The Greatest Need in the Church
Dr. J. Gerald Harris
Ezekiel 37:1-14
It has been said that there will be no survival without revival. America has the appearance of prosperity and success, but the political; the military; the financial; the moral and the spiritual infrastructure of this country is growing weaker every day. And our hope is not on Wall Street, and it is not in Washington. It is in God. We need revival.
Too many churches are content with the status quo, which is marked by a general deadness that is occasionally interrupted by some kind of spiritual shock treatment that produces an occasional spark of life. I for one am not about to be content with anything that resembles death when God is in the business of reviving the dead. In our text we're going to discover how the breath of God transformed a desolate bone yard into a dynamic battalion of marching men.
In Ezekiel 37 the revival of these bones symbolizes the restoration of the Israelites from their captivity. It is also an emblem of the Jews' ultimate return to the land of promise. Furthermore, this text figuratively portrays God's power to enliven the church and surcharge it with the dynamic of the Holy Spirit.
I. A DESCRIPTIVE PLACE
Our text indicates that the prophet Ezekiel was transported by the Lord to an ancient valley of death. Ezekiel's place of divine appointment was neither attractive nor promising. But no one ever had a more definite call. Look in verse 1 of our text (read). "The hand of the Lord" and "the spirit of the Lord" were operative in the prophet's life. Ezekiel had been directed and delivered to a place of death and desolation by divine mandate. This was Ezekiel's divinely ordained preaching assignment.
Actually, the Lord never promised Ezekiel a life of comfort and ease. In fact, I want you to notice what God said to Ezekiel when he called him (read Ezekiel 2:3-4). Sometimes the preacher will find his congregation rebellious and unreceptive.
When Isaia ...
Dr. J. Gerald Harris
Ezekiel 37:1-14
It has been said that there will be no survival without revival. America has the appearance of prosperity and success, but the political; the military; the financial; the moral and the spiritual infrastructure of this country is growing weaker every day. And our hope is not on Wall Street, and it is not in Washington. It is in God. We need revival.
Too many churches are content with the status quo, which is marked by a general deadness that is occasionally interrupted by some kind of spiritual shock treatment that produces an occasional spark of life. I for one am not about to be content with anything that resembles death when God is in the business of reviving the dead. In our text we're going to discover how the breath of God transformed a desolate bone yard into a dynamic battalion of marching men.
In Ezekiel 37 the revival of these bones symbolizes the restoration of the Israelites from their captivity. It is also an emblem of the Jews' ultimate return to the land of promise. Furthermore, this text figuratively portrays God's power to enliven the church and surcharge it with the dynamic of the Holy Spirit.
I. A DESCRIPTIVE PLACE
Our text indicates that the prophet Ezekiel was transported by the Lord to an ancient valley of death. Ezekiel's place of divine appointment was neither attractive nor promising. But no one ever had a more definite call. Look in verse 1 of our text (read). "The hand of the Lord" and "the spirit of the Lord" were operative in the prophet's life. Ezekiel had been directed and delivered to a place of death and desolation by divine mandate. This was Ezekiel's divinely ordained preaching assignment.
Actually, the Lord never promised Ezekiel a life of comfort and ease. In fact, I want you to notice what God said to Ezekiel when he called him (read Ezekiel 2:3-4). Sometimes the preacher will find his congregation rebellious and unreceptive.
When Isaia ...
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