Can Dry Bones Live?

Ezekiel 36,37

Introduction

Last Sunday, Amos mentioned a bone yard that they had on their farm where animals were hauled when they died. He said that as he went there, he never expected that these animals would be alive again.

When our children were small, a bird died because it had flown into a window. The children were sad for the bird and decided that they needed to have a funeral. I don’t know where they got their ideas about how to conduct a funeral or where they got the idea that a reading from the Song of Solomon would be appropriate for a funeral for a bird. One thing I do know, however, is that when they buried the bird in its little box, they did not expect it to come alive again.

Have you ever found a bone? I remember one time when we were on the shores of the Pembina River and we found bone. We spent some time trying to decide what kind of a bone it was. The scary thought came that it might even be a human bone, but we found out that it was a bone from some kind of animal, a deer or moose or something. The bone was dead and dry and we tried to think of what the life of the animal had been and how it had died. The question which never came to us, however was, “Can this bone live again?” That question was, however, was asked of Ezekiel by God in Ezekiel 37.

I. Can Dry Bones Live? Ezekiel 37:1-10

A. They Were Very Dry

God took hold of Ezekiel and brought him to a valley that was full of bones. Not just one bone, not just a pile of bones from dead animals, but a whole valley full of human bones. It may describe something like a battlefield in which many people have died. In times of civil war or revolution, they sometimes find mass graves. It must have been something like that, but these bodies were never buried, they were lying outside and the bones were dry and bleached in the hot sun. The hopelessness of the situation is highlighted when it says in verse 2 that these bones “were very dry.”

If you have seen “The Princess Bride,” which is one of my favourite movies, you may remember that they take the “farm boy” out of the torture chamber looking very dead, and bring him to Miracle Max who proclaims that “he isn’t all dead, he is only mostly dead.” That was not the case for this valley of dry bones that Ezekiel was shown. These bones were all dead. God asked Ezekiel, “Can these bones live?” and the clear and unequivocal answer was, “no!” But Ezekiel was wiser than that because he knew that he was dealing with God and so humbly answered, “O, Sovereign Lord, you alone know.”

B. They Came To Life

God enlisted the prophet to participate in the life giving task. There are two stages to the prophetic work. First of all, Ezekiel was called to speak to the bones in order that they should come together. Amazingly, when Ezekiel prophesied, there was a rattling sound and the text says, “the bones came together, bone to bone… and tendons and flesh appeared on them and skin covered them.”

This is the text where the spiritual “Dem Bones” comes from. There are various versions of the song, but the words go something like this:

Ezekiel connected dem dry bones

Ezekiel connected dem dry bones

Ezekiel connected dem dry bones

Now hear the word of the Lord.

Dem bones, dem bones, dem dry bones
Dem bones, dem bones, dem dry bones
Dem bones, dem bones, dem dry bones
Now hear the word of the Lord.

Toe bone connected to the foot bone
Foot bone connected to the leg bone
Leg bone connected to the knee bone
Now hear the word of the Lord.

Leg bone connected to the knee bone
Knee bone connected to the thighbone
Thighbone connected to the hipbone
Now hear the word of the Lord.

Hipbone connected to the backbone
Backbone connected to the shoulder bone
Shoulder bone connected to the neck bone
Now hear the word of the Lord.

However, the text goes on to say, “there was no breath in them.” So God told Ezekiel to go on to the second step of prophesying, which was to call for the breath to come and enter the lifeless bodies lying all over the valley. The conclusion is that “breath entered them; they came to life and stood up on their feet – a vast army.”

The answer to God’s question, illustrated in this most powerful way was, “yes! Dry bones can live again.”

II. Can Dry Bones Live Again?

But, why was this question being asked and what does the vision mean?

A. Israel

The vision is occasioned by the despair of the exiles. The dry bones represent Israel in exile. For ten years they had been in Babylon. Then, in Ezekiel 32, they received the devastating news “Jerusalem has fallen.” This took the hope right out of Israel. They could not think of going back home, they could not think of going to the promised land, they could not think of themselves as a nation any more. They were dead, dry bones.

But the hopelessness of the nation was more than the physical reality that they were in exile and could not go back to the land. The spiritual reality for the nation was every bit as devastating and hopeless. They had gotten to this place because of their sin and from every indication they hadn’t gotten any holier in the meantime. It is completely accurate to see the life of the nation of Israel and the people of Israel as dead – as dead as a field of bones that were very dry. In one article I read it said, “Exile is not just a foreign land, it is not just a place of hardship to bring people back to God. Exile is death. Israel was not nearly dead, she was all dead and the only hope was not effort of obedience or renewal, but God’s work of making dead bones live again.”

In light of that, the interpretation of the vision in verses 11-14 is a wonderful word of hope. This message of hope is expanded in Ezekiel 36 in which there are five acts which God promises to do for the people. He will restore the people to the land. Ezekiel 36:24 says, “‘For I will take you out of the nations; I will gather you from all the countries and bring you back into your own land. He will cleanse the people. Ezekiel 36:25 says, “I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols. God will put a new heart in them. Ezekiel 36:26 says, “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.” Furthermore, God will put a new Spirit in them. Ezekiel 36:27 says, “And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws.” Finally, God also promises them a fertile land. In Ezekiel 36:30 it says, “I will increase the fruit of the trees and the crops of the field, so that you will no longer suffer disgrace among the nations because of famine.”

What a blessing that God would take a nation that was all dead and make it alive again with all of these blessings!

How was this promise fulfilled?

Although we do not see these promises fulfilled completely, there are many ways in which God has fulfilled the promises. When Ezra and Nehemiah returned to the land and rebuilt the city and the temple, the promise of restoration to the land was fulfilled. This is an amazing fulfillment when we consider the deadness of the nation and how many other nations were conquered, destroyed and never heard from again. In 70 AD, however, Israel was once again destroyed as a nation, but in 1948 she once again occupied the land God had given to her. I doubt if any other nation has been utterly destroyed and scattered so many times in history, but always come back to their land.

The promises of a new heart and a new Spirit put within them are fulfilled in Christ. By His death and resurrection, he has forgiven the sins of not only the Jewish people, but all people. When people put their faith in Christ, they receive a new heart and God’s Spirit indwells them. Although most Jews have rejected Jesus as Messiah and the fulfillment among the Jews is not complete, hope for the future fulfillment of this promise is indicated in what Paul says in Romans 9-11.

Can dry bones live? The promises in this passage in Ezekiel and their fulfillment tell us that the answer is not an unequivocal “no!” but an unequivocal “yes! God can make dry bones live again!”

B. Christ's Resurrection

But can we also ask the question about other situations? Where else do we see that God has made dry bones live again?

Last week, we examined the death of Christ. As Jesus was placed in the tomb, the question was a relevant question. As Jesus was lying in the tomb, it was clear that he really died and one could ask, “Can dry bones live again?” Humanly speaking we would have said, “no!” In fact, many people have and continue to deny the resurrection because dry bones can’t live again.

On the Christianity.ca website, there is an article by Geoff Moulton in which he begins by commenting on the investigative techniques of the CSI TV program. He suggests that they portray “obsessive dedication to the facts” in order to find “valuable clues in unlikely sources.” Then he asks, “What would happen if we applied the detective work of CSI to history's most controversial event: the resurrection of Jesus Christ?”

He goes on to examine the resurrection and all the arguments that have been used to deny that Jesus rose from the dead.

He shows that the theory that Jesus swooned cannot explain the empty tomb. He states, “It is unthinkable that a man in Jesus' condition could have ripped through the grave clothes, pushed aside the enormous stone blocking the tomb's entrance and fought off the guards.”

He responds to the theory that the “disciples were so disoriented by their grief that they imagined His return.” He says that “Psychologists suggest that only paranoid schizophrenics have hallucinations.”

I had never known that some explain the resurrection by suggesting that someone impersonated Christ. But that doesn’t make sense either because the disciples knew Jesus so well that no one but Jesus could have convinced them that he was Jesus.

He goes on to explain that “Some believe Christ's resurrection was not physical, but spiritual—His body stayed in the grave and the biblical account is a metaphor for spiritual resurrection.” But once again the facts don’t line up with this. “Jesus invited the disciples to touch His physical body and He even ate with them.” So we see that it really was a physical resurrection.

His final query attends to the idea that the disciples stole the body of Jesus. Once again this is unlikely given the presence of the Roman guard and the sealed tomb.

He concludes, “The fictional detective Sherlock Holmes remarked: ‘When you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth.’"

Although it seems improbable, no other answer can explain the empty tomb, the appearances of Jesus and the changed lives of the disciples. “Can dry bones live again?” God raised Jesus from the dead - not just for time, but for all eternity.

C. Our Life In Christ

The wonderful thing is that as we establish that God can make dry bones live again we recognize that He did so not only in the nation of Israel, but even more powerfully in the resurrection of Christ. We, furthermore, can then ask the question about the situations we find in our own lives. In I Corinthians 15:20-23 Paul regards Jesus as the firstfruits of the new community. If God can make dry bones live again, then He will also give life to us and to all the situations in our lives that seem hopeless.

In Ephesians 2:1, Paul reminds us that we also were dead in our transgressions and sins. The truth is that we were not “mostly dead, but all dead.” There is nothing but an act of God which is able to make us alive again. In Christ, that act of making alive has happened to us when we believed in Him and had our sins forgiven.

At one of the places in which Carla worked, her boss was the son of a minister and came from a family of faith. He, however, was not at all interested in spiritual things. I remember that we were concerned about him spiritually and whenever we were with him, there was an awkwardness because although we wanted to share faith with him, there just seemed to be no spiritual interest in him at all. A few years after we had moved away we went back to visit the area. We heard about this man who to us seemed spiritually dead and discovered that he was not only very much spiritually alive, but was actually involved in leadership in a church. Can dry bones live again? Yes! God can make spiritually dead people alive. When I have been involved in the Billy Graham TV telephone ministry, the leader often encourages us when people make a decision for Christ that a dead person has come to life.

Are you dead in your transgressions and sins? God can make you alive if you put your trust in Christ! Do you know someone who seems to be dead in transgressions and sins? God can make them alive. Do not give up. Keep on praying for them!

Can we apply this to other situations? Why not? It has been clearly demonstrated that God can make dry bones live again. Why can we not keep on putting hope in God no matter how hopeless a situation looks to us.

How many of us as Christians have not gone through times when we felt spiritually dead? There are times when we go through spiritual dryness that makes us wonder where God is. Where is the power of God to change our lives? Where is the power of God to minister effectively through us? Where is the power of God to make us sense and know the presence of God? If you are going through such a time, I would encourage you to remember that God can make dry bones live again. Seek Him, sit in His presence, rest in Him and wait and watch to see what He will do.

Even in other situations in life, we can be encouraged by this blessing from God. We knew a fellow who was married when he was about 18 or 19 years old. A few years later when his wife was pregnant, he had an affair and ended their marriage. It seemed like a hopeless situation. About a year or two after their divorce, this couple was married again and today they are nearing their 25^th anniversary and have 5 children who are growing up in the Lord. The truth that God can make dry bones live again encourages us not to give up, but to put our hope in the God who is not only the living God, but the life giving God.

Conclusion

Spring is a great time for Easter because it brings together the return to life of physical things on earth and the return of Christ to life. Spring is God’s built in demonstration that dry bones can live again.

What is there in your life that is dry and dead? I want to invite you to look to the God who promised to restore dead Israel, who raised Jesus from the dead and who is the God who can make dry bones live again in our lives.

When Darkness Reigns

Luke 22, 23

Introduction

What has been the darkest time in all of human history? There was a period of history which has been called the “Dark Ages.” Recently historians have been questioning that designation for that period of time, suggesting that perhaps it was not all that dark after all.

Because my parents came from Russia, I often think of the time of the communist revolution and the years of the cold war as a particularly dark time in history.

On the day that Jesus was arrested we read in Luke 22:53 that he said that this was the hour “when darkness reigns.” I would suggest that this is probably the darkest day in all of human history. Today, being Good Friday, is the day when we think about these things and so this morning we will examine Luke 22,23 and think about this day when darkness reigned.

I. When Darkness Reigns

What was it like when darkness reigned?

A. Satan Is Active

One of the things that happened on the day when darkness reigned is that Satan was active.

The first mention of the work of Satan takes place in Luke 22:3. We read there that the chief priests and teachers of the law were looking for some way to get rid of Jesus. The opportunity was provided by Judas when he decided to betray Jesus. Some of you may have seen the advertising of the book the Gospel of Judas which claims that Jesus put Judas up to betraying him. The Bible does not teach that. Jesus says in Luke 22:22, “woe to that man who betrays him.” The impetus for Judas’ decision was not, however, totally from within himself. We read that “Satan entered Judas.”

The second account of the work of Satan takes place in Luke 22:31. Jesus was together with his disciples in the upper room as they observed the Passover feast. He told them about what was about to happen to him and about his suffering. Knowing that this would be a difficult time, he warned Peter that “Satan has asked to sift you as wheat.” Satan was given permission to tempt Peter and try to get him to reject Jesus.

At this darkest hour Satan was very active in doing what he does and that is to tempt, to oppose God and to destroy.

The activity of Satan in this darkest hour is an indication of what is really going on in the universe and that is that there is a cosmic battle going on. Satan is opposing God and trying to destroy the kingdom of God and so it is not surprising that at the darkest hour of human history Satan would be active.

B. Good Is Rejected

Since the reign of darkness is a reign of evil it is not surprising that at this time good is rejected.

1. Evil Reigns

As Jesus completed his time with his disciples at the Passover feast, we read that they went out to the Mount of Olives. While they were there, Judas and the crowd of people came out to arrest him. The signal which Judas had indicated with which he would identify Jesus was a kiss. A kiss is usually a signal of love and affection and when it is used as a sign of betrayal it is an evidence that normal goodness has been set aside and evil is present.

Goodness rejected is further seen in the comment of Jesus when they arrested him. He mentioned that had been peacefully among them for many years and they had not arrested him. He asks those arresting him, “Am I leading a rebellion, that you have come with swords and clubs?” In other words, it wasn’t as if he was a well armed terrorist or a violent man that they had to be armed to the teeth to make sure that the arrest went successfully. Once again we see that goodness is rejected and evil reigns. It is in this context that Jesus identifies the center of what is going on here and that is “this is your hour- when darkness reigns.”

2. Temptation Wins

Another event which demonstrates that darkness is active is that temptation overcomes those who are God’s followers. Although Peter is warned that he will deny Jesus, he does not listen to the warning. He is certain that he is strong enough and his resolve is great enough that he will not succumb to such a thing.

After Jesus’ arrest, Peter demonstrated his strong resolve and his bravery by following Jesus and going into the courtyard of the high priest where they were questioning Jesus. When asked about his association with Jesus, however, his resolve melted and his strength was gone. He denied Jesus – not just once, but three times!

When darkness reigns, temptation is strong and effective even among those who are firm and well resolved followers of Jesus.

When Jesus was with the disciples in the garden and praying about what was happening, he explained one reason why temptation is so strong in the darkness. In 22:40, He encouraged the disciples to “pray so that you will not fall into temptation.” But they failed to do so. Why? Because, as the text says, “he found them exhausted from sorrow.” When they were most vulnerable and most needed to pray, they were too overcome by sadness and the challenges of what was about to happen that they slept and didn’t pray and so became vulnerable to temptation.

That is what it is like when darkness reigns. Temptation is strong and good is set aside.

3. Justice Fails

The trial is another great demonstration of the reign of darkness because in it we see that justice was set aside.

The accusation by which the Jewish leaders accused Jesus was that he claimed to be the Son of God. He made a clear claim to be God because he even used the name by which God identified himself to Moses, “I am.” Now if a normal person would make such a claim the accusation would be right. He would be guilty of blasphemy. The only problem was that all the evidence Jesus had given clearly showed that He was the Son of God, but they never thought to examine that. The accusation which condemned him was wrong.

During the trial before Pilate when the Jewish leaders were trying to get the death sentence for Jesus, Pilate saw no grounds for accusation. Three times he indicated “I find no basis for a charge against this man.” But the clear indication of innocence was not listened to and they condemned Him to death because when darkness reigns, justice fails.

When Jesus died, the centurion perceived, in 23:47, “Surely this was a righteous man.” But by now he was dead. Injustice prevailed. Good did not happen. That is what happens when darkness reigns.

C. Natural Laws Change

Another evidence of what happens when darkness reigns is that natural laws were suspended. We read in 23:44,45 that darkness covered the whole land and the sun stopped shining. Whatever the cause of the darkness, it was a remarkable occurrence because the writers take note of it, but there is more to it than that. The physical darkness was a symbol of what was going on in the whole universe. This was the hour when darkness reigned and the physical darkness was a symbol of the darkness which now prevailed.

D. God Is Rejected

Above all, when darkness reigns, God is rejected.

The rejection of God is focused when Jesus was before the Jewish leaders, the people who were God’s chosen, who knew God’s ways, who were expecting God to come to them, who knew the promises of God. They heard Jesus admit quite plainly, “I Am” and they understood what this meant, that He was God come to earth. At that moment, they had a chance to accept God, but they did not and that is what made this the day when darkness reigned.

This was the day in history when all the darkness which had been from the beginning of people’s rejection of God was focused on Jesus. It was the day when darkness reigned.

II. Hope In The Darkness

Yet as we examine these things we would say that nothing much is different. The same conditions exist today. Satan is still active and opposing God today. All of us have experienced his temptations and his attacks. We still live in a world in which good is rejected. Gang wars as represented by the death of 8 men by violence this past week show that evil is still strong and good is not always present. We still yield to temptation and that temptation is very strong. Even when we look at government systems which seek to bring about a just society, we know that injustice still prevails.

As portions of Southern Manitoba are under water again for the third time in ten years, as tornadoes have once again caused devastation in the US Midwest and as they have announced that this year will be a very active hurricane season, we would wonder about the natural world and whether things really are getting worse.

It is also evident that God is still rejected by many people all over the world.

Does that mean that this is still the hour of darkness?

To that we say a firm “No!” There are some significant changes that have taken place which mean that although darkness is still present, it does not reign as it did on the day when Jesus died on the cross. The power and significance of those changes are the topic of Sunday’s message, for the resurrection changes everything and assures us that light has won and life is present and evil is not reigning as it was on that day. But as I say, that is the topic of Sunday, of the celebration of the Resurrection and I don’t want to steal any of Amos’ thunder.

Yet, even on the day when darkness ruled, there are hints of light. When we go from a well lit place into sudden darkness, it is pitch black and we see nothing. Yet as your eyes adjust, it becomes clear that darkness is not total. There is light in the darkness. In a similar way, on the day when darkness reigned, there were glimmers of light.

A. Jesus Prays

In the darkness, Jesus prays. There are some wonderful thoughts about facing the darkness when we realize that Jesus prays.

When faced with death and carrying the sins of the world upon himself, Jesus went to the garden and began to pray a prayer that was the most agonizing, deep prayer that has ever been prayed. For the sinless son of God to carry the burden of the sins of every man, woman and child on earth to death was the greatest burden anyone has ever carried. When Jesus was at the brink of bearing that burden, he prayed earnestly that it would be removed because he felt the depth of that experience. His prayer was so intense that “his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground.”

The example of Jesus is an encouragement to us to do in the darkness what He did in the darkness. When we are in the deepest, darkest place in our life, we need to follow the example of Jesus and pray. In fact, Jesus encourages his disciples to pray. Two times, in verses 40 and 46 he encourages his disciples to pray. What a great encouragement and what a great lesson! When we are in darkness, let us learn to do what Jesus did.

But there is another great lesson when we meditate on the truth that Jesus prayed. The other mention of Jesus’ prayer is found when Peter was about to be tempted. Jesus knew that Satan had asked permission to “sift Peter as wheat.” Satan’s intentions were not just that Peter’s faith would be tested to see if it was genuine, but it was to destroy Peter. Jesus knew the evil of Satan and at that moment of crisis, Jesus promised that He had prayed for Peter. In Luke 22:32 Jesus said, “I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail.” And that is the way it happened. Peter fell when he denied Jesus, but he did not fall eternally. He was restored and when he repented of his sin he turned back to Jesus.

Friends, that is good news. Jesus prayed for Peter in his darkness and the Bible tells us in other places that Jesus still prays for us.

In John 17:9 we have a record of Jesus praying for his disciples. It says, “I pray for them. I am not praying for the world, but for those you have given me, for they are yours.” The rest of the chapter is the prayer of Jesus and what a wonderful thing it is to listen in on Jesus praying for us.

Hebrews 7:25 also says, “Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them.”

The fact that Jesus prayed in the midst of the darkness is a challenge for us and encourages us to pray. The fact that Jesus prayed for Peter in the midst of his darkness is an encouragement for us. When we are in the darkness today, we can know that Jesus continues to pray for us.

B. Salvation Happens

The other thing that happens in the midst of the darkness is salvation.

While Jesus was hanging on the cross, he was hung between two thieves. They were also entering into the conversation that was going on all around on the ground beneath them. One of the thieves mocked Jesus as others had done, but the other one recognized who Jesus was and understood that he was an innocent man. While at the end of his life, he asked for salvation and Jesus promised in 23:43, “I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise.” Jesus gave salvation as he was dying for the sins of the world.

Of course, this offer of salvation may have looked rather strange at this moment because Jesus was hanging on the cross and was at the end of His life. How could he offer salvation.

He could offer salvation because the possibility of salvation was being established right at this moment of darkness. When it looked like all the forces of hell were winning, when darkness was reigning, what was actually going on was that His death on the cross was making it possible for the thief and not only the thief, but ever sinner that has ever lived to be forgiven and to be saved from the fate of their sin, which is death.

That meaning is presented in the last supper the disciples had with Jesus. As he ate with them, he told them about the meaning of his death. He was going to die so that they could live. As they partook of the bread, he told them that the bread symbolized His body which was given for them. As they partook of the cup, he told them that his blood was establishing a new covenant. The death of Christ was the means by which salvation was established. This great act of deliverance happened in the darkness indeed at the time when darkness reigned, which makes it all the more amazing.

One writer says, “the crucifixion, from the Jewish perspective, was meant to brand Jesus as cursed by God; the crucifixion from the Christian perspective, pictures Jesus as taking God’s curse against sin upon himself and allowing his people to be set free from sin.”

Conclusion

It is important to realize that this was a day of darkness and to understand just how dark it was on the day when Jesus died. This day when darkness reigned was a day when good was gone and evil was present. It was the day when all the opposition against God from every time in history was focused against Jesus.

How thankful we can be that darkness did not prevail. The glimmer of light that shines even on the day when darkness reigned is a powerful word of hope for us.

It assures us that whenever darkness presents itself in our world, God’s salvation is not gone. God’s salvation was established in the darkness and can overcome any darkness we may face today.

It assures us that in our darkness, Jesus prays for us and encourages us to pray.

Although the focus on death and darkness would suggest that “Good Friday” is a misnomer, when we see the light that comes out of this darkness, we know that it is exactly that, Good Friday!

May the meaning of this day bless our lives not only today but also in the days to come.

King Of Kings and Lord of Lords!

Introduction

In an article in a church magazine I read the following, “More than 30 years of dictatorship by Mobutu Sese Seko, followed by seven years of civil unrest, have left Congo economically and socially bankrupt. Civil workers have been without pay for a long time; families find it difficult to feed their children. Many young people finishing university are without jobs. The country has become morally bankrupt; conflicts are common in the society in general and the church in particular.”

Reuters, the news agency, reports a similar situation in Somalia. “2 million people out of an estimated population of 9 million were already on food aid and more than 10,000 deaths from starvation were expected each month if help did not arrive.

Warlords have dominated the country since the ousting of former dictator Mohamed Siad Barre in 1991.”

The same thing is true in other countries of the world. When there is no effective government, anarchy reigns and it easily becomes an unstable and often violent situation.

Sometimes it feels like that is true in the world as a whole. The UN is not in charge, the US would like to think it is, but it isn’t. Is anyone really in charge?

On Palm Sunday, Jesus was presented as king. But what does that really mean? Is He the one who is in charge of things in the world? If He is, where do we see that reign? What are the implications of Christ as King? How does that touch me? What hopes, encouragements and comforts are mine because of it?

I. King of Kings

A. Promise Ezekiel 37:15-28

The theme of a king for the world is not an uncommon theme in the Bible. We have been studying Ezekiel and there is a passage in Ezekiel 37 that speaks about a coming king. It is a word of hope for the nation of Israel.

We have been studying Ezekiel since January 1 and for most of that time we have been talking about doom and destruction. Ezekiel was in exile in Babylon speaking to Jewish people who had been sent away from their home in Jerusalem. Jerusalem was still there and many of their relatives were still in that city, but the message of Ezekiel was that, because of the sin of the people, the nation was being steadily dismantled. God’s judgement was on his people because of their sin. In 33:21 we heard about the final blow: “Jerusalem has fallen!” How devastating!

However, beginning in Ezekiel 34, the tone of the book changes significantly. The message of judgement has passed and there is a new message of hope. It is a new message of what God is going to do in the future.

One of the passages in this section is Ezekiel 37:15-28 which speaks of a coming king. In this passage, Ezekiel is once again told to produce a visual aid. He is told to take two sticks. On one he is to write Judah and on the other Israel. Then he is to hold the two sticks together so they look as if they are one. The message of God for the people in 37:22 is “I will make them one nation in the land.” Ever since the days following Solomon, Israel and Judah had been divided, but here God promises that they will be united once again.

Then the promise God makes in the same verse is that “there will be one king over all of them.” Further on in 37:24, God promises, “my servant David will be king over them.”

The rest of the passage describes the conditions which will exist under this new king. The people will be cleansed from their sin because God will cleanse them. The people will truly be God’s people. Conditions will be good as one generation follows another in a place where peace is over all. God will live among them and everything will be good.

What a wonderful message of hope! Unification of God’s people, good conditions, peace, God among them and all of these promises and blessings because they will live not in a condition of anarchy under a sinful ruler, but ruled by God’s chosen king, His servant David, who will keep things in this condition.

This was a promise to people who were experiencing few of these conditions. It was a promise to people who desperately needed to hear a word of hope. But what happened to that promise?

B. Presentation Matthew 21:1-11

Today is Palm Sunday. Each year on this day we remember that Jesus came into Jerusalem riding on a donkey. We celebrate this day because it is the day on which Jesus was presented as King.

One of the places in the Bible where we find this story is in Matthew 21:1-11. As Jesus and his disciples were coming near to Jerusalem, He sent two of his disciples to Bethphage to prepare a donkey and her colt. The disciples brought these animals to Jesus and he sat on them and rode into Jerusalem on them. The writer makes a connection with an Old Testament prophecy which comes from Zechariah 9:9. In this prophecy one of the lines is “see your king comes to you…” As they went into Jerusalem, the crowd put their cloaks on the ground and others cut branches and laid them on the ground and there was a procession into the city. In the procession, the people recognized what was going on. This was not the first time such a procession had taken place. In II Kings 9:13, there was another description of such a procession in which another king was presented to the people. As the procession was going forward, the people were shouting and once again significant words were spoken about what was happening. They shouted, “hosanna to the Son of David.” In this phrase we see a connection to the prophecy in Ezekiel and others like it that speak of a coming king who is from the family of David.

What was obviously happening here, something the people in the procession perceived and which the writers of the gospels proclaim is that the promised king was being presented to the people. He was coming into His city to take His place as king over all.

And yet there is something puzzling about this presentation of Jesus as king. People had been presented as king before this and whenever they were, they began to rule as soon as they were presented. When Israel asked for its first king, Saul was presented as king and after being presented, he began to rule. David was presented as king and immediately began to rule over Judah. When David was near the end of his life, Adonijah tried to present himself as king, but he was not supposed to be king so David declared Solomon king and immediately Solomon began to rule.

These are normal scenarios. In these cases, the king was presented as king and then began to reign. In the triumphal entry, the king, Jesus, was presented as king, but where was his reign? Instead of beginning to reign following upon this presentation, we see rejection and very soon the death of the one presented as king.

C. Present Ephesians 1:18-23

However, if we think that Jesus was presented as king, but never began to reign we have not understood the whole situation. Even though Jesus did not reign at that point, the presentation of Jesus as king was, accurate. A short time later, he did begin to reign.

The situation which became reality after Jesus’ death and resurrection and is still the way things are today is spoken of in Ephesians 1:18-23. Paul writes about his prayer for the people of Ephesus. I love this prayer. He prays that “the eyes of your heart will be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints and his incomparably great power for us who believe.” This prayer is loaded with hope and included in that hope is the recognition of the power of Jesus who is king. Although the word king is never used in this passage, the idea of the rule of Christ as king permeates the passage. It speaks of the power which Jesus received at the resurrection and ascension. It speaks of the power of Christ which is his now as he reigns as king with God the Father. It describes that he is the king who is over all “authority, rule, power and dominion and every title that can be given.” It encourages us that right now Jesus has all authority and all things are under his feet and that his power and authority is for the church, his body. His reign is described as pertaining to the present age and the one to come.

As we read this passage, we see that the reality of Jesus being presented as king became true at his resurrection and ascension and is true now. This is not a mystery or a wish, it is truth. Jesus is indeed king over all things. As one writer says, “the present course of history and the ultimate destiny of the universe are in his hands.”

D. Pledge Revelation 19:11-18

Even though the present reality is one of Christ’s reign in power, we do not yet see His reign active everywhere. Sometimes this discourages us because we do not perceive what really exists. That is the reason for Paul’s prayer. Part of the problem is not that it is not reality, but that we do not see the reign of Christ and so Paul prays that our eyes will be open so that we will see it.

But there is more. In the Bible, there is also a pledge regarding future conditions. Christ as supreme ruler is presented once more in the Bible as a pledge of what is yet to come.

In Revelation 19:11-18 we have another presentation of a king. This is similar to the triumphal entry in which the king, Jesus, is once again presented. This time, however his presentation speaks much more about the final triumph. Jesus is presented not as a humble ruler who will gain victory through his own sacrifice and death, but as the ruler who has gained the victory and has every right to sit enthroned forever and ever. He is now mounted not on a donkey, but on a white horse. The trappings of power are upon him – a robe dipped in blood, a sharp sword coming out of his mouth, which means that the victory will not be by military power, but by the word of God. At that time, “he will rule with a rod of iron.” The identity of this powerful ruler is “King of Kings and Lord of Lords.”

This picture speaks of what is coming, of the final fulfillment of the promise made so long ago in the days of Ezekiel and in other places in the Bible. God has promised a king. Jesus was presented as King. Today, although He is not recognized by most, He rules as king over all and one day He will be presented as the supreme and only ruler of all the universe.

The truth we understand from these four pictures in Scripture is that Jesus is the king. He is the sovereign over all. He is the one who now has all power and authority and the one who will rule over all.

II. What Kings Do.

But what does that mean to us? What are the implications of Jesus’ kingship for us? Perhaps the answer to that question can be found in reflecting on what kings do. There are three things that kings do – protect, provide and make things right. Jesus does all of these things for us.

A. Protect

A couple of weeks ago Stephen Harper met with George Bush and Vicente Fox in Mexico. Harper had certain items of agenda he wanted to talk about with George Bush and one of them was the identity cards that will be required for people to enter into the United States. The concern is that they could create a problem for travel between our two countries and so Harper raised the issue. Bush responded that he would not change this requirement. When he did that, it was understandable what he was trying to do. As the ruler of his country, he is responsible to protect the citizens of his country. He was being faithful to his mandate to protect his nation. That is what rulers, what kings do. They are the ones held responsible to protect their citizens.

In a similar way, Jesus, as king, protects His people. In the passages we looked at earlier which promise and present Jesus as King, we read in Ephesians 1:22, “God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church.” The power of Jesus is for the church and therefore for His people. Jesus is the protector of His people.

We know that Satan is a roaring lion seeking someone to devour. He tries many tricks to destroy us. He uses intimidation, temptation, discouragement and deception. Sometimes we feel that we are completely vulnerable to his attacks, but that is not true because Jesus our King is protecting us from those attacks. Whenever we feel fearful or discouraged or tempted, we need to remember that we are being protected from the full effect of those attacks. Like Elisha’s servant who realized that God’s protection was all around him, we need to realize that Jesus is our protector and never sleeps and is always at work as the king who protects.

Let us be encouraged that Jesus, our king, is also our protector. He protects us from the evil one and also from evil in this life.

B. Provide

When politicians are campaigning for office, we are used to hearing all the promises they make that they will provide for the people under their rule. When Herbert Hoover was campaigning to be president in 1928, his slogan was, “A chicken in every pot and a car in every garage.” Even the farmers who gathered on parliament hill this week had an expectation that those in power would provide for their needs.

In the passages that speak of God’s king we have similar concepts. In Ezekiel 37:26, the promise is that “I will make a covenant of peace with them; it will be an everlasting covenant. I will establish them and increase their numbers…”

The provisions which I have received from Jesus my king are numerous. I think of material things provided, rest provided when I needed it, ideas provided when I had to write a message, encouragement provided. The other day I was feeling a little overwhelmed with all I had to do. In my morning devotions, I was reading Psalm 47 and the words of praise to God provided a great encouragement for me.

Jesus is the king who supplies what we need. What a blessing and hope to know that we now have a king who does these things for us and also the hope of greater blessings and provisions yet to come.

C. Make Things Right

The other thing that kings do is to make things right. One of the stories that comes to my mind is the famous story of the two women who came to Solomon. They both claimed that a baby was their baby and it was up to Solomon to make things right and we are amazed at the wisdom he used to do this. Just rule is the responsibility of those in authority and when they do that it makes for good living conditions in a country.

The passages we have looked at also mention that the coming king will make things right. Ezekiel speaks to people who are suffering under the punishment of God because of their sin. The promise is that conditions under the new king who is coming will be that they will be a holy nations and will be saved from their backsliding ways.

Next week we will celebrate the death and resurrection of Jesus. As we do, we will celebrate the greatest act of making things right. Jesus’ death on the cross has made us right with God and also made us acceptable to God.

Although much injustice still exists in the world and even in our relationships, our hope is that because Jesus is the king who makes things right, we can rest in the fact that all will be right in the end. This perspective allows us to live in freedom from the need to retaliate and it allows us to rest whenever we see injustices in the world. Even though we ought to enact justice in our own lives and work for justice in the world, we can, nevertheless, rest in the hope that God knows and will do right.

Conclusion

Today we have focussed on the fact that Jesus was presented as king. In Matthew 21 we have read about this presentation, but, we do not see the work of Jesus as king in this passage. There is no mention of protection, provision and making things right because they did not happen on that day. Jesus was presented as king, but did not actually reign at that time. That does not take away from the fact that He is king and through His death and resurrection He has become king. The promises made in Ezekiel and other Old Testament passages and the presentation of Jesus as King in Matthew became a reality after his death, resurrection and ascension and today Jesus sits as king over all. Nevertheless, we also wait for the day when he will be presented as the eternal king to all the universe.

What does such a knowledge of Christ mean to us? The promises of his protection, provision and justice are not only theological truths that remain in our heads. They are truths that are very personal and relevant to our lives. Jesus is the one who protects us from evil and from the evil one. Jesus is the one who provides for our spiritual, emotional and physical needs. Jesus is the one who makes things right. We can rejoice and rest in these wonderful promises. The reality of Jesus as King is a blessing not to be feared or ignored but to be lived under from day to day.

May the truth of Jesus our king cause us to rejoice each day. May we accept and live under His reign by accepting His protection, provision and justice.