The story is told, from a very reliable source, about a Bible study group in a local denomination. They were studying from Matthew the 8th chapter and verse 22 which reads "But Jesus said unto him, Follow me; and let the dead bury their dead." As none of the audience were able to explain the sense of the verse, it was left to the teacher of the class to give the meaning. When asked what it meant his reply was "Praise the Lord for verses like Matthew 8:22 read the next verse."

Perhaps this verse is one that has given you cause for concern. How and why is it that Jesus is telling this man "let the dead bury the dead"? Can the dead indeed bury the dead? Is this possible? Apparently Jesus thought so or else He is asking the impossible. I do not believe Jesus asks the impossible from anyone therefore for the dead to bury its dead is possible but how?

To understand the proper meaning of what Jesus is saying here, we must correctly understand the Bible's use of the word dead and how this differs from our use of this word. Our use of the word "dead" essentially means the end of the process of life. To die simply means to stop breathing permanently or for our hearts to stop beating. By this understanding of death the dead can in no wise bury their dead for one dead person is as helpless as another.

But consider Genesis 2:17 "But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die." By our present use of the word die, this passage pronounces the judgment of death on Adam and Eve the very day that they eat of the forbidden fruit. As we all know, they did indeed eat of this fruit but did they die that day? By our use of the word they did not die that day. Did God lie to them or perhaps is there more to the use of the word death than our present usage? In fact, as we continue to study our Bibles we can come to understand that the Bible uses the word death to mean separation. It is not just an end of something, it is the separation of two things. Death as we understand it can now be understood as the separation of a body (which returns to the earth) and the spirit (which returns to God). Adam and Eve died on the day they ate of the forbidden fruit because they were separated from God, not because their spirits were separated from their bodies and the dead can bury their dead because those separated from God because of their own sin (Rom 6:23) can bury those who are dead because of separation of body and spirit. This is what Jesus meant in Matthew 8:22 and this is how we can make sense of this passage.

Send comments or questions to the Clintwood Church of Christ, POB 746, Clintwood, Va. 24228 or E-mail me at bryanwa@ntelos.net Check out our web page at clintwoodchurchofchrist.com