Natural Burial
Teaching Pastor; Staff Governing Elder; Staff Director
This passage in 1 Thessalonians captures our hope in the resurrection—because Jesus conquered death, we have faith that those who die in him will be resurrected when he returns. One way that we, as a church, can embrace this hope more fully is through offering natural burial. Not only does it provide a way for us to steward our resources well, it allows us to engage one another more fully throughout the dying, grieving, and healing process. To learn more about natural burial, visit GraceChurchSC.org/NaturalBurial.
Study Questions
This passage in 1 Thessalonians captures our hope in the resurrection—because Jesus conquered death, we have faith that those who die in him will be resurrected when he returns. One way that we, as a church, can embrace this hope more fully is through offering natural burial. Not only does it provide a way for us to steward our resources well, it allows us to engage one another more fully throughout the dying, grieving, and healing process. To learn more about natural burial, visit GraceChurchSC.org/NaturalBurial.Application
Consider the idea that death is a discipleship issue. How have you seen God work in your life, or someone else’s, through death and grief? What would it look like for the local church to be a more active part of the mourning and grieving process?
As believers, our hope is grounded in Jesus’ resurrection—we look towards life after death with faith and hope because Jesus has conquered death. How should this truth impact the way in which we navigate death? What are your thoughts on the idea of natural burial?
Key Points
Because death is a discipleship issue, we want to step into the process more fully as a church and love one another through the way we engage the dying and their families. There are four reasons we believe natural burial will enable us to disciple people well:
- Natural burial provides a way for us to be good stewards of the environment.
- Natural burial provides a way for us to be good stewards of our financial resources.
- Natural burial is aligned with our discipleship view of hope. Our hope is not in the ability to preserve and protect our bodies, but in God’s ability to recreate us after death.
- Natural burial gives us the ability to share the dying process more fully with other believers and their families. We will be able to offer care, support, and encouragement to one another.
We are a “city on a hill,” and how we love and care for one another means something to God (Matthew 5:14). To learn more about natural burial, how it will enable us to love one another well, or to volunteer to be part of this ministry, visit GraceChurchSC.org/NaturalBurial.
To hear sermons and access other resources related to the topic of death, visit our Theology of Death series at Resources.GraceChurchSC.org/sermons/theology-of-death.