There is only one sin that does lead to death, and that one sin
is not accepting forgiveness for your sins from God.
But the wages of every other sin, is death.
There are no minor or major sins.
There is accepting forgiveness for a less than perfect life, and not accepting.
Believing God is not gracious enough, or important enough, or big enough to
be able to forgive your "big deal" sins.....that is blasphemy against the Spirit.
No. The blasphemy of the Holy Spirit is speaking bad words against the Holy Ghost because it is compared to how one can be forgiven if one speaks bad words against the Son of Man (Jesus) in Matthew 12:31-32. That is what the text plainly says.
31 "Wherefore I say unto you, All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men: but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men.
32 And whosoever speaketh a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him: but whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, neither in the world to come." (Matthew 12:31-32).
Please take note of verse 32 above. It says whosoever speaketh a word against the Son of man it shall be forgiven him. This is the contrast with the blasphemy (or speaking bad words) against the Holy Ghost in verse 31. You know how people curse the name of Jesus? This is what it is talking about in reference to the Holy Ghost by way of contrast. But when I talk with OSAS proponents, they believe Matthew 12:31-32 says something other than what the text normally says. For anyone reading the text normally is not going to come away with such an odd interpretation unless they have been told that by an OSAS teacher.
You also say there are no minor sins or major sins:
The Bible teaches that there are...
You said:
1 John 5:16-17
If anyone sees his brother committing a sin not leading to death, he shall ask, and God will give him life—to those who commit sins that do not lead to death. There is sin that leads to death; I do not say that one should pray for that. All wrongdoing is sin, but there is sin that does not lead to death.
So what exactly is the sin not leading unto death?
I believe it is sin that is honestly confessed to the Lord Jesus Christ with a godly sorrow and with the intention that they will seek to overcome such a sin.
What exactly is the "life" that the other believers are giving to this believer who is committing a sin not unto death?
I believe the word "life" is synonymous with the word "victory."
What is happening here is that a believer is struggling in trying to overcome a particular grievous sin (like lying, lusting, hating, etc.) is confessing their sin to the Lord Jesus Christ (to maintain their forgiveness) and the other brethren are trying to help this brother by praying for him to have victory or life in overcoming this sin. For without holiness, no man shall see the Lord (See: Hebrews 12:14).
The sin unto death would be unconfessed sin that is done willfully (i.e. intentionally with no real remorse or desire in becoming holy or living for the Lord).
"For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins," (Hebrews 10:26).
You said:
1 John 1:9
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
Right, 1 John 1:9 plays a part in 1 John 5:16-17 with the believer who is struggling with trying to overcome a certain sin. They can be cleansed of all unrighteousness by confessing their sin. But other believers are praying for this struggling believer in 1 John 5 so that they may have life or victory over their sin.
But 1 John 1:9 makes very little sense in the OSAS worldview. OSAS proponents believe future sin is forgiven them. But if such is the case, then there would be no need to ever confess of sin to be forgiven of sin if all your future sin was paid for.
You said:
1 John 1:8
If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
1 John 1:8 gets misquoted out of context a lot.
What is helpful in understanding 1 John 1:8 is looking at a related verse nearby. 1 John 1:10 says if we say we have not sinned. 1 John 1:10 switches gears from 1 John 1:8 in regards to time; John talks about the declaration on committing sin in verse 8 (which is present tense) to a declaration on committing sin being a past declaration (with verse 10). Verse 10 is saying there are people who said they have not sinned (past tense). This is clearly a gnostic belief. Why? Well, most believers today hold to the idea that they have sinned as a part of their old life before coming to Christ (Regardless of whether they are “OSAS,” a “Sin and still be saved” type believer, or a “Conditional Salvationist”). For we both agree on 1 John 1:10 that we have sinned as a part of our past life. So this clearly is a “gnostic belief” that John was warning the brethren about (See 1 John 2:26). 1 John 1:8 is a present declaration of sin. It is saying if we say we have no sin when we do sin (present tense). This has to be the interpretative understanding of this verse because 1 John 2:4 says if we say we know Him and do not keep His commandments we are a liar and the truth is not in us. The OSAS's interpretation on 1 John 1:8 does not work because it conflicts with a normal reading on 1 John 2:3-4. You cannot always be in sin (breaking God's commands) as a part of 1 John 1:8 and yet also fulfill 1 John 2:3 that says we can have an assurance of knowing Him if we keep His commandments. Especially when 1 John 2:4 says we are a liar and the truth is not in us if we break his commandments. In other words, if the OSAS interpretation on 1 John 1:8 was true, then I would be damned if I do by obeying God's commands (1 John 1:8) and yet I would be damned if I don't by not obeying God's commands (1 John 2:4).
In fact, the New English Translation says this for 1 John 1:8,
"If we say we do not bear the guilt of sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us." (1 John 1:8 NET).
In other words, this verse is saying that if a person sins and says they do not bear the guilt of sin (in the sense that they will not have to face any wrath or Judgment from God over their sin) then they would be deceiving themselves and the truth would not be in them. This is exactly what the Eternal Security proposes. They are saying that they do not bear the guilt of any sin (destruction of their soul and body in hell fire) if they do sin because they believe their future sins are paid for by Jesus. They are saying, they do not bear the guilt or the punishment of sin at the final Judgment because of their belief on Jesus. In short, 1 John 1:8 is a denial of the existence of sin on some level. “If we say we have no sin (in the sense that it does not exist) we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.” (1 John 1:8). Christian Scientists think sin is an illusion and does not exist at all. So this verse would apply to them. Eternal Security Proponents and those who deny that “Sin Can Separate a Believer from God” deny the existence of sin partially. They believe sin exists physically but they do not believe sin exists for them on a spiritual level because Jesus has forgiven them of all their sin by their belief on Jesus. In fact, to see just how silly your argument actually is for 1 John 1:8, you would have to believe that you are sinning right now at this very moment in order for such a verse to be true because 1 John 1:8 is speaking in the present tense.
You said:
Matthew 12:32
And whoever
speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come.
Again, I highlighted the words in the Bible for you here that show that it is speaking bad words against as the frame of the context here. It is not talking about rejecting the Lord in this life as many OSAS proponents falsely assert (with no evidence in Scripture).
You said:
Hebrews 10:26
For if we go on sinning deliberately after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins,
Odd, you are using the very verse that helps to explain 1 John 5:16-17 but I do not think you understand it the same way I do here. What exactly does this verse mean from your perspective? I believe Hebrews 10:26 is referring to a person who already has knowledge of the truth of God's Word and they keep on sinning deliberately anyways. I do not believe it is talking about the imaginary OSAS version of the blasphemy of the Spirit here that refers to rejecting the Lord. A person who rejects the Lord has not received the knowledge of the truth; Or do you have some other interpretation on this verse? If so, please explain.
You said:
Romans 6:23
For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Right, Jesus Christ is the gift. We have to abide in Christ to have life. For 1 John 5:12 says he that has the Son, has life, and he that does not have the Son, does not have life. Jesus talks about how we need to abide in the vine (Him) in John 15. The branch (believer) who does not abide in Him is cut off and thrown into the fire. The fire is the Lake of Fire. We can be cut off if we do not continue in his goodness. This is what Romans 11:21-22 says.
So Romans 6:23 is true. The wages of sin is still death. God's grace is not a license for immorality (Jude 1:4). Titus 2:11-12 says that God's grace teaches us to deny ungodliness and that we should live righteously and godly in this present world. But the OSAS version of God's grace teaches something different. It says you cannot lose salvation even if you sin. So this encourages one to minimize the consequences of sin (Which is death, i.e. spiritual death).
Luke 12:10
And everyone
who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but the one who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven.
Matthew 12:31
Therefore I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven people, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven.
Again, I am highlighting the words to show you what this verse is really saying. Again, an example of a person who speaks a word against the Son of Man is when a person curses the name of Jesus. We see it happen all the time with unbelievers. So this is the context or contrast of the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit.