THE GOOD NEWS COMES CLOSER

Ezekiel 37:1-14; Romans 8:1-11; John 11:1-45

Introduction

In a state of despair - hopelessness, the Israelites are now in the colony of their oppressors as slaves. They had lost their quality relationship with God who brought them out of Egypt when their hearts turned against Him. Our message for today is bringing us to the journey of dry bones to life again. Without spiritual growth and worship as our lifestyle, we can easily find ourselves in dryness, discouraged, burn-out, or spiritually dead.

God is Willing to Bring You Back to Life

In Ezekiel's vision, God Himself is directing him to prophesy about the spiritual state of the people of Israel - spiritually dry and dead as the dry bones in the valley. God showed the state they are in and what He is about to do for them.

The Israelis turned from God and lusted after other gods, they lost God's protection and were subdued by other nations, taking them into captivity and possessing their promised land. 

They spiritually rebelled in their hearts against God, evident in their physical actions of worshiping other gods. Their hearts were spiritually dry and dead, "For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God's law; indeed, it cannot. Those who are in the flesh cannot please God." Romans 8:6-8 (ESV)

God's intervention to restore the people was born out of His own will. In the previous chapter of the book of Ezekiel, we are told,

“Therefore say to the house of Israel, Thus says the Lord GOD: It is not for your sake, O house of Israel, that I am about to act, but for the sake of my holy name, which you have profaned among the nations to which you came. And I will vindicate the holiness of my great name, which has been profaned among the nations, and which you have profaned among them. And the nations will know that I am the LORD, declares the Lord GOD, when through you I vindicate my holiness before their eyes." Ezekiel 36:22-23 (ESV)

Beloved in Christ, for the sake of His own name, God is willing to bring restoration unto you. David puts it, "He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for His name's sake." Psalms 23:3 (ESV)

God is about to raise up His fallen children for the sake of His name. He will prove to the world that He is holy; that God fulfills His promise and that He is able to speak life into hearts and lives that are spiritually dry or dead. Paul says, "There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus." Romans 8:1 (ESV)

Precious one, God is willing to give you a new heart of flesh to replace the hard heart of stone, and to put His spirit in you. "But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness." Romans 8:10 (ESV)

God's Delay is not His Denial

The captivity of the Israelites did not come to God as a surprise. He gave way to the Babylonians to capture His people. In their struggle and destress, God knew and still kept watching.

Jesus was called when Lazarus was ill for healing "So the sisters sent to him, saying, “Lord, he whom you love is ill.”" John 11:3 (ESV)

With Christ's love for the family, He still stayed two days before embarking on the journey. I love how John puts it; "Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. So, when he heard that Lazarus was ill, he stayed two days longer in the place where he was." John 11:5-6 (ESV). One would have expected that because of the love, He would have rushed back to attend to their needs, but that was not the case, even in love. Whatever seems delayed in your life, remember, Christ's love is still activated for you. "So the Jews said, “See how he loved him!”" John 11:36 (ESV)

God is able to bring back dry bones to life again therefore, there is no situation beyond Him. He is sovereign. "Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you.”" John 11:21-22 (ESV). Martha had a strong belief in Jesus for healing Lazarus her brother but could not embrace raising his dead body to life at that moment, so "Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?” She said to him, “Yes, Lord; I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who is coming into the world.”" John 11:25-27 (ESV)

Do you believe Jesus is able to bring your dry bones experiences to life again?

God is never late in our situations. Is God aware of the suppression and oppression you are going through? Yes! He is, and your time is set. As humans, we have limits to our abilities. The doctors can work around the sick but reach their peak when life goes out of the body. But Jesus Christ is able and more than able to raise the dead. He is not limited but Omnipotent.

When we were spiritually dead in our sins, God expressed His great love, mercy, and grace in Christ Jesus towards us, "But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved." Ephesians 2:4-5 (ESV)

It is by faith in Christ Jesus you are saved and raised to new life in Christ. He has given you a new heart and removed the spiritually dry heart of stone. In doing so, God is glorified, His name is lifted up, and all the world will know that God is holy, just, faithful, and worthy to be praised.

The God of the Mountain lyrics

Your Dry Bones in the Valley

The valley of dry bones is your hopeless and desperate situation in life. It is in the valley that we can see clearly the hand of God in our lives yet will find it so hard to believe. Mountain-top blessings occur following valley experiences. It is in the valley we find a need for spiritual growth and build strong intimacy with God. What we learn in the valley regarding God’s love, faithfulness, and power is what gives us spiritual boldness and strength to worship Him even to the mountain. 

The God of the valley is still the God of the mountain. The God of the day is still the God of the night. Remember that, all the miracles of Christ went to people who found themselves in the valley of life, for instance; leprosy, ill health, paralysis, blindness, mute, dead, hunger, insufficient wine, shame, etc.

Every valley experience you may find yourself in today, God is willing to bring you out to make His name great; 

- Couples struggling to find lasting peace

- Financial crisis

- Traveling documentations

- Ill health

- Spiritual suppressions

- emotional disability

- etc.

God is willing to bring you out of them now to bring glory to Himself. Your dry bones shall surely live again.

At times the enemy comes against a person of faith and, that is when we need to simply remain faithful and trust God. But know this, God is with you both on the mountain and in the valley. You are never alone no matter how you may feel. Choose to remain faithful and trust God and you will come through the valley and arrive at the mountain.

Many people try to ease the pain of the valley experience through drugs, drinking, suicide, hook-up (sexual sin), fraud, money laundering, consulting mediums, occultic spirits, or simply a denial of the truth. But those things never help. They only make the matter worse. The answer is to turn to God Almighty and wait upon Him to raise your dry bones from the valley.

In the valley of dry bones, Ezekiel speaks life that only God can accomplish:

"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." Ezekiel 37:10 (ESV)

Jesus commanded, "Take away the stone" and prayed, “Father, I thank you that you have heard me. I knew that you always hear me, but I said this on account of the people standing around, that they may believe that you sent me.” John 11:41-42 (ESV) After this Jesus called, "Lazarus, come out."

Only God Almighty can speak life into physical and spiritually dead and dry bones.

Life’s journey doesn’t have to pass through the valley of dry bones. You can avoid areas of spiritual dryness and death. "You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact, the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you." Romans 8:9-11 (ESV)

1. First seek the Lord and ask the Holy Spirit to search your heart to reveal any area that is spiritually vulnerable to spiritual attack or dryness.

2. Pray for your divine revival. Pray for others and the church. Pray for spiritual revival in the hearts of those around you and ask the Lord for spiritual revival in your heart and life.

3. Believe and expect a deeper faith when you walk with God, a faith to believe and expect the impossible to be possible.

4. Choose to walk by faith and not by sight or feelings. Pray for a spiritual refreshing in your heart and in the body of Christ, the church, so that all the world will know that Jesus is alive. 

5. Allow the Holy Spirit to speak to your heart and soul as you read the word.

Conclusion

"Jesus said to them, “Unbind him, and let him go.”" John 11:44 (ESV). Seek God, pray for revival, expect the impossible, walk by faith, read the word, and worship in his presence. Your dry bones shall live again.

Shalom aleichem...