Tuesday, July 8, 2008

Praying for the dead...is it biblical?

Should we pray for the dead? Where do their spirits go? Do our prayers diminish their sufferings in purgatory or hell? Will their sins be forgiven because of our prayers? Do the dead still hear us when we talk to them?


Let us listen to what the Bible has to say. . .


Deuteronomy 18:9 "When you come into the land which the Lord your God is giving you, you shall not learn to follow the abominations of those nations. 10 There shall not be found among you anyone who makes his son or his daughter pass through the fire, or one who practices witchcraft, or a soothsayer, or one who interprets omens, or a sorcerer, 11 or one who conjures spells, or a medium, or a spiritist, or one who calls up the dead. 12 For all who do these things are an abomination to the Lord, and because of these abominations the Lord your God drives them out from before you."


I was baptized at the Philippine Independent Church more popularly known in Binakayan, Kawit, Cavite as Aglipay, which up to now practices praying for the dead. But I grew up as a Catholic going to mass every Sunday and praying for our dearly departed loved ones. I never knew then that talking to the dead was an abomination to the Lord. Nobody bothered to teach me about that and I regret the time I spent praying for every dead person I knew, which tantamount to nothing. . . and I did pray for all of them which was just a waste of my time and energy that could have been devoted to more important matters.


I am not doing this to put shame on all Catholics, including my dear relatives and friends, but to open their minds to the truth based on the Bible.


Revelation 14:13 Then I heard a voice from heaven saying to me, "Write: 'Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.' " "Yes," says the Spirit, "that they may rest from their labors, and their works follow them."


Revelation 20:12 And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books.


May I repeat...the dead are judged not according to our prayers for them but according to their works. If unrepented, the sins of the dead are forever etched and carved before God and cannot be erased by our prayers for them. Jeremiah 2:22 "For though you wash yourself with lye, and use much soap, yet your iniquity is marked before Me," says the Lord God.


Revelation 22:12 "And behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to every one according to his work..." 14 Blessed are those who do His commandments, that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter through the gates into the city.


The following is Paul's advice to the church of God in Corinth: 1 Corinthians 15:58 Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.


James 2:26 For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.


Ecclesiastes 12:1 Remember now your Creator in the days of your youth, before the difficult days come, and the years draw near when you say, "I have no pleasure in them": . . .7 Then the dust will return to the earth as it was, and the spirit will return to God who gave it.


Seek God in early life while you are still strong and able to do good works, not when you are already too old and weak and waiting for your end in life, unable to do much for the Lord. When you die, your body will turn into dust as it was and your spirit will return to God where it came from. No amount of prayers from relatives and friends can alter your state of being after that and it is not true that your sins will be forgiven because of the prayers of the living.


Job 12:9 "Who among all these does not know that the hand of the Lord has done this, 10 in whose hand is the life of every living thing, and the breath of all mankind?. . ."



The life of every living thing is in the hand of God...after the death of a man, his body will return to dust and his spirit will go back to God. If he accepted Jesus as his Lord and Saviour, obeying and walking with God, his Creator, meaning doing all the teachings and doctrines taught in the Bible, then he is assured of salvation.

Philippians 2:12 Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; 13 for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.

Catholics in the Philippines have a written prayer for the dead in which the praying of the rosary is also incorporated. They call on the Virgin Mary to pray for their dead and for themselves in this manner:

"Virgin, most powerful, pray for us; Virgin, most merciful, pray for us; Virgin, most faithful, pray for us; Mirror of justice, pray for us; Seat of wisdom, pray for us; Cause of our joy, pray for us; Spiritual vessel, pray for us; Singular vessel of devotion, pray for us; Mystical rose, pray for us; Tower of David, pray for us; Tower of Ivory, pray for us; House of Gold, pray for us; Ark of the covenant, pray for us; Gate of heaven, pray for us...."

Even towers, house of gold, ark of the covenant and gate of heaven, all without tongues, are petitioned to pray for them. Could they pray for us, human beings?

Matthew 6:7-8 says, "But when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard for their many words. Therefore do not be like them. For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him."

Jesus doesn't want us to be repetitious in our prayers and instead, we should talk to God, our Father, from the heart, not from any written manuscript or patterns of prayers handed down from our great, great grandparents. Whoever taught people to call on non-living things for prayers are blind teachers and, if not corrected, both the teachers and the students will suffer damnation from God. Worship is totally different from prayer as we are encouraged to worship God unceasingly; if not, even the stones themselves will shout praises of worship to God.

Ecclesiastes 9:5 For the living know that they will die; but the dead know nothing, and they have no more reward, for the memory of them is forgotten. 6 Also their love, their hatred, and their envy have now perished; nevermore will they have a share in anything done under the sun. 10 Whatever your hand finds to do , do it with your might; for there is no work or device or knowledge or wisdom in the grave where you are going. 12 For man also does not know his time: Like fish taken in a cruel net, like birds caught in a snare, so the sons of men are snared in an evil time, when it falls suddenly upon them.

Death is like a thief in the night...no warning. No one knows when his time will come so we have to be prepared always.

Hebrews 9:27 And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment. 28 so Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many. To those who eagerly wait for Him He will appear a second time, apart from sin, for salvation.

After death, those who are left behind who continually petition God to forgive the sins of their dearly departed loved ones are just wasting their precious time because no amount of prayers, no matter how sincere, long and repetitious, and even the celebration of the mass for the dead, can wipe away the sins they committed when they were still alive.

It is very important to point out here also that no dead person has been judged yet so it is wrong to assume that the spirit of the dead is in purgatory, hell or heaven. Besides, no where in the Bible can you find the word purgatory...it is either hell or heaven...no in between.

Revelations 22:7 "Behold, I am coming quickly! Blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book."

The Coming of the Son of Man

Luke 21:25 "And there will be signs in the sun, in the moon, and in the stars; and on the earth distress of nations, with perplexity, the sea and the waves roaring; 26 men's hearts failing them from fear and the expectation of those things which are coming on the earth, for the powers of heaven will be shaken. 27 Then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. 28 Now when these things begin to happen, look up and lift up your heads, because your redemption draws near."

The Parable of the Fig Tree

29 And He spoke to them a parable: "Look at the fig tree, and all the trees. 30 "When they are already budding, you see and know for yourselves that summer is now near. 31 So you, likewise, when you see these things happening, know that the kingdom of God is near. 32 Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all things are fulfilled. 33 Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away."

The Importance of Watching

34 "But take heed to yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness, and cares of this life, and that Day come on you unexpectedly. 35 For it will come as a snare on all those who dwell on the face of the earth. 36 Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man."

All the signs, like wars and rumors of war, earthquakes, tsunamis, famines, and fear of nuclear fission, occurred already except for the Great Tribulation. Then, judgment will come...

Daniel 12:4 "But you, Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book until the time of the end; many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall increase." Traveling to and from another country is now so easy by planes, and knowledge increased dramatically thru the use of computers and high technology.

II Timothy 3:1 But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: 2 For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, 3 unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, 4 traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, 5 having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away! 6 For of this sort are those who creep into households and make captives of gullible women loaded down with sins, led away by various lusts, 7 always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.

Matthew 24: 3 Now as He sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, "Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and the end of the age?" 4 And Jesus answered and said to them: "Take heed that no one deceives you. 5 "For many will come in My name, saying, 'I am the Christ,' and will deceive many. 6 "And you will hear of wars and rumors of war. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. 7 "For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places. 8 All these are the beginning of sorrows. 9 Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name's sake...14 "And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.

Then, the Great Tribulation...

Matthew 24:21 "For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be. 22 And unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved; but for the elect's sake those days will be shortened..."

So instead of praying for the dead, gather all your energies spreading the Word of God to all four corners of the world so many souls will be saved which is the perfect will of God, our Father, thru His Son, Jesus Christ.


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