Purgatory is one of the most misunderstood concepts in Christianity. is it a part of Hell or is it a part of heaven? Is Purgatory in the Bible? What Do I need to do as a Christian to make it to heaven?
Purgatory can be understood with some common sense. People who die in an imperfect state of grace, with some sin, and not yet perfect to be ready for heaven, yet desiring to be with God, need to go through some sort of cleansing first. It is a temporary step towards heaven, not towards eternal hell.
As we saw in our prior discussion, in order to be saved we need Love, grace. faith, good works, forgiveness, repentance, following the Commandments, the Corporal Works of Mercy, the Beatitudes, the gifts of the Spirit, and more because that is what Jesus taught us.
In order to follow all that, our salvation is not a single, one time, decision, but an ongoing journey. Of course, the initial decision to follow Jesus Christ is important, but then He tells us what we need to do to improve ourselves.
The Blood of Christ
From Gen 3:15 onward, we see the consequences of sin and the ultimate need for a Savior. Jesus came into the world to save each one of us from our sins. He died, and rose from the dead, conquering death and sin. His body and blood, as a perfect Sacrifice, replaced all the other human sacrifices before it. His Blood is the new and everlasting Covenant that is available to the whole world. We can be saved by believing in Him.
Matthew 26
26 While they were eating, Jesus took bread, said the blessing, broke it, and giving it to his disciples said, “Take and eat; this is my body.”
27 Then he took a cup, gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you,
28 for this is my blood of the covenant, which will be shed on behalf of many for the forgiveness of sins.
Believing in Jesus is just the beginning.
But there is more. That was not the end. Yes, Jesus is the perfect sacrifice. Yes, He died for our sins, and Yes, we need to believe in him, but He didn’t say it was a one time decision of faith. He requests us to do things. He challenged us to improve.
Words of Jesus
‘Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive others‘. Jesus does not simply say all sins are covered by His blood and that is it. He says we need to practice forgiving others, even to the extent of 70 x 7 times. This requires ongoing effort.
At the Last Supper (Luke 22:14-20), after giving His body and blood, Jesus said ‘Do this in memory of me‘. This requires ongoing action wherever His Church is.
After His Resurrection, He gave the Apostles the power to Forgive Sins or Hold Sins Bound. If His Blood simply covered all sin, He would not have given the Apostles this authority. Jesus included the Church to help us with sin.
John 20
23 “Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained.”
Not Diminishing Jesus Sacrifice
Jesus’ Sacrifice was once for all, He conquered death and sin. He completed it in the sense that anyone that wants to come to him to be saved can be. That part is complete and perfect.
However, He does not force salvation upon anyone. Each of us retains our free will throughout our entire lives. We can choose to go against God (sin) or follow God, on a daily basis. It is not a one-time choice (Sometimes I wish it was that easy). Our salvation is not guaranteed if we choose sin over God.
Jesus confirms this ongoing free will in the Parable of the Sower (Matthew 13:1-23), in that not all who first hear and accept the Word remain steadfast and faithful. Some fall away as soon as the first obstacles occur like seeds on rocky soil, some later as they allow the world of thorns to drown out their belief.
So while Jesus’s Sacrifice does conquer death and sin, we still have free-will and individual sin to deal with. (Jesus knew this and I think that is why He gave the Apostles the ability to help us with sin)
Jesus Calls us to Act.
If you read the Beatitudes (Matthew 5) or the Corporal Works of Mercy Matthew (25:31-40) , Jesus tells us we have to do good works. James summarizes this…
James 2
15 If a brother or sister has nothing to wear and has no food for the day,
16 and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, keep warm, and eat well,” but you do not give them the necessities of the body, what good is it?
17 So also faith of itself, if it does not have works, is dead.
Speak up on Behalf of Jesus – Matthew 10
32 Everyone who acknowledges me before others I will acknowledge before my heavenly Father.33 But whoever denies me before others, I will deny before my heavenly Father.
The initial decision to follow Jesus is extremely important, but by doing the good works He asks, it changes us, and makes us better people.
- Is someone believes in Jesus, but doesn’t pay attention to the needs of others, they are not going to grow in their faith the same as someone who does.
- If someone believes in Jesus, but doesn’t pray to grow closer to him, is not going to grow in their faith the same as someone who tries to pray.
Once we decide to follow Jesus and take actions that He asks us to, it changes us. Maybe we can’t see it right away, but these choices change the opportunities we have, the people we meet, and how we will be able to handle future situations.
Abraham’s faith and works
God did not ask Abraham to bring Isaac to the top of the mountain the very first time Abraham prayed. It was only after many years, after he used his faith to travel to a strange country and chose to follow God regularly for many years, that Abraham learned what sacrifice was.
As James says, Abraham’s faith in God was important, but his choice to act is what confirmed his faith and made it grow stronger.
James 2
21 Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered his son Isaac upon the altar?
22 You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed by the works.
It is the ongoing choice to use faith and works, which begins to perfect us as Jesus calls us to be perfect as His heavenly father is perfect.
Jesus is not content with us believing in him and then burying all our talents or hiding what we have learned. In the Parable of the Talents (Matthew 25:14-30) and the Parable of the Lamp stand, He calls us to work at it.
Luke 11
33 “No one who lights a lamp hides it away or places it [under a bushel basket], but on a lampstand so that those who enter might see the light.
34 The lamp of the body is your eye. When your eye is sound, then your whole body is filled with light, but when it is bad, then your body is in darkness.
35 Take care, then, that the light in you not become darkness.
This is not work in regards to building up a ledger or keeping track of earned points, but it is good work because we Love God and want to be with Him. Even Adam, before original sin cultivated the garden. Work is necessary for our faith to grow.
What is Heaven Like?
One thing we can say about heaven is that it does not contain sin and so anyone in heaven has to be cleansed of all sin first. Why? Because God is without sin and He is in heaven. Even one sin would exclude us from heaven.
Jesus made it possible for us to reach heaven. All we have to do is freely rid ourselves of sin first. We are given a lifetime to improve with His guidance.
All of a Sudden
Then all of a sudden we die. For some it may be a long process, for others it comes without warning. Either way, many may not have reached a sinless state to be in heaven. For many, daily sins may still be a problem, yet they believe in God and want to be in heaven.
Common Sense
This is where Common Sense comes in. If we need to be without sin in order to be in heaven and we have any sins on our soul when we die, something has to happen to purify us first.
If there wasn’t any purification after death, then it would exclude a great many people. Good is much stronger than Evil so we would not expect most people to be excluded from heaven. Instead, it makes more sense for some purifying process to happen.
This process could be called purifying, cleansing, reconciliation, improving Love, mercy, purging, or making us perfect as our heavenly Father is perfect. All these terms are applicable, but it is a lot to say, so over time the Church started using the simple term ‘Purgatory’ to represent it all.
- In order to not get caught in up semantic word battles, recognize the concept instead of just one word.
- Once we understand the concept, it is prevalent in Scripture.
Jesus commanded his disciples to go out to all nations. If some do it and others don’t, should they all be treated equally?
Reward for Sacrifice for Jesus – Matthew 19:29
29 And everyone who has given up houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or lands for the sake of my name will receive a hundred times more, and will inherit eternal life.
This passage may apply to heaven or purgatory or both, but it reminds us that actions for Christ are rewarded after we die in different measures.
Luke 6
38 Give and gifts will be given to you; a good measure, packed together, shaken down, and overflowing, will be poured into your lap. For the measure with which you measure will in return be measured out to you.”
Other Passages
Now that we have the concept of purification after death, we can look at other passages that support it…
Wages Tested Through Fire (1 Corinthians 3:8-15)
At the end, our work will be reviewed to see if it builds upon the foundation of Christ…
8 each will receive wages in proportion to his labor.
Good works built upon Christ will be retained and rewarded…
14 If the work stands that someone built upon the foundation, that person will receive a wage.
Any bad works not properly built on Christ will be burned up and the person will go through some suffering because of the sins…
15 But if someone’s work is burned up, that one will suffer loss;
However, after the bad has been burned off, the person will still be saved, even though they have to go through a purifying fire.
the person will be saved, but only as through fire.
As we discussed earlier, our belief and actions (good or bad) actually change who we are. When the sin is taken out of us, it is not simply symbolic. Attachment to sin is real. It is burned out of us.
The Lord’s justice is served through the pain, while at the same time His mercy allows the goodness in us to remain.
In a small way, it is like pouring antiseptic on a wound. It can be painful, but it is for the purposes of cleaning the wound.
This sounds painful!
It is better if we strive for heaven while we are alive because sin always has a consequence, now or later.
Praying for the Dead
We also have evidence that praying for the dead was good. If there was only heaven and hell, our prayers would not matter.
2 Maccabees 12
42 Turning to supplication, they prayed that the sinful deed might be fully blotted out. The noble Judas exhorted the people to keep themselves free from sin, for they had seen with their own eyes what had happened because of the sin of those who had fallen.
43 He then took up a collection among all his soldiers, amounting to two thousand silver drachmas, which he sent to Jerusalem to provide for an expiatory sacrifice. In doing this he acted in a very excellent and noble way, inasmuch as he had the resurrection in mind;
44 for if he were not expecting the fallen to rise again, it would have been superfluous and foolish to pray for the dead.
Note : Protestant founders said the Apocrypha (containing Maccabees) should remain in the Bible and should be used for instruction. As a result this passage shows how praying for the dead was good and consistent with belief in resurrection. Praying for the dead was not a later invention by the Church, but does need to be done with right intention as the passage continues…
45 if he did this with a view to the splendid reward that awaits those who had gone to rest in godliness, it was a holy and pious thought.
46 Thus he made atonement for the dead that they might be absolved from their sin.
How Long Does Purgatory Last
We don’t know as the Bible does not say how long. It infers we go through a period of purification like gold going through fire, but it doesn’t say how long.
It makes sense that if our souls are closer to being perfected before we die, then the purifying fire of the Holy Spirit would not have to be as long or as intense.
Better to set our aim for heaven and miss a little to be saved by purgatory than to aim for the lowest spot in purgatory and miss to eternal loss. – Ken Searle
The GOOD NEWS is that anyone in purgatory will reach heaven. The choice to be with God was already decided.
How Is Purgatory Different than Eternal Hell?
Eternal Hell (Gehenna) is eternal punishment for those who choose not to be with God. The torment and fires there are not extinguishable.
Luke 16
19 “There was a rich man who dressed in purple garments and fine linen and dined sumptuously each day.
20 And lying at his door was a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores,
21 who would gladly have eaten his fill of the scraps that fell from the rich man’s table. Dogs even used to come and lick his sores.
22 When the poor man died, he was carried away by angels to the bosom of Abraham. The rich man also died and was buried,
23 and from the netherworld, where he was in torment, he raised his eyes and saw Abraham far off and Lazarus at his side.
24 And he cried out, ‘Father Abraham, have pity on me. Send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am suffering torment in these flames.’
25 Abraham replied, ‘My child, remember that you received what was good during your lifetime while Lazarus likewise received what was bad; but now he is comforted here, whereas you are tormented.
26 Moreover, between us and you a great chasm is established to prevent anyone from crossing who might wish to go from our side to yours or from your side to ours.’
The punishment in Gehenna is permanent as the person has lost all the goodness of God to help. The soul is at the (lack of mercy) of the Devil and other evil spirits, where Jesus says there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.
It can also called Lake of Fire.
What is Hell – The Place of the Dead?
The English language has surely confused the word ‘hell’. Depending on the context used, it can also mean the temporary waiting place of the dead. When used by some in the Apostles Creed, it is the temporary place of the dead where Jesus went for three days; where others from the Old Testament were waiting for the Messiah.
When Jesus descended into hell and rose on the 3rd day, He saved all who were there.
Sometimes this temporary place of the dead is referred to as Sheol, or in Greek Hades. (not the same as Greek Mythology)
Do Not Be Harsh or Complacent
The Church warns that even if someone believes in Jesus, and does all the works that He asks, but has no charity and Love in their heart, they are in trouble. We need Love and respect for others.
Revelation 2:2-4
2 “I know your works, your labor, and your endurance, and that you cannot tolerate the wicked;
3 Moreover, you have endurance and have suffered for my name, and you have not grown weary.
4 Yet I hold this against you: you have lost the love you had at first.
Do Not Be Idle
Jesus warns against being complacent…
Revelation 3:15-16
15 “I know your works; I know that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either cold or hot.
16 So, because you are lukewarm, neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth.
How is Purgatory Different than Limbo?
Limbo was only a proposed theoretical idea by some theologians for souls they thought had no way into heaven, but it would be too cruel for them to be in eternal punishment. This idea was never officially declared by the Church and can be ignored.
Conclusion
- The concept of Purgatory (needing Purification before heaven) can be shown with common sense logic.
- Jesus called us to faith and action to do good works. There is a difference between those who try, those who don’t, and those who are not yet perfected.
- We don’t know how long Purgatory is or even if it can be stated in time.
- Purgatory allows for both Justice and Mercy to be granted at the same time to the perfection of our souls.
Once we understand the concept of heavenly perfection we can see how someone on the right path can die and fall short before they are sinless.
Purgatory is God’s mercy to help us through the final steps to heaven.
See you in heaven!
For some other enjoyable reading
For some enjoyable fictional reading on this topic, try these books…
J.R.R Tolkien – ‘Leaf By Niggle‘ (See Our Bookstore Section)
Theoretical fiction about someone who never has enough time to do what they want. “One of my all-time favorite short stories.”
C.S Lewis – ‘The Great Divorce’ (See Our Bookstore Section)
Theoretical fiction about people getting an opportunity to take a trip to purgatory.
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Scripture texts in this work are taken from the New American Bible, revised edition © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Washington, D.C. and are used by permission of the copyright owner. All Rights Reserved. No part of the New American Bible may be reproduced in any form without permission in writing from the copyright owner.