Bones in desert land,
God's breath revives, forms new life,
Hope in resurrection.
Once upon a time, there were three kings who ruled over three kingdoms. The first king, known for his wisdom and kindness, saw his people suffer from a terrible famine. He called upon his advisors, but no one could offer a solution to end the crisis.
The second king had once lived in a prosperous land, but tragedy had struck when his only son died. He was consumed by grief and withdrew from his kingdom, leaving his people to fend for themselves.
The third king was known for his wealth and generosity. But he had grown complacent and lazy, spending his days cooped up in his castle, thinking only of past glories and ignoring the needs of his people.
One day, a mysterious figure arrived in the kingdoms. He was a wandering storyteller, known for his magical tales and gift of prophecy.
The storyteller went to each King in turn and with a twinkle in his eye, he told them of a far-off land. A valley filled with treasure beyond compare. There they would find what they would each find something that would take their sorrows away.
The first king, determined to save his people from famine, set out on the journey immediately. Perhaps with treasure beyond compare he could buy food to feed his nation.
The second king, was still consumed by grief, but what had he to lose, so he joined the group.
The third king was hesitant. It seemed so much effort and things had been so much easier in the old days. The story teller had to grab by the scruff of his neck - but he came.
As they journeyed through forests and over mountains, the storyteller shared tales of magic and wonder, and the kings began to see the world in a new light.
When they arrived at the valley, they found not Gold or silver or jewels but an endless grave yard with tombstones and mausoleums The first king searched through the endless graves and found …. a single tare of wheat. He carefully dug it up and brought it home, planting it in his own kingdom. To his amazement, the wheat burst forth into a crop that could feed the whole nation.
The second king still consumed by grief, wandered through the valley until he came across an empty grave with a broken gravestone next to it. The storyteller told him to take the broken gravestone home, and he did so reluctantly. When he placed the stone next to his son's grave, it suddenly split in two, and the earth beneath it opened up. To his astonishment, his son emerged from the ground, alive and well.
Overjoyed, the second king returned to his kingdom , his sorrows taken away and able to share that joy with his people.
The third King wandered through the valley, feeling disheartened as he had not yet found anything of value. As he walked, he spied an ornate mausoleum, and he couldn't help but feel drawn to it. Inside, next to the tomb, he could see a gilded treasure chest, and his heart skipped a beat with excitement. He rushed over to the chest and eagerly opened it, only to find that it contained a simple jug of water and a glass.Confused, he poured himself a drink and began to drink deeply. He was amazed to taste the purest, most refreshing water he had ever encountered. As he drank he no longer felt complacent or bored. As the water trickled down his throat a new sense of joy and purpose and hope began to fill his body. He felt … different.
He returned to his Kingdom no longer complacent, fresh vision and fresh life pouring out of him as he rededicated himself to serving his people.
And in every Kingdom the people rejoiced. And they all lived happily ever after.
.....
Bones in desert land,
God's breath revives, forms new life,
Hope in resurrection.
....
The previous bishop of London Bishop Richard chartres could tell a good story. One of the stories he told was how as he arrived as Bishop on his desk was the paperwork to close the Church of Holy Trinity Sloane Square and sell it for flats. No - he said in his deep booming voice. It may have a congregation of one man and his dog (and possibly not even the dog). But churches did not have to close. They could be revived. He headhunted one of the greatest evangelists in the Anglo-Catholic Tradition - Bishop Michael Marshall - and persuaded him to take on the task.
By the time Bishop Michael Marshall retired ten years later the church had a congregation of over a hundred every Sunday as well as a curate they paid for themselves.
...
Bones in desert land,
God's breath revives, forms new life,
Hope in resurrection.
...
I often share the story of Ignatius loyola. He thought his life was over….Ignatius was a good looking guy. He fancied himself as an Arthurian hero. And the girls fancied him. Then on 20th May 1521 at the battle of Pampalona the young man was hit by a canon ball. His leg as completely shattered. They didn’t think he would live. He was evacuated to his father’s castle in Loyola. Operation after operation saved his life and to some extent saved his leg though it was now shorter than his other one and he would always walk with a limp. As a lay there for months he despaired. What use was a knight who could not walk? A courtier ugly with a limp? There were only two books in the castle - one a collection of tales of chivalry, the other the lives of the saints. As he read the chivalric stories his heart raced as he read them, but when he put the book down he felt empty. When he picked up the lives of the saints again his heart raced as he read but when he put it down he felt not empty but inspired. As result when he recovered he founded a group of soldiers for Jesus - not physical soldiers like crusaders, but preachers with a military dicipline to fighting for people’s souls - the Society of Jesus or Jesuits. He hoped to take Jesus to the world, and though he himself never left Europe, the brothers of his society did. At a time when most christians were busy inward looking with the squabbles of catholic and protestant, the Jesuits took the gospel to India, to China, to Korea and to Japan.
...
Bones in desert land,
God's breath revives, forms new life,
Hope in resurrection.
...
Hope in resurrection. The dead are brought back to life. You won’t be surprised if I tell you I’ve never met anyone brought back to life. You might be surprised if I tell you I know people who have. There was a church called Holy Trinity Houslow. No its an evo church but in the 1970s and 80s it was a Catholic Charismatic church. I knew well two people who later worked there. Fr Peter Denton was chair of On Fire Mission and my predecessor at St Barnabas Northolt. Before that he was an assistant priest at Holy Trinity Hounslow in the late 80s. My friend Fr Dave Maher who trained with me went on to be curate there in the early 2000s, and later in around 2010 I actually went for an interview there and other people told me the same story.
In the 1970s during one Sunday mass a woman had a heart attack in the middle of the service. A member of the congregation who was a doctor tried to save her. But the resuscitation did not work and eventually… he pronounced her dead. But the vicar felt told by God to pray. And he did. And having been dead for several minutes after the resucitation attempts had stopped, she came back to life. And lived a good 20 more years until she died. I never met her. Fr Peter met her. Fr Dave worked among people who all knew her and some of whom were there when it happened. And similarly the people I met on my interview. Not unsurprisingly when someone was raised from the dead the church was dramatically turned around…
...
Bones in desert land,
God's breath revives, forms new life,
Hope in resurrection.
...
In a valley of dry, dusty bone,
Ezekiel felt quite alone.
God said, "Can these bones live?"
And Ezekiel did give
The answer God sought on His throne.
Then God told Ezekiel to prophesy,
To the bones that were dry and bone-dry.
He did as he was told,
And the bones rattled, so bold,
Together, they started to tie.
Tendons and flesh came in a flash,
A miracle, no one could dash.
But they still had no breath,
No life, no love, no depth,
So God said, "Prophesy once again, in a dash!"
Ezekiel prophesied as he was told,
The breath of life flowed, not cold.
The bones now alive,
In a great army did thrive,
For God's power, they were bold.
The moral of this story is clear,
That even the dead have no fear.
With God's mighty hand,
Life can be grand,
And joy can always be near.
…
Bones in desert land,
God's breath revives, forms new life,
Hope in resurrection.
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A couple of cheeky requests -
1) If you have read all the way to the end of this sermon, presumably you have found it helpful. If so, (if you are happy to do so) please give the sermon a five star (or at least a four star) rating. The better star ratings a sermon gets, the higher it comes up search engines. So you are helping me (thank you) but you are also helping other people get to read this. Thank you.
2) This sermon was preached at Gracemass Church Plant - a new church seeking to reach people in their 20's an 30's in London. Only 2% of that age group even go to church let alone know Jesus.
If you are able to support this ministry (with however small amount) please consider donating to
Gracemass Church Planting Ministries
sort code 30-96-26
Account Number 76650960
