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, "O 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 [a] 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.' " 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. 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 from the four winds, O breath, 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. 11 Then he said to me: "Son of man, these bones are the whole house 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: O 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. 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.' "
We are called the body of Christ, not the skeleton of Christ. This passage comes to mind following two experiences this week. In chapel on Tuesday I was struck by the fervor of the community. There was a tangible kind of buzzing excitement in the air. Maybe it is because the board is here. Maybe students are simply begining to see the light at the end of the tunnel. Who knows? But, there was something different. In reflection, I can't help but consider that the sheer volume of people in attendance must have contributed to the difference. There are chapel services when we feel like the skeleton of Christ, when we feel like just the remnint of the faithful. But, when the chapel is full, it is easy to believe that we are indeed the worshipping body of Christ.
Secondly, in Old Testament today we were talking about the contrast between the covenant at Sianai and the new covenant, particularly how Jeremiah and Ezekiel prophesy the hope of the new covenant. This passage in particular is the declaration that God is starting a new relationship with his people. He has brought us new life! Why do we try to continue to live as the dead, when we have recived the word made flesh and the breath of new life?
Soundtrack: Dry Bones, Onehundred Hours (OK, this might be cheating because this song is really just the Ezekeil passage read over some hard core music, but... technically it is a song.)
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