Plan for: Thanksgiving | Advent | Christmas
Explores God's power to restore and revive, using Ezekiel's vision of dry bones as a metaphor for spiritual renewal and resurrection.
Good morning, beloved! What a joy it is to gather with you today, in this sacred space where we have shared so many moments of faith, hope, and love. Today, we find ourselves at the precipice of a new understanding, a new revelation. We stand together on the threshold of a profound message that echoes from the ancient scrolls of the prophet Ezekiel, a message that resonates with the rhythm of every heartbeat, every breath, every blink of our eyes.
In the heart of the Old Testament, nestled in the thirty-seventh chapter of Ezekiel, we find a vivid and powerful vision. A vision not of despair or destruction, but of restoration and revival. A vision that speaks to us today, in our time and in our circumstances, as clearly and compellingly as it spoke to the people of Israel thousands of years ago.
The message from Ezekiel is a powerful one. It speaks of a valley filled with dry bones, a place that seems devoid of life and hope. Yet, in this desolate landscape, God promises to breathe new life into these bones. This is a promise of restoration, a promise that no matter how bleak or hopeless our circumstances may seem, God has the power to restore and renew.
Look at our own lives: We may see areas that feel like that valley of dry bones. Perhaps it's a relationship that has been broken, a dream that has been shattered, or a hope that has been lost. In these moments, it can be easy to feel like those dry bones, lifeless and without hope. But the message of Ezekiel is that God can breathe new life into these situations. He can restore what has been broken, renew what has been lost, and revive what has seemed dead.
This promise of restoration: It’s not just for the big things in our lives, but for the small things as well. It's for the moments of everyday life, the moments when we feel worn down, tired, or discouraged. It's for the moments when we feel like we're just going through the motions, when our faith feels dry and lifeless. In these moments, God promises to breathe new life into us, to restore our joy, our hope, and our passion.
For more than ourselves: It's also about our communities, our churches, and our world. Just as God promised to restore the dry bones in the valley, He also promises to restore our communities and our world. He promises to bring healing where there is brokenness, peace where there is conflict, and justice where there is injustice. And just as He calls us to believe in His power to restore our own lives, He also calls us to believe in His power to restore our world.
As we continue to immerse ourselves in the richness of Ezekiel's vision, we find ourselves standing in the midst of a valley of dry bones ... View this full PRO sermon free with PRO