Dry Bones

Jessica preached this past Sunday on the dry bones of Ezekiel.  The people of Judah had a "small view of God."  This view manifested itself in 1) a casual view of sin, 2) a lack of love for others, and 3) they no longer trusted God.  "They thought God abandoned them, but they had drifted."  In the vision of the dry bones, Ezekiel's view of God gets bigger.  This is shown in these ways: 1) God restores.  Because of Jewish laws regarding contact with the dead, bones also represent defeat and humiliation.  Uncleanness.  Yet, even all this is restored.  2) God resurrects.  God's power is such that dead things come alive again.  Dead bones can live.  So can dead Judah.  Physically dead people can live again.  So can spiritually dead people.  Finally, 3) God works through Ezekiel.  God could have done all the work.  Instead, God tells Ezekiel to prophesy.  In the Bible, humans are expected to just watch God do things.  God does his work through people.

God's words will bring the dead to life again, and this will come through human words.  This made me think of the Bible.  The Bible consists of real human words written by real human people.  So are all other books.  So where does the uniqueness come in?  As I heard Jessica read from Ezekiel 37, it occurred to me that the biblical God claims the power to create from nothing and to bring the dead to life with his own words, but also insists on using human words.  We see that God's word expresses itself in human words.  Ezekiel prophesies.  Is he just making up words?  Or is he God's puppet?  Isn't it both?  God's word expresses itself in Ezekiel's words.

Jessica shared that God brought those bones back to life and that God put flesh and tendons on them.  This is where I want to place my hope today.  Death is all around.  I'll be participating in a memorial service this Saturday.  I'll die too someday, and so will all of us.  God looks at Ezekiel and refers him to the dead bones.  "Can these bones live?"  If God has that power, he can use it.  But he looks at Ezekiel, and at you and me, so that we'll reason within ourselves and decide if death is the greatest power in the world, or if God has power to bring life from death.

Ezekiel answers, "Sovereign Lord, you alone know."  That's right!  Only the Lord knows.  And the Lord's ultimate answer comes when Jesus' dead bones live.  Easter answers the dry bones, for Jesus Christ, and by extension for all who belong to him.

I trust the message spoke to you too.  You can find it at the MPC website.