In the preceding pages we have briefly shown the extreme penalty for willful sin. Adam's penalty, which involved his entire race, was of this sort; and only as the result of Christ's death as our ransom from the penalty of that willful sin is any forgiveness of it or subsequent sins possible.

Forgivable sins are those which result from weaknesses incurred through that one Adamic sin which Christ settled once for all. They are such as are not willful, but are committed through ignorance or weaknesses of the flesh. God stands pledged to forgive all such sins upon our repentance, in the name and merit of Christ's sacrifice.

Unpardonable sins, sins which cannot be forgiven, are such as are willfully done. As the penalty of the first willful sin was death extinction of being so death is the penalty of every willful sin against full knowledge and ability to choose and to do the right. This is called Second Death, in distinction from the former or Adamic penalty, from which Christ's ransom sacrifice will release all mankind.

The "sin unto (second) death," for the forgiveness of which the Apostle declares it is useless to pray (1 John 5:16), is not only a willful sin, but a sin against clear knowledge; a sin for which no adequate excuse can be found. Because it is a sin against clear knowledge, or enlightenment in holiness, it is called the "sin against the holy Spirit" (Matt. 12:31, 32), for which there is no forgiveness. But there are other partly willful sins, which are, therefore, partly unpardonable. In such the temptations within and without (all of which are directly or indirectly results of the fall) have a share the will consenting under the pressure of the temptation or because of the weakness. The Lord alone knows how to properly estimate our responsibilities and guilt in such cases. But to the true child of God there is but one proper course to take repentance and an appeal for mercy in the name and merit of Christ, the great sacrifice for sin. The Lord will forgive such a penitent, in the sense of restoring him to his favor; but he will be made to suffer "stripes" (Luke 12:47, 48) for the sin, in proportion as God sees it to have been willfully committed.

Not infrequently a conscientious person realizes that he has committed sin, and that it had some willfulness in [HGL444] it. He properly feels condemned, guilty before God; realizing his own guilt and forgetting the fountain for sin and uncleanness, opened by God for our weak, fallen race, he falls into a state of sadness, believing that he has committed the sin unto death. Such wander in deserts drear, until they find the cleansing fountain. Let such remember, however, that the very facts of their sorrow for sin and their desire to return to divine favor are proofs that they have not committed the sin unto death; for the Apostle declares that those who have committed sin of this sort cannot be renewed unto repentance. (Heb. 6:6) Penitents, then, may always feel confident that their sins were in part, at least, results of the fall, and hence not unto death, but requiring forgiveness and stripes.

While the Scriptures teach that the present Gospel Age is the Church's Judgment Day or period of trial, and that the world's Judgment-day or time of trial will be the Millennial age, it is, nevertheless, a reasonable question to ask To what extent will those who are not of the consecrated Church be held responsible in the Millennial age for their misdeeds of cruelty, dishonesty and immorality of the present time? And to what extent will those of the same class then be rewarded for present efforts to live moral and benevolent lives?

These are important questions, especially to the world; and well would it be for them if they could realize their importance, and profit thereby. They are important also to the Church, because of our interest in the world, and because of our desire to understand and teach correctly our Father's plans.

We have learned that the sacrifice of Christ secures for all mankind, however vile, an awakening from death, and the privilege of thereafter coming to perfection, and, if they will, of living forever. "There shall be a resurrection of the dead, both of the just and the unjust." (Acts 24:15) The object of their being again brought into existence will be to give them a favorable opportunity to secure everlasting life, on the conditions which God requires obedience to his righteous will. We have no intimation whatever in the Scriptures that, when awakened, the moral condition of men will have changed; but we have much, in both reason and revelation, to show that as they went into death weak and depraved, so they will come out of it. As there is "no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom in the grave" (Eccl. 9:10), they will have learned nothing; and since they were sinners and unworthy of life and divine favor when they died, they will still be unworthy; and as they have received neither full rewards nor full punishments for the deeds of the present life, it is evident that just such a time of awakening as God has promised during the Millennium is necessary for rewarding, and punishing, and giving to all mankind the opportunity for eternal life secured by Christ's great ransom sacrifice.

While, strictly speaking, the world is not now on trial that is, the present is not the time for its full and complete trial, yet men are not now, nor have they ever been, entirely without light and ability, for the use of which they are accountable. In the darkest days of the world's history, and in the deepest degradation of savage life, there has always been at least a measure of the light of conscience pointing more or less directly to righteousness and virtue. That the deeds of the present life have much to do with the future, Paul taught very clearly when, before Felix, he reasoned of justice and self-government, in view of the judgment to come, so that Felix trembled. Acts 24:25, Diaglott translation.

The varied circumstances and opportunities of men, in this and past ages, indicate that a just judgment will recognize differences in the degree of individual responsibility, which will also necessitate differences in the Lord's future dealings with them. And this reasonable deduction we find clearly confirmed by the Scriptures. The Judge has been, and still is, taking minute cognizance of men's actions and words (Prov. 5:21), although they have been entirely unaware of it; and he declares that "every idle ('pernicious,' injurious or malicious)word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment" (Matt. 12:36); and that even a cup of cold water, given to one of his little ones, because he is Christ's, shall in nowise lose its reward. (Matt. 10:42) The context shows that the "pernicious" words to which Jesus referred were words of willful and malicious opposition spoken against manifest light. (Matt. 12:24, 31, 32) He also affirmed that it would be more tolerable for Tyre, Sidon and Sodom in the day of judgment than for Chorazin, Bethsaida and Capernaum, which had misimproved greater advantages of light and opportunity. Matt. 11:20-24

In the very nature of things, we can see that the punishments of that age will be in proportion to past guilt. Every sin indulged, and every evil propensity cultivated, hardens the heart and makes the way back to purity and virtue more difficult. Consequently, sins willfully indulged now, will require punishment and discipline in the age to come; and the more deeply the soul is dyed in willing sin the more severe will be the measures required to correct it. As a wise parent would punish a wayward child, so Christ will punish the wicked for their good.

If professed Christians would be honest with themselves and true to God, they would soon learn that "their fear toward God is taught by the precepts of men." (Isa. 29:13) If all would decide to let God be true though it should prove every man a liar (Rom. 3:4), and show all human creeds to be imperfect and misleading, there would be a great creed-smashing work done very shortly. Then the Bible would be studied and appreciated as never before; and its testimony that the wages of sin is death (extinction) would be recognized as a "just recompense of reward."