mySundaySermons

Ezk 37: 1 The hand of the Lord came upon me, and he brought me out by the spirit of the Lord and set me down in the middle of a valley; it was full of bones. 2 He led me all around them; there were very many lying in the valley, and they were very dry. 3 He said to me, “Mortal, can these bones live?” I answered, “O Lord God, you know.” 4 Then he said to me, “Prophesy to these bones, and say to them: O dry bones, hear the word of the Lord. 5 Thus says the Lord God to these bones: I will cause breath to enter you, and you shall live. 6 I will lay sinews on you, and will cause flesh to come 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.” 7 So I prophesied as I had been commanded; and as I prophesied, suddenly there was a noise, a rattling, and the bones came together, bone to its bone. 8 I looked, and there were sinews on them, and flesh had come upon them, and skin had covered them; but there was no breath in them. 9 Then he said to me, “Prophesy to the breath, prophesy, mortal, and say to the breath: Thus says the Lord God: Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe upon these slain, that they may live.” 10 I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived, and stood on their feet, a vast multitude. 11 Then he said to me, “Mortal, these bones are the whole house of Israel. They say, “Our bones are dried up, and our hope is lost; we are cut off completely.’ 12 Therefore prophesy, and say to them, Thus says the Lord God: I am going to open your graves, and bring you up from your graves, O my people; and I will bring you back to the land of Israel. 13 And you shall know that I am the Lord, when I open your graves, and bring you up from your graves, O my people. 14 I will put my spirit within you, and you shall live, and I will place you on your own soil; then you shall know that I, the Lord, have spoken and will act, says the Lord.”.

Rom8: 14 For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God. 15 For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received a spirit of adoption. When we cry, “Abba! Father!” 16 it is that very Spirit bearing witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ

Acts2: 1 When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. 2 And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. 3 Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them. 4 All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability. 5 Now there were devout Jews from every nation under heaven living in Jerusalem. 6 And at this sound the crowd gathered and was bewildered, because each one heard them speaking in the native language of each. 7 Amazed and astonished, they asked, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? 8 And how is it that we hear, each of us, in our own native language?

Hope for the Dead..
–those who are dead, but walk among us..
The prophet Ezekiel is taken to a place of observation: a new perspective…
Looking at the people of God: seeing their hearts

The Spirit has the power to take us off our feet
John Hayes: OT professor, pulled the rug.
2 see where you’d stand when u got back up

What gives you hope, when you have no hope??
Most folks just give up.
Most folks live with fear and doubt
Most folks live with regret and blame

If you had a chance to reclaim hope,
What would you do to take it?
Been burned too many times to try?

God’s eternal presences, the Holy Spirit, is our promise of Hope.
WRITE THAT ON YOUR HEART..
if not for you, for someone

Ezk 37:4 Old Dry Bones, HEAR the Lord’s promise

The body parts are visible, they are empty of life.
vs 9 Prophesy to the breath…
The breath that moved in chaos
moved over the face of the deep
moved into the clay and sticks 2 ribs

Don’t just make some NOISE, don’t just rattle the bones ….Tell them about the spirit..
We are people of the Holy Spirit

God’s Spirit is my Spirit, God in me

Rom 8… the spirit that is the very spirit of God in us
our kinship link… Christ in us

nfhnhdntweActs 2:7 … the spirit gives the ability to hear what our ear will not hear.
Cochlear Implant: Can’t hear without it.

Ezekiel 37:12 I will bring U back 2 relationship..your own soil.
… the spirit comes to restore us
… to comfort – quench our hunger/thrist
… to guild – to show us what is dead
… to teach – in progress of children 2 heirs
… to live – hope for the dead, beats