BEEBE ON THE UNPARDONABLE SIN...

This is the third of a series of articles on this subject - ed.

Remarks on Brother Rittenhouse's letter to Brother Coulter:

We are glad to hear from our brethren on the subject of the unpardonable sin. And although it is, as we have before stated our own conviction that all the sins of all the family of mankind, which were not laid upon the head of our antitypical scapegoat, and by him borne away, are unpardonable and that there are none saved from hell on the subject of their being less sinful, or of their sins being of a less crimson dye than others. Yet we will not contend against the view of brethren, Trott, Rittenhouse, and Mott, but in the passages just referred to some particular classification of sins may have been alluded to. But we have more honestly confessed that we have entertained a very different view of I John 3.9, 4. We cannot agree to any qualification or improvement of the inspired apostle's testimony. It is our firm belief that whosoever and whatsoever is born of God does not commit sin of any kind or to any extent.

Every regenerated person while in this state of existence, bears about a body of death which is all sin and death, and in it, Paul could find no good thing, and if any say they have no sin, they lie and do not the truth. But that corrupt, depraved body of sin and death is not born of God. It is born of the flesh and is flesh, and it wars against the Spirit. But the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness, is born of the spirit and is Spirit. It is born of an incorruptible seed that lives and abides forever. And as the incorruptible seed abides free from corruption or depravity in whole who are born of God, they cannot sin, because they are born of God and because the abiding seed is incorruptible, or in other words, not susceptible of corruption. Hence when Christians do the things which they would not, they can say with Paul, it is no more either do it, but sin that dwells in me, whatever may have been intended by the sin, shall never be forgiven. We all agree that the children of God are redeemed from all iniquity and that the blood of Jesus Christ cleanses God's children from all sin. Christ is exalted to be a Prince and a savior, to give repentance unto Israel and remission of sin.

Elder Gilbert Beebe

January 1, 1858

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