I love you, in Jesus' name I pray, amen.
Amen.
All right, we're there in Ezekiel chapter 37, and we of course have been making our
way through the book of Ezekiel on Wednesday nights, and this is our 37th week in Ezekiel,
taking one chapter per week, and this is a very famous chapter, a very well-known chapter
in the book of Ezekiel, and it's usually known as the Valley of Dry Bones, or the passage
dealing with the Valley of Dry Bones.
If you look at verse 1, notice what it says, it says,
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 this is a very, like I said, well-known passage where you have this great imagery
of these bones that are resurrected and brought back together, and God makes a great army.
And there's, because this is a famous passage, it's often used by a lot of people to preach
a lot of things, and dispensationists love this passage, and they love really the end
of the book of Ezekiel, because they try to use these passages to show that God isn't
done with the nation of Israel, and they'll say, see, God's going to give the land back
to the nation of Israel, and all of these things, and what we're going to do tonight
is we're going to begin at the end of the passage, I want to show you some things towards
the end of the passage, then we're going to come back and deal with that famous part about
the Valley of the Dry Bones.
But I want you to understand that this is prophetic, and this is, this passage is dealing
with some future events, things that are not happening right now.
Because today what people will say, they'll say, well, this is a metaphor, this is not
literal, this is just a metaphor that God was going to bring the children of Israel
back into the land, and they'll say that this was accomplished in 1948 when the UN gave
the land back to the nation of Israel, all those things.
But I want you to notice that this is not the case, and this is not what the Bible teaches,
so go to verse 15, and like I said, we're going to cover every verse in this chapter,
but I want to begin towards the end of the passage and just show you that this is a prophetic
passage, these events have not taken place, and the Bible's very clear about that when
you actually read it, and believe it, Ezekiel 37, look at verse 15, notice what he says,
the Lord came again unto me saying, moreover, thou son of man, notice what he says, he says,
take thee one stick.
So he's giving this illustration, and he says, I want you to take one stick and write upon
it for Judas.
He said, I want you to take a stick and I want you to write Judah, and of course Judah
is the tribe that was in the most southern part of Israel, and if you remember, when
the nation of Israel had a civil war and they split, the southern kingdom became just known
as the nation of Judah, or the southern kingdom of Judah, he said, I want you to take one
stick and I want you to write for Judah, and of course this represents the entire southern
kingdom of Israel, he says, and for the children of Israel, his companions, then take another
stick and write upon it for Joseph.
Now if you remember Joseph had two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim, and Joseph ended up getting the
double portion of Israel, so he had two sons that inherited the land, they were brought
in as the 12 tribes of Israel, and the way that the map added up there when you had two
tribes for one son, if you remember, the tribe of Levi was not given land, they were not
given possession, so because of that, Joseph had two tribes represented there, and if you
remember, the tribe of Manasseh was a large tribe, and in many ways, like Judah kind of
just became known as a southern kingdom, that northern kingdom was represented by the sons
of Joseph, so he says, I want you to take another stick, and I want you to write Joseph,
and this of course pictures the northern kingdom of Israel, notice what he says, the stick
of Ephraim, and for all the house of Israel's companions, verse 17, and join them one to
another into one stick, so he says, you're going to take two sticks, write Judah on one,
Joseph on the other one, one represents the northern kingdom, one represents the southern
kingdom, but then I want you to join them one to another into one stick, and they shall
become one in thine hand, and when the children of thy people shall speak unto thee, saying,
wilt thou not show us, wilt thou mean us by these, say unto them, so he says, look, people
are going to ask you, what does this mean, what does this represent, here's what I want
you to say unto them, thus saith the Lord God, behold, I will take the stick of Joseph,
which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel, his fellows, and will put them
with him, even with the stick of Judah, to make them one stick, and notice what he says,
and they shall be one in mine hand, now, look down at verse number 22, we're going
to get to verses 20 and 21 here in a minute, but look at verse 22, he says, and I will
make them one nation in the land upon the mountains of Israel, and one king shall be
upon them all, we'll come back to that statement in a second, and they shall be no more two
nations, because at this point, the nation of Israel is divided into two nations, the
northern kingdom and the southern kingdom, but God says, I'm going to make them one nation,
they shall be no more two nations, neither shall they be divided into two kingdoms any
more at all, so here's what I want you to understand, when Ezekiel is giving this prophecy
of the valley of dry bones, it is very clear that this passage refers to a day when the
12 tribes of Israel will be reunited under one kingdom, so that, you can't say that's
today in the modern nation of Israel, today in the modern nation of Israel, to be honest,
we don't know what tribes they have over there, but it's primarily the tribe of Judah, and
here's the thing, you say, well what about the other 10 tribes? The other 10 tribes have
been lost, if you remember, when the nation of Assyria came in, because Assyria took over
the northern kingdom, and Babylon took over the southern kingdom, we've been learning
about this in the book of Ezekiel, we learned about it when we went through the book of
Isaiah, when the Assyrians took over the northern kingdom, they assimilated with the nation
of Israel, and they basically dispersed the people, those people became known as Samaritans,
those are the Samaritans we meet in the New Testament, those nations are gone, those tribes
are gone, they are lost, they don't exist today, you say, well then what in the world
is, how are these 10 tribes gonna make a comeback? Well here's what we're gonna learn about when
we go back to the valley of the dry bones, is that the nation of Israel that is going
to inherit the land is going to be a nation of Israel that was resurrected. See, it's
not just New Testament believers that are going to be resurrected one day at the rapture,
they that are alive and remain will be caught up, but the Bible says that they which are
asleep are gonna come out of their graves, it's also gonna be those Israelites, those
Hebrews, those Jews throughout history that believed on Jesus Christ, they're going to
be resurrected, and those are the people that are going to inherit the land, and because
of that, at that point, we will have 12 tribes of Israel. It's the same thing with the 144,000
in the book of Revelation, the 144,000, you have 12,000 that come out of every one of
the 12 tribes, that's not Jews today, you couldn't find 12,000 Jews from many of those
tribes because those tribes don't exist, you say, well where do those 144,000 come from?
They come from heaven, because there are Israelites who believed through history that
died that were believers that are going to be resurrected one day, they're in heaven
now, one day their bodies will be resurrected, this is what this passage is about. But I'm
just showing you that Ezekiel is talking about a day when the dispensationalist today will
say this is when the nation of Israel, when God is going to give the land back to the
Jews, and I would agree with that, but it's not the Jews that they're thinking of, it
is the believing Hebrews that are one day going to be resurrected on the same day that
you and I get resurrected on the day of the rapture. And you say, well how do we know
that? Well, one reason we know that is because when they are given the land back, it's given
to all 12 tribes, and it's not a metaphor, he gives this whole analogy and says, one
stick represents the northern kingdom, one stick represents the southern kingdom, I'm
going to unite the stakes, there will be no more two nations, it's going to be a united
kingdom. But I want you to notice there's another reason why we can see that this is
a future event of raptured, resurrected Israelites, and not the Jews of today. Notice verse 22,
and I will make of them one nation of the land upon the mountain of Israel, notice what
it says, and one king shall be king to them all. He says they're going to have one king,
the nation of Israel today does not have a king, but I want you to notice it's not just
that they're going to have a king, he tells us who that king will be, verse 24. And David
my servant shall be king over them, and they all shall have one shepherd, they shall also
walk in my judgment and observe my statutes and do them, and they shall dwell in the land
that I have given unto Jacob my servant, wherein your fathers have dwelled, and they shall
dwell therein, and they and their children and their children's children forever, don't
miss this, and my servant David shall be their prince forever. So I want you to notice,
not only does this passage have to do with a time when God gives the land back to the
united kingdom, the 12 tribes of Israel under a united kingdom, but it will also be during
a time when David my servant shall be king over them, and then he says that in verse
24, and in verse 25 he says my servant David shall be their prince forever. So it will
be a time when David is ruling and reigning from Israel. Now, let me go ahead and give
you some thoughts on this, because there's a lot of controversy and a lot of arguments
on this idea of David. Many people believe that the word, when he says that David my
servant shall be king over them, that that is actually a reference to the Lord Jesus
Christ. I agree with that. In the New Testament, you find that Jesus is often referred to as
the son of David. People even call him now son of David, have mercy on me, or they refer
to him as the son of David. We've got two lineages, one lineage that brings them back
to the line of David as the rightful king of Israel. Other people will say, no, this
isn't David. This isn't Jesus. This is actually physically David, because David is one of
those believing Israelites that's going to be resurrected at the rapture, and during
the millennial reign, David is going to rule over Israel. And here's the thing, I agree
with that too. You say, well, which one is it? Is it Jesus or is it David? It's both.
And I'll show you why. Notice verse 24, and David my servant shall be king. I want you
to notice a phrase there. David my servant shall be king. And then at the end of verse
25, he says, my servant David shall be their prince. So in verse 24, David is referred
to as king. In verse 25, David is referred to as prince. And you say, well, prince just
means someone in authority, principality. It could be talking about the king. Here's
what's interesting. In the book of Ezekiel, we've already learned when we have that famous
passage of Satan controlling different kings. Remember, we saw there in Ezekiel 28 where
we're talking about the king of Edom. And I'm sorry, was it Edom? I'm forgetting now.
Let me go back and look at it. Ezekiel 28, if you want to turn back there, Tyrus. I want
you to notice in verse 2, he refers to him, son of man, say unto the prince of Tyrus.
And then later in the passage in verse 12, he refers to him as the king of Tyrus. Verse
2 says, son of man, say unto the prince of Tyrus, thus saith the Lord God. And then in
verse 12, he says, son of man, take up a lamentation upon the king of Tyrus. So I want you to notice,
here we know we're talking about two different people. The prince of Tyrus in verse 2 is
actually the physical human being, and the king of Tyrus in verse 12 is Satan. And you
say, well, how do you know that? Well, look at verse 13. Thou has been in Eden, the garden
of God. Look at the last part of verse 13. Thy tabards and thy pipes were prepared in
thee in the day that thou was created. Verse 14, thou the anointed cherub that covered.
So the king of Tyrus is referring to Satan. The prince of Tyrus is actually referring
to the physical man. So we can see, we've already seen Ezekiel use this terminology
separately, dividing the person versus the spiritual. And then here in Ezekiel 37, he
says there's a king, David, and there's a prince, David. So I believe the king is actually
referring to the Lord Jesus Christ, the son of David, who will reign from the throne of
David. But then we also have David. And you say, well, how does that work? Here's what
you need to understand, and I don't want to get too much into this because we're going
to deal with it later in the book of Ezekiel. But during the millennial reign, those of
us that have served God with our lives, when we go through the judgment seat of Christ
and we are rewarded for our works, you do not go to heaven based on your works, but
your rewards are based on your works. And when we serve God and we are rewarded, part
of our reward is that we will rule and reign with Christ during the millennial reign. And
I believe that during that time, there's going to be a structure like there is today. Because
here's what you need to understand. The New Testament tells us that the 12 apostles are
going to reign over 12 thrones, on 12 thrones, over the 12 tribes of Israel during the millennial
reign. And you can ask, well, OK, so is David going to reign over Israel, or are the 12
apostles? Well, look, in the same way that today we have a president that rules over
the entire nation, but we've got governors that rule over different states, and then
underneath those governors, you've got mayors that rule different cities, I believe the
millennial reign is going to be the same way. And I do believe that David is going
to reign over the nation of Israel as king during the millennial reign, but then the
12 apostles will reign over the separate 12 tribes of Israel. There's going to be a leadership
structure. You say, well, is David going to reign from Jerusalem, or is Jesus? Well, here's
what I think. I believe David will reign over the nation of Israel, and Jesus will reign
over the entire world from Israel. In the same way that you've got the state of Virginia
that has a governor, but the president is there in Washington DC ruling over the entire
country, that's what I believe Ezekiel is referring to here. There's going to be King
Jesus, who's represented by David here, who's going to reign over the entire world from
Jerusalem, but you'll have King David. We already know what he's going to get at the
judgment seat of Christ. He's going to get to rule over the entire nation of Israel during
the millennial reign. And then we already know also, because Jesus already told us,
that the 12 apostles are going to reign over the 12 tribes of Israel during the millennial
reign. And this is how it's going to go. And we don't know what you'll do. Honestly, I'm
hoping I get to reign over Sacramento. That'd be great. I figure I don't have too much competition
because everybody, all the Christians around here, all the churches are pretty lame. So maybe
I'll get to reign over Sacramento. I don't know. But I think there'll probably be someone who reigns
over the entire nation, the United States of America. We know Babylon will be destroyed.
That's just a city. I think it's New York City. We don't know. But other than that part,
I think there'll be someone who's ruling over the entire United States of America. And then
there'll probably be people that are ruling over different regions or things like that.
This is what I believe that Ezekiel is referring to. And I went to all that just to explain that,
but here's what I want you to understand. We know that this passage is not about anything that can
happen during our time. This is end times. You would say, how do we know that? Well, number one,
we know that because there's a huge reference to the resurrection at the beginning of the chapter,
which we're going to get to in a minute. Number two, we know that because we know that during
the millennia, during this reign, all 12 tribes will be united because the 12 apostles will reign
over the 12 tribes of Israel. We also know that because David will reign. And whether
you think it's Jesus being represented as David, or whether you believe it's the physical David,
or whether you believe, like I do, that it's both, David the king is Jesus and David the
prince is David, either way, none of that applies now. This is a future event. This is future coming.
Let me give you a third reason why we can know that this is a future event, that this is not
something that applies to the unbelieving Jews of today. Because, look, this message is one
to apply these passages to unbelieving Jews. The Bible says, who is a liar but he that denied
that Jesus is the Christ. He is anti-Christ that denied the father and the son. And look,
these Jews today, they deny that Jesus is the Christ. They deny that Jesus is the Messiah.
That's what the word Christ means. They're looking for another Messiah. They are anti-Christ. That's
what the Bible says. Look at Ezekiel 37 and verse 26. Moreover, I will make a covenant of peace with
them. It shall be an everlasting covenant with them. And I will place them and multiply them
and will, notice what he says, set my sanctuary in the midst of them forevermore. Now look,
they don't have a sanctuary over there right now. Now they will, the anti-Christ is going to build
a temple one day. But here, the Bible says that God is going to send his sanctuary in the midst
of them. And I want you to make note of these words, set my sanctuary, in verse 26, in the
midst of them forevermore. And then verse 27, my tabernacle also shall be with them. Yea, I will
be their God and they shall be my people. Now, if you remember from last week, we looked at 2nd
Corinthians chapter 6, where he talked about that ye are the temple of the Holy Ghost. And he says,
I will be their God and they shall be my people. So we already see that this is a New Covenant
reference. This is not an Old Testament reference, but a New Testament reference. But even more than
that, let me prove to you that this is future events. Go to Revelation chapter 21. Revelation
chapter 21 and look at verse number 1. Revelation chapter 21 and verse number 1 should be fairly
easy to find. Last book in the New Testament, Revelation 21 verse 1, notice what the Bible says.
And I saw a new heaven and a new earth. All right, this is future events. For the first
heaven and the first earth were passed away and there was no more sea. And I, John, saw the holy
city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride, adorned for her
husband. And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, does this sound familiar? Behold, the
tabernacle of God is with men. Isn't that what Ezekiel 37, 27 said? My tabernacle also shall be
with them. And he will dwell with them and they shall be his people and God himself shall be with
them and be their God. Isn't that exactly what Ezekiel 37, 27 says? So look, this is not something
that you can put into today or the Jews of today. This is very much end times prophecy. The book of
Revelation even quotes from Ezekiel to tell you that when the tabernacle of God comes,
it's during the time of the new heaven, the new earth. When the new Jerusalem comes down,
the tabernacle of God will be with men. They shall be his people. And he says,
and I will be their God. That's all new coveted, New Testament. It's all believers that have been
resurrected. So this passage is very much an end times passage. How do we know that? Well,
we know because when this happens, the entire nation of Israel will be reunited. All 12 tribes,
southern and northern kingdom will be united. When this happens, David will reign over the
nation of Israel. And I believe that's a reference to the Lord Jesus Christ, the son of David,
reigning from Jerusalem and the actual physical David who killed Goliath, reigning from Jerusalem
over the nation of Israel. And of course we know the apostles will be reigning over the 12 tribes.
Go back to Ezekiel 37. Ezekiel 37, look at verse 1. So now that I've explained all that,
we understand this is future event, I want you to understand that there are two applications
to this famous passage of the valley of the dry bones, or the valley full of dry bones. The first
application, which I've already said, is that this is about the resurrection. This is literally
a rapture passage. This is about the resurrection, just like 1 Corinthians 15, just like we learned
about it in 1 Thessalonians and 2 Thessalonians. This is about the rapture, and this is about Old
Testament saints being resurrected during the rapture. Ezekiel 37, verse 1. Notice what the
Bible says. The first thing we see when we talk about the resurrection, which is the primary
application, is that we see the resurrection of the dead. There's an emphasis on the fact that
these people are dead. Verse 1, 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, notice what it says, which was full of
bones. Now I don't believe that this is the only place that people will be resurrected, but God is
allowing Ezekiel to see this place being resurrected. He said there's a valley which was
full of bones. Now, maybe this was a burial place, maybe there's a place where some sort of battle
was fought and many believing Jews were killed here. Whatever it was, we know that Ezekiel is
taken to this valley and he sees this valley which was full of bones. Look at verse 2. And
caused me to pass by them round about, and behold, they were very many, there's a lot of bodies here,
in the open valley and lo, they were very dry. The idea there is that these bones have been dead
for a long time. There's very many and they're very dry. Look at verse 3. And he said unto me,
son of man, can these bones live? It's an odd question. I mean, I don't think most people would
not ask this question, can these bones live? But of course with God, nothing is impossible. And he
says, can these bones live? And I answered, O Lord God, thou knowest. It's interesting because this
is the same way a question in the book of Revelation is asked, and the same way that
the same answer is given in Revelation, thou knowest, verse 4. Again, he said unto me,
prophesy unto these bones and say unto them, O ye dry bones, hear the word of the Lord. So I want
you to notice the emphasis is that these people are dead. They've been dead for a long time.
They're very many. They're very dry. O ye dry bones. Look at verse number 11. Then he said unto me,
son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel. So notice he's telling him, these bones
that you're going to see here, this is the whole house of Israel. Behold, they say, our bones are
dry 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. Notice what he says, 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, O my people, and brought you up out of your grave.
So here he says, look, these bones are very dry. They're very many. They're very dead. And he says,
but look, I'm going to open your graves and cause you to come up out of your graves.
Go to John chapter 5. John chapter 5 in the New Testament. You've got Matthew, Mark, Luke, John.
John chapter 5. And while you turn there, let me say this. In Revelation chapter 9, we are told
that all Israel shall be saved. And the dispensation is they love to take that. And even Baptists will
just kind of turn Calvinist for a minute and say, see, during the end times, during the time of
tribulation, all the Jews are going to get saved. They're all going to believe on Jesus. And it's
like, look, that is Calvinism, that God is just going to perform some miracle and cause all that.
Look, salvation is whosoever will may come. It doesn't matter if it's Old Testament, New Testament,
tribulation time, or end times. God doesn't force people to be saved. But people will get confused
and they'll say, well, how in the world does it say that all Israel is going to be saved? How can
he say that if they don't all get saved? Here's how he says that. We read it in Ezekiel 37 and 11.
This is the whole house of Israel. Look, there's coming a day when God is going to resurrect the
entire house of Israel and everyone that he was resurrected was saved. So they're all saved. The
entire nation of Israel, look, here's what I'm telling you. The nation of Israel that inherits
the land through the millennial reign, they're not going to get it because they were Jews. They're
going to get it because they were saved, because they partook in the resurrection of the dead,
because they partook in the resurrection of the living. God is no respecter of persons. God doesn't
just give people a pass because they were born into the right family. You say, well, what happens
to Jews that don't believe? The same thing that happens to everybody who doesn't believe. The
wrath of God abides upon them. So the whole house of Israel being saved is a reference to the fact
that there's coming a day when everybody in Israel, everyone who inherits that land, they're all
going to be saved. Hebrews, saved Israelites. Now notice he says, I'm going to open your graves and
cause you to come up out of your graves. He says, ye shall know that I am the Lord when I have
opened your graves. Notice how this flows perfectly with the teaching of the resurrection, John
chapter 5 verse 28. Notice what the Bible says. John 5 28. Marvel not at this, this is Jesus
speaking, for the hour is coming in the which, notice what he says, all that are in the graves
shall hear his voice and shall come forth. They that have done good unto the resurrection of life
and they that have done evil unto the resurrection of damnation. See, there's going to be a
resurrection for both the living and the dead. And don't let that confuse you. The resurrection
of damnation, that's the great white throne. And death and hell were cast into lake. He said,
I saw the dead. He said, they came out of hell. They came from the sea. But there is coming a
resurrection of the living and he's going to open up. They shall come forth. They're going to hear
his voice in the graves. And this is what Ezekiel 37 is referring to. It's referring to the fact
that believing Israelites are going to one day be resurrected. They're going to be raptured just
like everyone else. Go back to Ezekiel 37. Keep your place there in John, if you wouldn't mind.
We're going to come back in that direction, but go to Ezekiel 37, look at verse 5. Thus saith the
Lord God unto these bones. Behold, I will cause breath to enter into you and ye shall live. We're
going to come back to that in a second. Look at verse 6. And I will lay sinews, those are tendons,
upon you. So I want you to notice, the first thing we saw that this is the resurrection of the dead.
The second thing we see is that when these people are resurrected from the dead, they are given a
new body. Notice what it says. I will lay sinews, again, those are tendons, 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 and I was commanded as I was commanded it. And as I prophesied,
there was a noise and behold, a shaking. And the bones came together, bone to his bone. Reminds
me of that song. I don't know the song because I wasn't good at school, but you know that song,
the whatever bone is connected to this bone, this is what's happening here. These bones start just
coming up out of the ground and they literally start connecting to each other and forming these
skeletons. And then the sinews come upon, then the muscle comes upon it, then the flesh comes
upon it, then the skin comes upon it, verse 8. And when I beheld lo, the sinews and the flesh came
upon them and the skin covered them above, but there was no breath in them. So I want you to
notice they are dead and they are resurrected and then they are given a new body. Go to 1st
Corinthians 15. Now, if you kept your place in John, you go Acts, Romans, 1st Corinthians,
and continue to keep your place in John because we're going to come back there also. But go John,
Acts, Romans, 1st Corinthians. Now, 1st Corinthians 15 is a famous passage about the resurrection of
believers. Notice what it says, 1st Corinthians 15, verse 53, for this corruption, excuse me,
for this corruptible. Now, again, we could read the whole passage. It's a long chapter. We're not
going to do that. But when he's talking about this corruptible, he's talking about our bodies
because your body is corrupt. Your body is falling apart. Your body is literally dying every day. He
says, for this corruptible must put on incorruption and this mortal must put on immortality. Why?
Because at the rapture or the resurrection, it's the same event, you know, whether you are alive
and you get raptured or you are dead and you get resurrected, at that moment, not only will the
dead come back to life, but all of us will receive a new glorified body. For this corruptible was put
on incorruption and this mortal was put on immortality. So when this corruptible should
have put on incorruption and this mortal shall put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass
the saying that is written, death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is thy thing? O grave,
remember they came up out of the grave, where is thy victory? So I want you to notice that they
are resurrected and they are given a new body. Go back to Ezekiel 37. Let me say this, this is all
done by the Holy Spirit or it's a spiritual work. It is a Spirit of God that does this and I'll show
it to you in Ezekiel 37, look at verse 9. Ezekiel 37 verse 9 says this, then said he unto me,
prophesy unto, notice these words, the wind. Now, we can spend a lot of time on this and I'm not
going to, but throughout the Bible, the Holy Spirit is represented as several things. There
are these emblems or symbols of the Holy Spirit. I thought about doing a whole sermon on it when we
did our Holy Spirit series, I decided not to, but there are several things that represent the Holy
Spirit. One of them is fire, one of them is wind. Here we are told, he is told to prophesy unto the
wind because remember, the bones were resurrected, the dead were brought back, then they were given
a new body, but they're still not alive. It's a similar process to Adam. Remember,
Adam's body was there, but God had to breathe into him the breath of life. Well,
notice what it says here. 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 the 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.
So this is a spiritual work. And look, just to prove to you that the wind is represented by the
Holy Spirit or the Holy Spirit represents the wind, go to John chapter three, just real quickly,
John chapter three, verse eight. We saw it last week when we looked at the story of Decademus,
but let me just show you one verse, John 3.8. Remember Jesus explaining the new birth,
the new covenant, the new spirit, that it's going to indwell people, regeneration. Look,
salvation is not just reformation. You're not reformed. You're regenerated. You're a new man.
You are a new creature. And he's telling them, look, if you're going to enter the kingdom of
heaven, you must be born again. And Decademus doesn't understand. He said,
how can I enter a second time into my mother's womb? And he says, no, that which is born of the
flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the spirit is spirit. He said, this is a spiritual
thing. Look at John 3.8. The wind bloweth where it listeth. And now here's a sound thereof,
but can't not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth. Notice what he says. This is Jesus. So
is every one that is born of the Spirit. So notice that the wind represents the Spirit.
Remember the Day of Pentecost when they were filled with the Holy Ghost? What happened first?
A mighty rushing wind. So you have this wind that represents the Holy Spirit. This is a spiritual
work. This is what God will do through His Spirit. Go back to Ezekiel 37. So here's a point. You say,
what is Ezekiel 37 about? This famous passage of the valley of dead bones, the valley full of dead
bones, the valley full of dry bones. What is it about? It's just an Old Testament resurrection
passage about the Old Testament saints. When the trumpet sounds, when Jesus comes back at the
second coming of Christ, those who believed on Christ, who placed their faith on Christ,
we look back to the cross and place our faith in Christ. But in the Old Testament, they were
looking forward to the cross, and they were believing that God would send the Messiah to
die for their sins. And those who died believing that, who were saved, they're going to be
resurrected as well. Their bones are going to come out of the grave. They're going to receive
a new body, and they're going to inherit the land. You say, when will they get it? During the
millenial reign. When the twelve tribes of Israel inherit it. When David literally rules over them.
When the tabernacle of God descends from the new heaven, the new earth, the new Jerusalem,
and God says, I will dwell with my people, and I shall be their God, and they shall be my people.
That's not just Jews. That's not just Israelites. That's all of us that believe and partake in the
new covenant. Go back to Ezekiel 37. Let me just say this. There's a second application. When you
study the Bible, you have to understand that there are usually, not usually, I shouldn't say usually,
but many times there are several applications to a passage. There's the primary application,
which is the primary purpose or teaching that God has given us, and that's what I've given you
tonight. The primary application is about the resurrection. But sometimes there's a secondary
application, meaning it's not about that specifically, but there are some principles that
we can learn. And I believe that there is a secondary application to this passage. The primary
application is about resurrection. The secondary application is about revival. You say, well, what
makes you think this is about revival? When we're talking about revival, we use the word revival,
revive. This is a Bible word. It references those that have maybe just kind of gotten dead in their
Christian walk, whose spiritual life has just kind of died. God talks about the fact that he
can revive you. And you say, well, how do you know that there's an application here that it's not
just the resurrection, but there's also an aspect of revival? Well, look at verse 11. Ezekiel 37 and
verse 11. The Bible says this, then he said unto me, son of man, these bones are the whole house
of Israel. Behold, they say. So notice, the bones are dead. Very clear this is future events. This
is a resurrection. But then he says this, the bones said this, our bones are dried. Our hope
is lost. We are cut off for our parts. And he says, look, there's a secondary application here
that there are some times when we might look at ourselves and say our bones are dried, our hope
is lost. There are times in your life and in my life when our Christianity gets kind of dry,
gets kind of old, gets kind of dead. You say a dead Christianity? Well, the Bible says faith
without works is dead. Now, that's not teaching a work of salvation. Because look, faith without
works is still existing. Faith without works doesn't mean it doesn't exist, but it does mean
this, it's dead. And sometimes people, they lose their first life and their Christian life just
kind of dies. Their Christian life just kind of goes by the wayside. They used to be excited
about the things of God. They used to be excited about church and about Bible reading, about prayer,
about soul reading. But now it's just kind of like, ah, I don't know. It's dry. It's dead.
And the Bible here tells us, look, you can experience revival in your life.
What are the characteristics? Well, number one, the preaching of God's Word. Look at verse 4.
And he said unto me, prophesy. Why is it important to be in church on Sunday morning,
Sunday night, Wednesday night? Because God has chosen the foolishness of preaching.
Because God, look, you say, Master, why don't we do the small groups? That's a big fad right now.
The small groups, we can all meet at each other's houses.
And we can sit around on couches, and we just kind of talk about, and we can all talk. Well,
here's the problem with that. I missed the verse where he said that God has chosen the foolishness
of small groups to confound the wise. But you know what he said? He said that he's chosen
preaching. He says that he has ordained preaching throughout the Old Testament, the New Testament.
God has given us prophecy, preaching, the preaching of God's Word. You say, why?
You look, when you feel like your Christianity is kind of dying, it's kind of dead, it's kind
of dry, it's kind of boring, you say, what do I need? You need preaching. You need a man of God
to stand up with the Word of God and to preach unto you. He says, prophesy unto these bones,
and say unto them, O ye dry bones. Notice the second aspect is not just prophecy, it's hear
the Word of the Lord. See, it's not enough that you get good preaching, it better be Bible
preaching. For the Word of God is quick, means alive, and powerful, and sharper than a two-edged
sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and is a discerner of the
thoughts and intents of the heart. Here's what I believe, that if you get someone who's dry
and dead, someone who's saved, but they're dry and dead, their Christianity is kind of dying,
and you get them under the right type of biblical preaching, you say, what will happen? Here's what
will happen, the Holy Spirit will begin to work on them. Notice verse six, actually verse five,
thus saith the Lord God unto these bones, behold I will cause breath. That's the Spirit. Look at
verse six, and I will lay sinews upon you, and will bring up flesh unto you, and cover you with
skin, and put breath in you. Look at verse seven, 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 when I beheld and loathed the sinews. He talks about how they come together.
Look at verse nine, 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 of breath,
and breathe upon them these slain that they may live. And yes, the primary application
is resurrection, but there is a secondary application, which is revival.
You say, I need a reviving. Look, the preaching of God's Word can revive your soul, can revive
your soul winning, can revive your devotional time, can revive your marriage, can revive your
child rearing. You see, when things begin to die, when things begin to die, you say, what do we need?
We need the preaching of God's Word, because it's quick and it's powerful, and it can make you alive.
So the primary application, the primary application is that of resurrection, but the secondary
application is that of revival. Look at verse 12. We'll look at verses 12, 13, and 14, just make
the last point. I've already made it, but just to make sure we're clear, verse 12. Therefore,
prophesy and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord God, behold, O my people, what people are these?
People have been resurrected. I will open your graves and cause you to come up out of your
graves, notice what he says, and bring you into the land of Israel. 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,
and shall put my spirit in you, and ye shall live, and, notice what he says, I shall place
you in your own land. Then shall you know that I, the Lord, have spoken it, and performed it,
saith the Lord. So Pastor Meres, do you believe that the nation of Israel is going to be given
the land someday? Absolutely. Do you think it's the unbelieving Jews of today? No, the Bible's
very clear. It's going to be the ones who God opened their graves and brought them back from
the dead and resurrected them, gave them a new body. This is millennial reign. So you got the
John Hagees and you got all these preachers out there, we got to get the Jews the land back. We
got to get the Jews the land back. Let's give them the land back. Let's give them the land. Let's
kick out Palestine. Let's give them the land. No, you know what? They're going to get the land
during the millennial reign. And it's not going to be a bunch of unbelieving Jews. It'll be those
who believe on the Lord from the Old Testament. They're going to be resurrected. They're going
to be given a glorified body just like you and I. And you know what? David and Peter and James
and John will be ruling and railing, railing the night, reigning, hopefully not railing,
from Israel. And the rest of us will be ruling and reigning in whatever areas we lived and served.
And this is, and I hope it's clear tonight, that this is not some sort of Zionist passage
about giving the land back to the people. It's very clear this is end times. Millennial reign,
believing Israelites, will be resurrected at the rapture. Let's bow our heads and have a word of
prayer. Heavenly Father, thank you, Lord, for your word. Thank you for this passage. I know
it's misunderstood and misused a lot by people that have agendas. But Lord, I just pray that
you'd help us all to understand it and just look at it. It's very clear that when this is going to
happen and who it applies to. And Lord, we thank you for allowing us to be able to be a part of
this, to be able to read the Bible, understand it, learn it, apply it to our lives. In Jesus' name,
we pray. Amen.