The standards of God are so high that one error automatically disqualifies the entire scheme, and this is a doctrinal error that disqualifies nearly 90% of all protestant institutions as pagan and a lie just as their mother, the pagan Catholic Church.
The Catechism of the Catholic Church defines purgatory as a “purification, so as to achieve the holiness necessary to enter the joy of heaven,” which is experienced by those “who die in God’s grace and friendship, but still imperfectly purified” (CCC 1030). It notes that “this final purification of the elect . . . is entirely different from the punishment of the damned” (CCC 1031). Source Catholic.com
The summary of the doctrine on purgatory is that we all are sinners, and upon death, each of us have a debt to pay before going to heaven. Now the duration of that debt paying period is determined by a comparison between your sins and your good acts while on earth. This doctrine is also extended to include the doctrine of indulgences.
An indulgence is the extra-sacramental remission of the temporal punishment due, in God’s justice, to sin that has been forgiven, which remission is granted by the Church in the exercise of the power of the keys, through the application of the superabundant merits of Christ and of the saints, and for some just and reasonable motive. Source Catholic Bible
Again in a jist, it means that while on earth you can gain this indulgence which is ‘extra’ and above the death of Christ on the cross, which will be a ‘deposit’ of sorts for when you get to purgatory. In layman terms, if you had 50yrs in purgatory to cleanse yourself of sins, then with indulgences, that period can reduce depending on the ‘value’ of the indulgence provided.
The Catholic Church is so rich because at some point they were selling these indulgences even to ‘dead loved ones’. Here are some Catholic Websites that teach “How to pray for the dead”. One, Two, Three.
Well that is the Catholic teaching. That even with the death of Christ, some still have some ‘guilt’ that should be first cleansed before stepping into heaven. Most pagan protestant Churches agree with this false doctrine in partiality (which to God still means total rejection).
While they agree that after death there is life in heaven or torture in hell, they fail to agree on the timing. According to most doctrines, after death, basically it is one of the two places you are headed – but immediately. These Christians will deny the existence of a place of ‘temporary’ torture, though they still believe that prayers for the ‘sins’ of the dead can be remitted and such persons still enter heaven.
But what does the Bible speak on this?
First of all, the state of the dead is defined as sleep. Life, the life we live is the breathe of God.
Genesis 2:7 And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.
Job 27:3 All the while my breath is in me, and the spirit of God is in my nostrils.
Ecclesiastes 12:6 Or ever the silver cord be loosed, or the golden bowl be broken, or the pitcher be broken at the fountain, or the wheel broken at the cistern.
7 Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it.Luke 23:46 And when Jesus had cried with a loud voice, he said, Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit: and having said thus, he gave up the ghost.
In other words, each of us when created we have the breathe of God and the Spirit of God, think of it like signing up for an account on Facebook. Your password say is your Spirit, it comes from God and unique in each and every one of us. Jer 1:5 Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee;
So when we die, this ‘account’ is pulled back and deactivated temporarily. Wait, am I making this stuff up? Let us ask the Bible.
2Pe 2:4 For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment;
2Pe 2:9 The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished:
Get that? God ‘reserves’ the unjust, until the day of judgement. Which day is that?
Rev 20:12 And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.
Rev 20:13 And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works.
So those who died while unjust are not punished today, they are NOT going through punishment the second after their death, no. The Bible says they are ‘reserved’ for a specific day and moment when all of them, from the earth and the seas are raised for their ‘individual’ judgement.
What about those who are alive in Christ?
1Co 15:51 Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed,
1Co 15:52 In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.1Th 4:16 For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:
1Th 4:17 Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
Christ made a promise that
Joh 14:2 In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.
Joh 14:3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.
Joh 14:4 And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know.
What does the Bible say about Consulting the dead?
Praying to or for the dead is strictly forbidden in the Bible. Deuteronomy 18:11 tells us that anyone who “consults with the dead” is “detestable to the Lord.” The story of Saul consulting a medium to bring up the spirit of the dead Samuel resulted in his death “because he was unfaithful to the LORD; he did not keep the word of the LORD and even consulted a medium for guidance” (1 Samuel 28:1-25; 1 Chronicles 10:13-14). Clearly, God has declared that such things are not to be done.
So it matters not if we are praying to the dead for blessings like Catholics pray to Mary or if we are praying for the dead, it is forbidden and the Children of God MUST not do so!
Friend ask yourself, what does your Church doctrine say about dead loved ones? Cos if it is not as the Bible says, you must run away from that pagan system.
1Jn 4:1 Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.
Mat 15:9 But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.
Separate yourself from paganism.
Rev 18:2 And he cried mightily with a strong voice, saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird.
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