Let us commence our service this
afternoon by singing together hymn number 29, tune is Rubin,
725. Descend from heaven, celestial
dark, with flames of pure seraphic love, our ravished hearts inspire. Fountain of joy, blessed paraclete,
warm our cold hearts with heavenly heat, and set our souls on fire. Hymn number 29, tune Rubin, 725. Peace and calm in sinister calm,
And flames of pure syrupy love, Are ravishing us in song. ? Fountain of joy, blessed parapet
? ? Full of comfort with every beat ? Freedom these birds shall try
and take. Thy sweetest of destinies spreading
O'er the hearts of all. Point out a place where raisins
grow Direct us to the greening boons of our incarnate God. On darkness night I see the grave, Everywhere the bird calls, saying,
And with a step apart ? Let us ever ? ? Redeemer be ?
? We've always been ? ? Sing and turn, be ? Can hear His wordless sigh. From which brook thou tradeth
thou trod, ? God's there to make the hurry
? ? Lord and God to bear our sin ? ? We'll tell the Father
? in that day. And thou shalt witness
what we say, reck'ning just what we'll be. ? Jesus, Lord, to gray and black
? ? Since its time brought His own being ? ? Now the throne
of grace has moved ? Pray Thou for us that we should
play Till the ebbs of Jesus' blood Through faith that works by love. Now with the Father and the Son,
? Not that mysteriously ? ? In boundless ? ? Beautiful ecstasy
? ? The man we cannot see ? ? Comprehend ? ? We make thou art
? ? God's sweetest friend ? ? And we love thee ? ? Evermore ? Let us read together from the
Holy Word of God in the prophecy of Ezekiel, part of chapter 36
and part of chapter 37. Ezekiel chapter 36, and we'll
commence our reading at verse 25, and we will read down to
verse 14 in chapter 37. Then will I sprinkle clean water
upon you, and ye shall be clean. From all your filthiness and
from all your idlers will I cleanse you. A new heart also will I
give unto you, and a new spirit will I put within you, and I
will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will
give you an heart of flesh, and I will put my spirit within you,
and cause you to walk in my statutes, and you shall keep my judgments
and do them. And you shall dwell in the land
that I gave to your fathers, and you shall be my people, and
I will be your God. I will also save you from all
your uncleannesses, and I will call for the corn and will increase
it, and lay no famine upon you. and I will multiply the fruit
of the tree and the increase of the field, that ye shall receive
no more reproach of famine among the heathen. Then shall ye remember
your own evil ways and your doings that were not good, and shall
loathe yourselves in your own sight for your iniquities and
for your abominations. Not for your sakes do I this,
saith the Lord God, be it known unto you, be ashamed and confounded
for your own ways, O house of Israel. Thus saith the Lord God,
in the day that I shall have cleansed you from all your iniquities,
I will also cause you to dwell in the cities, and the waste
shall be built, and the desolate land shall be tilled, whereas
it lay desolate in the sight of all that pass by, And they
shall say, this land that was desolate is become like the garden
of Eden. And the waste and desolate and
ruined cities are become fenced and are inhabited. Then the heathen
that are left round about you shall know that I, the Lord,
build the ruined places and plant that that was desolate. I, the
Lord, have spoken it. I will do it. Thus saith the
Lord God, I will yet for this be inquired of by the house of
Israel to do it for them. I will increase them with men
like a flock, as the holy flock, as the flock of Jerusalem in
her solemn feast. So shall the way cities be filled
with flocks of men, and they shall know that I am the Lord. The hand of the Lord was upon
me. and carried me out in the Spirit of the Lord, and set me
down in the midst of the valley which was full of bones, and
caused me to pass by them round about. And behold, there were
many, there were very many in the open valley, and lo, they
were very dry. And he said unto me, Son of man,
can these bones live? And I answered, O Lord God, thou
knowest. Again he said unto me, prophesy
upon these bones, and say unto them, ye dry bones, hear the
word of the Lord. Thus saith the Lord God unto
these bones, behold, I will cause breath to enter into you, and
ye shall live. And I will lay sinews upon you,
and will bring up flesh upon you, and cover you with skin,
and put breath in you, and ye shall live. and ye shall know
that I am the Lord. So I prophesied as I was commanded. And as I prophesied, there was
a noise, and behold, a shaking, and the bones came together,
bone to his bone. And then I beheld, lo, the sinews
and the flesh came up upon them, and the skin covered them above,
but there was no breath in them. Then said he unto me, prophesy
unto the wind, prophesy, son of man, and say to the wind,
thus saith the Lord God, come from the four winds, O breath,
and breathe upon these slain, that they may live. So I prophesied
as he commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived,
and stood upon their feet, an exceeding great army. Then he
said unto me, Son of man, these bones, they say, these bones
are the whole house of Israel. Behold, they say, our bones are
dried and our hope is lost. We are cut off for our parts. Therefore prophesy and say unto
them, thus saith the Lord God, behold, O my people, I will open
your graves, and cause you to come up out of your graves, and
bring you into the land of Israel. And ye shall know that I am the
Lord, when I have opened your graves, oh my people, and brought
you up out of your graves, and shall put my Spirit in you, and
ye shall live, and I will place you in your own land. shall ye
know that I the Lord have spoken it and performed it, saith the
Lord. May the Lord bless the reading
of his precious word, grant unto us a spirit of real prayer. Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty,
which is an art, an art to come, We do desire to come and bow
before thy great majesty, to call upon thy great and holy
name. We do desire that the grace of
our Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God our Father and the
sacred fellowship of the Holy Spirit may rest and abide upon
us. But we do pray to be led by the
Spirit of God and that the word of truth may be open to our hearts,
and that it may be made unto us in power, in the Holy Ghost,
and with much assurance. And as the dear apostle speaks,
not written with pen and ink, but by the finger of the living
God upon the fleshy tables of the heart, Lord, may it be so. We do humbly beseech thee. Blessed Divine Spirit of Power,
we do pray that Thou wouldst come, that Thou wouldst pour
forth Thy power from on high, that we may see the dry bones
live, that we may see precious souls quickened into life, that
we may see that resurrecting power of Jesus Christ in the
lives of men and women, that we may see many brought from
death unto life. May the power that bring salvation
be exerted in the world. We do humbly beseech of them. Oh, we pray. Most blessed spirit
of truth, convince us of our sin and lead to Jesus' blood
and to our wandering eyes reveal the secret love of God. Descend from heaven, celestial
dark. Oh, we do humbly beseech them.
O graciously hear us in heaven, thy holy dwelling place, and
come and bless us here today. Come and grant that living witness
of the living spirit of the living God in our hearts. We do humbly
beseech thee. And that we do pray that thou
wouldst take of the things of Jesus and reveal them unto us. We do humbly pray thee. O we pray that we may see no
man Save Jesus only, Jesus the way, the truth and the life,
that we may in our Lord Jesus Christ see our Heavenly Father,
see in Him that everlasting love in the person of His Son, our
Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. See, O Lord, in such clear views
that God so loved the world He gave His only begotten Son, O
that thou wouldst graciously come here this afternoon and
grant the witness of thy spirit with our spirit that we are the
children of God. We do humbly beseech thee that
we may be drawn. None come except the Father drawn. O to know something of the loveliness
and glory of that word. Yea, I have loved thee with an
everlasting love. Therefore with loving kindness
have I drawn thee. Oh, do grant that it may be so.
Most gracious Lord, we do pray thee, come and bless us, come
and teach us, come and lead us, come and direct us. Come and
grant thy sacred presence here in the sanctuary. Unto him shall
the gathering of the people be. Lord, we pray that in our little
assemblies, it may be unto him, we pray, that thou wilt grant
us a godly increase and in gathering that there may be a rebuilding,
a renewing, a reviving, a replenishing. Without thy heavenly power, O
Lord, no sweets the gospel can afford, no drops of heavenly
love will fall. Oh, to know that heavenly power,
that divine unction as we gather around the word of God. Lord,
we do pray that thou wouldst bless our brethren, the deacons,
and give them grace, wisdom, and help. Bless each one of our
brethren and sisters in church fellowship, those with us and
those unable to be with us. We lovingly commend each one
to thee. Bless those that listen online
and grant that the word may be a living word unto them. Reach
into their very souls, we do humbly beseech thee. Grant the
world, as it goes out on the internet, may be richly blessed
and used of the precious souls gathered unto Christ. Oh, do
hear us and grant us, Lord, that gracious determination, both
of hearers and speaker. For I determine to know nothing
among men, save Jesus Christ and Him crucified. Grant us that
gracious determination. Oh, Lord, we do beseech Thee,
and come and open thy word to our heart and to our understanding. We pray thy blessing upon the
little ones and the children, the blessing of the Lord that
maketh rich and addeth no sorrow with it. We pray thy rich blessing
upon our young friends, that they may be blessed of thee,
taught of thee, guided by thee, that they may follow on to know
the Lord. Oh, we pray for those that may
feel the burden of their sin, may feel their emptiness in their
poverty, may feel their insufficiency in helplessness, we pray that
thou wouldst draw them unto Christ, draw them unto his glorious person,
to touch the hem of his garment, to draw from that sacred fullness
that is in thee. Oh, we thank thee for those wonderful
words of Christ. Come unto me, all ye that are
that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take
my yoke upon you and learn of me, for I am meek and lowly in
heart, and ye shall find rest for your souls. Lord, grant that
it may be so even here this afternoon in the sanctuary, that it may
be a living world into the heart of a poor sinner, and in the
dead, in trespasses and in sins, quicken them. Quicken them, Lord. with all thy wonderful power
and grace of the Holy Ghost into their hearts, to show them their
lost estate, to show them that Jesus is the only Saviour. Lord,
bless our dear young friends, we do humbly beseech thee, and
show them thy ways, teach them thy path, send out thy light
and thy truth into this village, into the surrounding villages
and hamlets, and gather in precious souls, O Lord, we humbly beseech
thee. Arise, arise, O God of grace,
into thy rest descend thou in the ark of thy strength. Hear
us, Lord, O to sin, the pulling down of the strongholds of Satan. Hear us, Lord, and the building
up of thy people in their most holy faith. Pray for parents
that grace and help and wisdom may be given to them in the bringing
up of their children. We pray that those bless the
families and grant a generation that shall be raised up to call
thee the Redeemer, blessed, that shall follow on to know the Lord.
Deliver us from Satan's power, from his temptations, from his
influence. Lord, he comes in so many different
ways. sometimes as an angel of light
to deceive us, sometimes as a roaring lion to devour us, defend us
and deliver us from the power of Satan. As the heart panteth
after the water brook, so panteth my soul after thee, O God, when
shall I come and appear before God? Gracious God, we do pray,
remember all in the evening time of life's journey, Remember them
for good. Oh, do hear us, Lord, and prepare
us each for that great change that must come to each one of
us, when we shall soar through tracks unknown and see thee on
thy judgment throne. Rock of ages, cleft for me, let
me hide myself in thee. Those that wander from the ways
of wisdom and righteousness, stretch out thy almighty arm,
cause them to be in want, cause them to return. O Lord, we do
beseech of Thee. There is nothing too hard for
Thee. There is nothing beyond Thy power. Hear us, O Lord. We humbly beseech Thee. Pour
upon us the spirit of grace and of supplication with thanksgiving. We thank Thee for Thy word. We thank Thee for the word that
we've read, the word of Thy grace. We thank Thee, most gracious
Lord, for every mercy of thy kind providence. We thank thee
for the sacred and profound glories of our Lord Jesus Christ and
of the love of our heavenly Father. Oh, we thank thee for the Holy
Ghost and his heavenly power. We thank thee for the Son of
God that was made flesh and dwelt among us. We thank thee for the
holy life he lived and the holy law he fulfilled. and the bringing
in of everlasting righteousness for thy people. We thank thee,
most gracious Lord, that he suffered and bled and died for our sins
on Calvary's tree, and on the third day he rose again for our
justification. Gracious God, we bow in humble
thanksgiving before thy glorious majesty for the wonders of redeeming
love, for the fullness of that salvation that is in Christ Jesus,
Make up in giving, O Lord, where we do so fail in asking. And
come and touch one's lips with a live coal from off the heavenly
altar. We ask for Jesus Christ's sake. Amen. Let us now sing together hymn
number 470. The tune is Malborn 371. Death and the grave are doleful
themes, for sinful mortal worms to sing, except to Saviour's
brighter beams dispel the gloom and touch the stream. Hymn 470,
tune Melbourne 371. Amen. Amen. Amen. It shall be as it was before.
It shall be as it was before. ? Let hope prosper ? ? Let hope
prosper ? ? And together we'll rise ? ? And together we'll rise ? O'er the ramparts we watched,
were so gallantly streaming? And the rocket's red glare, the
bombs bursting in air, ? As there is no man in the earth
? ? And no house therein stands for each day ? O say can you see, by the dawn's
early light, What so proudly we hailed at the twilight's Oh, say does that star-spangled
banner yet Greatly feeling to need the Lord's
gracious help, direct your attention to Ezekiel chapter 37, And we'll read verse 12 for our
text. Ezekiel chapter 37, verse 12. Therefore prophesy and say unto
them, thus saith the Lord God, behold, O my people, I will open
your graves and cause you to come up out of your graves and
bring you into the land of Israel. The prophet here had a vision. It says he, that the Lord carried
him out in the spirit of the Lord and set me down in the midst
of a valley which was full of bones, full of skeletons. Must have been quite an awesome
sight, a valley full of dry skeletons. But what is illustrated here
is the Church of God. The Church of God. Chosen by
the Father, redeemed by the Son, and sanctified by the Holy Ghost. This is the whole house of Israel. It says in verse 11, He said
unto me, Son of man, These bones are the whole house of Israel.
Behold, they say, our bones are dried, our hope is lost. We are
cut off for our parts. Therefore, prophesy and say unto
them, thus saith the Lord God. Now, I believe that that is the,
what you might say, the fullest and primary meaning of this word
that is before us. there was a more immediate meaning
to Ezekiel because the children of Israel were in the land of
Babylon and Ezekiel was raised up in the land of Babylon to
preach unto the children of Israel there in the land of captivity
where it looked utterly impossible they could ever be delivered
from that bondage that they were in in the land of Babylon and
naturally speaking it was impossible And so what you might say in
one sense when Ezekiel is here speaking to the children of Israel
in the land of Babylon it means the Lord would come and deliver
them after 70 years and bring them back into the land of Israel. But I do believe that the fullest
and proper meaning of the vision is the whole church of God. And
showing us that it's only by the divine power and the heavily
unction of the Holy Ghost that anything could ever be done.
And even though those bones that were so dry, those skeletons
that were in that valley, and yet the Lord, by his sovereign
power, was able to raise them from that condition of death. In a sense, just a dead corpse,
it was just skeletons, it was just bones. They'd been dead
of a long season. And the Lord, he says to Ezekiel
in verse three, and he said unto me, son of man, can these bones
live? And I answered, O Lord God, thou
knowest. What a prayer that is. And what
a good prayer that has been to me. you'll find the same prayer
in the prophecy of Jeremiah. And the answer, O Lord God, thou
knowest. Because, naturally speaking,
looking at a valley full of skeletons, you would say there's no hope
whatsoever that they can live. And naturally speaking, when
you look at the Church of God in their fallen estate, in their
utter corruption and sin, under the curse of the holy law of
God, no hope, no hope. Just like Paul speaks to the
Ephesians, without God in the world, aliens from the commonwealth
of Israel, and from the covenants of promise and without God in
the world. That is the church of God in its lost condition.
It is. So when we have this question,
can these bones live? My beloved friends, they can.
Because there is a God in heaven. Remember that word spoken by
Daniel in Daniel chapter two when he came in before Nebuchadnezzar?
But there's a God in heaven. A God who is of almighty power.
And here in these Wonderful words, I read that last part of chapter
36 on purpose because where it starts there in verse 25, I will
sprinkle clean water upon you. What does it mean this clean
water? It's the power of the Holy Ghost. It's the power of
the Holy Ghost. Living water. Living water. And it is beautifully emblematic
of the divine person of the Holy Ghost. When the Lord Jesus speaks in
the Gospel of John, chapter seven, he speaks there of the power
of the Holy Ghost. He said, he that believeth on
me out of his belly shall flow living waters. And then we have
in brackets, this he spake of the Spirit. That's the Holy Ghost,
living water. When the woman was by the well
in the fourth chapter of John's Gospel and the Lord asked her
for drink, that is for natural water. And he said unto her,
if any man drink of the water that I shall give him, she'll
be in him, a well of water springing up. into everlasting life. And
what's he speaking of? The Holy Ghost dwelling in the
heart. It shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting
life. And in John's Gospel, in the
14th and 15th and 16th chapters, the Lord Jesus Christ speaks
of the divine person, power and grace of the Holy Ghost. And
what does he say there? He will dwell with you forever.
So when you see that living fountain of living water springing up,
he will dwell with you forever. But what struck me so much in
meditating here, then will I, and there's a constant and continual
reference, it's only by God's grace, it's only by God's It's
only by the power of the Holy Ghost. It's only by the sovereign
drawing of an eternal Father. It's only by the living sacrifice
of Christ which he offered on the behalf of his people to redeem
them from sin and Satan's power. Hence it says, then will I sprinkle,
it's a divine act of God, clean water upon you and you shall
be clean. That's the sanctifying work of
the Spirit. From all your filthiness and
from all your idols will I cleanse you. A new heart will I give
unto you, and a new spirit will I put within you, and I will
take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give
you a heart of flesh. I will, I will, I will. It's sovereign grace or sin abounding. And I will put my spirit within
you and cause you to walk in my statutes, and you shall keep
my judgments and do them, and you shall dwell in the land that
I gave to your fathers. You see these I wills of Almighty
God and I will be your God. I will also save you from all
your uncleanness. I will call for the corn and
will increase it and lay no famine upon you. And then notice what
it says in verse 31 of chapter 36. Then shall you remember your
own evil ways. This is by the inward enlightening
and power of the Holy Ghost, then shall ye remember, that's
when the Holy Ghost has been put within you, then shall you
remember your own evil ways and your doings that were not good
and shall loathe yourself. This is again the divine act
of the Living Spirit of the Living God. and shall loathe yourselves
in your own sight for your iniquities and for your abominations. And then again, sovereign, sovereign
grace, not for your sakes do I this, saith the Lord God, be
it known unto you, be ashamed and confounded for your own ways,
O house of Israel. Thus saith the Lord God in the
day, that I shall have cleansed you from all your iniquities.
I will also cause you to dwell in the cities, and the waste
shall be builded. You see, these are the promises
of God to the church. You know, we have this lovely
verse in verse 37 of chapter 36. Thus saith the Lord God,
I would yet for this be inquired of by the house of Israel to
do it for them. I will increase them, with men
like a flock, as the holy flock, as the flock of Jerusalem. What
is this holy flock? It's the elect. It's the chosen
people of God. It's the whole church of God.
But Christ says, fear not little flock, for it is your father's
good pleasure to give you a kingdom as the holy flock, as the flock
of Jerusalem in a solemn feast so shall the waste cities be
filled with the flocks of men, and they shall know that I am
the Lord. This is a sovereign act of the
Almighty God. Oh, friends, we see in the scriptures
of truth, we see the everlasting love of the Father in choosing
a people from the ruins of the Adam fall. He chose them in Christ,
chosen in Christ from before the foundation of the world.
given to Christ as a divine gift from his Holy Father. He chose
them, he gave them. Christ himself says in that lovely
prayer, concerning all that the Father giveth me, they were given by deed of gift
by the Father unto the Son before the foundation of the world.
And then it was decreed and purposed that they should be redeemed
in the precious blood and righteousness of Jesus Christ. That the Son
of God would be made flesh and dwell among us. And that he would
live a holy life, a perfect life. Now, here in the prophecy of
Ezekiel, it speaks of that wonderful everlasting love of God in Christ. in the chapter 16 and we have
there a picture given to us by God of the church of God in their
lost estate it says in verse in chapter 16 again the word
of the Lord came unto me saying son of man cause Jerusalem to
know her abominations And say, thus saith the Lord God unto
Jerusalem, thy birth and thy nativity is of the land of Canaan,
thy father was an Amorite and thy mother was a Hittite. In
other words, nothing to be proud of. And as for thy nativity in
the day that thou wast born, thy navel was not cut, neither
was there washed in water to supple thee. Thou wast not salted
at all or swallowed at all. None eye pitted thee to do any
of these things unto thee, to have compassion upon thee. but
thou wast cast out into the open field. This is the state and
condition of every one of us by nature, to the loathing of
thy person in the day that thou wast born. And when I passed
by thee and saw thee polluted in thine own blood, I said unto
thee, when thou wast in thy blood, that means when thou wast in
thy sin, live. Yea, I said unto thee, when thou
wast in thy blood, live. I have caused thee to multiply. You see the wonderful power of
God's grace, and it goes on, it speaks. Now he says in verse
eight, now when I passed by thee and looked upon thee, behold,
thy time was the time of love. This is when the Lord passes
by his people and bids them live, when the Spirit enters their
heart. And when Christ is revealed by the Holy Ghost, he will take
of the things of Jesus and will reveal them unto you. Thy time
was the time of love. Yea, I have loved thee with an
everlasting love, therefore with loving kindness have I drawn
thee. And I spread my skirt over thee
and covered thy nakedness, that glorious everlasting righteousness
of Christ. Yea, I swear unto thee and entered
into covenant with thee, saith the Lord God, and thou becamest
mine. Then I washed thee with water,
that's the divine power and work of the Holy Ghost. I throughly
washed away thy blood, that is thy sin from thee, and I anointed
thee with oil. I clothed thee, this is what
the Lord does for his people. And if you look at verse 14,
and thy renown went forth among the heathen for thy beauty, for
it was perfect through my comeliness, which I had put upon thee saith
the Lord God, comely through my comeliness, righteous in the
righteousness of Christ. This is the name wherewith she
shall be called, that's the church, Jehovah said, can you, the Lord,
our righteousness. Oh, that glorious everlasting
road. You see, I pass by and bid thee
leave. This is sovereign grace or sinner-bound. It is. And then we have this
vision of the dry bones and the dear man of God when the Lord
speaks to him and shows him. It says here, he said unto me,
and this is a word unto the Lord's servants, that though perhaps
the congregation may look as though it's impossible, How many
ministers have felt that when they've stood before the people?
You know, sometimes you don't realize the effect it has. I
remember once preaching to 10 people, one Sunday afternoon,
and six of them were asleep, virtually through the whole sermon. And it has quite an effect on
the preacher. When you're preaching and six of them have gone to
sleep, and it has an effect on you. But what we see here, as
the Lord, He says, again, He said unto me, prophesy upon these
bones and say unto them, O ye dry bones, hear the word of the
Lord. I will yet be inquirer of the
house of Israel to do this thing for them. And then this wonderful
word of God, In verse five, thus saith the Lord God, unto these
bones, behold, I will cause breath to enter into you and ye shall
live. And then everything else to do
with a human body will be there complete. I will lay sinews upon
you and will bring up flesh upon you and cover you with skin and
put breath in you and you shall live and you shall know that
I am the Lord so i prophesied as i was commanded and as i prophesied
there was a noise and behold a shaking and the bones came
together bone to his bone you know friends we think of the
outpouring of the spirit on the day of pentecost and there was
a rushing wind a rushing wind and uh three thousand souls that
short simple sermon of peter 3,000 souls were wrought upon
by the Spirit of God under that one sermon. You see this shaking and the
bones came together, bone to his bone. And then the flesh
came upon them. And then he says here in verse
9, then said he unto me, prophesy unto the wind, prophesy son of
man. Preach, preach, that's what he's
saying. Preach the word. Be instant,
in season and out of season. Prophesy unto the wind. What
is the wind? It's the Holy Ghost. You might
say, you say, well, you just said the Holy Ghost is water.
Yes, he's wind as well. Listen to the words of Christ
when he, except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he
cannot enter the kingdom of heaven. And then he goes on to liken
the work of the Spirit to wind, blowing. prophesy unto the wind, unto
the Spirit of God, and say to the wind, thus saith the Lord
God, come from the four winds, O breath. Understand, in the
original, breath means wind. It's speaking here of the Holy
Ghost and the divine power of the Holy Ghost, come from the
four winds. Oh, that the Lord would pour
upon us the Spirit of grace and of supplication, that we may
be able to plead with the Lord, come from the four winds, O breath,
and breathe upon these slain, that they may live. As soon as
Zion trailed, she brought forth her children. So I prophesied
as he commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived
and stood upon their feet and exceed in great harmony. You
know, friends, every single one of those precious souls that
were chosen by the Father, that were redeemed by Christ at Calvary,
every single one, the Spirit will enter into their heart,
will quicken their soul into life. You know, with the dying
thief, it wasn't until the closing hours of his life that the Spirit
entered into his heart, convinced him of his sin, showed him the
holiness of Jesus, the Son of God. He said to his fellow thief,
he said, but this man has done nothing amiss. He spoke of the
sacred perfections of Christ. Today, said Christ to him, Lord,
remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom. Today, shalt
thou be with me in paradise. Oh, the wonderful grace of God. There's none beyond the power
of this almighty God, none, none. You may have your loved ones,
and they may be perhaps not where you would want them to be. And you may sometimes, almost
your eyes fail with looking up. But you know, we must pray to
this almighty God, none are beyond his power. Then he said unto
me, Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel. Behold,
they say, and this comes to the house of Israel. And this is
how they felt when they were in the land of Babylon. They
say our bones are dried and our hope is lost. We are cut off
for our parts. That's how they felt. Death. Death within them, all about
them. It's a lovely prayer we sung in our opening hymn, is
it? Breathe on these bones so dry and dead, thy sweetest, softest
influence fled. How we long to see that in Zion. Therefore prophesy and say unto
them, thus saith the Lord God, behold, O my people, I will open
your graves and cause you to come up out of your graves and
bring you into the land of Israel. We read in Revelation chapter
6, Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection. Upon such the second death hath
no power. The first resurrection. So there's
a first resurrection and there's a second resurrection. The first
resurrection It is when a poor sinner is brought from spiritual
death into spiritual life. And they are blessed characters.
And not only that, they are the only ones that will enter heaven.
Blessed and holy as he that hath part in the first resurrection,
on such the second death hath no power. Hath no power. Why? They're full of life. They're full of life. Thus saith
the Lord, behold, O my people, I will open your graves and cause
you to come up out of your graves and bring you into the land of
Israel, bring you in among the Lord's chosen people. No more
a stranger or a guest, but like a child at home. You shall know
that I am the Lord. when I have opened your graves,
O my people, and brought you up out of your graves. You see,
and then it's so clearly stated here in verse 14, and shall put
my spirit in you. That's what it is to be brought
up out of the grave. I will put my spirit in you,
and ye shall live. You know, all the promises of
God are yea and amen in Christ Jesus. And these promises of
eternal life to his people, they're amen, they're yay and amen in
Christ Jesus. And shall put my spirit in you
and ye shall live and I'll place you in your own land. Then shall
ye know that I the Lord has spoken and performed it. Is that what
you're looking for? What a mercy, you know, it is.
If there are those of us that are truly travailing, longing,
watching, waiting to see the Lord's appearing, to see mighty
signs and wonders. Think of that word, open thy
mouth wide and I will fill it. I will fill it. That's the promise
of God. or that we may not limit the
Holy One of Israel, but open thy mouth wide in prayer,
in supplication, in soul travel, that you might see the prodigal's
return, that you might see precious souls gathered from this village
and the surrounding villages into the sanctuary. This is the
first resurrection. This week I've been reading the
life of William Borman. There wasn't much left on his
life, but what is left, you can tell he was a very gracious man.
And this church was built up under his ministry. There were
35 souls added unto the church while he was ministering here.
You see, it's the Lord's work, and he's promised. He promises
it here. And not only that, he says, I
will yet be inquired for this be inquired of by the house of
Israel to do it for them. I will increase them with men
like a flock. It's the divine will, it's the
divine purpose. I will increase them with men
like a flock. So my beloved friends, each one
of us here today, does the Lord's spirit dwell in you? Has your
soul been brought from spiritual death into spiritual life? So
that you've been brought to seek the Lord. Even perhaps some of
you dear children, there may be that moving in your heart
and that desire in your soul to know the Lord. And so you
long to know the Lord. Some are very harsh, the disciples
were and they would the little children, they would push them
away. But what does Jesus say? What does Jesus say when they
tried to push the little children away? Suffer little children
to come unto me, and forbid them not, for of such is the kingdom
of heaven. Oh that the Lord may work among
you dear children, work in your hearts. Many instances, not only
in the word of God, but have been left in generations past
of the Lord working powerfully and effectually in the hearts
of his children. And then there are those wonderful
promises. You think of that wonderful word
in Psalm 45, instead of thy fathers shall be thy children, whom thou
mayest make princes in all the earth. Therefore prophesy and
say unto them, thus saith the Lord God, behold, O my people,
I will open your graves and cause you to come up out of your graves
and bring you into the land of Israel. So there we've spoken
of what we might say the meaning here of the new birth and being
brought from spiritual death into spiritual life. And how
fundamental that is, but then then we have the, each one of
us is going to die. Each one of us is going to die. Whether we're young or old, we're
going to die. Something that is absolutely
sure. In fact, friends, it's the only
absolutely sure thing in this world, is that we're going to
die. May that be impressed upon our
hearts, that we have to die. And as in the epistle to the
Hebrews, as it is appointed unto men, once to die, but after death,
the judgment. Many, especially worldly people,
they'll tell you when we die, that's it, it's finished. We're
completely annihilated and there's nothing left. We're dead and
there's nothing left. not according to the Holy Scriptures, is appointed
unto man once to die, and after death, the judgment. We must
all appear at the judgment seat of Jesus Christ. And my beloved
friends, there is no way of avoiding this. It says in Ezekiel concerning
death, there is no discharge in that war. We can't avoid it. We too must die. The wise woman of Tikal, when
she came in before the king, that was the
word she was given, wasn't it? We must needs die and be as water
spilt upon the ground that cannot be gathered again. The wages
of sin is death. We must needs die, every one
of us. We read in 1 Thessalonians chapter
four from verse 13. But I would not have you to be
ignorant brethren concerning them which are asleep. Notice
here, the believer sleeps. The unbeliever dies. The believer
sleeps. Why? Because they're going to
wake again in that great resurrection in the last day. And this is
what the apostle says here. I would not have you to be ignorant,
brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that is, believers
that have died, that ye sorrow not even as others would have
no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and
we do believe that, even so them also which sleep in Jesus. You see, they sleep in Jesus.
The believer, when they die, they sleep in Jesus. I've quoted
that hymn several times over a grain. Sleep, dear saints,
sleep in Jesus. Why? Because there's going to
be a glorious resurrection for the believer. They're buried
in the grave, but they'll rise again to eternal life. For if
we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and we do, even so,
them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. For
this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are
alive and remain under the coming of the Lord shall not prevent
them which are asleep. For the Lord himself shall descend
from heaven with a shout, and the voice of the archangel, and
with the trump of God, and the dead in Christ shall rise first. That we which are alive and remain
shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the
Lord in the air. So shall we ever be. with the
Lord, wherefore comfort one another with these things." These things
are written for our consolation. Comfort one another with these
things. The apostle in 1 Corinthians
chapter 15, he speaks there of the resurrection. He speaks initially
of the resurrection of Christ. He says in verse 17, If Christ
be not raised, your faith is vain. You are yet in your sins. Then they also which are fallen
asleep in Christ are perished. If in this life only we have
hope in Christ, we're of all men most miserable. But now is
Christ risen from the dead and become the first fruits of them
that slept. For since by man came death,
by man came also the resurrection of the dead. That's the man Christ
Jesus. The Lord is risen indeed. Come,
behold the place where the Lord lie. He is not here, he is risen. We don't worship a dead Christ,
we worship a living Christ who has the power of an endless life. For as in Adam all die, even
so in Christ shall all be made alive. But every man in his own
order, Christ the firstfruits, afterwards they, that are Christ's
at his coming. Then cometh the end, when he
shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father, when
he shall have put down all rule and all authority and power,
for he must reign till he hath put down all enemies under his
feet. The last enemy that shall be
destroyed is death. The last enemy destroyed is death.
That's what Christ has done. He's destroyed death, but him
that had the power of death, that is the devil. You know,
friends, it says here in 1 Corinthians 15 in verse 42, so also is the
resurrection of the dead. It is sown, so our body is likened
to a seed. It is sown in corruption, that's
when it's buried. It is raised in incorruption.
It is sown in dishonour. It is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness. It is
raised in power. It is sown a natural body. It
is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural and there
is a spiritual body. So it is written the first man
Adam was made a living soul. The last Adam, that's Christ,
was made a quickening spirit. You see, my beloved friends,
These things are written to instruct us in the ways of truth and of
righteousness. Behold, I show you a mystery.
We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed. In a moment,
in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump, for the trumpet
shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and
ye shall be changed. For this corruptible must put
on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. So when
this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal
shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass
the sign that is written, death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is thy sting?
O grave, where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin, and
the strength of sin is the law, but thanks be to God. which giveth
us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore prophesy
and say unto them, thus saith the Lord God. Behold, O my people,
I will open your graves and cause you to come up out of your graves
and bring you into the land of Israel, into heaven. And ye shall
know that I am the Lord when I have opened your graves, O
my people, and brought you up out of your graves. You see,
this is the divine work of God, and it is divinely certain and
divinely sure. May the Lord add his blessing. Let us now sing together hymn
number 836. The tune is Osset 386. Believer, lift thy drooping head. Thy saviour has the victory gained. See all his foes in triumph led
and everlasting life obtained. Hymn 836. Tune Ausset 380C. Let it take root. May all thy vows in triumph blend,
And everlasting thine obtain. God from the grave has raised
his Son The past, O darkness, Thou didst fall Justice declares
the work is done, and God and man are reconciled. Now the Redeemer lives again. She kept high up the pyramid,
His mighty arms this regally dear, and Congress
sparkles in its eyes. Death, this death, wouldst thou
receive, At the end of sin and time be made? Crystals of hope are quite with
me, And thou, O love, therefore, darest display. Now may the grace of our Lord
Jesus Christ, the love of God the Father, the sacred fellowship
of the Holy Spirit, rest and abide with us each both now and
forevermore. Amen.