Sunday School Lesson.

1. Hope of New Life
A Prophecy of Hope
“Can these bones live?”
Ezekiel 37
July 13, 2014
FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH
JACKSON, MISSISSIPPI
USA

2. JULY MEMORY VERSE
James 5:16 NKJV
16 Confess your trespasses to one another, and
pray for one another, that you may be healed.
The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man
avails much.

3. EZEKIEL
• Priest in Jerusalem area exiled (deported) to
Babylon in 598 B.C. by Nebuchadnezzar
• 10,000 + Jews exiled at this time
• Deportation vs. Tribute, Protection, Extortion
• God calls him to be a Prophet in Babylon
– Spokesperson for God to the people
– Predict the future and warn the people

5. Structure of Ezekiel
• Chapters 1 – 24: Prophecies against Judah
and Jerusalem
• Chapters 25-32: Prophecies against Foreign
Nations
• Chapters 33-48: Prophecies of Hope and
Salvation

6. LIFE IN EXILE
• Jewish people had no rights in Babylon
• Became farmers on government land
• Allowed to practice Judaism
• 4 months journey back to homeland
• Heard that Jerusalem & Temple had been
destroyed
• Had time to reflect: Past & Future

7. Ezekiel 37:1-14
“The Valley of Dry Bones”
God gives Ezekiel a vision of hope for a restored
Israel back in the Promised Land.
God is in the business of making all things new!

8. Ezekiel 37:1-2
1 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.
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.

9. Valley of Dry Bones

10. Ezekiel 37:3
3 He asked me, “Son of man, can these bones
live?”
I said, “Sovereign Lord, you alone know.”

11. Ezekiel 37:4-6
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. '"

12. Ezekiel 37:7-8
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.

14. Ezekiel 37:9-10
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.

15. Ezekiel 37:11-12
11 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. '
12 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.

16. Ezekiel 37:13-14
13 Then you, my people, will know that I am the
Lord, when I open your graves and bring you up
from them. 14 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. '"

17. Summary of Prophecy for Israel
• Prophecy shifts from judgment to hope
• They will return to their homeland Israel
• Israel will be restored as a nation
• Only God can do the impossible!

18. Does this prophecy apply to us?
Are you in a valley of dry bones?
“Son of man, can these bones live?”
Is there hope for me?

19. Valleys of Life
• Valley - used symbolically to refer to the
difficulties of life
Psalm 23:4
4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the
shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with
me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.
• Song: “There will be peace in the valley for me
someday.”

20. Dry Bones: Beyond Hope?
• Very dry bones – dead for a long time
• Far beyond resuscitation
• No life and no joy
• Disconnected
• Pieces of a broken life
• Shattered dreams

21. “Son of man…”
• Speaking to all humanity.
• Not a reference to Jesus as Son of Man in this
verse.

22. “…Can these bones live?”
Is there hope in my situation?
YES!!!
Why?

23. What is Hope?
Biblical Hope = anticipation of a favorable
outcome under God’s guidance
- Trustful expectation because of God’s
promises to believers
Worldly Hope = a feeling that what is wanted
will happen (chance and luck)

24. 3 Reasons Christians Have HOPE
1. What God has done in Christ – defeated the
power of sin and death
1 Peter 1:3
3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord
Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us
new birth into a living hope through the
resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,

25. 3 Reasons Christians Have HOPE
2. The indwelling of the Holy Spirit
Romans 8:16
16 The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that
we are God's children.

26. 3 Reasons Christians Have HOPE
3. God’s Promises to Us
Romans 8:28
28 And we know that all things work together for
good to those who love God, to those who are
the called according to His purpose.

27. Hope For Non-Christians
• “Hope is just an emotion attached to the
future.”
• “Hope is the feeling that when you work
toward a change, the effect it has will be as
beneficial as you envisioned. It is what
bolsters perseverance.”
• Do Non-Christians see hope in the lives of
Christians?

28. QUESTION?
I am a Christian.
I have lost my hope. How do I get it back?
Ezekiel 37:4
4 … ‘Dry bones, hear the word of the Lord!’
(The answers are in scripture)

29. Isaiah 30:15
15 This is what the Sovereign Lord, the Holy One
of Israel, says:
"In repentance and rest is your salvation,
in quietness and trust is your strength,
…
Repentance + Rest = Salvation
Quietness + Trust = Strength

30. In Repentance and Rest is Salvation
• Salvation – Rescued; returned to state of
fellowship; my recovery and restoration
– In the valley, the Christian’s legal position before
God is one of righteousness, and it will be
forevermore.
– The feeling of separation is the grieving (distance)
of the Holy Spirit because of sin.
– Salvation, in this case, is the return of the Holy
Spirit into our lives.

31. Psalm 51:12
12 Restore to me the joy of Your salvation,
And uphold me by Your generous Spirit.

32. In Repentance and Rest is Salvation
• Repentance – Turning from your sin
– Sin in the Christian grieves the Holy Spirit
– Pray for the Holy Spirit to show you your sins
• Sin of Attitude
– Ask for forgiveness (Confession)
– Repent
– Pray when tempted for a way of escape

33. Jeremiah 15:19
19 Therefore this is what the Lord says:
"If you repent, I will restore you
that you may serve me;
…

34. In Repentance and Rest is Salvation
• Rest – Freedom from activity or labor
– Stop running in circles
– Physical health issues
– Do not make decisions when tired, upset or
hungry!
– Live in the reality of your physical abilities
– Find the balance in your life
– Build “moments of margin” in your life

35. Matthew 11:28
28 "Come to me, all you who are weary and
burdened, and I will give you rest.

36. Isaiah 30:15
15 This is what the Sovereign Lord, the Holy One
of Israel, says:
"In repentance and rest is your salvation,
in quietness and trust is your strength,
…
Repentance + Rest = Salvation
Quietness + Trust = Strength

37. In Quietness and Trust is Strength
• Strength – The quality of being strong and
able to endure
– A strong attitude during adversity
– Endurance of suffering
– Perseverance in life
– Toughness

38. Isaiah 12:2
2 Surely God is my salvation;
I will trust and not be afraid.
The Lord, the Lord himself, is my strength and
my defense;
he has become my salvation."

39. In Quietness and Trust is Strength
• Quietness – stillness, discreteness, calmness
Psalm 46:10a
10a "Be still, and know that I am God;
Isaiah 30:18c
18c Blessed are all who wait for him!
– Meditating with thoughts focused on God
• Listening
– Giving God time to work His Will
• Allowing the Holy Spirit to lead you

40. In Quietness and Trust is Strength
• Trust – to believe; to have faith
Hebrews 11:1
1 Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and
assurance about what we do not see.
2 Chronicles 20:12c
12c We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on
you."

41. The Result of Hope
Isaiah 30:21
21 Whether you turn to the right or to the left,
your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying,
“This is the way; walk in it.”
• God speaks to you and directs your paths.

42. Verses of HOPE
Jeremiah 29:11
11 For I know the plans I have for you," declares
the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm
you, plans to give you hope and a future.
Job 13:15a
15a Though he slay me, yet will I hope in him;

43. Verses of HOPE
1 Corinthians 13:7
7 It (Love)always protects, always trusts, always
hopes, always perseveres.
1 Corinthians 13:13
13 And now these three remain: faith, hope and
love. But the greatest of these is love.

44. REMEMBER!!
“His Eye is On the Sparrow, and I know He
watches me.”
Matthew 10:29-31
29 Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet
not one of them will fall to the ground outside
your Father's care. 30 And even the very hairs of
your head are all numbered. 31 So don't be
afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.

45. If you do not know Christ as your
personal Savior…..
The Plan of Hope & Salvation
Romans 3:23
23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
Romans 6:23a
23a For the wages of sin is death,
Death in this life (the first death) is 100%. Even Jesus, the only one who doesn’t
deserve death, died in this life to pay the penalty for our sins. The death referred to
in Romans 6:23a is the second death explained in Revelation 21:8.
Revelation 21:8
8 “But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral,
those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars—they will be consigned to
the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.”

46. If you do not know Christ as your
personal Savior…..
The Plan of Hope & Salvation
Romans 5:8
8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we
were still sinners, Christ died for us.
Romans 6:23b
23b but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Revelation 21:7
7 “Those who are victorious will inherit all this, and I will be
their God and they will be my children.”

47. If you do not know Christ as your
personal Savior…..
The Plan of Hope & Salvation
Romans 10:9-10 explains to us how to accept Jesus as our Savior.
Romans 10:9-10
9 If you declare with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your
heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For it is
with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your
mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.
Romans 10:13
13 For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved from
the punishment of sin.

48. If you have questions or would like to know more.
Please, contact us at First Baptist Church Jackson at
601-979-1900 or
http://firstbaptistjackson.org/contact/