The hand of the Lord was on me, and he brought me out by his Spirit and set me down in the middle of the valley; it was full of bones. He led me all around them. There were a great many of them on the surface of the valley, and they were very dry. Then he said to me, “Son of man, can these bones live?” I replied, “Lord God, only you know.” He said to me, “Prophesy concerning these bones and say to them: Dry bones, hear the word of the Lord! This is what the Lord God says to these bones: I will cause breath to enter you, and you will live. I will put tendons on you, make flesh grow on you, and cover you with skin. I will put breath in you so that you come to life. Then you will know that I am the Lord.” So I prophesied as I had been commanded. While I was prophesying, there was a noise, a rattling sound, and the bones came together, bone to bone. As I looked, tendons appeared on them, flesh grew, and skin covered them, but there was no breath in them. He said to me, “Prophesy to the breath, prophesy, son of man. Say to it: This is what the Lord God says: Breath, come from the four winds and breathe into these slain so that they may live! ” So I prophesied as he commanded me; the breath entered them, and they came to life and stood on their feet, a vast army. Then he said to me, “Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel. Look how they say, ‘Our bones are dried up, and our hope has perished; we are cut off.’ Therefore, prophesy and say to them, ‘This is what the Lord God says: I am going to open your graves and bring you up from them, my people, and lead you into the land of Israel. You will know that I am the Lord, my people, 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 am the Lord. I have spoken, and I will do it. This is the declaration of the Lord. —Ezekiel 37:1-14
God brings
“The hand of the Lord was on me, and he brought me out by his Spirit and set me down in the middle of the valley; it was full of bones. He led me all around them. There were a great many of them on the surface of the valley, and they were very dry.” —Ezekiel 37:1-2
“Our bones are dried up, and our hope has perished; we are cut off.” —Ezekiel 37:11
“Son of man, can these bones live?” —Ezekiel 37:3
“Lord God, only you know.” —Ezekiel 37:3
God brings
“Prophesy concerning these bones and say to them: Dry bones, hear the word of the Lord! This is what the Lord God says to these bones: I will cause breath to enter you, and you will live. I will put tendons on you, make flesh grow on you, and cover you with skin. I will put breath in you so that you come to life. Then you will know that I am the Lord.” —Ezekiel 37:4-6
“So I prophesied as I had been commanded.” —Ezekiel 37:7
“Prophesy to the breath, prophesy, son of man. Say to it: This is what the Lord God says: Breath, come from the four winds and breathe into these slain so that they may live! ” —Ezekiel 37:9
God brings
“Then he said to me, “Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel. Look how they say, ‘Our bones are dried up, and our hope has perished; we are cut off.’ Therefore, prophesy and say to them, ’This is what the Lord God says: I am going to open your graves and bring you up from them, my people, and lead you into the land of Israel. You will know that I am the Lord, my people, 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 am the Lord. I have spoken, and I will do it. This is the declaration of the Lord.’” —Ezekiel 37:11-14
“And you were dead in your trespasses and sins in which you previously walked according to the ways of this world, according to the ruler of the power of the air, the spirit now working in the disobedient. We too all previously lived among them in our fleshly desires, carrying out the inclinations of our flesh and thoughts, and we were by nature children under wrath as the others were also.” —Ephesians 2:1-3
“But God…” —Ephesians 2:4
“God, who is rich in mercy, because of his great love that he had for us…” —Ephesians 2:4-5
God brings hope and life because he is rich in
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made us alive with Christ even though we were dead in trespasses. You are saved by grace!” —Ephesians 2:5 “That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit…The wind blows where it wishes and you hear the sound of it, but do not know where it comes from and where it is going; so is everyone who is born of the Spirit.” —John 3:6-8
God uses those who are alive as
“For you are saved by grace through faith, and this is not from yourselves; it is God’s gift — not from works, so that no one can boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared ahead of time for us to do.” —Ephesians 2:8-10
“The preaching has its share in the work, but it is the praying which achieves the result.” —Charles Spurgeon
Where do you see yourself in this story?
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For further study:
Scripture: Psalm 130; John 11:1-45; Romans 8:6-11
Resources: “Making All Things New” by Henri Nouwen
Community Group Guide:
Read the story of The Valley of the Dry Bones: Ezekiel 37:1-14
What ways do you see yourself in the story?
Do you see yourself in the bones? How?
Do you see yourself in Ezekiel? How?
What invitations do you see for yourself in light of this text?
End in prayer for Gods message of hope and life to come to Indianapolis.
To prepare for next week: Palm Sunday; Hebrews 10:4-10