Saturday Scripture Gold with Bibi: Are You Stuck in a Valley of Dry Bones?

If you could buy a cure-all pill that was guaranteed to heal any sickness, how valuable would it be to you? Wouldn't you guard it? Keep it close? Think of it as very precious? God's Word has solutions to all mankind's ills, and yet sometimes Christians don't even bother to read it!

I have a question for you this week: "Can dead, dry bones live?"

Let's begin, by looking at Ezekiel 37. God had called His people, the Jews, out of captivity in Egypt. For over 100 years, they had been in Egyptian captivity. God brought them into the Promised Land, and gave them a land and a King, and made them a nation. But, they turned against God, and God allowed them to go into captivity once again.

Nebuchadnezzar and his Babylonian army invaded Israel. They had reduced Solomon’s Temple to ashes, and had taken many of the Jewish people back to Babylon as captives. This is the condition that Ezekiel is in. The nation of Israel is dead. But, God has a vision for Ezekiel.

(Ezekiel 37:1-2) Ezekiel is carried to a valley full of very dry bones. I want you to imagine this scene with me. These bones are scattered everywhere, very white, very dry. Bones are all over the place, scattered by the wild animals so that there is nothing but miscellaneous bones as far as the eye can see.

For Ezekiel, this is a vision of the nation of Israel (Ezekiel 37:11). There was no way that Israel could get themselves out of Babylonian captivity. They were like these dead, dry bones, in a graveyard, dead in a hopeless situation.

Maybe this describes some of you today. You look around you, and it seems hopeless. Everything seems to have gone wrong. Your life is a mess, or at least it’s not what you want it to be. You see yourself in a valley of dead, dry bones.

(Ezekiel 37:3a) Look at the question. Ezekiel is looking at millions of dead, dry bones scattered about 100’s of square miles, and God asks him, “Can these bones live?” How would you answer that question?

When you look at your situation, and all you see is a valley of dead, dry bones, you don’t see much hope, do you? It’s hard to imagine those dead, dry bones having life. It’s hard to imagine your situation ever getting better. It’s hard to imagine life, beyond our present circumstances.

Israel has been taken captive by Babylon. Ezekiel can’t see much hope for his people. But, he answers God’s question (Ezekiel 37:3). “Can these bones live?” “I don’t see how, if they do, it will be up to You, Lord!”

Ezekiel is telling God that God is in charge, in control. God can do whatever He wants to do. With God, nothing is impossible. If God wants these dead, dry bones to live, they’ll live! How? Ezekiel gives us the 2-Fold Plan Of God, to bring life to these bones.

1) The Word (Ezekiel 37:4). Ezekiel is told to preach to these dead, dry bones. Can you imagine, preaching to a bunch of bones? Ezekiel begins to preach to these dead, dry bones, and says, “Dry bones, listen to what God has to say.” He must have felt rather foolish! But, Ezekiel continues to speak to all these bones (Ezekiel 37:5-6).

Then, something begins to happen  right before his eyes (Ezekiel 37:7-8). The bones came together (imagine the noise); muscle, flesh, and skin began to surround the skeletons. Laying before him were 1000’s of corpses! Bodies, but no life. What is the key here? It is the Word of God (Ezekiel 37:4).

Dear reader, if you are struggling, if your Christian life seems dry and dehydrated, if you are spiritually thirsty, then dive into the Water of God’s Word. That’s where you’ll find spiritual refreshment!

2) We can see that Ezekiel had 1000’s of corpses laying on the ground with no life in them. Something more is needed than just the preaching of the Word of God. What is it? The Holy Spirit (Ezekiel 37:9-10)! Remember (Genesis 2:7). “And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.” 

It’s the Holy Spirit who takes the Word of God, and gives it the power to give life to a dead soul. It’s our responsibility to give it out so the Holy Spirit can use it to give life. Do you know someone who is struggling, who is discouraged, who is all dried up, who is in need of a friend, or a word of encouragement? God is calling YOU to be the tool, or instrument for the Holy Spirit to use to bring life to their thirsty soul.

Do you know someone who is lost, who is going to spend eternity in Hell, who is without eternal life, without hope, without Christ? God is calling YOU to be the tool, or instrument for the Holy Spirit to use to bring His Word, and life, to their lost soul.

So in closing, I ask you: "Can dead, dry bones live?" With God, nothing is impossible. Sometimes we look around us, and all we see is a valley of dry, dead bones. It looks pretty hopeless, it looks pretty devastating, it looks pretty grim. 

But, God has a plan. Get into His Word, and He’ll speak to you. Yield to the Holy Spirit, and He will give YOU a new life. Can dead, dry bones live? With God, nothing is impossible. 

If you have never trusted Jesus to save you, you are still living in the graveyard of dead, dry bones. God has a plan. Believe His Word, when it says that Jesus paid your sin-debt on the cross. Trust Him to save you, and the Holy Spirit will give you a new life!

Now, let's pray...

O Father, give us the humility which realizes its ignorance, admits its mistakes, recognizes its need, welcomes advice, accepts rebuke. Help us always to praise rather than to criticize, to sympathize rather than to discourage, to build rather than to destroy, and to think of people at their best rather than at their worst. This we ask for in thy name's sake. Amen

Until next time...

Have a blessed week!

Bibi