Question

Our church has a on-line e-group study and the subject of Purgatory recently came up. As it is, some claim this place exists while I maintain it does not until at least someone can show me proof from scripture. Already some scripture verses have been mentioned but when read does not clearly describe or identify this place "Purgatory" or "Limbo". I do not suggest to say we at church are practicing such belief but just open to studying.  If you have any material on this, please share it with us as this can help our understanding.

Answer

This is quoted from an article on our website about the false teachings of the Roman Catholic Church, written by Christian Equippers Intl:

PURGATORY

Rome teaches that when Catholics die in an unperfected state, they must enter an intermediate realm of punishment called "purgatory" before being released to heaven. Those who have accumulated sins which have not been sufficiently atoned for through penance must endure the sufferings of purgatory until the soul is refined and God's justice has been satisfied. The torments of this halfway hell can vary in intensity, severity, and duration depending upon the guilt, impurity, lack of proper penance, or sorrow of the sufferer.

Catholics are kept in fear all their lives by the prospects of going to this imaginary place. But Rome teaches that the period of suffering in purgatory can be shortened by gifts of money, prayers by the priests, and masses. Catholicism also stresses that friends and relatives can help lessen the time that loved ones remain in purgatory and even relieve their suffering by financing masses on their behalf. Rome collects millions of dollars each year from grieving individuals who willingly pay to alleviate the agonies of those in purgatory.

However, this frightening doctrine cannot find a single verse in the entire Bible to support it. Rome has had to rely on ingenious twistings of the Scriptures to defend this terrifying teaching, along with an isolated passage from the apocryphal book of II Maccabees (12:39-45).

The concept of purgatorial sufferings after death challenges the very work of Christ on our behalf. The Bible declares that "Christ himself. . .had died once for sins" (I Pet. 3:18, J.B.V.). There is no more need for further sufferings in purgatory. To demand further suffering and sacrifice is to deny that Christ's sacrifice was sufficient the first time! Jesus said that "he who hears my word. . .has life everlasting and does not come to judgment, but has passed from death to life" (Jn. 5:24, C.R.V.). The Bible also teaches that "if we acknowledge our sins, then God. . .will forgive our sins and purify us from everything that is wrong" (1Jn. 1:9, J.B.V.); that God remembers our sins no more (Heb. 10:17); that to die is gain, not torment (Phil. 1:21, 22); that to be away from the body is to be at home with the Lord (II Cor. 5:8, 9); and that those who die in Christ are blessed and receive rest from their labors and not excruciating pain (Rev. 14:13).

Added to Bible Bulletin Board's "Tony Capoccia's Questions and Answers" by:

Tony Capoccia
Bible Bulletin Board
Box 314
Columbus, New Jersey, USA, 08022
Websites: www.biblebb.com and www.gospelgems.com
Email: tony@biblebb.com
Online since 1986