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Author Topic: matthew 27:52 trying to convert friend  (Read 2895 times)

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Offline sedevacantist3

matthew 27:52 trying to convert friend
« on: June 08, 2019, 06:20:12 PM »
My friend who was basically atheist until a few years ago finally woke up to Christianity, he says largely to do with our back and forth discussions.  Now he has been taken in from some heretic pastor from Church of God international. One of their heretical beliefs is that at death we remain asleep and only until Jesus’s second coming will we awake. I gave him a passage matt 27:52 for him to explain. He emailed this pastor and recieved the below reply, to me it’s a lot of fluff but I’m wondering if any of you would respond in a way as to really get through to my friend.   Here is the email from the heretic

Quote
Good to hear from you and as always, we greatly appreciate your appetite for
pursuing truth. It is a noble cause and applauded effort, especially in this
very secular world we live in.

Your letter was passed to me upon your request and I want to take a moment
to just thank you for your kind words. It's much appreciated and encouraging
to know that the knowledge this work is sharing is having an impact on the
minds and hearts of those seeking the truth. I pray you continue to "knock"
and we can share in having a small part in opening some doors for you as God
gives you the personal guidance to have eyes that see and ears that hear.

Now let's get to your question. You asked about Matthew 27:52-53 and how
that squares with our understanding about death. This is a very good
question because on the surface it may appear to be an inconsistency--but it
isn't. 

First, we need to recognize one of the reasons Christ came and visited us
was to reveal the truth about immortality.  Notice what Paul told Timothy
when explaining some important points about Jesus Christ and His visitation.
Read the whole context commencing in 2 Tim. 1:7-11. But, pay particular
attention to verse 10--the point I want to make is ".our Savior Jesus
Christ, who has abolished death, and has brought life and immortality to
light through the gospel..." (1Tim. 1:10). This is an important nuance to
understand about the gospel--it's also about the clarity regarding eternal
life--how it works and how it happens. It's the same thing Nicodemus
inquired about and is described in John 3:1-13 in the conversation he had
with Christ.

So, the point is Jesus Christ came to also illustrate how eternal life is
obtained and how it works and looks--and how it works and looks is through a
resurrection that takes place, which completes the conversion process--from
mortal to immortal (1 Cor. 15:51-57). This is further confirmed in John
5:25-29. This is an important scripture to keep in mind when considering
Matthew 27:52-53. Now you may ask, why is that? Very simply, it was to
validate by a real illustration, which now confirms that what Christ said in
John 5 is indeed real--He actually has been given the authority by the
Father and does actually have the power over life and death. The
resurrection of those described in Matthew 27:52-53 proves that this just
wasn't a lot of "hot air" that Jesus was promoting; but rather, an
authentically true statement He made of which this "preview" of a
resurrection illustrates and proves He was indeed telling the truth--seeing
was believing!!!

So in short, this was simply a preview, a "prototype" of a resurrection that
proves--it is the exclamation mark---that legitimizes the power and
authority Jesus Christ has been given by the Father over life and death
(John 5:26-27). So, we can rest assure the promises He (Jesus) shared with
all of us when He was here during His ministry, that of being co-heirs with
Him, are in fact true!!

Hope that helps. I pray God will continue to bless you in all your endeavors
as you live your life and search out His truths for His blessings. Be safe
and as always, keep the faith!!

In Christ Service,

Bill Watson
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Offline Pax Vobis

  • Supporter
Re: matthew 27:52 trying to convert friend
« Reply #1 on: June 08, 2019, 06:34:40 PM »
I don't know how to answer this.  There are TONS of weird protestant beliefs and many of the protestants disagree with each other.  You could spend a lifetime discovering/refuting all of the misguided "interpretations" they have.  
.
If I were you, i'd ignore this topic and concentrate on the major catholic doctrines - Holy Communion, the Priesthood, 7 sacraments, the value of good works, purgatory, etc.  If you show how protestantism is wrong on the major issues, these smaller ones will be forgotten or can be explained based on the foundational catholic teachings.
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Offline apollo

Re: matthew 27:52 trying to convert friend
« Reply #2 on: June 08, 2019, 07:23:00 PM »
Sheesh!  It's hard to find anything meaningful among all the BS.  Here is an article that I
came across that might help:

Difficult Bible Verses For Protestants
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Offline Motorede

Re: matthew 27:52 trying to convert friend
« Reply #3 on: June 08, 2019, 08:03:57 PM »
I personally wouldn't trade bible verses with the heretic. Instead, try the approach that "the church is the teacher of mankind,not the Bible". In this forum's library I think you can find an apologetics article
on this topic by the famous Jesuit, Father Arnold Damen, who came to America in the 1880s. He battled the protestants from the east coast to the Mississippi and made hundreds of converts. He also founded Loyola University in Chicago. The article (his sermon) is only about 20 pages. But it is pure logic. Even if your friend doesn't convert, you will have gained a lot of ammunition for future confrontations. 
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Offline apollo

Re: matthew 27:52 trying to convert friend
« Reply #4 on: June 08, 2019, 08:28:22 PM »
The Church Of The Bible by Fr. Arnold Damen

The One True Church by Fr. Arnold Damen

Quite often Protestants will reject anything a Catholic priest says.
They stubbornly persist in the idea that everything they need to
know is in the Bible.  That is why quoting from the Bible is useful.

Of course, they always say something like, "That is figurative speech",
when they don't like it. 

Then what you are left with is to say, "Protestants create their own
religion by deciding what is figurative and what is literal."  They are
deciding, not God. 

Conclusion.  The Word of God is subject to their interpretation of it.
This is not divine faith, this is human faith (more intellectual pride
than anything else, pride and rebellion). 


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