The hand of the LORD was upon me, and He brought me out in the Spirit of the LORD and set me down in the middle of the valley; it was full of bones. And He led me around among them, and behold, there was very many on the surface of the valley, and behold, they were very dry. And He said to me, “Son of man, can these bones live?’” Ezekiel 37:1-3
We’re in the midst of praying for revival at Hill View. In fact we are praying for a transformation that changes everything. At first glance the image of our text seems pretty ridiculous. I mean imagine being asked to preach to an audience of dry bones. However, with the evident need for revival in our churches today this image is really not too much of a stretch for the imagination!
What stands out to me is not being asked to preach to dry bones, but the question: “Can these bones live?” I mean this scenario has impossible written all over it. Can you relate? Are you facing a situation that screams back at you, IMOSSIBLE? But that’s when we have to remember that it doesn’t require faith to do the possible. Hebrews 11:6 says, “And without faith it is impossible to please [God].” Jesus said in Matthew 19:26, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”
You might ask, “How is it possible to see things this way?” In a time when we see the world sleeping in darkness and the church asleep in the light, how do we gain the proper perspective? The key is found in v.1 of our text, “the hand of the LORD was upon me, and He brought me out in the Spirit of the LORD…” Plain and simple – Spirit led living.
We no longer can excuse our spiritual bankruptcy. I’m sure Ezekiel had to have been over whelmed by what lay before him, but this was a time to act and not shrink back. Hebrews 10:39 says of those who walk by faith, led by the Spirit; “But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who have faith and preserve their souls.”
What did Ezekiel do? God told him to prophesy in Ezekiel 37:4-6 and that’s exactly what he did v.7 “So I prophesied as I was commanded.” If Ezekiel were around today he might have been tempted to take some pictures of that valley of bones and put together a power point presentation to take back to the church. Or perhaps he would’ve counted and categorized the bones for a statistical analysis pie chart. Ezekiel obeyed the command of the LORD v.7 “So I prophesied as I was commanded. And as I prophesied, there was a sound, and behold, a rattling, and the bones came together, bone to its bone.”
Notice the process involved here in vv.7-8 “…and the bones came together, bone to its bone.8 And I looked, and behold, there were sinews on them, and flesh had come upon them, and skin had covered them. But there was no breath in them.” You might ask, “Couldn’t God have done this with just one word?” Absolutely, but when will we learn that God is the one with the plan and it’s not up to us to find a faster or better way to do what He has called us to do. He told Ezekiel to prophesy and the bones and such came together. Notice v.10 “So I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived and stood on their feet, an exceedingly great army.” Are we preaching, teaching and speaking God’s Word with authority into the lives of the people God has put in our path? In other words are we breathing life into the lives of the people we meet everyday? Are we seeing any fruit?
If we are not seeing this fruitfulness we can become broken over our spiritual bankruptcy. Brokenness is the key to spiritual fervency. The loaves of bread from the young boy’s lunch were broken before they were distributed to feed the 5,000. The alabaster box was broken before the fragrance permeated the room. Jesus said at the Last Supper as He took the bread and broke it –“This is My body which is broken for you.”
You might want to pray a prayer like this, “Lord, search my heart and see if there is any offensive way in me. Cause me to become keenly aware of any way that I have quenched or grieved Your Holy Spirit in my life. As I confess or say the same thing as you do about my sin, I want to repent and ask You to restore to me the joy of Your salvation. Use me to be a blessing to others and become fruitful for Your glory. This is my prayer in Jesus name, Amen”.
david ><({“>
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