BURIAL VERSES CREMATION

BURIAL VERSES CREMATION

Christians today disagree over whether God prefers burial and forbids cremation.
Some Christians prefer burial, but God can resurrect cremated ashes.

Burial as a sign of respect of the human body that God created.

In the Old Testament, burial (laying a body to rest in the earth) of the dead was a common practice because it was seen as a sign of respect for the human body that God created. God created Adam and Eve with bodies, and when God saw all that God made, “it was very good” (Genesis 1:31 NIV). When cremation via burning bodies of those who sinned against God was practiced, it showed God’s contempt and bringing trouble upon those that sinned and were burned (Joshua 7:20, 25).

Burial also honors and emulates the great care that was given to Jesus’ body after his death (Mark 15:42-47; Matthew 27:57-61; Luke 23:50-56; John 19:38-42).  As Jesus said, “This is My body which is broken for you” (1 Corinthians 11:24 NKJV). The apostle Paul also taught that we are to honor the body because it is the temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 6:19).

God can still resurrect cremated bodies.

Cremation is becoming more accepted by Christians today. Not all Christians in the Bible were buried. Many Christians were burned as martyrs at the stake or their bodies were otherwise disposed of (Hebrews 11:35-40, Revelation 6:9-11).  In the Old Testament, the patriarch Abraham said, “I am nothing but dust and ashes” (Genesis 18:27 NIV). The apostle Paul also noted, “the first man was of the dust of the earth” (1 Corinthians 15:47 NIV). We also know that Jesus “will send His angels, and gather together His elect from the four winds, from the farthest part of earth to the farthest part of heaven” (Mark 13:27 NKJV). So even if a person is not buried, we can still take comfort that God is able to bring together and resurrect bodies that have been cremated or otherwise disposed of.

Billy Graham, The Heaven Answer Book (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 2012), 85-86.