The Vine: Nov. 18, 2024
“Abide in me as I abide in you. Just as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abide in me. I am the Vine, you are the branches. Those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit, because apart from me you can do nothing”
This is a weekly reflection on the previous week’s sermon text. Each week there will be a devotional related to the scripture for the week, along with questions for reflection/discussion, as well as prayer. Feel free to make this a part of your individual spiritual growth throughout the week or utilize in small group settings (growth groups, Sunday school, etc.)
“The hand of the LORD was on me, and he brought me out by the Spirit of the LORD and set me in the middle of a valley; it was full of bones. He led me back and forth among them, and I saw a great many bones on the floor of the valley, bones that were very dry. He asked me, “Son of man, can these bones live?” I said, “Sovereign LORD, you alone know.” Then he said to me, “Prophesy to these bones and say to them, ‘Dry bones, hear the word of the LORD! This is what the Sovereign LORD says to these bones: I will make breath[a] enter you, and you will come to life. I will attach tendons to you and make flesh come upon you and cover you with skin; I will put breath in you, and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the LORD.’”
So I prophesied as I was commanded. And as I was prophesying, there was a noise, a rattling sound, and the bones came together, bone to bone. I looked, and tendons and flesh appeared on them and skin covered them, but there was no breath in them. Then he said to me, “Prophesy to the breath; prophesy, son of man, and say to it, ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Come, breath, from the four winds and breathe into these slain, that they may live.’” So I prophesied as he commanded me, and breath entered them; they came to life and stood up on their feet—a vast army.
Then he said to me: “Son of man, these bones are the people of Israel. They say, ‘Our bones are dried up and our hope is gone; we are cut off.’ Therefore prophesy and say to them: ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: My people, I am going to open your graves and bring you up from them; I will bring you back to the land of Israel. Then you, my people, will know that I am the LORD, when I open your graves and bring you up from them. I will put my Spirit in you and you will live, and I will settle you in your own land. Then you will know that I the LORD have spoken, and I have done it, declares the LORD.”
Ezekiel was a priest and prophet in Israel. He was one of the first group of Israelites taken into captivity by the Babylonians. God called Ezekiel to deliver a message of impending judgment on Israel due primarily to their idolatry and societal injustices. Ezekiel employed symbolic acts and parables to get the point across, as well as allegories.
Our text today is one of the most well-known passages in all of Ezekiel – the valley of dry bones. God gave Ezekiel this vision of dry bones in a valley and asked him a seemingly ridiculous question, “Mortal, can these bones live?” In the vision the bones are not only dry, but “very dry”. In other words, the bones had been dead a long time. Ezekiel answered God’s question about whether the bones could live or not by saying, “Sovereign Lord, you alone know.” I’ve always thought that was Ezekiel’s way of implying, “I seriously doubt it, but who knows?” Any rational person would answer, “No,” to the question of whether those bones could live. But we must remember that we are just one part of the equation, with God being the other, and when God is involved, anything is possible.
The story concludes with the bones forming human bodies once again, and breath entering the vast multitude. God’s Spirit had brought them back to life! The question, “Mortal, can these bones live?”, had been answered emphatically by a generous, forgiving God.
Earnest Hemingway once wrote, “All stories, if continued far enough, end in death, and he or she is no true storyteller who would keep that from you.” He was right, as far as most stories are concerned, except for one. Centuries later, God would provide the ultimate answer to hopelessness and death through the gift of Jesus Christ. Through Christ’s life, death, and resurrection God has declared that the worst things in life are never the last things. The story of Christ did not end in death, and because of our faith and belief in him neither do our stories end in death. If you find yourself in a valley of dry bones today, remember that God is active and ready to breathe life into you once again.
PRAYER
“Almighty and all loving God, we confess that there many things in this world we believe are impossible and are tempted to give up all hope. We thank you for this great story of new life and resurrection reminding us that anything is possible with you. Help us to receive your Holy Spirit and believe that we can stand up on our feet once again, alive with the hope of Christ. Amen.”
Questions for Reflection:
What do the dry bones represent in this story? Have you ever felt completely cut off and hopeless?
Discuss the significance of breath in this passage. How has God breathed new life into you through the Holy Spirit? What impact did it have on your life and how you view God’s action in our world?
What parallels can be drawn between this breath and the creation account in Genesis when God breathed life into humans?
What does this vision of dry bones reveal about God’s nature and character?
It has been said that every generation deals with its own “valley of dry bones” in different contexts. How might this story speak to our world today?
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