Mortal Sin 死に至る罪

”死に至らない罪を犯している兄弟を見たら、その人のために神にお願いなさい。　そうすれば、神はその人に命をお与えになります。これは、死に至らない罪を犯している人々の場合です。死に至る罪もあります。これについては、神に願うようにとは言いません。
不義はすべて罪です。しかし、死に至らない罪もあります。”（ヨハネの手紙一　５：１６－１７）
"If any one sees his brother committing what is not a mortal sin, he will ask, and God will give him life for those whose sin is not mortal. There is sin which is mortal; I do not say that one is to pray for that.
All wrongdoing is sin, but there is sin which is not mortal." (1 John 5:16-17)

I kind of had an epiphany with these verses. I was trying to understand purgatory because, while it was obvious to me that there's a need for the expiation of the temporal effects of sins, why there might be a need to forgive sins after death was beyond me. This is the answer: that we may still be alive in Christ but wounded. After all, there are sins that don't kill or rather are not mortal. So, someone could potentially die while still in a non-fatal state of sin. A soul in such a damaged state would be much like a dirty beggar who is entering into the Palace of Heaven. "But sir, might I not be cleansed first?" is all I can imagine being said by such a person. Certainly God "who makes all things new" would renew such a person. That period of renewal is what Catholics call Purgatory. As I may have mentioned before, the length of time one is in purgatory is unknown but it is a temporary state.

”神を愛するとは、神の掟を守ることです。神の掟は難しいものではありません。”（ヨハネの手紙一　５：３）
"For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome." (1 John 5:3)

Read 1 John 5 if you ever get the chance, it's just beautiful. We all know that in order to love God we have to keep His commands, but what does this verse mean by His commandments are not burdensome? I am reminded of another verse:"For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light."(Matthew 11:30) I like to think this is essentially God speaking of "freedom under the law." That is to say that if you truly love God you will be keeping his commands and because keeping his command will be so natural for you, you will find no weight in that burden.
After all, just as someone who truly desires to love God will find no burden in his commandments, so too someone who wants to play a game of chess will find no burden in the rules of the game.