say to you, every sin and blas-
phemy will be forgiven men, but the blas-
phemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven
men” (Matthew 12:31).
Here it is again:
“Assuredly, I say to you, all sins will be for-
given the sons of men, and whatever blasphe-
mies they may utter; but he who blasphemes
against the Holy Spirit never has forgive-
ness, but is subject to eternal condemnation”
(Mark 3:28, 29).
And again, in Luke 12:10:
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What Is the Unpardonable Sin?
“And anyone who speaks a word against the
Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but to
him who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit,
it will not be forgiven.”
Let’s look at these texts closely. “I say to you,” Jesus
said, “every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven.” We
should be so thankful that the Lord is a God who
forgives “every sin and blasphemy.” After all, human
beings are capable of some pretty gruesome and de-
praved acts, are we not? And yet Jesus here is very
clear: All can be forgiven. That’s how powerful and ef-
fectual Christ’s death on the cross was. It was enough
to cover every sin and blasphemy.
But we would be remiss to end right here, because
Jesus doesn’t end right here.
He goes on to say something very grave. He says
that the “blasphemy against the Spirit will not be for-
given men.” Amazing! “Anyone who speaks a word
against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him.” Yet
blasphemy against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven!
Right after some religious leaders in Israel, in cahoots
with the Romans, crucified Jesus, He prayed, “Father, for-
give them.” Would Jesus have uttered that prayer if it was
not possible for them to be forgiven? Even something as
horrible as crucifying the Son of God was forgivable.
But what did Jesus say in another place? “But
whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be
forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come”
(Matthew 12:32).
That’s heavy! They could be forgiven for driv-
ing nails into Jesus’ hands and hoisting him up on a
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ragged cross but not for “speaking” against the Holy
Spirit. No forgiveness—not now, not in judgment day,
not in the resurrection…not ever!
Again, we see this same contrast in Mark: “All sins
will be forgiven the sons of men, and whatever blas-
phemies they may utter.” That’s encouraging; is it not?
God is so merciful that He can forgive us all sins and
blasphemy. But then we are given this warning: “But
he who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has
forgiveness, but is subject to eternal condemnation”
(Mark 3:28, 29).
How much clearer could Jesus be? We obviously
don’t want to blaspheme against the Holy Spirit be-
cause it will lead to “eternal condemnation.” Thus,
how important it is that we learn two things:
• First, what does it mean to “utter blasphemy”
against the Holy Spirit?
• Second, how can we make sure that we don’t do it?
What the Unpardonable Sin Is Not
Now, whenever people hear about the unpardon-
able sin, their first question is, “What is it?”
In search of the answer, they often go the book of
Exodus and look through the Ten Commandments,
where they try to conjure up what they think is the
worst possible sin; that sin is surely, they surmise, the
unpardonable one.
For instance, one might believe that innocent life
is certainly the most important thing, and if someone
were to take an innocent life—that is, commit mur-
der—that would have to be the unpardonable sin.
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What Is the Unpardonable Sin?
After all, once a person is dead, there’s nothing that
can be done to bring that person back.
That makes sense, of course. Murder is horren-
dous. However, we clearly find examples in the Bible of
those guilty of murder who we believe will be in heaven.
First, there’s Moses. Exodus 2:12 says the great
prophet “looked this way and that way, and when he
saw no one, he killed the Egyptian and hid him in the
sand.” That was the sin of murder. God didn’t want
Moses to commit it, but God did forgive the imperfect
prophet and even used Moses to do a great work in
leading the children of Israel out of Egypt.
How about David? In 2 Samuel 12:9, the prophet
Nathan said to David, “Why have you despised the
commandment of the Lord, to do evil in His sight?
You have killed Uriah the Hittite with the sword; you
have taken his wife to be your wife, and have killed
him with the sword of the people of Ammon.” So, be-
sides murder, we can add adultery to David’s grievous
sin. Neither murder nor adultery, bad as they are (and
they are bad), can be the unpardonable sin, because
we know from the Bible that God forgave David both
of these sins—though, of course, the king did have to
live with the terrible consequences of his sins, which
is another matter entirely.
In our culture, perhaps the worst crime is when
someone sexually abuses or otherwise harms or kills
an innocent child. Truly, how much lower can a per-
son stoop? Even Jesus says, “Whoever causes one of
these little ones who believe in Me to stumble, it would
be better for him if a millstone were hung around his
neck, and he were thrown into the sea” (Mark 9:42).
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If anything were the unpardonable sin, one would
think it would be harming an innocent child.
This crime is actually mentioned in the Bible too.
As a matter of fact, in some pagan nations, infanticide
was part of their worship. They would kill their chil-
dren and burn them on altars, all to supposedly ap-
pease their gods. In the Bible, it’s referred to as making
their children “pass through the fire.”
It’s referenced in Ezekiel 16:20–22 as one of the
things that was especially offensive to the Lord re-
garding the nations that surrounded Israel. But what
made matters worse was that some Israelites began
doing the same thing to their own children. Despite
all the light that they had been given, they had fall-
en into one of the most awful and degrading of all
pagan practices! “They even sacrificed their sons
and their daughters to demons” (Psalm 106:37).
Now what could be worse than that—especially for
a people who should have known better because of
all the special revelations given to them as God’s
chosen nation?
But there’s somebody in the Bible who did this,
yet, according to the biblical record, we can believe
that person is forgiven. Manasseh was a king in Israel
who was guilty of infanticide. A king! 2Kings 21:6
says: “He made his son pass through the fire, prac-
ticed soothsaying, used witchcraft, and consulted
spiritists and mediums. He did much evil in the sight
of the Lord, to provoke Him to anger.” It was child
sacrifice, pure and simple. But you read on and the
Bible tells us that this king fully repented, accepted the
Lord, and even implemented a reformation in Israel.
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What Is the Unpardonable Sin?
It’s unimaginable to us that someone, after they get
involved in child sacrifice, could be forgiven. God is,
obviously, more gracious and merciful than most of
us would be, that’s for sure!
(Maybe you’ve heard of Ted Bundy, a vicious se-
rial killer of young women. The murders were espe-
cially horrific. When he was finally caught and put in
prison on death row, he confessed and ostensibly went
through a conversion process and accepted Jesus. The
respected family counselor Dr. James Dobson went to
visit Bundy before his execution, and the Christian
leader came away believing that God can even forgive
someone who did the horrible things that Bundy did,
as unimaginable as that might seem to us.)
Thus, when Jesus says there’s a sin for which you
can’t be forgiven, it must be really bad! Worse than
adultery…worse than murder…even worse than
child sacrifice!
Could it be the act of denying Christ? Well, can
we think of somebody in the Bible who openly and
blatantly denied Christ yet was forgiven? The book
of Matthew records how Peter swore up and down
that he would be faithful to Jesus no matter what.
However, when accused of being a follower of Christ,
he openly denied it—three times, even! “Then he be-
gan to curse and to swear.” It was bad enough that he
denied Christ, but he did it with cursing and swearing
as well! (See Matthew 26:69–75.)
Publicly denying Christ, renouncing that you know
Him, and doing it with an oath and foul language…
that’s pretty bad, especially for someone who had been
as privileged as Peter, who had been part of Jesus’
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intimate inner circle for so long and who had seen so
many miracles! Could that sin be forgiven?
Obviously it can, because Peter was not only for-
given his sin, he also became a leader in the early New
Testament church. Here are the words of Jesus to him
after Jesus had been raised from the dead:
“So when they had eaten breakfast, Jesus said
to Simon Peter, ‘Simon, son of Jonah, do you
love Me more than these?’ He said to Him,
‘Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.’ He said
to him, ‘Feed My lambs.’ He said to him again a
second time, ‘Simon, son of Jonah, do you love
Me?’ He said to Him, ‘Yes, Lord; You know that
I love You.’ He said to him, ‘Tend My sheep.’
He said to him the third time, ‘Simon, son of
Jonah, do you love Me?’ Peter was grieved be-
cause He said to him the third time, ‘Do you
love Me?’ And he said to Him, ‘Lord, You know
all things; You know that I love You.’ Jesus said
to him, ‘Feed My sheep’” (John 21:15–17).
If that doesn’t sound like forgiveness, what does?
What About Suicide?
This is obviously a very emotionally charged sub-
ject. Indeed, who doesn’t know, either directly or in-
directly, someone who committed suicide? Sometimes
suicidal people call our radio program asking, “If I
commit suicide, can I still be saved?” What do you
think we tell them? We discourage them in every way
possible. We suggest to them that if the last act of a
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What Is the Unpardonable Sin?
person’s life is an act of utter hopelessness and faith-
lessness, and if the Bible tells us that without faith it’s
impossible to please God, what can we say? We do all
we can to dissuade them from the thought, reminding
them if the last act of their lives is self-murder, obvious-
ly, that wouldn’t bode very well for their eternal future.
At the same time, who doesn’t know someone
whose loved one, a child, perhaps, has taken his or
her own life? These dear people are so devastated by
the thought that a loved one’s next conscious thought
is that they are eternally lost, they do everything they
can in their reasoning to widen that gate. And, indeed,
we need to be careful not to be dogmatic about the
eternal destiny of anyone, including a suicide. Only
God knows the state of the heart and mind in those
last moments of life.
Besides, we have an example in the Bible of some-
one who committed suicide yet was still deemed faith-
ful: Samson. Judges 16:30 reads, “Then Samson said,
‘Let me die with the Philistines!’ And he pushed with
all his might, and the temple fell.” Yes, the temple fell
on the lords of the Philistines, killing them, but its walls
also fell on Samson. Some might argue, “Look, they were
getting ready to kill him anyway; he just thought to take
his enemy with him. Thus, Samson’s act of war was re-
ally a sacrifice and not a suicide. Nevertheless, Samson
knew that by knocking down the walls, he would kill
himself as well—and that is a form of suicide.
Will Samson be in heaven? In Hebrews 11, he’s
listed among the faithful. Suicide, though tragic in ev-
ery way, cannot be the unpardonable sin.
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The Horror of Hopelessness
On December 17, 1927, while surfacing, the US-
S-4 submarine was accidentally rammed and sunk by
the Coast Guard destroyer Paulding. The entire crew
was trapped in its prison house of death. Ships rushed
to the scene of disaster off the coast of Massachusetts,
where the doomed men clung to life as the oxygen
slowly gave out.
A diver placed his helmeted ear to the side of
the vessel and listened. He heard a tapping noise.
Someone was tapping out a question in the dots and
dashes of Morse code. The question came slowly:
“Is…there…any…hope?”
Sadly, despite their best efforts, there was no rea-
son for hope and all six men perished.
This seems to be the cry of humanity: “Is there
any hope?” Hope, indeed, is the basis of all human ex-
istence in Christ!
You have heard the expression, “Where there is
life there is hope.” This comes from the Bible, where
Solomon says, “But for him who is joined to all the liv-
ing there is hope, for a living dog is better than a dead
lion” (Ecclesiastes 9:4).
So far we have looked at some pretty heavy sins,
and yet we have reason to believe that, as bad as these
sins are, not one of them is the unpardonable sin that
Jesus spoke so strongly about.
What, then, is the sin that is so bad that it cannot
be forgiven, no matter what? What sin is so bad that
even the death of Jesus isn’t enough to save the guilty
one from condemnation? What sin leaves them with
no hope?
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After all these years, who isn’t still disturbed by
the images from the 9/11 attacks on America? Some
are very graphic, like when photographers captured
images of those desperate and trapped workers in the
World Trade Center. They have photos of people on
the higher floors who found their way to the windows
in an effort to escape the flames. They couldn’t make
it down because the fires trapped them, but once
they got to the windows, then what? In some cases,
they were 40 stories above the ground, yet with no
other recourse, they jumped to their deaths rather
than be burned alive inside the building. Talk about
utter hopelessness!
Or what about this situation? He was a parachute
instructor who had spent so much time making sure
that his students were all suited up and cinched in
tight that one day he had forgotten, believe it or not,
to put on his own parachute. He then jumped out of
the airplane to his death! Can you imagine what he
must have felt like on the way down, knowing that
he was going to die? All that training for others…yet
he ended up doing something so careless. Again, talk
about an awful sense of hopelessness!
We use these two sad stories as an analogy for
what it must be like to have the Lord declare to a per-
son, a family, a nation, a city, or the world that there’s
no hope for them, that they are eternally lost. To still
be alive and know that your situation is hopeless is a
dreadful thought. It’s like that with the unpardonable
sin, the one sin that cannot be forgiven. So again we
ask, “What is it?”
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Blasphemy
As we saw above, in Luke 12:10, Jesus said, “Any-
one who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will
be forgiven him; but to him who blasphemes against
the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven” (emphasis sup-
plied). It is someone who “blasphemes” who cannot
be forgiven. Thus, we need to decipher what blasphe-
my is, because, obviously, it is a crucial component to
understanding the unpardonable sin.
In the Greek, the word is blasphemos and, accord-
ing to one dictionary’s concise definition, it means “to
vilify, to speak impiously, to defame, to rail upon, to
revile, to speak evil, to hurt or blast the reputation,
nature or works of God.” So to speak evil of God—
to defame, to vilify, to undermine Him with your
words—is blasphemy. There are some other defini-
tions, but this one is principally the one that Jesus uses
in this warning.
In the American Heritage Dictionary, blasphemy
is defined as “a contemptuous or profane act, utter-
ance, or writing concerning God or a sacred entity.”
It also gives another definition: “the act of claiming
for oneself the attributes and rights of God.” We ac-
tually believe this last one is closer to the definition
we’re looking for when the Bible speaks of blasphemy
against the Holy Spirit. But if you aren’t sure about dic-
tionary definitions, then let’s let the Bible define itself.
In the Bible, we find some stories in which blas-
phemy is cited, such as in John 10:33. At one point,
some of the leaders in Israel were trying to find a
reason to stone Jesus. “The Jews answered Him, say-
ing, ‘For a good work we do not stone You, but for
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blasphemy, and because You, being a Man, make
Yourself God.’ ” Thus, man putting himself in the place
of God is a Bible definition of blasphemy, just as it was
in the dictionary.
Now look at Luke 5:21. “And the scribes and the
Pharisees began to reason, saying, ‘Who is this who
speaks blasphemies? Who can forgive sins but God
alone?’ ” Now, Jesus had just said He could forgive the
sins of a paralytic. The religious leaders were angry,
because they realized that by forgiving the man’s sin,
Jesus was putting Himself in the place of God.
In other words, suggesting that what you think is
more important than what God says. Isn’t that put-
ting yourself in the place of God? Some people might
not have considered that they’re at risk of committing
the unpardonable sin because they are claiming the
prerogatives of God for themselves. They’re making
themselves their own god. They’re not listening to the
words of God; instead, they’re saying, “My reasons are
more important than the commandments of God.” A
man putting himself in the place of God. That’s pretty
heavy. If that’s not blasphemy, what is?
Of course, blasphemy itself is not the unpardon-
able sin. In fact, we all have probably committed vary-
ing degrees of blasphemy at some point or another.
After all, the apostle Paul had been a blasphemer,
and we can be assured that Paul will be in heaven. In
1Timothy 1:13, he writes: “Although I was formerly a
blasphemer, a persecutor, and an insolent man; but I
obtained mercy because I did it ignorantly in unbelief.”
God’s grace to us is exceedingly abundant; it for-
gives even blasphemy. Indeed, right in Matthew 12:31,
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Jesus says: “Every sin and blasphemy will be forgiv-
en men” (emphasis supplied). Again, God’s grace is
amazing! All kinds of blasphemy are forgiven…ex-
cept the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit.
Thus, in order to understand what blasphemy
against the Holy Spirit is, we also need to understand
what the Holy Spirit does. Once we grasp that, we can
then better understand what it means to blaspheme
the Holy Spirit and why it’s been deemed the unpar-
donable sin.
Three Functions
What does the Holy Spirit do? Why is His func-
tion so crucial that blasphemy against Him is so seri-
ous a sin that it cannot be forgiven?
Jesus said, “But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom
the Father will send in My name, He will teach you
all things, and bring to your remembrance all things
that I said to you” (John 14:26). First, the Holy Spirit
teaches us things—the things we need to know for
our salvation.
Next, besides teaching us all things, Jesus indi-
cated that the Spirit will also “guide you into all truth”
(John 16:13). Every searching student of the Word has
probably experienced this guiding influence of the
Holy Spirit. There can be no true insight into biblical
truth without the enlightenment of this Spirit of God.
Finally, the mission of the Holy Spirit is to con-
vict of sin. Jesus said, “It is to your advantage that I go
away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come
to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you. And
when He has come, He will convict the world of sin,
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and of righteousness, and of judgment” (John 16:7, 8).
It is the special work of the Holy Spirit to reprove us
and convict us of our sin. When wrongs are commit-
ted, the conscience is pricked with a sense of guilt—
that is the work of the Holy Spirit.
Thus, we see that the Holy Spirit 1) teaches us
what we need to know, 2) guides us into truth, and 3)
convicts of sin. This is His work. It is logical, therefore,
to conclude that as long as we allow the Holy Spirit
to teach us, to guide us, and to convict us, we could
never be guilty of committing the unpardonable sin.
But suppose we refuse to acknowledge these
three operations of the Spirit in our personal expe-
rience with God? That is exactly when people begin
to approach the deadly parameters of the worst sin
on record.
A Powerful Example
It is intriguing to study the actual examples of the
unpardonable sin in the Bible record. For instance,
at one time, practically everyone in the world passed
over that point of no return. Here is what the Bible
says about the state of the world before the global
flood: “And the Lord said, ‘My Spirit shall not strive
with man forever, for he is indeed flesh; yet his days
shall be one hundred and twenty years’” (Genesis 6:3,
emphasis added). That’s a scary declaration!
God is saying that at some point, enough is
enough. Look at what the pre-flood people were like:
“Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was
great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts
of his heart was only evil continually. And the Lord
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was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and
He was grieved in His heart” (Genesis 6:5, 6). If every
thought of their hearts was evil, imagine what their
words and deeds were like! They were so bad that God
was even sorry that He had created them.
These texts speak of the antediluvian world,
which perished in the global flood. For more than 100
years, the Holy Spirit pleaded with that wicked gen-
eration through the preaching of Noah. Although the
imagination of nearly every heart was evil continually,
a small remnant responded to the Spirit and entered
the ark. All the rest were swept away in the raging wa-
ters, which covered every inch of the earth’s surface.
After years of patient striving, the Spirit withdrew to
leave the stubborn sinners to their chosen fate.
Could the same thing happen again? There is an
amazing parallel between the days of Noah and today.
Jesus said, “As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be
also in the days of the Son of Man” (Luke 17:26). The
very same excesses of the pre-flood world are being
committed right now in the great cities of our world.
Perversions of the worst degree continue to mark the
carnal course of every nation under the sun as few
seek the safety of God’s hands.
It’s curious, of course. Why did the vast majority
of pre-flood people refuse to enter the ark of safety?
Many of them probably helped Noah construct that
huge vessel; they saw all the animals go aboard peace-
fully. Surely the Holy Spirit stirred them with convic-
tion, but they would not obey the message. Finally,
God said, “Let them alone. My Spirit will no longer
strive with them.”
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Here we see a key issue that should help us un-
derstand the point of no return. God’s Holy Spirit
no longer strove among those people. That is, they
were so hardened in their rejection of the Spirit and
His pleadings with them that God finally had to say
enough is enough—no more.
We also see here at a corporate level what we’re
trying to find on an individual one: what it means to
spurn the Holy Spirit at such a level that nothing more
can be done for us because we have, indeed, reached
the PNR—the point of no return.
How crucial, then, it is for us as individuals to
make sure we don’t make the same mistake that these
people did and fall headlong into the same trap.
Conviction
The good news is that we don’t have to fall into that
trap, not as long as we cooperate with the Holy Spirit
in our lives. Remember, one of the things He does is
convict us of wrongdoing. “When He has come, He
will convict the world of sin” (John 16:8). To refuse,
to reject, and to harden yourself against the convict-
ing influence of the Spirit cannot be something good.
Indeed, as we just saw with those who lived before the
flood, it’s a big step toward crossing the PNR.
Think about it: Is it good to be convicted? If you
are standing in a house that’s caught on fire, your
nerves tell you to run. But if you ignore that pain from
the heat, you’re going to burn. Indeed, pain can be a
healthy thing if it helps you preserve your life, right?
Some unfortunate people have a disease that deadens
the pain nerves in their body. It might sound attractive
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to be unable to experience pain, but the problem is
that the people with this disease sustain all sorts of
injuries the rest of us don’t. For instance, if we were to
put our hand on a hot stove, we would instantly pull it
away. They wouldn’t pull away because they wouldn’t
feel the pain; hence, they would get badly burned in a
way we would not.
Thus pain—conviction—at the right time, in the
right place, is very important. And that’s especially
true when it comes to the work of the Holy Spirit
in bringing to us the conviction of sin. It was the
conviction of the Holy Spirit that led the men to ask
Peter, “What shall we do [to be saved]?” (Acts 2:37).
They were convicted; it was a healthy thing. Yet sup-
pose they were so hardened against the Spirit that
they ignored Peter and his powerful preaching.
One of the most important questions we can ask is,
“What must I do to be saved?” If you don’t ask it, if
you don’t care about being saved, what hope is there
for you?
Indeed, what if you had a son who was regularly
given to cursing, lying, and stealing without any feel-
ings of guilt? Would that not worry you? Wouldn’t
you want your kid’s conscience to bother him about
wrongdoing? You certainly wouldn’t want your son
to feel good, to boast in doing evil! You would want
him to be convicted and to act upon that convic-
tion of wrongdoing, right? It’s an encouraging thing
to see your child feel remorseful about doing wrong.
It’s a sign of growth. But if he’s morally calloused and
doesn’t have any conviction, that’s very dangerous and
any parent should be concerned.
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What Is the Unpardonable Sin?
Perhaps you remember the story in the book of
Exodus about the Pharaoh of Egypt. Talk about some-
one seeing evidence of the Spirit! What monarch saw
more miracles than he did? Moses would even come
and schedule out the miracles. He’d say there was
going to be a divine plague the next day, and it hap-
pened. Pharaoh personally witnessed the power of
God. How stubborn does one have to be to see a pillar
of fire, to see the Red Sea part, to see the Jews march-
ing through the sea, and yet be so bent on resisting
the evidence of God’s Spirit that he would still attack
His people?
Can you imagine how nervous those Egyptian
soldiers were as they saw the sea part and the chil-
dren of Israel pass through it on dry ground? They
could clearly see that God was with those people. “You
want us to do what? You still want us to attack them
after all these plagues to deliver them?” How stubborn
and ornery can someone be? It’s as if you’d have to
be possessed by another spirit, a dark spirit, to be
that obstinate.
Well, Pharaoh was that stubborn, and that is what
destroyed him in the end—along with his entire army.
He allowed his own heart to become hardened. He was
not able to acknowledge that he was wrong. Despite
all the incredible miracles he had seen, despite all the
evidence that he had witnessed, even the death of his
own first-born son, he refused to acknowledge the
power and sovereignty of the living God.
Take a moment to read these powerful words
from the writer E.G. White:
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“God had declared concerning Pharaoh, ‘I will
harden his heart, that he shall not let the peo-
ple go’ (Exodus 4:21). There was no exercise
of supernatural power to harden the heart of
the king. God gave to Pharaoh the most strik-
ing evidence of divine power, but the monarch
stubbornly refused to heed the light. Every
display of infinite power rejected by him,
rendered him the more determined in his re-
bellion. The seeds of rebellion that he sowed
when he rejected the first miracle produced
their harvest. As he continued to venture on
in his own course, going from one degree of
stubbornness to another, his heart became
more and more hardened, until he was called
to look upon the cold, dead faces of the first-
born” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 261).
We’re now seeing more clearly what this blasphe-
my against the Holy Spirit involves. We should also
start to discern that this lethal sin isn’t just one horri-
ble isolated deed, but a constant rejection of the work
that the Holy Spirit is seeking to do in a person’s heart.
John 16:13 says, “The Spirit of truth…will guide
you into all truth.” As we have seen, the Spirit guides
us, teaches us, and convicts us—but that’s just for
starters. For us to obtain forgiveness, what has to hap-
pen? “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to
forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrigh-
teousness” (1 John 1:9).
To receive God’s forgiveness, we must first re-
pent and confess. If we refuse, then we begin to head
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What Is the Unpardonable Sin?
toward the point of no return. But if our hearts are,
like Pharaoh’s, hardened, if we see evidence of God’s
work in our lives but consistently and repeatedly stifle
the conviction that the evidence brings, it’s not likely
that we are going to confess or repent of anything.
How could we?
The Crucial Context
The topic of the unpardonable sin should start to
be clearer now—it’s like Christianity 101. We need to
repent, we need to be convicted, we need to be guided,
we need to know that we have done wrong, and we
need to confess that wrong.
What brings about all these things in our lives? It
is the work of the Holy Spirit alone. Thus, blasphemy
against the Holy Spirit is rejecting and refusing to re-
spond to the leading, the teaching, and the conviction
of the Holy Spirit. It is closing the only door through
which we obtain forgiveness. That’s why it’s the sin
that cannot be forgiven.
Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is the sin for
which we will not repent and confess; hence, it is un-
pardonable, and that is why Jesus spoke so strongly
about it. Let’s look at the context in which Jesus ut-
tered one of His warnings about this sin.
Matthew 12:22 reads, “Then one was brought to
Him who was demon-possessed, blind and mute.”
This person was in bad shape: blind, unable to speak,
and demon-possessed. The verse continues: “And
He healed him, so that the blind and mute man both
spoke and he saw.” The demon was cast out, and the
multitudes were amazed; they asked, “Could this be
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the Son of David?”—in other words, “Could this be
the Messiah?”
Why would they ask that? The evidence was over-
whelming that Jesus had the power of God against the
devil. He liberated and healed the man’s sight and
speech as they all stood there and watched. Imagine
if you were to see a miracle like that right before your
own eyes. Someone blind suddenly being able to see;
someone voiceless suddenly able to speak!
What, though, was the reaction of the Pharisees
when they heard about this miracle? “This fellow does
not cast out demons except by Beelzebub, the ruler
of the demons.” That was a very dangerous attitude
to have in the presence of God’s Son: to disregard the
obvious evidence of the working of God’s Spirit and to
instead call it the working of the devil!
The Pharisees called the work of Jesus the work
of a pagan deity. Beelzebub was a Phoenician god,
about the lowest of the low when it came to gods.
Beelzebub was also known as the “Lord of the Flies,” a
god of filth, because when the Phoenicians saw some
filth, or scum, or even a corpse, they noticed that flies
would land on them and, soon, worms and maggots
would appear. Not knowing about modern science,
they came to the conclusion that the filth and scum
of corpses somehow had the power to give life. They
thought some god must have put that power in there;
thus, they came to worship the “Lord of the Flies,”
Beelzebub. And this was the being that the religious
leaders said gave Jesus His power.
Talk about pushing the envelope.
Talk about blasphemy against the Holy Spirit!
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They were denying the influence and power
of the Holy Spirit. That’s why Jesus—knowing their
thoughts—said,
“Every kingdom divided against itself is
brought to desolation, and every city or house
divided against itself will not stand. If Satan
casts out Satan, he is divided against himself.
How then will his kingdom stand? And if I
cast out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do
your sons cast them out? Therefore they shall
be your judges. But if I cast out demons by the
Spirit of God, surely the kingdom of God has
come upon you” (Matthew 12:25–28).
In other words, “If what I’m doing is of God, then
what are you men really doing and saying? What po-
sition are you taking in regard to what God is doing
in this world? You are ascribing to the devil the work
of the very God you claim to worship and serve.” They
were refusing to acknowledge the obvious demonstra-
tion of God’s Spirit. Look again at His statement in
Matthew 12:28: “But if I cast out demons by the Spirit
of God, surely the kingdom of God has come upon
you.” He was pleading with them! “The kingdom of
God is come to you. Don’t reject it, don’t deny it, and
don’t mislabel it by calling the obvious signs of that
kingdom the work of the devil.”
But Jesus wasn’t finished. He continued,
“How can one enter a strong man’s house and
plunder his goods, unless he first binds the
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strong man? And then he will plunder his
house. He who is not with Me is against Me,
and he who does not gather with Me scatters
abroad” (Matthew 12:29, 30).
What was Jesus saying here? He was telling the
Pharisees, very clearly and unambiguously, that if they
weren’t recognizing His work as the power of God,
then they would eventually be filled with the power of
the devil. There’s no middle ground; we’re on one side
or the other. There is, indeed, a great controversy be-
tween good and evil, Christ and Satan, and we have to
make our choice about whose side we are going to join
in this conflict. And to be blunt: to not choose Christ
is to choose the other side—the devil’s side.
Now comes Jesus’ zinger:
“Therefore I say to you, every sin and blas-
phemy will be forgiven men, but the blas-
phemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven
men. Anyone who speaks a word against the
Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but who-
ever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not
be forgiven him, either in this age or in the
age to come” (Matthew 12:31, 32).
So now we have the full context in which Jesus
makes His statement about the unpardonable sin.
The Pharisees refused to recognize the work of
the Holy Spirit; they rejected the clear work of the
Spirit of God. Don’t miss this point: If we refuse to
acknowledge and recognize the working of the Holy
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Spirit in our lives, then we are at risk of committing the
unpardonable sin.
Remember back in 2010, when those 33 Chilean
miners were trapped 2,300 feet below the surface? A
narrow, deep hole was dug through the rocky earth to
rescue them. If those miners refused to heed the voice
of their helpers, to escape through that tiny tunnel,
they would have surely died. There was no other way
for them to be saved!
Likewise, as we have seen, if the work of the Holy
Spirit is to guide us into knowledge and lead us to
repentance and conviction, and we reject that very
work, we are in danger of committing the unpardon-
able sin because it’s only through that work we can
be brought to repentance, which ultimately leads
to pardon.
One of the best definitions of the unpardonable
sin that I’ve read comes from E.G. White. She writes,
“No one needs look upon the sin against the
Holy Ghost as something mysterious and
indefinable. The sin against the Holy Ghost
is the sin of persistent refusal to respond to
the invitation to repent” (That I Might Know
Him, pg. 243).
That’s it…pure and simple! “The persistent re-
fusal to repent of sin.” That is the unpardonable sin.
Three Wrong Paths
Now that we better understand what the unpar-
donable sin is, the next question arises: How does it
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happen that someone gets in danger of committing it?
It’s fine that we know what it is, but that’s only part of
the issue. What’s just as important is what we need to
do to make sure we don’t commit it!
What happens, then, that causes people to com-
mit the unpardonable sin—to place themselves in a
position where they can’t be saved, where they have
crossed the point of no return? It happens like this …
Almost imperceptibly, the conscience is seared
and the heart is hardened. In fact, this is why it is
counted as such a terrible sin. Sometimes people don’t
understand why God considers this the worst thing
that can be done, but it is because the Holy Spirit is
the only way God can reach an individual with the
message of salvation. That is the way we are led to
repentance. If we did not have the Holy Spirit, there
would be no hope for us, because we have to repent in
order to be forgiven. If we have no sense of our need
of repentance, we won’t do it and, therefore, we won’t
be forgiven.
Again, it’s like a deep-sea diver. His oxygen tank
has the air he needs to live. His dive computer is al-
ways working to let him know when he’s in danger of
running out of air. But if he ignores the computer and
continues to descend when he knows he should start
ascending, he’s going to run out of air and drown. If he
obeys the warnings of his dive computer and makes
his way to the surface, he will live. But he has no way
of knowing that it’s getting dangerous for him but by
his dive computer—so is it wise for him to ignore it?
In the same way, in this sin-darkened world, the only
way God can reach us is through the Holy Spirit.
Beyond Mercy Text.indd 32 8/23/12 11:53 AM 33
What Is the Unpardonable Sin?
In our analogy, God is the air we need to live;
Jesus is the salvation at the surface. The Holy Spirit
is the dive computer—He warns us that our spiritual
tank is running out of God and we need to surface to
Jesus to be saved. But if we turn away from the Spirit,
if we refuse to listen and obey our spiritual dive com-
puter, God will have to let us go; thus, we will be lost.
And it was our choice!
This was why King David was so deeply con-
cerned in his great prayer of contrition. While pour-
ing out his heart to God in Psalm 51, David prayed,
“Do not cast me away from Your presence, and do not
take Your Holy Spirit from me” (verse 11). He realized
that if God removed the Holy Spirit from his life, he
was lost. He would be left alone with no way of being
saved. That’s why Jesus said this sin is the unpardon-
able sin. When you cut yourself off and refuse to listen
to the Holy Spirit, there is no hope for you.
Now, there are three specific ways in which peo-
ple can commit this hopeless sin.
1) The first way is for a person to simply admit
in his life, “I don’t want to be saved; I don’t want to
be bothered with God and the Bible.” Once in a while,
you’ll find a person like this—but not too often. Most
people really want to be saved, but now and then you’ll
find someone who just isn’t interested at all. He’s satis-
fied with his materialistic world even though he knows
it will ultimately lead to a complete dead end for him.
Proverbs 28:13 says: “He who covers his sins will
not prosper, but whoever confesses and forsakes them
will have

God's Creation = 100 /evolution = 0
Every winter, lakes and rivers across the world freeze over. Yet when spring arrives, fish are still alive beneath the ice, plants resume growth, and aquatic ecosystems continue as if nothing catastrophic happened. This survival is not accidental. It depends on a single, highly unusual physical property of water.

Unlike almost every other liquid, water reaches its maximum density at about 4°C. As water cools from warmer temperatures, it becomes denser and sinks until it reaches that point. When it cools further, it begins to expand instead of contract. As a result, colder water stays on top, freezes first, and forms ice that floats rather than sinks.

This floating ice acts as an insulating barrier. It slows further heat loss and prevents the entire body of water from freezing solid. Liquid water remains below the ice, allowing fish and other organisms to survive through the winter. If ice sank instead of floating, lakes would freeze from the bottom up, year after year, eliminating most freshwater life.

This property is not something aquatic life adapted to later. Life depends on it from the outset. The chemistry of water and the physics governing its behavior were already in place before ecosystems existed to benefit from them. Without this precise density relationship, stable freshwater environments would be impossible on a seasonal planet.

Scripture describes creation as being formed with wisdom and order. The behavior of water at 4°C is a quiet but powerful example of that order. A fundamental law of physics operates in exactly the way required to preserve life, long before life could influence it.

That is not an accident of nature.
That is foresight built into creation itself.