Pastoral Letter 157
Dear Members of St. Andrew’s Uniting Church, Friends and Adherents,
Grace and Peace to you all.
We are almost at the end of Lent and next Sunday we will celebrate Palm Sunday, which will lead us to the Holy Week, also known as the Passion Week, that leads us to Maundy Thursday, Good Friday and Eater. We are still in the holy season when we acknowledge our need for repentance, mercy and forgiveness proclaimed in the gospel of Jesus Christ by prayer and fasting, by self-denial and acts of generosity. We continue to pray for those who need our prayers, asking God to have compassion and provide their needs.
The last ten days were a very busy time for me with the Armenian Missionary Association of Australia’s annual programs, which will be concluding tomorrow, Sunday evening, with the Banquet in Miramare Gardens. Last Sunday we joined the Willoughby Armenian Evangelical Uniting Church for the AMAA Sunday bilingual Worship Service. Tomorrow we will worship and have Communion here at Longueville, with our guest and some people from the Armenian community. If you will not be able to be with us, please have a small roll of bread, a small cup of wine, light a candle and join following the attached Oeder of Service.
Be safe and well, continue to pray, remembering those who need care, support and love. Please let me know if you or anyone else has prayer points.
Here are some prayer points for this week:
- Pray for the newly elected State government, asking God to give wisdom to all the leaders.
- Pray for the people of Ukraine, Armenia and Artsakh.
- Pray for the poor, the sick, the vulnerable, the struggling and the stressed.
- Pray for those who are unwell and struggling with different kinds of medical issues.
- Pray for world peace and ask for God’s blessings.
Please let me know if you or anyone else has prayer points.
Best Regards,
Krikor
Best Regards,
Krikor
MESSAGE
Hope! Dry Bones Shall Breathe
Ezekiel 37:1-10
The Devil was having a yard sale, and all of his tools were marked with different prices. They were in a hateful and dreadful lot. There was hatred, jealously, deceit, lying, and pride–all at expensive prices. But over to the side of the yard on display was a tool more obviously worn than any of the other tools. It was also the costliest. The tool was labelled DISCOURAGEMENT. When questioned, the Devil said: “It’s more useful to me than any other tool. When I can’t bring down my victims with any of the rest of these tools, I use discouragement, because so few people realize that it belongs to me.”
Satan is never happier than when he sees people giving in and giving up to despair and becoming lost in hopelessness. Have you ever felt like your whole world is caving in around you and there is absolutely no hope? Your troubles seem to mount up and make you hopeless.
I have good news. There is hope for the hopeless!
1. There are situations, which appear to be hopeless
The picture portrayed in Ez. 37:1-2 was that of the nation of Israel in their captivity. The nation was virtually dead. It was lifeless, scattered, and like army corpses were spread across a battleground. There was no way humanly possible that they would ever arise from this defeat. Impossible!
2. God alone holds the answer to hopeless situations
From man’s perspective, one and only one answer could come from the prophet’s lips, “Life is impossible!” It is absurd to suppose that these dead bones could ever live again. But it was God who asked the question, and it is God alone who knows the answer.
In Matthew 19:25-26 “When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astonished and asked, ‘Who then can be saved?’ Jesus looked at them, and said: ‘With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible’.” There are no hopeless situations. There are only people who are hopeless.
Psalms 42:11, “Why are you downcast, O my soul? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God: for I will yet praise him, my Saviour and my God.“
3. God’s Word gives new direction
Ez. 37:4-8 would appear absurd to address “dry bones“. Picture Ezekiel standing in the middle of the battlefield among the corpses preaching to piles of bones. But God’s ways are not man’s ways. The prophet speaks at the Divine command the Divine message. He speaks for God and they who listen, hear the voice of God. When the Word of God goes forth, things begin to happen.
The Word of God is a window to those in the prison of hopelessness, through which they can look and see the light of hope and get direction for their lives.
4. God’s Spirit gives new life
The inward operation of the Holy Spirit is necessary to saving faith. The gospel is light but only the Spirit can give sight. Rom. 8:10: “The Spirit is alive.” If we have the Spirit on the inside, we can stand any kind of battle on the outside.
The vision of dry bones must have been revealed to Ezekiel with startling reality and vividness. He must have asked himself at least a few questions as he was presented with such an awesome scene.
Who were they?
“Who were these people?” “Who could do such a thing?” “Why this happened, and how?” “Who are they?”
They are God’s people. “These bones are the whole house of Israel.” At the time of this vision Israel was in Babylonian captivity. They were the slaves of Babylon. As they mourned over their captivity they said, “Our bones are dried up, and our hope is lost: we are cut off.”
People who were once called by His name are now gone and are no more.
What happened to them?
The second question that seems logical Ezekiel would have asked is: “What happened to all these people? “How did they die?” “Why did they die?” “What could have caused all the death and decay?” Israel was God’s people. No enemy that rose up against them could win over God. It wasn’t a famine. He fed them manna in the wilderness. He led His sheep in green pastures beside still waters. There could be no shortage of His supply.
It was no outside force that killed these people. What filled this valley with their bones was sin. The book of James says: “When sin is full-grown, gives birth to death.” (1:15)
It didn’t happen all at once. They didn’t turn away right away from God. Rather it was gradual. Spiritual death came as they allowed themselves to go away from God.
Can they live?
The third question is provided for us in the text itself. It actually comes early in the vision. The Lord asks in verse 3: “Son of man, can these bones live?” Surely that question stuck with him and he puzzled over it in the back of his mind as the revelation progressed.
Ezekiel’s answer was so wise: “O Sovereign LORD, You alone know.” In other words, he was saying: “Lord, it doesn’t seem possible, but you know if they can live.”
Their prayers seem to reflect no hope. “Our bones are dried up and our hope is gone; we are cut off.” ( 11)
Those who once knew God, now their soul have dried up, are among the most hopeless. They are cut off. Their whole life is a discouragement. That’s because life wasn’t meant to be lived without the Lord. They are as lost as they were before they first came.
Can they live? It seems doubtful. They’re so dry. Only God knows. Something was still wrong – something was missing- “there was no breath in them.” No life.
“Prophesy to the breath; prophesy, son of man, and say to it, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe into these slain, that they may live.’
Have you noticed that every time the word “life” is used in this chapter it is in connection with the word “breath“?
“I will make breath enter you, and you will come to life”.
“I will put breath in you, and you will come to life”.
“O breath …breathe into these slain, that they may live”.
“Breath entered them; they came to life and stood on their feet-a vast army.”
“I will put My Spirit in you and you will live”
In Hebrew the word Ruach is used for “wind,” “breath” and “Spirit.”
We can’t read this chapter without being reminded of the words in Gen. 2:7 concerning the original creation of man: “(God) breathed into his nostrils the breath of life and man became a living being.”
There was no life in the lump of formed clay. There was no life in the bones, or in the tendons, the muscle or skin. But in the breath, there was life! God’s breath.
God calls to His people in vs 14: “I will put My Spirit in you and you will live!” That is our hope.
Perhaps we came this morning with a bit of “dryness” in our bones. Our relationship with God has cooled off a bit. Let Him breathe life into us again. Let Him refresh the touch of His Spirit in our soul. Let Him give us a little reviving.
I believe God has the same plan for us as He had for the house of Israel in Ezekiel’s day. He wants Spirit-filled people and spirit filled church.
And don’t you forget, there IS hope in the Lord!
Paul says: “In hope we are saved”.
We have to wait patiently.
That’s what the faithful did.
That’s what we as the church should do.
Amen!