Probably the most liberating effect of the Gospel is that the believer in Christ can face death without fear. I am the resurrection and the life declared the Lord Jesus Christ. The one who believes in me, though he die, yet he shall live. And whoever lives and believes in me shall never die. Then he adds to this utterly remarkable statement that no other religious leader ever could or ever can make: Do you believe this? The specter of the death that is ordained for each person since the fall of our first patents makes us ask where our trust for immortality rests. Only in Jesus Christ is there true victory over death. I can’t overemphasize that.

But even the believer in Christ must reckon with all of the issues connected with his or her death. While the soul of the believer in Christ immediately enters glory upon its separation from the body (which is what death is – the separation of the life force of the soul from the material that composes a human body) – what’s to be done with that body?

Honestly asking that question (as hard as it is to face it) is an essential part of what we often call “Christian stewardship”. Along with preparing a will, keeping it updated, and letting our loved ones know where the will is to be found; and along with letting those same people know where our important documents (like insurance policies and financial information) are, it’s also our responsibility to give thought to our own funerals. Not to do that is to put a further burden on those we love at a time when their distress is already so great. The direction that the Lord (through the prophet, Isaiah) gave to King Hezekiah, one of the Old Testament Kings of Judah, is a direction that can be given to all of us: “Set our house in order, for you shall die…” Not a small part of setting your house in order is to make preparations for your own funeral.

The immediate question that comes to mind is how your body is to be treated after your death. If you really want to, you can read about any number of, in my opinion, very macabre ways of disposing of human remains; but, certainly the most common are cremation or burial (either in the earth or in the sea). I don’t wish to get into the issue of cremation. All I would point out -as a pastor – is that the biblical pattern for treatment of the human body after death is great care and either burial or placement of the prepared body in a tomb.

Following the example of his predecessors and their wives, the Old Testament patriarch, Jacob commanded he be buried with his fathers in a specific cave.

His son, Joseph, was embalmed and put in a coffin in Egypt. (Although as the New Testament writer of Hebrews tells us, by an act of faith – knowing that the Israelite would be brought to the land God had promised them – Joseph gave directions concerning his bones so that those remains would be with his people.)

The Lord Himself buried Moses in the land of Moab.

The body of the Lord Jesus Christ was carefully wrapped in a clean linen shroud and laid in an unused tomb.

Devout men buried the body of Stephen, the first martyr of the Christian Church.

And I would only add that in God’s Word – the Bible – the burning of the human body is usually associated with a curse. God made us, body and soul, and – even after death – the body is to be treated with the greatest care and respect. (Later in the program I’ll let you know how you can get a free booklet, Burial or Cremation? Does it Matter? by Donald Howard. You’ll find it immensely helpful as you work through this issue, or as you help others to do the same.)

Beyond this issue, there are others:
-What funeral home or what funeral director will you work with?
-Will the funeral service be held in a funeral home, a church, or elsewhere?
-Will there be calling hours? For how long? Will there be a closed casket or an open one?
-What do you want to be included in the funeral service? What hymns? What Scripture readings? Will there be personal testimonials or not? Who do you want to lead that service and minister the Word of God? Do you have a particular text or texts you want as the basis for the message given at that time?
-Where will your remains be buried?
-(And I need to bring this up because it’s part of all that’s involved in the stewardship that’s an inseparable part of our funerals): How much will this cost, and how will it be paid? Are there ways to do God-glorifying funerals that make better use of your available funds.

I realize that all of this is unpleasant to think about (Again, it brings us face-to-face with the ugliness and sorrow that sin has brought into this world. There’s nothing normal or good about death). But Christians (and Christians alone) can face this dark subject always in the bright confidence of the one who abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the Gospel. I want this program to be of help to you as you as you consider how to write the epilogue of the book of your life. God has ordained the day of our death – and that day is mercifully unknown to us. But God also allows us to plan our ways – including planning a funeral that will be to the glory of God and as a statement of the Gospel of Christ’s victory over sin, death, hell, and the grave.

Our topic for today’s Visit to the Pastor’s Study is Planning a Truly Christian Funeral. And so that we do this right – I have both a pastor and a funeral director with me in the studio. Pastor Meint Ploegman, pastor of the Orthodox Presbyterian Church in Bohemia, here on Long Island, and Mrs. Dorothy Pacimeo, a Certified Funeral Service Practitioner here on Long Island, and long-standing member of both the Nassau-Suffolk (Long Island) Funeral Directors Association, as well as the National Funeral Directors Association. They’ll both help us with a lot of the practical matters connected with planning funerals. And because our entire discussion is within the framework of the Gospel of everlasting life in Christ – believe it or not – this won’t be a dread, but a delight! What a priceless honor it is to help your loved ones, give a powerful witness of the Gospel, and know something of what will happen to your body while your soul rests from its labors! That – and more – is what’s involved in Planning a Truly Christian Funeral.

Pastor Meint Ploegman and Dorothy Pacimeo, welcome to A Visit to the Pastor’s Study….

Here’s a link to the full program:

Yours in the King of Kings,
Pastor Bill