Dry Bones
“Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets; I have come not to abolish but to fulfill. For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth pass away, not one letter, not one stroke of a letter, will pass from the law until all is accomplished.”
Matthew 5:17-18
Jesus explains in a variety of ways that through Him we gain new life, forgiveness of sin, and reconciliation with God. In Jesus, God came to earth as a man – fully human and fully God – and lived, taught, experienced pain, suffering, temptation and trials, surrendered Himself to die on a cross, was resurrected, and ascended to heaven, all so that we might gain new life, whole life, abundant life. Jesus also says that He came to fulfill the law and the prophets (see Matthew 5:17), and as we look through the Old Testament through the lens of Jesus’ teaching, we see that God’s revelation in and through the Old Testament foreshadows and enriches Christ Jesus’ teaching.
As one example, please consider Ezekiel’s prophecy of dry bones coming to life. We have images of the story in our minds because they are unforgettable. Ezekiel is led by the Holy Spirit to a large valley filled with bones. The bones are very dry, meaning they have been dead for a long time. God asks Ezekiel whether the bones are capable of regaining life and Ezekiel wisely responds, “Sovereign Lord, you alone know” (Ezekiel 37:3). His response reveals His understanding of who God is – that He is sovereign – and with sovereignty comes infinite power, authority and knowledge. He knows all and can do anything and everything, or nothing. He created the universe and everything in it out of nothing by simply uttering the command. He breathes the breath of life into every living being, and at His choosing, He can easily breathe life into a bunch of dry bones.
Ezekiel continues recording the event writing,
Then he said to me, “Prophesy to these bones and say to them, ‘Dry bones, hear the word of the Lord! This is what the Sovereign Lord says to these bones: I will make breath enter you, and you will come to life. 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.’” Ezekiel 37:4-6
God instructs Ezekiel to prophesy by repeating words God instructs him to say, and when Ezekiel does so, the prophesied events happen. God speaks to the prophet and uses Ezekiel as His spokesperson to declare His word to the bones, and as he speaks, the bones begin to move and connect with one another, and skin begins to grow over them. But notice how the message begins. He begins by telling the dead, dry bones to “hear the word of God.” The dead bones are capable of hearing, revealing they depict beings that are physically alive but spiritually dead. And spiritual life comes upon them when God puts His breath into them.
After that, God instructs Ezekiel to prophesy by saying,
‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Come, breath, from the four winds and breathe into these slain, that they may live.’” 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 37:9-10
God then instructs Ezekiel to explain the vision. He explains that the very dry bones represent Israel and then he says,
‘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. Then you, my people, will know that I am the Lord, when I open your graves and bring you up from them. 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.’ Ezekiel 37:12-14
God promises He will bring the very dry bones of Israel out of the grave and put His Holy Spirit in them and they will live. This is a prophecy of the new life available through Christ Jesus, and corroborating the basis of the prophecy, Jesus describes religious leaders of His day as “whitewashed tombs,” which are pretty on the outside but full of dead bones and filth (see Matthew 23:27).
Jesus clearly fulfills the prophecy, but who is the primary actor in the story? It is God. God summons Ezekiel. God directs Ezekiel to speak and gives him the words to say. God raises the bones, ties them together, and breathes His Holy Spirit into them so that they live. God is the primary actor. Ezekiel is a mere messenger, and the bones are mere objects through which God reveals His glorious activity. It is God who acts. It is God who gives life. The bones do nothing but enjoy His holy gift of life.
I cannot recall the circumstance, but I recall listening to a portion of a John MacArthur sermon discussing John 3. I’m not sure if I was driving and listening to the radio or listening to a YouTube video before being interrupted, but for some reason I did not hear it all. I recall Mr. MacArthur connecting John 3 and Ezekiel 36-37. In John 3, Jesus meets with Nicodemus and explains that no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born from above or born of the Holy Spirit (see John 3:6-8). Mr. MacArthur explained that Jesus uses the analogy of physical birth to discuss new life in and through Christ to illustrate that our salvation is controlled by God’s sovereign will. He said a baby does not choose to be conceived or born. From the baby’s perspective, the events happen to him or her. In furtherance of the message, Jesus explains that no person controls the Holy Spirit, saying, “The wind blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit” (John 3:8).
Just as the baby has no control over being born and the bones do nothing to bring about their new life, God delivers new life, abundant life, whole life, eternal life through Christ Jesus according to His sovereign will. It’s like when Jesus asks Peter who Peter thinks Jesus is, and Peter responds saying that Jesus is the Messiah, and Jesus says the only way Peter could have known that is because God the Father revealed it to him (see Matthew 16:13-20). However, we must balance this truth with another truth that Jesus states a few sentences later – the truth that everyone who believes in Him gains eternal life (see John 3:16). So new life in Christ Jesus hinges on God’s sovereign will and His decision to breathe the Holy Spirit into us, and on each person’s decision to believe. The two truths seem to contradict one other, but they are both true, revealing a mystery too complex for mere humans solve.
Jesus came to fulfill the law and the prophets. Ezekiel’s vision and Jesus’ teaching illuminate each other in striking ways. In many ways, using a variety of images and words, Jesus explains that He is the only path to spiritual life and communion with God. The image of extremely dry bones suddenly coming to life because God breathes His breath of life into them is a glorious, unforgettable image of God’s holy grace available in and through Christ Jesus.
And the fact the bones do nothing to deserve, encourage or cause His breath of life to blow over and into them influences my view of God’s call for us to go and make disciples of all nations. Ezekiel merely spoke the words God told him to speak, and God made everything happen. Like Ezekiel, we serve as God’s agents going where He directs us and speaking words He gives us to speak, but the heavy lifting is left to God. He breathes the breath of life when and where He chooses. If we serve Him as He directs us, yet we fail to see evidence of His holy hand at work in direct response to our actions, that is okay, because God is sovereign and perfect and He acts in the perfect way at the perfect time. And we still must go and tell and make because, even though salvation is dependent on God’s sovereign will, it is also dependent on each person’s faith and faith comes from hearing the word of Christ Jesus.
Apart from Christ Jesus we are mere dead, dry bones. Through Jesus we gain life. May you know Him intimately. And if you do not know Him, plead with God to breathe His breath of life into you now and forever. Amen.