A sermon for First Baptist Church of Corbin, 3/29/2020
Lent 5A | Ezekiel 37:1-14, John 11:1-45
While the global pandemic we are seeing now and its ramifications all over the world are unprecedented, many people have drawn similarities between the Covid-19 pandemic and the Spanish Flu of 1918. We’ve been learning from generations before us on how to best flatten the curve of infection, which is why Gov Beshear has been showing us the St Louis – Philadelphia graph almost daily during his state-wide updates.
Perhaps we can also learn from the ancient Israelites about God’s activity during moments of national crisis.
The prophet Ezekiel lived during what was arguably the most devastating and challenging time for ancient Israel, as documented in Hebrew scripture. When Ezekiel was a young man, the Babylonian empire invaded Jerusalem, captured and forced the deportation of some 10,000 Jews to Babylon. Ezekiel was one of them. The city of Jerusalem was eventually burned and destroyed, including its temple. The Jewish people lost everything that gave them a national and religious identity: their temple, the reign of the house of David, their independence as a nation, and their community.
The word of the Lord that came to Ezekiel describes what the exiled people felt while in exile: “Our bones are dried up, and our hope is lost; we are cut off completely” (Ezek. 37:11). They were experiencing being cut off in every way: cut off from their land; cut off from their traditions and sacred places; cut off from each other; cut off from their sense of the presence of God.
The vision the Lord gave to Ezekiel was a devastating sight: a valley full of very dry bones. Imagine the horrific event that would lead to such devastation as a multitude left to die without proper burial, abandoned for so long that their remains become very dry. The vision represented the whole community of Israel, feeling devastation, grief, abandonment — in one word, feeling desperation deep in their bones.
In a time when it seems like we only hear bad news and things keep getting worse, Ezekiel’s vision offers us good news. Are you ready for some good news?
Right now, many of us are also feeling cut off. Like the exiled people of Israel, some of us are cut off from our sanctuaries and from our sense of community. Like Mary and Martha, some of us are feeling the absence of our support system — indeed, feeling the absence of God very acutely. Many of us are worried about the health of loved ones, or how to protect our families. Many are worried about finances and whether our jobs or small businesses will survive. Many are worried about whether the Church will survive after the economic downfall and many weeks of not being able to meet in person.
This is a time when many are feeling abandoned and cut off from God. It’s a time when God’s word to Ezekiel reminds us that God is not confined to a temple or a sanctuary. Ezekiel was the only prophet in the Bible who received his call to be a prophet outside of the land of Israel. God called Ezekiel and gave him messages and visions despite the fact that he was in a foreign land, away from the temple and from everything familiar.
Ezekiel’s experience with God while in exile reminds us of this good news: that God continues to speak even when churches are closed to in-person gatherings. God hears our cry and desperation even when it seems like we are all alone. As Jesus was moved by grief as his friends grieved and mourned the death of his friend Lazarus, God is moved by our suffering. God still speaks when everything is out of place. God still speaks when all hope seems lost.
In the vision the Lord gave Ezekiel, God told him to prophesy to the dry bones, saying to them, “Hear the word of the Lord” (Ezek. 37:3). As Ezekiel prophesied life to the dry bones, they came together and were filled with sinews, flesh and skin. Then the Lord commanded Ezekiel to prophesy to the breath. As he did, breath filled the bodies and they came to life.
It may seem crazy to speak to dry bones and to expect that they will listen. How can they hear the word of the Lord? Not only are they very dry and lifeless, but they are also disconnected. The Lord explains to Ezekiel that the bones represent the house of Israel, which feels completely cut off. Earlier in Ezekiel God describes the house of Israel as rebellious and unwilling to hear from God (Ezek. 2:5). Needless to say, it’s a surprise that these bones hear the word of the Lord. But as the word of the Lord is spoken they do hear and are able to come alive as a result of that word.
Even though Martha believed and trusted Jesus with all her heart, she never expected that Lazarus would be able to hear Jesus’ voice after being dead for four days. Yet as Jesus spoke “Lazarus, come out!”, the man who was dead heard and obeyed.
Some of us have been feeling cut off from God for many years. Perhaps our spiritual life feels dead, dried up like bones. Maybe we’ve neglected the call of the Spirit of God to our spirit. Perhaps when things were “normal” we busied ourselves with activities and consumerism and neglected the voice of the Spirit who called us to be still and listen. Perhaps we have willfully rebelled and refused to hear the word of the Lord in our lives.
Ezekiel’s vision reminds us of the good news that dry bones can still hear. The dead man can still listen when God calls. The good news is that God breaks through barriers — even through death — to speak to us and that we can hear God’s voice. Hear this good news this morning, friend. You have not lost your ability to hear from God. While it may feel dead and dry in your spirit, you can still come alive.
The Church can still come alive. The world can still come alive.
The word of the Lord through Ezekiel was life-giving and liberating. It gave the people of Israel life and hope for a future in their own land. The word of Jesus to Lazarus was life-giving and liberating. As Lazarus came out bound with strips of cloth, Jesus instructed the people around him to unbind him and let him go (John 11:44).
Right now, many of us are bound with fear and anxiety. The uncertainty about the present and the future has us so bound that sometimes it’s hard to take a breath. The good news from the word of God is that God continues to speak in life-giving and liberating ways.
One of the first things I learned when I trained as a chaplain is that emotions are contagious. An anxious person can spread anxiety to the people around them. An angry person can spread anger around them. In the same way, a calm person can spread calmness to those around them. So we learned as chaplains to be a calming presence in a room where people might be anxious or angry or afraid.
The Covid-19 virus is not the only thing that’s contagious right now. Many people are also spreading anxiety, fear, and discord in our communities. The spread of anxiety and selfishness is causing some to hoard supplies and to leave others without. Our call as a Church right now is to spread the life-giving, liberating and hope-ful word of the Lord.
Our call is to unbind the ties of discord and complacency and to spread peace and sacrificial love. Let’s stop the spread of fear and make hope go viral. Let’s stop the spread of discord and spread peace in our communities. Let us be the calming and hopeful presence that our world needs right now. May we spread God’s life-giving word to the world.