Do You Believe and Have Hope?
Lenten Season • Sermon • Submitted
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· 7 viewsThis sermon is in reflectino of the passage about the "Valley of Dry Bones". When we think about what is happening today and the many people who are dying the question can be asked "Will this country live again?"
Notes
Transcript
Opening
Opening
Today is the fifth Sunday of Lent. If you remember when we began this journey I began by talking about this time being a time of preparation for those who would be getting baptized on Easter. Remember Lent is a time to think about where you are in God and determine what things in life you need to change so that you can live the life that God has for you.
It is interesting that the current state of emergency as it has been stated is right in the midst of Lent. I wonder if God is saying to us that there is a state of emergency. I am wondering where are my people in the midst of all that is going. This week when speaking with a very good friend that is like a daughter to me she began to quote the passage from
13 “When I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or command locusts to devour the land or send a plague among my people, 14 if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land. 15 Now my eyes will be open and my ears attentive to the prayers offered in this place. 16 I have chosen and consecrated this temple so that my Name may be there forever. My eyes and my heart will always be there.
It was in that moment that the words “if my people” I began to wonder where are we the people of God. The church that he established in the world. Have we forgotten so much about God that now we find ourselves in this place. So this brings us to our text this morning.
The hand of the Lord was on me, and he brought me out by the Spirit of the Lord and set me in the middle of a valley; it was full of bones. He led me back and forth among them, and I saw a great many bones on the floor of the valley, bones that were very dry. He asked me, “Son of man, can these bones live?”
I said, “Sovereign Lord, you alone know.”
Then he said to me, “Prophesy to these bones and say to them, ‘Dry bones, hear the word of the Lord! This is what the Sovereign Lord says to these bones: I will make breath enter you, and you will come to life. I will attach tendons to you and make flesh come upon you and cover you with skin; I will put breath in you, and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the Lord.’ ”
So I prophesied as I was commanded. And as I was prophesying, there was a noise, a rattling sound, and the bones came together, bone to bone. I looked, and tendons and flesh appeared on them and skin covered them, but there was no breath in them.
Then he said to me, “Prophesy to the breath; prophesy, son of man, and say to it, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Come, breath, from the four winds and breathe into these slain, that they may live.’ ” So I prophesied as he commanded me, and breath entered them; they came to life and stood up on their feet—a vast army.
Then he said to me: “Son of man, these bones are the people of Israel. They say, ‘Our bones are dried up and our hope is gone; we are cut off.’ Therefore prophesy and say to them: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: My people, I am going to open your graves and bring you up from them; I will bring you back to the land of Israel. Then you, my people, will know that I am the Lord, when I open your graves and bring you up from them. I will put my Spirit in you and you will live, and I will settle you in your own land. Then you will know that I the Lord have spoken, and I have done it, declares the Lord.’ ”
Ezekiel 37:
As we look at this passage this morning what is important is that the children of Israel find themselves in exile. They have been exiled from the very lands that God had provided for them because of their sin. So the spirit of God takes Ezekiel to a valley and places him in and he realizes that he is surround by dried bones. It is from this scene that the God of the universe the God of all knowing as this mere mortal man a very important questions. “Son of man, can these bones live?”
Can you image Ezekiel’s face when God asked him this question. I can only imagine that Ezekiel was just like we would be in that moment wondering, “why are you asking me such a questions?” So here is his response “Sovereign Lord, you alone know.”
That brings me to point 1 this morning.
Point 1: Who are you asking the question to about today’s situation?
The hand of the Lord was on me, and he brought me out by the Spirit of the Lord and set me in the middle of a valley; it was full of bones. He led me back and forth among them, and I saw a great many bones on the floor of the valley, bones that were very dry. He asked me, “Son of man, can these bones live?”
I said, “Sovereign Lord, you alone know.”
Ezekiel 37:1-
You see God knew that Ezekiel did not have the answer but He wanted to know did Ezekiel know who had the answer and if you look at Ezekiel’s response, not only did he know that God knew he recognized the very power of God by saying “Sovereign” he recognized that God was all knowing and He and only He knew the answer to His question to Ezekiel.
You see God knew that Ezekiel did not have the answer but He wanted to know did Ezekiel know who had the answer and if you look at Ezekiel’s response, not only did he know that God knew he recognized the very power of God by saying “Sovereign” he recognized that God was all knowing and He and only He knew the answer to His question to Ezekiel.
Point 2: What is God asking you to do in the midst of today’s situation?
Ezekiel 37:
Then he said to me, “Prophesy to these bones and say to them, ‘Dry bones, hear the word of the Lord!
What is God asking you to do. He may be asking you to pray like you never prayed before maybe He is asking you to speak a word to those in the sphere of your influence that they might believe and have hope. You see people are preplexed and anxiety is high but how do we address these issues? We remind people that God is alive and He still loves us. We say to them “hear the word of the Lord” and we begin to share with then the very word of God.
Point 3: Remember that it is the word of God that brings life and it can for today’s situation?
Ezekiel 37:5-
This is what the Sovereign Lord says to these bones: I will make breath enter you, and you will come to life. I will attach tendons to you and make flesh come upon you and cover you with skin; I will put breath in you, and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the Lord.’ ”
God wants us to know that even in the midst of all the tragedy that is happening to and around us he is able to bring life. There is hope in the midst of everything and again I ask you do you believe and have hope that God is with us. When you look back over the text of the book of life you find that even those who loved God often had to go through the same plagues and tragedies as everyone else but what made the difference is knowing that God is with you even in the midst of the storm. Here is passage from Luke.
As they sailed, he fell asleep. A squall came down on the lake, so that the boat was being swamped, and they were in great danger.
The disciples went and woke him, saying, “Master, Master, we’re going to drown!”
He got up and rebuked the wind and the raging waters; the storm subsided, and all was calm. “Where is your faith?” he asked his disciples.
In fear and amazement they asked one another, “Who is this? He commands even the winds and the water, and they obey him.”
Jesus was with them in the storm but what is most important is the questions that He asked them, “Where is your faith?” I believe that is where we are today God wants to know do you believe the situation and all that is happening are you overcome by the storm, “Where is our faith?”
Point 4: How will your respond to today’s situation?
Ezekiel 37:
Then he said to me: “Son of man, these bones are the people of Israel. They say, ‘Our bones are dried up and our hope is gone; we are cut off.’
I can understand how those who don’t know God are responding but I think we are just like the children of Israel they had seen God and all His mighty acts and yet their response was one of defeat. Are you defeated by what is going on or can you see that God is with us.
Point 5: Belief and Hope in God never disappoints!
Then he said to me: “Son of man, these bones are the people of Israel. They say, ‘Our bones are dried up and our hope is gone; we are cut off.’ Therefore prophesy and say to them: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: My people, I am going to open your graves and bring you up from them; I will bring you back to the land of Israel. Then you, my people, will know that I am the Lord, when I open your graves and bring you up from them. I will put my Spirit in you and you will live, and I will settle you in your own land. Then you will know that I the Lord have spoken, and I have done it, declares the Lord.’ ”
Ezekiel 37:
Life Application: Wait, write, wait, look and live!
I will stand at my watch
and station myself on the ramparts;
I will look to see what he will say to me,
and what answer I am to give to this complaint.
Then the Lord replied:
“Write down the revelation
and make it plain on tablets
so that a herald may run with it.
For the revelation awaits an appointed time;
it speaks of the end
and will not prove false.
Though it linger, wait for it;
it will certainly come
and will not delay.
“See, the enemy is puffed up;
his desires are not upright—
but the righteous person will live by his faithfulness—