God’s people being regathered and joined together in a unified body. A vivid Old Testament picture for this phase is found in Ezekiel’s vision in the valley of dry bones. It is a prophecy of the restoration and regathering of God’s people, which applies to the nation of Israel. I believe, however, that it is also a picture of the regathering of the scattered members of Christ’s Body, the Church. Personally, my belief is that in the sight of God, the Church has been like Israel: dry bones scattered around, unconnected, unattached, without knowing their places, and without knowing their functions in the body.
Up to this point we have discussed the first three preparatory posts for the end-times Church: the activity of the Holy Spirit to lift up Jesus as the standard, deliverance from demonic armies, and re-equipping through the gifts of the Spirit. Now we come to the fourth preparatory phase: God’s people being regathered and joined together in a unified body. A vivid Old Testament picture for this phase is found in Ezekiel’s vision in the valley of dry bones.
It is a prophecy of the restoration and regathering of God’s people, which applies to the nation of Israel. I believe, however, that it is also a picture of the regathering of the scattered members of Christ’s Body, the Church. Personally, my belief is that in the sight of God, the Church has been like Israel: dry bones scattered around, unconnected, unattached, without knowing their places, and without knowing their functions in the body.
Getting Involved The process of regathering began when the Lord engaged Ezekiel, asking him a penetrating question. God said to Ezekiel, “Can these bones live?” Ezekiel replied, “O Lord God, You know.” I marvel at the grace of God because He could have accomplished His plan without Ezekiel. Instead, He said, “Ezekiel, I want you to prophesy, and when you prophesy things will start to happen.” Amazingly, the Lord invites us to share in His plan and purposes. So I [Ezekiel] prophesied as I was commanded; and as I prophesied, there was a noise, and suddenly a rattling; and the bones came together, bone to bone. Indeed, as I looked, the sinews and the flesh came upon them, and the skin covered them over; but there was no breath in them. Also He said to me, “Prophesy to the breath, prophesy, son of man, and say to the breath, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD: “Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe on these slain, that they may live.”’” So I prophesied as He commanded me, and breath [Hebrew, spirit] came into them, and they lived, and stood upon their feet, an exceedingly great army. Ezekiel 37:7–10
By the time God had finished His work, the scattered bones had become a great army. Today God is again bringing forth an army out of the scattered bones. In the process there is a lot of noise, shaking and disturbance. Some people are saying, “Don’t rock the boat.” God, however, has created the noise and rattling to shake His people out of their complacency. Coming Together People who are being touched by God’s Spirit are beginning to move.
Bones are coming to bones and people are committing themselves to their places in the Body of Christ. In his first letter to the Corinthians, Paul gives this instruction to the Church: For as the body is one and has many members, but all the members of that one body, being many, are one body, so also is Christ. . . . For in fact the body is not one member but many. If the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I am not of the body,” is it therefore not of the body? . . . And the eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you”; nor again the head to the feet, “I have no need of you.” 1 Corinthians 12:12, 14–15, 21 Paul is telling us we need one another.
Since that is true, we must be rightly related to one another and be properly fitted together. This is the final phase that prepares the Church to confront the powers of darkness. Paul pictures this in Ephesians 4:16. Speaking about Christ as the head of the Church, he writes: “From whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.” Please notice in this passage that the body edifies the body. This can only happen when every part is in the right place, properly fitted together with the other parts, and properly fulfilling its function.
My name is Cesar and I’m a Voice in The Desert
www.mywalkwithmycreator.com
#avoiceinthedesert
Up to this point we have discussed the first three preparatory posts for the end-times Church: the activity of the Holy Spirit to lift up Jesus as the standard, deliverance from demonic armies, and re-equipping through the gifts of the Spirit. Now we come to the fourth preparatory phase: God’s people being regathered and joined together in a unified body. A vivid Old Testament picture for this phase is found in Ezekiel’s vision in the valley of dry bones.
It is a prophecy of the restoration and regathering of God’s people, which applies to the nation of Israel. I believe, however, that it is also a picture of the regathering of the scattered members of Christ’s Body, the Church. Personally, my belief is that in the sight of God, the Church has been like Israel: dry bones scattered around, unconnected, unattached, without knowing their places, and without knowing their functions in the body.
Getting Involved The process of regathering began when the Lord engaged Ezekiel, asking him a penetrating question. God said to Ezekiel, “Can these bones live?” Ezekiel replied, “O Lord God, You know.” I marvel at the grace of God because He could have accomplished His plan without Ezekiel. Instead, He said, “Ezekiel, I want you to prophesy, and when you prophesy things will start to happen.” Amazingly, the Lord invites us to share in His plan and purposes. So I [Ezekiel] prophesied as I was commanded; and as I prophesied, there was a noise, and suddenly a rattling; and the bones came together, bone to bone. Indeed, as I looked, the sinews and the flesh came upon them, and the skin covered them over; but there was no breath in them. Also He said to me, “Prophesy to the breath, prophesy, son of man, and say to the breath, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD: “Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe on these slain, that they may live.”’” So I prophesied as He commanded me, and breath [Hebrew, spirit] came into them, and they lived, and stood upon their feet, an exceedingly great army. Ezekiel 37:7–10
By the time God had finished His work, the scattered bones had become a great army. Today God is again bringing forth an army out of the scattered bones. In the process there is a lot of noise, shaking and disturbance. Some people are saying, “Don’t rock the boat.” God, however, has created the noise and rattling to shake His people out of their complacency. Coming Together People who are being touched by God’s Spirit are beginning to move.
Bones are coming to bones and people are committing themselves to their places in the Body of Christ. In his first letter to the Corinthians, Paul gives this instruction to the Church: For as the body is one and has many members, but all the members of that one body, being many, are one body, so also is Christ. . . . For in fact the body is not one member but many. If the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I am not of the body,” is it therefore not of the body? . . . And the eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you”; nor again the head to the feet, “I have no need of you.” 1 Corinthians 12:12, 14–15, 21 Paul is telling us we need one another.
Since that is true, we must be rightly related to one another and be properly fitted together. This is the final phase that prepares the Church to confront the powers of darkness. Paul pictures this in Ephesians 4:16. Speaking about Christ as the head of the Church, he writes: “From whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.” Please notice in this passage that the body edifies the body. This can only happen when every part is in the right place, properly fitted together with the other parts, and properly fulfilling its function.
My name is Cesar and I’m a Voice in The Desert
www.mywalkwithmycreator.com
#avoiceinthedesert
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