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Sender's name: Joel T Mank
Holy Scripture does describe Purgatory see below (it does not mention Sola
Scriptura):
Catholics invented Purgatory; the Bible does not mention it. There is another
word that is not in the Bible either and that is the word Trinity. How many
non-Catholics believe in the Trinity? A lot! They believe in what the word
represents being; the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The same goes with the word
Purgatory. The Bible gives evidence of the state of Purgatory as follows:
According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church: "All who die in God's
grace and friendship, but still imperfectly purified, are indeed assured of
their eternal salvation; but after death they undergo purification, so as to
achieve the holiness necessary to enter the joy of heaven."
In Purgatory all remaining love of self is transformed into love of God. As
Rev. 21-27 states, nothing defiled can enter heaven. Prayers from those still
living on earth can help free those who are in Purgatory who are unable to pray
for themselves. The Bible shows the following:
(Mt. 12-32) - that some sins are forgiven in the next world:
(Mt. 12-32) - And whosoever speaketh a word against the Son of Man it shall be
forgiven him: but whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be
forgiven him, neither in this world, neither in the world to come (some sins
can be forgiven after death-where? Purgatory)
(1 Cor 3:13,15) - Every man's work shall be made manifest: for the day shall
declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every
man's work of what sort it is. (15) If any man's work shall be burned, he shall
suffer loss; but he himself shall be saved, yet so as by fire. (the fire is the
purification of Purgatory).
(1 Peter 3:19-20) - By which also he went and preached unto the spirits in
prison; which sometime were disobedient, when once the long suffering of God
waited in the days of Noah.(After Jesus' death he went and preached to the
spirits in prison that were disobedient. Now, these prisoners were not in
Heaven or Hell, where were they? These spirits are in a waiting place being
purified for their disobedience, the place is called Purgatory.)
(2 Machabees, 12-46) - It is therefore a holy and wholesome thought to pray for
the dead that they may be loosed from their sins.
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Let's examine these passages:
Matthew 12:32 is not in this "world" or the next to come, but in this "age" or the one to come. In the original Greek, this passage does not use the word, "ges" (earth, world) or even "cosmos," but "aion" which means age, world order, or even eternity. The present "age" was the present time, the "age to come" was the Christian age.
The passages from 1 Cor 3:13-15 is talking about a testing. It says nothing about a person needing to be purified by these fires. They don't test the person, but the quality of his work. In context, the "work" are his converts. The quality building materials that pass the fire test represents those Christians who are Christ centered and
Let's look at the second passage in context:
"…for you are still fleshly. For since there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not fleshly, and are you not walking like mere men? For when one says, "I am of Paul," and another, "I am of Apollos," are you not {mere} men? What then is Apollos? And what is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, even as the Lord gave {opportunity} to each one. … According to the grace of God which was given to me, like a wise master builder I laid a foundation, and another is building on it. But each man must be careful how he builds on it. For no man can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if any man builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, each man's work will become evident; for the day will show it because it is {to be} revealed with fire, and the fire itself will test the quality of each man's work. If any man's work which he has built on it remains, he will receive a reward. If any man's work is burned up, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire (1 Cor 3:3-15)."
The passage says nothing about a person's being purified by the fires of purgatory. It is a warning against preachers who draw disciples centered on the preacher rather than on Christ. "The day" in verse 13 is referring to a test. The "fire" also reveals a test, NOT a purification. In context, this is talking about a person's converts. A preacher who has converts that are devoted to him rather than to Christ will one day be tested. It could be a preacher's moral failure, emotional failure, or something that causes him to lose his followers. He will naturally suffer loss, but not be lost. On the other hand, preachers who have converted those who follow Christ rather than the preacher will see reward when those converts still remain faithful to Christ regardless of a preacher's shortcomings. This is a warning for preachers to be careful that their followers are following Christ and not them.
Let's look at your third passage from 1 Peter.
"For Christ also died for sins once for all, {the} just for {the} unjust, so that He might bring us to God, having been put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit; in which also He went and made proclamation to the spirits {now} in prison, once were disobedient, when the patience of God kept waiting in the days of Noah, during the construction of the ark, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through {the} water. Corresponding to that, baptism now saves you--not the removal of dirt from the flesh, but an appeal to God for a good conscience--through the resurrection of Jesus Christ (1 Pet 3:18-21),"
Admittedly the reference to those in prison is a difficult one. But notice Christ did not preach to those dead. The passage says only eight were saved. It is possible that this is talking about Christ preaching through Noah. In any case, this is a difficult passage. But it is a huge stretch and embellishment to say that this is talking about purgatory. Nothing in this passage mentions a purifying fire or anything of the sort. It is poor methodology to base an entire doctrine on an enigmatic passage.
The last passage comes from Maccabees, which neither Jews or early Christian considered as scripture. There is no "doctrine" of purgatory in the Christian Bible.
John Telgren
P.O. Box 452
Leavenworth, KS 66048
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