Mike Focht 8/23/2024
Should we pray for dead saints or to dead saints? A large portion of the Christian community thinks we should. Doing so is not a matter of salvation, but it is a matter of importance. Misunderstanding this issue will misappropriate our prayers, time, and understanding of God and His purposes. I will give three simple reasons why Christians should not pray to or for the dead.
First, there is no Biblical command. This is the most straightforward of reasons. You and I are called to teach and obey all Christ has commanded. So, it is essential to realize that Christ never explicitly commanded His followers to pray for or to dead saints. The Bible is full of commands to pray for all types of things, such as laborers, grace, patience, the Holy Spirit, our enemies, deliverance from temptation, our daily bread, etc. Yet there is not a single verse in all of Scripture that commands us to pray for or to the dead.
Men can infer. Men can surmise. Men can theologize. But no man or woman can produce a single Scriptural command. If someone says we should pray to the dead, our response should be: Show me where Christ commands this. This is the simplest and clearest answer.
Second, there is no Biblical example. No single example in Scripture is put forward as a pattern for us to follow. Proponents of praying to the dead will bring up Scriptural parables such as that of Lazarus and the rich man in Luke 16, or Saul and the witch of Endor in 1 Samuel 28, or even use Peter’s prayer for the dead Tabitha as examples for us to follow. However, a simple reading of each of these sections of Scripture will show any honest reader that these passages are not being used as examples for the reader to follow. They are warnings about refusing to hear God’s word or testimonies to God’s power.
You can draw any inference you want from a Scripture but you cannot be an honest Bible reader and ignore the context. If someone says these Scriptures show us people should pray to dead saints, our response should be: Did the Holy Spirit inspire these passages to teach that? Obviously not. That was not what Christ or the Biblical writers were attempting to communicate. Any attempt to say that these Scriptures are in the Bible to teach us to pray for or to the dead is to ignore clear interpretation and context for unjustified theologizing.
Finally, there is no need. Why would we need to pray for the dead when the Scriptures reveal where the dead are: We are confident, yes, well pleased rather to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord. All the saints that have died are present with the Lord. I don’t need to pray for them when they are already in His direct presence. He is already taking care of them. They do not need our prayers. They are now under their faithful High Priest’s personal and eternal care. I was reminded of this beautiful truth when a faithful saint recently passed into Jesus’ presence, and coming to their name in my prayer journal, I gratefully crossed them off. They no longer required my intercession. They have the Intercessor Himself. It is a solemn, holy, and triumphant moment when the saints no longer need our intercession.
The Bible does not teach us to pray for or to dead saints. There is no Biblical command. There is no Biblical example. There is no Biblical need.