Dead People in the Pew
1. The Hand of the Lord was upon 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.”
10. So I prophesied as He commanded me, and breath entered them; they came to life and stood upon their feet – a vast army.
Ezekiel 37:1-5, 10
The Condition
This title is relevant to our times. Much like the “dry bones” of Ezekiel’s day, there are saints of God that show no sign of life and power. They are in a place, but they cannot function. There are saints who have an identity, but they show no signs of vitality. Not only has the energy gone, but the enthusiasm is gone. The Christians, much like ancient Israel, have reached a low point in their existence.
The title is relevant to me personally because of a dream I had several years ago. In my dream, I was brought into the church, but as I passed pew after pew, I noticed the people were there, but they were not moving. I asked God in the dream why I was being shown this? I made the excuse that it was not my fault they were dead. The Spirit replied, “it’s not your fault but it is your responsibility to speak life into them.” What I saw was dead people in the pew. Like Israel, they had been in that place for a while. Like Israel, they showed no signs of life. Like Israel, they seemed to have died from the same condition and around the same time. Like ancient Israel, it seemed there was no hope for them. Like ancient Israel, they were very many, very dry, and very disconnected. They were dead people in the pew. But what was equally interesting is the fact that my dream was about people who had died in the pew. Something had stopped. Something had happened that had taken the life out of them. How could they have died in a place where life was preached, or did something happen to the preaching?
Ezekiel, as one of the major prophets in the Old Testament, was given an assignment to proclaim God’s Word to God’s people during the Captivity. If you have studied the history of Israel, you will note that the Captivity was actually the punishment for the Nation’s disobedience and sinful acts against God. God had warned them time after time that their rebellion would be their demise as a nation, but they did not listen. They continued in their idolatry. They continued in their immorality. They continued in their pride and arrogance. Does the scenario sound familiar? It should. The sins of Israel not only reflect the sins of America, but also the sins of the Church. After Israel’s continual rejection of the truth, the day of reckoning came when they were overthrown by the Babylonians and cast out of their homeland as a nation. In Ezekiel’s vision, the once lofty nation had now become nothing more than a valley full of dry bones.
Here is the question regarding the Church. If you take away the finances and the buildings, what does the Church have left? Is there any spiritual equity? If you take away the music and entertainment, where is the real witness? If you take away the conferences, the programs, and positions of people, where is the ministry of serving God and needs? Very few Church are engaged in witnessing and reaching out to the unsaved. We have given that work to committees or to other organizations to evangelize. Before the people died in the pew – they became idle. Before they died in the pew they became careless. They cared less about singing in the choir. They cared less about ushering anymore. They cared less about Bible study and even less about prayer meeting. They cared less about being faithful in their duties as a Church member. As long as they got their praise on, that was all that mattered. Because they cared less, they did less, until finally they died. Now we have ‘dead folk in the pew.’
The Calling
Now that God had shown Ezekiel the condition of his nation, God conducted a one question quiz to the overwhelmed prophet. The Hand of the Lord was upon 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 … 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. Those were the impossible conditions. With that as the condition to work with, God popped the question, “Son of man, can these bones live?” Here is where the Prophet shows not only his knowledge of God but his dependency on God. He did not say “no way.” He did not say, “I think they can.” Ezekiel said, “Sovereign Lord, you alone know.”
Here is where Ezekiel realized that he was not called to that valley to come up with some plan. He was called to that valley to listen to God. As his name represented, Ezekiel would realize that it was God’s strength that would prevail in this situation.
First, the condition was bad, but it was not hopeless. Yes the valley was full of dry bones. Yes they were very dry. No, man could not solve this problem but the problem was not hopeless. Why would God show you something if He was not planning on doing something. Here is the lesson. God led Ezekiel back in forth through the midst of the bones not to discourage him but for Ezekiel to dig deep and call his faith to action. God had called Ezekiel to the valley so that Ezekiel could call his faith to action. That’s why Ezekiel responded the way he did. Ezekiel said, “Sovereign Lord, you alone know.”
Second, the call to the valley was a call to action. When God calls your attention to something, He is not calling you to be a bystander but to be a participant. Ezekiel was given an assignment. It was something that he could do. No, he could not make the bones come alive, but he could activate God’s Word. Then He said to me, “Prophesy to these bones and say to them, ‘Dry bones, hear the Word of the Lord!’” Now we see something that relates to the dead people in the pew. Their spiritual autopsy revealed that they were dead from being inactive. They were given something to do but did not perform it. God did not call Church members to sit in the pew; they are called to “go into all the world and proclaim the Word of God.” When we don’t do that, we die in the pew. Again, it is the responsibility, the duty, and the joy, to give to people what God has given to you. Just tell them that Jesus is real. Just tell them that God saves. Just tell them that Christ is still the answer. Just tell the people that God is good all the time.
The Conclusion
Ezekiel responded and proclaimed God’s Word. So I prophesied as He commanded me, and breath entered them; they came to life and stood upon their feet – a vast army. It is never our job to do God’s job. It is our job to obey God and do as we are directed by the Holy Spirit. Ezekiel did his job. I, as a Pastor, am committed to do my job. I realize that I cannot do God’s job, but if I am faithful, I will discover the faithfulness of God.
Not only was the condition hopeful despite how bad it looked. Not only was their a call to action from God, but God responds when His directions are followed. The conclusion was based solely on God’s response. What if Ezekiel had allowed the storm of doubt to set in? What if Ezekiel had allowed his own values to overcome his faith. He could have said, “as a priest, I don’t want to have anything to do with dead bones … that defiles me.” Ezekiel did not allow this negativity to flood his mind. Ezekiel saw the compassion of God on the people and he wanted to get involved. So I prophesied as He commanded me, and breath entered them; they came to life and stood upon their feet – a vast army.
At the point of his obedience, amazing things happened. God responded by breathing life into the dry bones. Not only were they revived from the valley… the people were restored to their position as the army of God. God restores. God rescues from darkness. God redeems His people. So, here’s the question: where are you in this process? Are you still in the pew or are you on your feet giving God your praise and your service? Don’t be a dead person in a pew. Stand up. Speak up. Move up.