The primary interpretation of
this verse as a scripture I read to you tonight is to Israel.
When God was bringing them back from Babylon, He was going to
bring them into Israel. And of course this also meant
that when there would come a time when Israel would become a nation
again, and they are now. But by God's grace, I want to
use this as a spiritual picture, spiritually applied if I can. This passage of scripture that
I read is full of grace, free grace, teaching us, revealing
to us that salvation is of the Lord from start to finish, start
to finish. When you go through here, there's
no ifs. There's no ands, there's no buts, there's no conditions. When you look here, nothing but
a valley of old, dry, dead bones. And God calls them slain. Slain. Now whether there'd been a great
battle in this valley years and years before and all the people
had left there to Like we read the other night out of Revelations,
you know that He caught all the birds to come and eat the flesh
of all of God's enemies. And they ate till they were gorged.
Maybe that's what happened here, I don't know. I don't know. But
I do know this, that this shows us that if salvation, not of
grace, and if Christ doesn't save us, we're not going to be
saved. If Christ doesn't do the work, we're not going to know
God. And this is exactly where we
are now. And God asked the question. And He asked the preacher, He
asked the prophet, He asked Ezekiel. Down there in verse 4. No, verse 3, excuse me. And He
said, Son of man, can these bones live? Can dead bones live? Can they live? Now down in Mexico,
In their graveyards down there, they don't bury them very deep.
And when they turn into bones, the family has to go dig up the
bones and they got a box and they keep all their bones in.
And you see them out there digging up the bones of their family
or somebody in there and they'll take them bones and gather them
all up and put them in a box. And then they'll dig that grave
and they'll put somebody back in that grave. And they got little
chapels there and you go in there and there's boxes of bones sitting
around and boxes of bones sitting around in that graveyard. Now,
you reckon those bones could live? You reckon they could live? That's
what God said. Can them bones live? That's a box full of bones. Can they be brought back to life? Oh, can they live? And when God
asks questions, here's the thing about it, God never asks questions
for information. You know, if it had been a preacher
today said, oh yeah, I'd get them bones to live, that's no
problem for me. You know, I want to have a better problem. Listen,
I've got a program that will get these bones to shaking and
rattling and having a big time. I've got it figured out just
how to do it. I've got a program, and listen, I'll get the music
just right, and I'll get the hand clapping just right, and
I'll get folks on their feet. Next thing you know, all them
bones are going to live. They're all going to live. They're
all going to live. But let me tell you this. Only
God can make a man know the true condition of men. Look what he
said in verse 1. Now here's the true condition
of man. This is man the way he really is. 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.
You know God took him by the Spirit. Now whether he was actually
there or just seeing a vision, I don't know. But it says God
took him to this valley, and he took him and set him right
in the middle of this valley of dry bones. And he sent me
down. Now think that what it said,
he sent me down. Sent me down. Carried me and
sent me right in the middle of a valley full of dry, full of
bones. And here's the thing, when Ezekiel
got there, and he's standing in the middle of all these bones,
and there's a valley full of them, I mean that way, and this
way, and up this way, full of bones, and God put him right
down, set him down right in the middle of them. Now, he had no
idea, Ezekiel didn't, that these existed in such a state, until
the Lord's Spirit brought him there and made him see them.
And I'll tell you, somebody else didn't know they was in such
a state. Them both didn't know they was in such a state. Ezekiel
didn't know they was in such a state. And I'll tell you, he
sent him right in the middle of them. And I tell you, when
God sets a preacher or anybody else right down in the middle
of a bunch of dead bones, a bunch of dead people, I said, you'll
understand real quick, like Isaiah said, when he saw the Lord high
and lifted up, he said, where is me? I'm undone. And I dwell
in the midst, in the midst of an unclean people. And I tell
you, he sat right in the middle of it. He had no idea that they
existed like this. And then look what it says in
verse two. and caused me to pass by them round about. And behold,
there were very many in the open valley, and lo, they were very
dry. And I made him to pass by them,
and look what he said, and go around them, go around them,
go around the circle of them, however many there was, go around
them. And when he looked at them, there
was very, very many of them, and it was very dry. And God
made him to see what an awful, awful state and condition they
were in. They were dead. They were dry. They were lifeless. They could
not do anything for themselves, and he couldn't do anything for
them. And when God takes a man by the spirit, he finds out what
condition the human race really is in. And I tell you, when God
opens a man's eyes and a man's heart, he understands real quick
That he ain't got no life. And he can't give you no life.
And I can't give you no life. And you can't give yourself life.
These bones couldn't do nothing for themselves and the preacher
couldn't do nothing for them. No evidence of life here. And
I tell you, you're talking about things drying up. I tell you,
we're drying up quick. We're drying up quick. Dried up through pride. Dried
up through soulfulness. Dried up through willingness.
Dried up through self-righteousness. Dried up through self-deception.
Dried up through self-dependence. Dried up through lack of faith. Dried up in a lot of ways and
don't have any idea that they're dried up. But oh, listen to what
God says to him. In verse 3, he called him to
go, oh he made him go around him. Made him go around him.
And he says unto me, son of man, can these bones live? Now what
a question. What a question. There are several
questions the Bible asks. If a man dies, shall he live
again? How can a man be just with God? But I want to question, can these
bones live? He saw so many down there, very
dry. They were slain. It says there
in verse 9, he says, prophesy unto these men, the winds, because
they've been slain. They was slain men. They was
dead men, lost men. Terrible, terrible. And there's
only one answer to those in the spirit. He said, oh Lord God,
Thou knowest. Ain't nobody knows what's going
to happen but you. God's the only one who knows
what's going on in any of us. God's the only one who knows
if we're living or dying. God's the only one who knows
if we've got life. And the only person who knows
they've got life is the person that God gave it to. That's the
only person that knows. And that's what he said. He said,
Oh Lord God, thou knowest. Listen, that's the only thing
we can say. Lord, you know. You know. Look what I wrote.
You keep it secret. Look with me over here in Matthew
19. Look in Matthew 19. Look right over here where the
disciples ask him a question. Matthew 19, 23. Look with me.
Here in Matthew 19. Verse 23. Oh my. Can these bones live? Oh my. Very dead, very dry. You know, this is the story about
the rich young ruler and he came to Christ wondering what he had
to do to be saved and what he needed to do to have life. And Christ told him, said, sell
everything you got and come back to me. Give it all away. If you hold on to anything besides
me, don't even bother coming. If you hold on to anything besides
me, if you want anything more than you want me, if you want
your money, if you want your power, if you want your prestige,
if you want your wealth, if that's what you want more than me, you're
welcome to it. That's what our Lord's telling
us. And he went away sorrowful because he had a lot of possessions.
Then Jesus said unto his disciples, verse 23, Verily I say unto you,
that a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven.
He didn't say they wouldn't, but hardly, hardly enter into
the kingdom of heaven. And our Lord to show you how
hard it is, and how hard it is, I say unto you, it's easy for
a camel to go through the eye of a needle. And nurse, I've
heard preachers say that that eye of a needle was a little
bitty door, you know, that he had to get down on his knees
to get through. No, no. Our Lord's saying the eye of
a needle. Say a needle. He's going to show
you how impossible His salvation is by man and what He does. That
fellow said, I don't know Christ. I know what I got. I don't know
Christ. So I said, now look at that fellow.
Oh my, he missed me over having a little bit of things. And look
what he said. It's easier for a camel to go
through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter into
the kingdom of God. And when his disciples heard
it, this is what they said. They were exceedingly amazed. Oh my, exceedingly amazed. Well, listen, if it takes money
to get in the kingdom of God, I certainly ain't got nothing.
That's what they're saying. They were exceedingly amazed, and
then look what they said. Well Lord, who in the world then
can be saved? Who in the world can be saved? And Jesus beheld them, looked
right at them. and said unto them, with men,
this is impossible. With men, with the preacher,
with the husband, with the wife, with the brother, with the sister,
with the father and his children, his mother and their children,
it's impossible. But with God, all things are
possible. Oh, son of man, can these bones
live? Can these bones live? And look what he told him to
do now. He said, I want you to preach to these bones in verse
4. He said unto me, prophesy unto these bones. Start preaching
to them. How would you like to be told to go down the valley
and preach to a bunch of bones? Oh, prophesy unto these bones.
Preach unto these bones. And he said, I'll tell you what
I want you to tell them. Oh you dry bones, hear the word
of the Lord. Now how in the world dry bones
going to hear the word of the Lord? How's it going to happen? He said I won't tell, tell them
dry bones hear the word of the Lord. Oh my, the average preacher,
you know what he would say? A blind man would say I don't
see any bones, I don't see any bones. Then another fellow comes
along and says, well I'm a rational man, there ain't no use to preach
to dead dry bones. Well I don't see dry bones, there's
just a beautiful valley down here. And somebody said, well
that's just your view. That's just your view, Paul.
And another comes along and says, oh listen, they have the ability,
if we give them the right means, then they can get up on their
feet. So what in the world did he preach? Hear the word of the
Lord. And ain't that the only thing
we got to say? Thus saith the Lord. What else we got to say?
And look what he said. And then he started preaching
in verse 5. Thus saith the Lord God unto
these bones. Now God's speaking now. Listen to what he says.
Behold I will cause breath to enter into you, and you 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 you shall live, and you shall know
that I am the Lord. Oh my, thus saith the Lord unto
these bones, O you dry bones, How can dead, dead things hear? How can dead people hear? And
I tell you, God's using Ezekiel's mouth, but it's God speaking.
He said, I will, I will, I will, I will. And when I do something,
then you're gonna live. Until I do it, you're not gonna
live. You're not gonna live. And I tell you, He said, I'm
gonna cause breath in you, I'm gonna lay, you know what sinews
is? That's everything in here that holds us together. That's
what makes my arms bend, my legs bend, my neck to turn. All them sinews in there. He
said, I'm going to put them on you. That's the first thing I'm
going to do. I'm going to get you where when
you do have life, you're able to move. And you know, people
can sit and listen and listen and listen. But until God puts
life in them, it's nothing. It's nothing. I'm going to bring
skin upon you, and you're going to live. He preached like he was commanded.
He didn't change the word, not one little bit did he change
the word. He didn't question the bones,
he didn't ask any questions of the bones. He said, wouldn't
you like to accept Jesus now? Wouldn't you like to get up and
come to Jesus now? Oh, he didn't question the condition
of the bones. He didn't question God's power
and willingness and ability to give life to these very many
of these very dry bones. No, no, uh-uh. Oh, and he said,
I was not disobedient. Oh, listen, he said, I, and so
I prophesied, he said there in verse 27. So I prophesied as
I was commanded. And let me show you some things
in Acts chapter 14. You keep a seat, you'll look
with me in Acts chapter 4. Excuse me, Acts chapter 4. I
want you to see some things over here. You know, it's not anything
for people not to be told not to preach. You know, I've been
a couple of places over the years where they'd say, oh my, You can't preach that. We can't
take no more of that. Well, I'm not going to take any
more of that. But look what it said here in
verse 16. You know, this is where Peter
and John went to the temple and healed that man. He went to jumping
up and down and running and praising the Lord and so thankful for
what God done to him. And they said, what shall we
do to these men? This is the Pharisees talking
now. Knowing that a notable miracle hath been done by them is manifest
to all that dwell in Jerusalem. We can't deny it. We just can't
deny it. But that it spread no further
among the people, that straightly threatened them that they speak
his forth no more in his name. And they called him, come on
over here now, I want to talk to you. Caleb, come over here.
Not to speak at all or teach in the name of Jesus. And Peter
and John stood and looked them right square in the eye and said
unto them, whether it be right in the sight of God to hearken
unto you more than unto God, you judge. For we cannot speak
but the things which we have seen and heard. And that's what
Ezekiel was doing. Just preaching what he's seen
and what God told him to do. Look over in chapter 5. Look
down verse 25. They put these fellas in prison
because they told them to quit preaching and they didn't. They
just kept on preaching. Then in verse 25, put them in
jail and they come and the angel come and let them out. Then came
one and told them, saying, behold, the men whom you put in prison
are standing in the temple. And listen to this, teaching
the people. Went straight from jail, went straight from prison,
went straight back and started preaching again. And he was in
jail for preaching. Then went the captain with the
officers and brought them without violence. Oh, we don't want to
get people upset. Let's just sneak them out of
here. Sneak them over there. For they feared the people, lest
they should have been stoned. And when they brought them, they
set them before the castle, and the high priest asked, saying,
Doctrine, did not we straightly command you that you should not
teach in this name? And behold, you have filled Jerusalem
with your doctrine, and intend to bring this man's blood upon
us. Then Peter answered and said,
we ought to obey God. rather than man. And that's what
Ezekiel said back there in verse 7 over in Ezekiel 37. So I prophesied
as I commanded. I preached as God told me to
preach. This is one of Abraham's children. This is one of Abraham's
seed here. Who against hope believed in
hope. He considered nothing but the word of the Lord when he
went to preaching. Oh God give me such a faith as
that. in such an obedience as that.
And he said to the dead, now he bid the dead to hear the voice
of the Son of God. And so I prophesied in verse
7, as I was commanded, there was a noise and behold a shaking
and the bones came together, bone to his bone. Oh, he began
to preach. And I tell you what, he said,
the Lord said, the dead are going to hear the voice of the Son
of God. That's what our Lord said. He said, the hour is coming
and now is when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of
God. And they that hear shall live. Here's what God said. He said, oh my, he began, he
started hearing bones. He started hearing bones come
together, noise and the shaking. And the bones came together,
bone to his bone. High in the world. You know,
this is one of the most mysterious things. You know how many of
the Lord's people have just perished completely? I mean, burned them
at the stake. How many has been buried? You
know, you used to never know nothing about embalming. You
just buried, you just buried, and within six months there wasn't
nothing left but bone. Just bones. The worms had your
body and gone with it. And I tell you, all the people
that's in the ocean, and all the people that's burning, all
the bones of God's people everywhere. And here we see Him putting bone
to bone, come together, and every bone goes exactly where it's
supposed to go. God, I want every bone to come
back together. And there they stood, skeletons.
And God, no matter where His people are, whether they're dust,
You know, He saved Adam out of dust. He made Adam out of dust. So if He's got any of His people
in the dust, He made right where they're at. You know, I'm telling you,
if there's any bones anywhere in England, Ireland, Scotland,
Wales, America, no matter where they're at. Whether they've been
burned at the stake, whether they just went to dust. God will get every one of them,
and their bones will come together, and their bodies will come together,
and the skin will come back on them, and life will go back in
them, and God will put flesh back on them bones, and God will
give them eyes to see and ears to hear, and they'll come out
of the grave just much better than they was when they went
in it. Hey, that's a miracle that's
taking place here. That's a miracle. Oh, I'm lucky there's a bunch
of miracles. Look what he said, oh my. Oh, the bones come to
God. I'll tell you, you're talking
about impressive. That would have been impressive. But here
they are standing there now. And then he looked in verse 8,
and when I beheld, lo, the sinews and the flesh came upon them.
I mean God put everything back together and then he put flesh
on top of them. They come together and they look
like somebody standing there just like somebody laid in a
casket. That's what it looked like. They're
standing up. And the skin covered them. But there's one thing missing. It's the breath of God. When he made Adam out of the
dust, the scripture said he breathed in his nostrils and he became
a living soul. Oh my, still no life in him,
still no breath in him, but you must, must be born again. And
this life comes from above, where grace comes from, from him who
alone has it. And oh my, God shake our, ah,
I wish there was a shaking of our souls around here, I really
do. I'd love to see a shaking of souls. Shaking of souls. And then look what he said in
verse 9. This said unto me, prophesy unto the wind, prophesy son of
man, say to the wind. Now, he preached a bunch of bones. God done just like he said he's
gonna do. He said, I'm gonna cause sinew to come on you, bone
to bone, and I'm gonna put skin on you, I'm gonna put flesh on
you, I'm gonna put meat on your bones, and you're gonna know
who it is, who is the Lord that does this. And he said, preach
to the dead, to the wind. First he's told to preach to
the dead, dry bones. Now he says, now, I want you
to lift up your voice and start preaching to the wind. Just stand
up and start talking to the wind. Start talking to the wind. Oh,
thus saith the Lord God. That's what matters. That's the
only thing that matters. Thus saith the Lord God. Thus
saith the Lord God. You know, only God controls the
wind. He said, the wind bloweth where
it listeth. Thou hast a sound thereof, but canst not tell whence
it cometh or whither it's going. So is everyone that's born of
the Spirit. Our Lord says, the words that I speak unto you,
they are spirit and they are life. They are life. And he said,
oh, prophesy to the winds and say, oh, breath. Oh, breath. Oh, breath. And that's what when he says
the wind, prophesy the wind, prophesy to the breath. Breathe
upon these slain that they may live. Oh, come and breathe. Listen to this. It says the slain
is dead. Breathe upon these slain that
they may live. Oh, where there was nothing but
a valley of dead dry bones. Now there's life. Now there's
sight. Now there's sound. Now there's
feeling. Now there's moving. Now there's
breathing. Now there's everything that a
person has to have life And God said, I've done all these things
that you may know the Lord done this. And look what it says now
in verse 10. So I prophesied as he commanded
me, and the breath came into them, and they lived. Did you notice that? And they
lived. They lived. Did you doubt God
couldn't give them life? Only God can do it. Only God
can do it. God can give them life. And you
know, when God gives a man life, I mean he knows it. He really
truly knows it. A man cannot have life and not
know it. You know when you have natural
life, you know you're alive. And when God gives you spiritual
life, you know you're spiritually alive. Because there's something
there that never existed before. And God caused these bones, this
life, this heart, everything that they needed. Now they could
see. Now they could hear. Now they
could talk. Now they could move. Now they
could walk. Now they could understand. And they said there was an exceeding
great army. And you know what it said in
Revelation? It said an exceeding great army, but there's a multitude
which no man can number in glory. A multitude that no man can... And then let me look at this
at you. What God says down here in verse
12. He's still got Ezekiel preaching.
Therefore prophesy and say unto them, thus saith the Lord God,
behold all my people, He said, oh my people, they got life now. I'm gonna open your graves, cause
you to come up out of your graves and bring you into the land of
Israel. Bring you in that promised land
and you shall know that I am the Lord when I've opened your
graves, oh you people, and brought you up out of your graves. Oh my. I just, you know, it's
a little more than I comprehend, but I do know that that's what
men are by nature. Dead. Just as well go out to
the graveyard and preach. Because that's what Ezekiel done.
And might as well expect people to get up out of the graves. But when God says, I'm going
to put breath in you. I'm going to put flesh on you.
I'm going to put skin on you. I'm going to do it. And you know
what? You're going to know who did this. You're going to know
it's the Lord that did it. You're going to know it's the Lord that
did it. Our Father, thank you for allowing
us to speak again tonight to deal with your word, blessed
word. It's a precious word. It's a
powerful word. And Lord, you're the only one
that can give life You're the only one that can breathe into
life, into a man. You're the only one that can
give life, Lord Jesus. You said to know you is to have
life. To believe you is to have life.
Not just to have life, but eternal life. Blessed life. Life from the dead. Life from
sin. Life from all the things that's
wrong with us, oh Lord. And I do ask you to forgive me
of not only what I say and what
I do, but for what I am. Oh Lord, forgive me for what
I am. Helpless, helpless, helpless without you. No power, no strength,
no abilities, nothing without you. So Lord, keep your people
now, preserve your people. Bless them as they go their ways.
Keep them and bless the preachers when they come to preach. While
I'm gone, please bless them, use them, and cause saints to
come and hear them. Lord, they may not come to hear
me, but cause them to come to hear them. Please, Lord, cause people to
come hear these preachers. I ask you in Christ's name, amen.
Amen.