This document provides a summary of Mark 3:20-35 from a sermon given at First Baptist Church in Jackson, Mississippi. It discusses Jesus being accused of casting out demons through the power of Satan. Jesus refutes this claim through parables, explaining that Satan would not work to defeat his own kingdom. The document also examines the unforgivable sin of blasphemy against the Holy Spirit and defines Jesus' family as those who do God's will. It concludes with the plan of salvation through faith in Jesus Christ.

1. Mark 3:20-35
The Sin That Will Not Be Forgiven
March 17, 2019
First Baptist Church
Jackson, Mississippi
USA
What’s the number one thing?
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The Glory of God!
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1 Corinthians 10:31 NIV
31 So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.
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2. March Memory Verse
Isaiah 41:10 NIV
10 So do not fear, for I am with you;
do not be dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you and help you;
I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.
References
• NIV Study Bible (Grand Rapids, Zondervan Publishing, 1985).
• ESV Study Bible (Wheaton, IL, Crossway, 2008).
• Hobbs, Herschel H., Fundamentals of Our Faith, (Nashville, TN, Broadman
Press, 1960).
• Sproul, R.C., St. Andrew’s Expositional Commentary on Mark (Sanford, FL,
Reformation Trust, 2011).
Introduction to the Gospel According to Mark
• John Mark was the writer for Peter’s account of Jesus’ life recorded in the
‘Gospel According to Mark.’
• Gospel of Mark was written in Rome with Peter in 53-55 AD.
• John Mark was not a disciple or an eyewitness.
• This writing records more details of the events in Jesus’ life rather than the
actual words.
The Setting of Mark 3:20-35 is Capernaum
Capernaum in Galilee
• A thriving fishing village on the northwest corner of the Sea of Galilee.
• Hometown to Peter, Andrew, James, John and Matthew.
• Jesus moved his ministry from Nazareth 20 miles northeast to Capernaum.
• There was a local synagogue where Jesus taught and worshipped.

3. Introduction to Mark 3:20-35
• Great crowds from Galilee, Judea, Jerusalem and Idumea are following
Jesus seeking healing.
• The Pharisees and Herodians are seeking ways to destroy Jesus’ ministry.
• Jesus’ Disciples are accompanying Him.
Jesus’ Ministry – Preaching, Healing and Driving Out Demons.
• Mark 1:34 NIV
34 and Jesus healed many who had various diseases. He also drove out
many demons, but he would not let the demons speak because they
knew who he was.
• Mark 1:39 NIV
39 So he traveled throughout Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and
driving out demons.

4. The demons of Satan recognize Jesus as God and obey Him.
• Mark 1:23-25 NIV
23 Just then a man in their synagogue who was possessed by an evil spirit
cried out, 24 “What do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you
come to destroy us? I know who you are – the Holy One of God.” 25 “Be
quiet!” said Jesus sternly. “Come out of him!”
• Mark 3:11 NIV
11 Whenever the evil spirits saw him, they fell down before him and cried
out, “You are the Son of God.”
Mark 3:20-21 NIV
20 Then Jesus entered a house, and again a crowd gathered, so that he and his
disciples were not even able to eat. 21 When his family heard about this, they
went to take charge of him, for they said, “He is out of his mind.”
An Intervention Attempt by Jesus’ Family:
• Jesus’ family were not believers of his deity at this time; they became
believers after the resurrection.
• They came from Nazareth to Capernaum to rescue Jesus.
• They were fearful for his life based on threats and rumors in the area.
• Jesus was unable to even eat because of the crowds.
Jesus’ Family:
• Mark 6:3 NIV
3 Isn’t this the carpenter? Isn’t this Mary’s son and the brother of James,
Joseph, Judas and Simon? Aren’t his sisters here with us?” And they took
offense at him.
• Jesus’ earthly father, Joseph, is assumed to not be alive since he is not
mentioned in scripture after Jesus is 12 years-old (Luke 2:41-52).
Mark 3:22 NIV
22 And the teachers of the law who came down from Jerusalem said, “He is
possessed by Beelzebub! By the prince of demons he is driving out demons.”
• The Jerusalem teachers (scribes) traveled 90 miles to witness and discredit
Jesus.

5. Who is Beelzebub?
• 1st reference:
2 Kings 1:2 NKJV
2 Now Ahaziah fell through the lattice of his upper room in Samaria, and
was injured; so he sent messengers and said to them, “Go, inquire of Baal-
Zebub, the god of Ekron, whether I shall recover from this injury.”
• Pagan god of the Philistine city, Ekron.
• Associated with the Philistine god named Baal.
• Baal-Zebub actually means “lord of the flies.”
• Beelzebub actually means “lord of the flies.”
• Beelzebub was considered a demigod, a lesser deity who ruled over filth,
carrion, and flies.
• The title of the book, “The Lord of the Flies” is a takeoff on this title for
Beelzebub.
• The name came to be used for Satan or prince of his demons, but no clear
scriptural reference.
Beelzebub or Beelzebul?
• Some manuscripts indicate the word used by the scribes was “Beelzebul”,
which is a reference to the god Baal, who was considered the lord of all
the demonic realm.
• In this case, the title would be for Satan himself.
• Mark 3:22 supports this by saying, “By the price of demons, he is driving
out demons.”
Who is Lucifer?
• There is no scripture that exactly says that Lucifer is Satan, but references
are strong.
• Isaiah 14:12 NKJV
12 “How you are fallen from heaven,
O Lucifer, son of the morning!
How you are cut down to the ground,
You who weakened the nations!
• Theory – Beelzebul and Beelzebub are derogatory nicknames for Satan.
What were the teachers (scribes) from Jerusalem saying about Jesus?
• They ascribed the power of Jesus for healing and driving out demons as
coming from Satan.
• They refused to believe that an uneducated carpenter from Nazareth
could do such things and possess God’s power.
• They were wrong in their theology that Satan has the power to perform a
bona fide miracle.

6. Can Satan perform miracles?
• Satan is a created being (angel) who sinned against God, and only has
the power that God allows him.
• 2 Thessalonians 2:9 NIV
9 The coming of the lawless one will be in accordance with how Satan
works. He will use all sorts of displays of power through signs and wonders
that serve the lie,
• Satan’s works are lying signs and wonders that are counterfeits.
Mark 3:23-26 NIV
23 So Jesus called them and spoke to them in parables: “How can Satan drive
out Satan? 24 If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.
25 If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand. 26 And if Satan
opposes himself and is divided, he cannot stand; his end has come.
Jesus gathers the teachers (Scribes).
• Jesus shows the scribes the absurdity of their theory.
• Satan would never allow his power to be used to defeat his minions.
• A house or kingdom that divides itself loses its power.
• If Satan was allowing Jesus to drive out his own demons, he was fighting
against himself.
• This was an illogical accusation.
Mark 3:27 NIV
27 In fact, no one can enter a strong man’s house and carry off his possessions
unless he first ties up the strong man. Then he can rob his house.
Jesus’ 2nd Parable:
• Jesus was alluding to His own ministry here.
• He had broken into the domain of Satan by coming to earth and bound
him.
• Jesus had rendered Satan impotent to prevent the plundering of Satan’s
house (earth).
• Jesus’ power over evil spirits was evidence that He was not working by the
power of Satan but was working against Satan.
Mark 3:28 NIV
28 I tell you the truth, all sins and blasphemies of men will be forgiven them.
• The NIV says, “I tell you the truth,”; The ESV says, “Truly, I say to you,”; and
the NKJV says, “Assuredly, I say to you,”.
• Jesus was making a point about the truth and strength of His words that
follow this disclaimer.

7. “I tell you the truth, all the sins and blasphemies of men will be forgiven them.”
• All = There is no specific sin that cannot be forgiven when a person
repents and seeks forgiveness.
• All means every sin – murder, sexual sin, theft, etc.
• Every sin.
• Blasphemy is speaking a word against God.
• Blasphemy is the opposite of praise.
Salvation is through Jesus.
• John 6:40 NIV
40 “For my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes
in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day.”
• Acts 16:31 NIV
31 They replied, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and
your household.”
Mark 3:29-30 NIV
29 But whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven; he is
guilty of an eternal sin.” 30 He said this because they were saying, “He has an evil
spirit.”
Matthew’s Account of Jesus’ Words:
• Matthew 12:31-32 NIV
31 And so I tell you, every kind of sin and slander can be forgiven, but
blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. 32 Anyone who speaks a
word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone who speaks
against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to
come.
Luke’s Account of Jesus’ Words:
• Luke 12:10 NIV
10 And everyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be
forgiven, but anyone who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will not be
forgiven.
What is Jesus saying here?
• If a person persistently attributes to Satan what is accomplished by the
power of the Holy Spirit, then the person never has forgiveness.
• If one makes a flagrant, willful, decisive judgment that the Spirit’s
testimony about Jesus is satanic, forgiveness will not be given.

8. Is there a distinction between the blasphemy of the ‘Son of Man’ and the ‘Holy
Spirit’? Yes!
• One who asks to be forgiven for disrespectful words hastily spoken against
Jesus (Son of Man) will be forgiven.
• Peter’s rejection of Jesus (Luke 22:54-62) and his subsequent restoration
(John 21:15-19).
• Jesus asking God to forgive the people who mocked Him on the cross
in Luke 23:34.
• Jesus (Son of Man) while present on earth was able to forgive sins against
God and committed against him.
• The Holy Spirit was present in Jesus while in human form on earth.
• After the crucifixion and resurrection, the Holy Spirit was sent in Jesus’
name as the Counselor to teach followers and call people to Christ.
The Sin That Will Not Be Forgiven – Blasphemy Against the Holy Spirit.
• The willful, persistent and unrepentant rejection against the work of the
Holy Spirit and his message concerning Jesus.
• Acts 7:54 NIV
51 “You stiff-necked people! Your hearts and ears are still uncircumcised.
You are just like your ancestors: You always resist the Holy Spirit!”
• The person who persists in hardening his heart against God, against the
work of the Holy Spirit, and against the provision of Jesus Christ as Savior, is
outside the reach of God’s provision for forgiveness and salvation.
• 1 John 5:16c NIV
16c There is a sin that leads to death.
• When a person rejects the call of the Holy Spirit to accept Christ as Savior,
he/she is dishonoring God (committing blasphemy against the Holy Spirit)
by saying I am my own savior, I am exercising my right to myself – (I will
do this my way).
• You remain in a state of willful and determined opposition to the power of
the Holy Spirit.
The Holy Spirit’s work with lost people.
1. Conviction:
John 16:8-9 NIV
8 When he comes, he will prove the world to be in the wrong about sin and
righteousness and judgment: 9 about sin, because people do not believe
in me;
• The Holy Spirit shows man the awfulness of sin and what it does.
• The Holy Spirit brings man to realize that he is a sinner and the greatest
sin is unbelief in Jesus.

9. The Holy Spirit’s work with lost people.
2. Righteousness:
John 16:10 NIV
10 about righteousness, because I am going to the Father, where you can
see me no longer;
• The Holy Spirit leads man to see that compared to Christ’s
righteousness, his self-righteousness is as filthy rags (Isaiah 64:6).
• The Holy Spirit shows man the righteousness of God which is not by
works but by faith in Jesus (Romans 1:16-17).
3. Judgment:
John 16:11 NIV
11 and about judgment, because the prince of this world now stands
condemned.
• Man is led to admit the righteous judgment of God upon him because
of his sins.
• Man rejects Christ and is condemned to hell or accepts Christ and is
assured of heaven.
What happens when someone accepts Christ?
1. Regeneration:
You are born of the Holy Spirit.
John 1:12 NIV
12 Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he
gave the right to become children of God—
2. Seals the believer unto redemption:
2 Corinthians 1:21-22 NIV
21 Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ. He
anointed us, 22 set his seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our
hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.
3. Assurance of Salvation:
1 John 5:11-12 NIV
11 And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in
his Son. 12 Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of
God does not have life.

10. Mark 3:31-35 NIV
Jesus’ Family Arrives
31 Then Jesus’ mother and brothers arrived. Standing outside, they sent someone
in to call him. 32 A crowd was sitting around him, and they told him, “Your mother
and brothers are outside looking for you.”
33 “Who are my mother and brothers?” he asked.
34 Then he looked at those seated in a circle around him and said, “Here are my
mother and my brothers! 35 Whoever does God’s will is my brother and sister and
mother.”
Who is God’s Family?
• Jesus used his earthy family to illustrate the inclusion of His followers into
God’s spiritual family.
• Inclusion is based on obedience and being a believer in Jesus.
• Scripture does not tell us the reaction of Jesus’ earthly family to this
comment.
Can a Christian commit the sin that will not be forgiven?
• No!!!
• Anyone who has truly accepted Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior
through the work of the Holy Spirit is sealed and is unable to commit the
sin that will not be forgiven.
The Plan of Hope & Salvation:
John 3:16 NIV
16 “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever
believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”
John 14:6 NIV
6 Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the
Father except through Me.”
Romans 3:23 NIV
23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
Romans 6:23a NIV
23a For the wages of sin is death,
• Death in this life (the first death) is 100%.
• Even Jesus, the one who doesn’t deserve death, died in this life to pay the
penalty for our sin.
• The death referred to in Romans 6:23a is the “second death” explained in
Revelation 21:8.

11. Revelation 21:8 NIV
8 “But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually
immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars—they will be
consigned to the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.”
• Anyone who’s lifestyle is one or more of the sins listed in Revelation 21:8,
will experience the “second death” if they do not repent.
• To Repent means to turn around, to go in the opposite direction, to turn
away from sin and to come to Jesus.
Romans 5:8 NIV
8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners,
Christ died for us.
Romans 6:23b NIV
23b but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Revelation 21:7 NIV
7 “Those who are victorious will inherit all this, and I will be their God and they will
be my children.”
• Romans 10:9-10 explains to us how to be victorious.
Romans 10:9-10 NIV
9 If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that
God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For it is with your heart that
you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith
and are saved.
Romans 10:13 NIV
13 for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
Do you have questions?
Would you like to know more?
Please, contact First Baptist Church Jackson at 601-949-1900 or
http://firstbaptistjackson.org/contact/

12. Sunday
http://tse2.mm.bing.net/th?id=JN.YeZK4m9R0ZovA7PRca4vag&pid=15.1
Mark 5:21-24; 35-43
Restores
March 24, 2018
First Baptist Church
Jackson, Mississippi
USA