Someone in my church recently asked if I could preach the funeral of his uncle who passed away unexpectedly. The nephew was unsure of his spiritual condition and not hopeful that he follower Christ. In addition, this man was a complete stranger to me. I was faced with a difficult moment of truth and a number of questions.
Do I preach the funeral? If so, why and how? If I don’t, why not, and under what circumstances would I do so?
I offer the following seven suggestions from experience that I hope will help you in thinking through and ministering in this difficult and unique opportunity.
Before the Funeral
1. Decide whether or not you will participate before anyone asks you.
Though I have been in ministry nearly 15 years, this was actually the first time I faced this decision, and it was not easy. Because I did not know the deceased’s immediate family, I was concerned with a number of “could be” questions. Would they ask me to assure them he was with Jesus when I had no such confidence? Would they ask me to “preach him into heaven” during the service? I didn’t know.
But I did know that God had ordained this opportunity. I had the margin in my calendar to do so that week, and I knew I could preach the gospel to a large crowd who may never otherwise hear the good news. For these reasons and others, I decided to risk a few awkward moments.
2. Pray, pray and pray some more for all aspects of the process.
Though it wasn’t my first funeral, it was my first funeral like this. So many variables made me uncomfortable and forced me to depend upon Jesus. I began to realize all my concerns were ultimately about me—not faithfulness to Jesus. They made me pray. A lot. And this is a good thing for all of us—especially pastors. So I prayed like crazy for the family’s comfort, for wisdom in what to say and how to say it, for clear gospel proclamation, for those gathered to see Jesus, and for much more.
3. Gather information about the deceased.
Part of being faithful in these situations is being a good listener and learner about the deceased. For me, this happens with both my eyes and ears during the times I talk with the family or attend the wake. As you would expect, I spoke to the deceased’s wife a number of times before the service and asked her to tell me about her husband. I took notes. When I went to the wake, I also looked closely at the photo collages on display. Both of these practices, along with gleaning anecdotal stories along the way, allowed me to effectively prepare for the next step of the process—preaching the funeral message.
During the Service
4. Eulogize the deceased in light of the common grace God has given.
These settings allow us to reflect on the deceased and how he loved his friends, family, and neighbors by the common grace of God. In this particular case, I knew that the deceased’s family and friends could speak much more poignantly and helpfully on these aspects of his life than I could, so I was happy to let them do so. Otherwise I would have expanded this portion of my remarks. Instead, I simply opened my message by reading his obituary from the local newspaper, reiterated and referenced some of the stories that had just been told, and pointed to how God generously allowed us to experience all these things.
5. Minister to the family in their grief.
The funeral is for the living and not the dead. After eulogizing the deceased, my goal was to comfort the family. I shared Scriptures such as Revelation 21:1-5 and talked about how the world is broken and not as it should be and someday will be. I pointed to Psalm 9:9, Psalm 18:2, and Psalm 34:18 while encouraging them to seek the comfort that only God offers. I then turned to Ecclesiastes 3 as my main text and explained how this was a time to mourn (at his passing) and also laugh (at the stories they can tell) and that, most importantly, it was a time to seek—Jesus. This was my bridge to the gospel, and I encouraged them to trust Jesus and offered to talk to them at length any time.
6. Speak boldly about what you know and carefully about what you don’t.
As I said earlier, my greatest concern was that a family member would ask me to confer assurance of salvation on someone I had never even met. This didn’t happen. In fact, I think this is likely a “phantom fear.” Instead, I chose to not say anything at all about the spiritual standing of the deceased. It had already been determined, and there was nothing any of us could do now to change it. I only knew for sure than more than 200 people sitting before me were on their way to spend eternity somewhere, and it was my job to help them prepare.
After the Service
7. Follow up with the grieving family and trust God with the results.
About a week after the funeral I reached out to the family to say I was praying for them and wanted to serve them however I could. I’m not sure if they will ever call me back. But I know that God said when his Word goes out it will not return void (Isaiah 55:11). And, by God’s grace, the Word was preached, so I am trusting that he will cause it to bear whatever fruit he intends, whether I ever see it or not.
Since I am doing ministry in a fallen world, this won’t be my last funeral. It won’t be yours, either, so stay prepared. Your next call could come this afternoon.
Are you ready?
Involved in Women’s Ministry? Add This to Your Discipleship Tool Kit.
We need one another. Yet we don’t always know how to develop deep relationships to help us grow in the Christian life. Younger believers benefit from the guidance and wisdom of more mature saints as their faith deepens. But too often, potential mentors lack clarity and training on how to engage in discipling those they can influence.
Whether you’re longing to find a spiritual mentor or hoping to serve as a guide for someone else, we have a FREE resource to encourage and equip you. In Growing Together: Taking Mentoring Beyond Small Talk and Prayer Requests, Melissa Kruger, TGC’s vice president of discipleship programming, offers encouraging lessons to guide conversations that promote spiritual growth in both the mentee and mentor.
