Cremation

I have been asked many times if we as Christians should cremate those who die, or bury them in the ground? Does it matter? Are there reasons for interment in a grave? Does God have a preference in this matter?

In this short discourse, I will try to answer this question that is being asked more all the time. To find the answers to these questions, we must turn to the book that is our guide to life's questions … the Bible.

The first time God speaks about this subject is when He tells Abraham in Genesis 15:15 "… you shall be buried at a good old age." (Buried not cremated.)

Some other verses where God's people were buried …

Old Testament …

Gen. 23:19 "… Abraham buried Sarah his wife …"

Gen. 25:9 "… his sons Isaac and Ishmael buried him (Abraham) …"

Gen. 35:19 "…Rachel died and was buried …"

Gen. 35:29 "… Isaac died … his sons Esau and Jacob buried him."

Gen. 50:25 "… Joseph died … and they embalmed him and he was put in a coffin in Egypt …"

Joshua 24:32 "… the bones of Joseph … they buried them in Shechem …"

Judges 8:32 "Gideon died and was buried …" (All of the judges in this book were buried when they died … not one of them was ever cremated.)

1st Samuel 31:13 "… they took their bones (Saul and his sons) and buried them under a tree …"

2nd Samuel 2:5 "… David said … May the Lord bless you because you showed kindness to Saul … and buried him."

2nd Samuel 21:12-14 "… David went and took the bones of Saul and Jonathan … and buried them … and after that God heard and answered when His people prayed …"

2nd Kings 13:20-21 "… Elisha died, and they buried him … And when the man being let down (buried) touched the bones of Elisha, he revived and stood on his feet." (What if Elisha would have been cremated and his ashes blown by the wind all over who knows where?)

Note … 2nd Kings 23:16 (King Josiah) "… brought the bones out of the tombs and burned (cremated) them on the altar and defiled it …" (I don't know why, but it's in the book for a reason.)

Jeremiah 8:1-2, 16:4-6, and 25:33 … God tells His prophet that the "evil and unrighteous" in the land will not be buried but will be scattered on the ground like dung. (Isn't this just the opposite of how God's chosen have been buried?)

Ezekiel 37:1-10 … "The valley of dry bones." How could God show this prophesy if believers were cremated … there wouldn't be any bones left.

New Testament …

Luke 16:19-21 … Jesus said that Lazarus and a rich man died and was buried.

Romans 6:4 "… buried with Him in baptism …" (Symbolic of death.)

1st Corinthians 15:4 "… That He (Jesus) was buried … and He arose …"
(Isn't Jesus supposed to be our example … therefore we also should come out of the grave, which will only happen if we are buried.)

Hebrews 11:22 "… Joseph gave instruction concerning the burial of his own bones." (As if there might have been a right and proper way.)

I have saved for last perhaps the best reason why I believe a Christian should be buried and not cremated; and that is found in Deuteronomy 14:5-6 "… Moses died and He (God) buried him." (God could have burned Moses to a crispy critter, but He didn't … He buried him.)

Christians believe in the resurrection of the dead when Jesus comes back … from the east … which is the reason all headstones on graves face that direction. When they set up in those graves, they will see Jesus as He comes.

I think burial, (instead of cremation) shows our belief in the return of Jesus and our resurrection from the dead.

But that's just … my opinion.

Now let's look at cremation … what it is and what it could possibly represent.

The word … "Cremation" comes from the Latin word … "cremo" which means "to burn."

Cremation has always been associated with pagan religions, like the pagan societies of Greece and Rome …which is the reason the early Christian Church rejected cremation as the preferred way to dispose of those who died.

Ancient Israel also had rejected cremation for their people, preferring to use tombs or graves for burial. The burning of bodies was reserved for idols, criminals, and enemies.

The first crematory in America was built in 1876 in Washington, D.C. Cremation is becoming more popular in the United States every year. In 1999 … 600,000 cremations were performed, which amounted to 25% of disposals in the United States.

Could the increase in numbers be partly because, as a nation we are becoming more … "pagan" … then ever before?

If Israel reserved burning bodies only for their enemies; and God has reserved the Lake of Fire for … "burning" … His enemies, the unsaved; then why would we choose cremation, which is … "symbolic of burning in Hell" … as our preferred way of putting away our loved ones?

You may ask, what about those who are burned up in a car wreck, house fire or vaporized in war. These are sometimes unavoidable … things do happen beyond our control. That's different … we did not willingly choose them.

When we have the option to choose … and we choose cremation … I wonder if we really are doing the will of God … but that's just my opinion.

Is cremation … sin? Probably not. Although I really don't know.

It's just cheaper.


All quotes … Amplified Bible