A Sin unto Death

“…There is a sin unto death: I do not say that he shall pray for it. All unrighteousness is sin: and there is a sin not unto death.” (I John 5:16b-17)

John is speaking of physical death, not spiritual death. He is not saying that every sin will bring death, and neither is he saying that every death is a result of the sins of the individual.

In the first church at Jerusalem there was a couple named Ananias and Sapphira who lied, pretending to have brought the entire sum of the sale of some property to the church. They were not commanded to give any of it but they pretended to bring it all. The key to the charge is in the words of Peter to Ananias: “…Why hast thou conceived this thing in thine heart? Thou hast not lied to men, but unto God.” Ananias was immediately stricken and died. A short time later his wife suffered the same fate. (Acts 5:1-11)

In the church at Corinth they had made a drunken brawl out of the Lord’s Supper and many had died as a result. (I Corinthians 11:23-30)

The Bible says that whom the Lord loves He chastens. He chastens His children but He does not chasten the devil’s children any more than you chasten the neighbor’s children. When He chastens one of His own it is intended to result in correction. When one of His children refuses correction God have may have no other choice than to take the offender on home so he does not disgrace the church or Jesus, God’s Son.