confessed his sin and asked for forgiveness, then the Society can help that one to get back in the right road and continue to be a servant of the Lord. If the action does not affect a company or other individual in it, there is no reason to make any notification or public announcement of it.

28. How far can we go in letting the sinner come back, and why?

²⁸ What we must have in mind is this: we can show mercy to those who are of a contrite heart, and we can help them if we want to. But how far can we go in letting these individuals come back into the Lord’s organization? How far can we let the bars down? We cannot let the bars down at all to those who do not reform. We must keep in mind that the organization must remain clean for undefiled worship of the Most High. We must keep in mind the vindication of Jehovah’s sovereignty and name and the vindication of his Word. We must keep in mind the life of Christ and our walking in his footsteps, and the standard that he set. We must keep in mind our position as Jehovah’s witnesses. The disfellowshiped person did not keep these things in mind, and that is why he was removed from the congregation. That is why he was disfellowshiped. But now if he realizes that pure, undefiled, clean worship is the important thing, that the vindication of God’s name is more important than doing things his own way, when he sees that all this is necessary and he must live accordingly, then we can accept him back in the congregation.

Sin Making Reinstatement Impossible

 1. What shows there are forgivable sins, but what sins may not be dismissed with unconcern?

THERE are sins that can be forgiven. We ask forgiveness for them every day if we pray in the way Jesus taught us, for we say in the Lord’s prayer, “Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.” (Matt. 6:12, NW) We can forgive certain sins. That is, we can forgive the other person’s trespasses against us. We cannot wipe them out and make him clean again. No, but when a person asks for forgiveness we can give it to him. In Galatians 6:1 (NW) it says: “Brothers, even though a man takes some false step before he is aware of it, you who have spiritual qualifications try to restore such a man in a spirit of mildness, as you each keep an eye on yourself, for fear you also may be tempted.” So we have a responsibility upon us to go to these individual sinners, or, when they come to us, to help them stay in the right way even before disfellowshiping ever takes place. We can forgive them. We can help them, if their heart is right and they show it. But if they do not show it and if the sin vitally affects the congregation, there is no reason why we should overlook it and say: “Well, we’ll forget it this time.” We cannot, for the sake of that individual and for the sake of the congregation.

 2. What did Jesus say was an unforgivable sin, and who can commit it?

² The only sin that cannot be forgiven is the sinning against the holy spirit. Christ