1The 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. 2 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. 3 He asked me, “Son of man, can these bones live?” I said, “Sovereign Lord, you alone know.” 4 Then he said to me, “Prophesy to these bones and say to them, ‘Dry bones, hear the word of the Lord! 5 This is what the Sovereign Lord says to these bones: I will make breath enter you, and you will come to life. 6 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.’” 7 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. 8 I looked, and tendons and flesh appeared on them and skin covered them, but there was no breath in them. 9 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.’” 10 So I prophesied as he commanded me, and breath entered them; they came to life and stood up on their feet—a vast army. (Ezekiel 37:1 – 10)
Theme: If not You, then Who?
As promised, today we will turn our attention to the role we should play in God’s mission of restoring the order He created. Hopefully you were able to focus on God’s creation yesterday. If you didn’t, today is just as good. It’s never too late to stop and smell the roses or cherry blossoms if you are in Japan 😊.
From the Bible and from creation we gain insights into God’s mission to restore order. As soldiers in His army we too must be signed up to this mission. When we share the gospel, live godly lives, and otherwise share God’s love with others we are participating in God’s mission.
As you think about creation today, reflect on the damage and disorder that sin has imposed. Then ask yourself, am I playing my part in God’s mission to restore order?
Our passage today may seem somewhat unrelated to the Discipline of Creation, but it is related. You will find in the passage above, a beautiful example of the prophet Ezekiel partnering with God to address the disorder illustrated by dry bones. This is the kind of partnership we should long for because there are so many dry bones around us, but by the power of our creator, those bones can live, and order can be restored.
Please read the passage above and answer the question below.
Question:
Where are the “chaotic” places that God has placed you to be his message and messenger of order?