Luke 9:60

‘But he said to him, “Leave the dead to bury their own dead, but you go and publish abroad the Kingly Rule of God.”

Jesus counters the earnest young man's argument, giving him a chance to think it over. He points out that he is being called to a ministry of life which has precedence above all else. He must leave the spiritually dead to look after each other. They have plenty of time for burying the dead. But what he must do is concentrate on what is important, offering people life by proclaiming the Kingly Rule of God. It is a strong reminder that Jesus' mission must take precedence over everything else, and what He urgently needs is proclaimers of the Kingly rule of God right now. It may also be that He was moving from the region so that this would be the young man's last chance.

Note the theological implication behind ‘dead'. Like Paul Jesus sees men as dead in trespasses and sins (Ephesians 2:1). In the words of Jesus later they are ‘evil' (Luke 11:13). Jesus had no doubt about the sinfulness of human nature.