Liturgy for Sunday, PM Confession of Dependence and Divine Greeting Ps.25:1,2 Profession of faith Hy.47:2 Prayer for illumination and blessing Ministry of the Word Reading: Ezekiel 37:1-14; John 3:1-8 Ps.102:1,2,6 Text: LD 20 I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord and Giver of life. We ll see that the Holy Spirit: 1. gives us life. 2. sustains our lives. 3. perfects our lives. Hy.48:2,3,4 Offering Hy.47:4,5 Prayer of intercession Ps.138:1,4 Divine blessing Songs for worship taken from the 2010 version of the Book of Praise See http://www.canrc.org/?page=23 for pdf files of Psalms and Hymns Rev. Joe Poppe 1
Singing: Ps.25:1,2; Hy.47:2; Ps.102:1,2,6; Hy.48:2,3,4; Hy.47:4,5; Ps.138:1,4 Reading: Eze.37:1-14; Joh.3:1-8 Text: LD 20 Beloved congregation of our Lord Jesus Christ, With Lord s Day 20 we come to the third part of the Apostles Creed. We have dealt with the work of the Father and our creation, and the work of the Son and our redemption. Now we come to the work of the Holy Spirit and our sanctification. Here we come to a more difficult part of our confession. We know God the Father, and it is not hard to understand that he is the Creator of this world, and the Preserver of our lives. We know God the Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, and the great work of salvation that he has accomplished for us through his suffering and death on the cross. Yet who is the Holy Spirit, and what role does he play in our lives? The title above Lord s Day 20 is, The Holy Spirit and our sanctification. Sanctification is a big word. To sanctify means to make holy; to make pure. It refers to the process by which the old nature is put to death, and the new nature is made alive. It is the process by which we are renewed more and more in the image of our Lord Jesus Christ. Just as an ugly caterpillar is transformed into a beautiful butterfly, so the Holy Spirit transforms us from dead sinners to living saints. It is through his mighty work in our hearts and lives that the Holy Spirit makes us share in Christ and all his benefits. He is the source of our life, he sustains us in our life with God, he will allow us to share in the blessings of God eternally. The teaching about the Holy Spirit is not something that should confuse us. While it is true that we do not understand everything about how the Spirit does his work, God has revealed enough to us in his Word that we may be strengthened and encouraged by the doctrine of the Holy Spirit. Although he is eternal God, he has come to dwell in our hearts. The Holy Spirit is the Lord and Giver of life. He draws us into communion with Christ. He is our Helper as we walk through various trails and difficulties in this life. He guides us on the pathways of eternal life. I preach to you the Word of God under the following theme: I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord and Giver of life. We ll see that the Holy Spirit: 4. gives us life. 5. sustains our lives. 6. perfects our lives. We read together this afternoon from one of the most famous passages of Ezekiel s prophecy. In it Ezekiel relates a vision the LORD gave him. He speaks about a valley of dry bones. In his vision the LORD commands Ezekiel to prophesy to this valley of bones, so that life could be restored to those who had died long before. Ezekiel 37 is a vision that speaks of renewal and life. One Hebrew word is used ten times in verses 1-14. It is a word that is variously translated as breath, or wind, or Spirit. In this passage there is a play on words. The Hebrews word is used primarily to refer to the breath of life. And yet it is God s Spirit who breathes life into the dead. By using one and the same word throughout the passage, the LORD shows that it is his Spirit alone that can give renewal and life. Verse 1 speaks about how the Spirit transports Ezekiel and sets him down in the midst of a valley of dry bones. There were very many bones in this open valley. Ezekiel saw lots and lots of skeletons. For whatever reason, they were not buried. The sheer number of bones seemed to indicate some kind of mass carnage or catastrophe. Perhaps this valley was a place where Israel s enemies slaughtered a large number of God s people in battle. Many of the bones were mixed together, because the birds of prey and the wild animals would have feasted on the dead bodies. The dry condition of the bones lets Ezekiel know that these people have been dead a long time. A valley full of sun-bleached bones, all mixed together. Verse 2 tells us that the LORD gave Ezekiel a thorough tour of this terrible place. Although he walked back and forth, through and among the bones, Ezekiel saw no life. Rev. Joe Poppe 2
To understand this vision we need to know something about the circumstances of God s people Israel. The valley of dry bones portrays the state of God s covenant people after the fall of Jerusalem. The LORD says in Ezekiel 37:11, these bones are the whole house of Israel. Many were physically dead at the hands of both the Assyrians and the Babylonians; many more living in exile were as good as dead. The exiles said, Our bones are dried up and our hope is gone; we are cut off. (Eze.37:11). God s people had been in exile for over ten years. These bones signify that what hope they once possessed is now gone. God s people figured that their existence as a nation had come to an end. Their final stronghold, Jerusalem, had been captured. The Babylonians had utterly destroyed it - knocking down its walls, burning it, razing it to the ground. Like many of the other nations around them, Israel had been taken into exile. They lived in a foreign land, among strange people. There was not much use thinking about the past. There was nothing they could do. As a nation they were finished. The Jews would have considered their situation similar to what we are faced with when a loved one dies. We experience intense grief, and a longing for how things were in the past, along with the gradual understanding that death is irrevocable. No matter how much we might desire to see a loved one alive again, no amount of wishing will make it happen. In the same way the Jews felt completely dried out, without hope, cut off! To them the possibility of renewal and restoration were as foreign as having the dried bones of the slain come back to life again. Then the LORD asks Ezekiel the key question. Son of man, can these bones live? (Eze.37:3). From a human perspective, the answer is clearly no! There is no way that a valley full of dried out bones could live. Yet that is not the answer that Ezekiel gives to the LORD. He says, O Sovereign LORD, you alone know. Ezekiel recognizes the LORD as the Ruler and King of creation. He knows that with God all things are possible. So, in faith, Ezekiel gives the matter back into the hands of God. The LORD s response is to tell Ezekiel, Prophesy to these bones and say to them, 'Dry bones, hear the word of the LORD! This is what the Sovereign LORD says to these bones: I will make breath enter you, and you will come to life. (Eze.37:4-5). Ezekiel needs to stand up, clear his throat, and preach a sermon to the skeletons! Imagine my going to the cemetery tomorrow, standing on a bench, and then preaching to all the headstones stretched out before me. Nobody is listening! There is no one to hear! The dead are no more. And yet Ezekiel does according to the word of the LORD. In Ezekiel s vision wondrous things happen. As he prophesied, there was a noise, a rattling sound, and the bones came together, bone to bone. (Eze.37:7). The word our text uses for the rattling of the bones is commonly used to describe the quaking of the earth during an earthquake. After hearing this clattering sound of bones coming together, Ezekiel sees sinews and flesh come upon the bones, and skin cover them. The valley of dry bones is transformed into a valley of people. But there was no breath in them. Ezekiel is commanded by the LORD to prophesy to the breath, to say, Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe into these slain, that they may live. (Eze.37:9). He did, and breath entered them; they came to life and stood up on their feet--a vast army. (Eze.37:10). In his vision Ezekiel sees how the LORD gives life to his dead people. Just as the Spirit breathed the breath of life into Adam at creation (Gen.2:7), so he grants resurrection and life to a valley full of dry bones. In Ezekiel s day this vision was meant to give hope to a people in despair. The exiles said, Our bones are dried up and our hope is gone; we are cut off. (Eze.37:11). On behalf of the LORD Ezekiel is commanded to prophesy, 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 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 Rev. Joe Poppe 3
have spoken, and I have done it, declares the LORD. (Eze.37:12-14). So the LORD promised life and restoration to his exiled people. Yet, beloved, Ezekiel 37 has much more to say to us. Consider the basic message of this vision: that the Spirit of God brings life to dead bones. That has great implications for us today. By nature we are dead. We are conceived and born in sin, subject to all sorts of misery, even to condemnation. Spiritually, we are like that valley of dried out bones. Incapable of doing any good; inclined by nature to hate God and our neighbour. How are we made alive? Often we think it is through our faith. Salvation is by faith alone, isn t it? Yes, it is! But the question is: where does this faith come from? Many Christians today emphasise the need for us to choose for Christ. Yet, beloved, we are no more able to do this than one of those dried out bones in Ezekiel s vision was able to become part of a living body again. The unregenerate man is dead. He has no more power to affect a change of heart than a skeleton. The natural man is dead in sin, unable to respond to the gospel or exercise his faith. So then, how are we made alive? Only by the regenerating work of the Holy Spirit. The Lord Jesus explained this to Nicodemus in John 3. Jesus said to him, I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again. (Joh.3:3). Jesus explains how as sinful people we need to be born of the Spirit of God. He is speaking about what our confessions call regeneration. Regeneration is the act of God alone, by which he renews the human heart, making it alive when it was dead. This work of the Holy Spirit in us does not depend on us in any way. There is no preparation that we can make for him to work in us. There is no contribution that we can make from our side to the new life that God gives us. As it says in the Canons of Dort, Chapter III/IV, Article 12, regeneration is something which God works in us without us. Just as the Spirit of God breathed life into those dead bodies in Ezekiel s vision, so it is only the Holy Spirit who can bring us to life again. Beloved, this doctrine is clearly taught in Scripture. In John 6:44 the Lord Jesus said, No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. In John 15:5 he teaches, Apart from me you can do nothing. Paul says in 2Corinthians 3:5 that we are not competent in ourselves to claim anything for ourselves, but our competence comes from God. He says in Philippians 2:13, For it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose. It is true that we don t fully understand how the Spirit brings life to those who are spiritually dead. As Jesus told Nicodemus, The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit. (Joh.3:8). His work of regeneration, of causing us to be born again - is a supernatural, most powerful, and at the same time most delightful, marvellous, mysterious, and inexpressible work (CD,III/IV,Art.12). Yet what we do know is that it is through the Spirit, and the Spirit alone, that we are made alive. He enlightens our minds so that we can understand the Gospel (1Cor.2:10-14). He creates within us a new heart and transforms our spirit (Eze.11:29; 36:26). He makes that which was dead, alive; which was bad, good; which was unwilling, willing; and which was stubborn, obedient. It is through his work alone that we may share in Christ and all his benefits. In our first point we ve seen that the Holy Spirit gives us life. In our second point we ll see that the Spirit sustains our lives. The Holy Spirit is not just some kind of external force that exerts pressure on us till we change. He is a very personal Being, who has come to dwell in our hearts. Before Jesus left his disciples he promised them, I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you. (Joh.14:18). This promise was fulfilled at Pentecost, when the Spirit was poured out on the church. Rev. Joe Poppe 4
The result of Pentecost is that God's Spirit has come to make his home in us. 1Corinthians 3:16 makes it clear that as church of Jesus Christ we are God's temple, and that God s Spirit lives in us. Ephesians 2:21 speaks about the people of God growing into a holy temple in the Lord; 1Peter 2:5 about how we are being built into a spiritual house. What is true of the church is also true of the individual members of the church. In 1Corinthians 6:16 Paul speaks about how our body is a temple of the Holy Spirit. Likewise, Galatians 4:6 speaks about how God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts. That s why we confess in Lord s Day 20 that the Holy Spirit is also given to me. We have become the house of God. It is through the living presence of the Spirit of God in us that we are strengthened and nourished in our faith. He grants us all we need to live in communion with Christ. He writes God's commandments on our hearts (Jer.31:33). He helps us in our fight against sin and the devil (Eph.6:10f). He renews our hearts and minds so that more and more we walk in obedience to the will of God (Rom.12:1f). He restores us in Christ's image (Rom.8:29), so that we produce the fruit of the Spirit in our lives (Gal.5:22-23). The Holy Spirit is our Guide, who leads us on the pathways of life. The Holy Spirit also comforts us. He gives us the assurance that we are the sons and daughters of God (Rom.8:16). On this earth we may have to go through trials and tribulations; we may experience great suffering in our lives. Yet the Spirit gives us hope by pointing to the fact that we are heirs of eternal life (Rom.8:17f). When we do not know how to pray, he intercedes for us (Rom.8:26-27). You see, beloved, the Spirit s purpose in dwelling in us is to guide us to Christ and sustain us through him. In speaking about how the Holy Spirit guides us to Christ, and in our life with Christ, we need to emphasise one thing. It is that the Holy Spirit works through the Word. He uses the preaching of the Word to draw us to faith. Peter says in 1Peter 1:23, For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God. People sometimes ask me whether or not I ever get frustrated when people s lives don t change because of the preaching. One commentary I read on Ezekiel 37 made the point that just as Ezekiel was called to prophesy to a valley of dry bones, so preachers too are called to preach to people who may not yet be spiritually alive, or who have hardened their hearts against a certain teaching. Yet beloved, it is ever so important that we note the effect of Ezekiel s proclamation. In his vision God used his words to bring life to those dead bones. The same applies today. The Spirit gives life to the dead. He works through the Word. It is an amazing process. One we don t fully understand. The LORD speaks about this in Isaiah 55:10-11. He says that just as rain waters the earth and provides bread to the eater, so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it. In John 5:25 the Lord Jesus said, I tell you the truth, a time is coming and has now come when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God and those who hear will live. The Spirit gives understanding to those who hear the preaching. Paul says in 1Corinthians 2:12, We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us. In 1 Corinthians 3 Paul speaks about how he planted and Apollos watered, but how it was God who gave the growth! If we want to be guided and directed by the Holy Spirit, we need to submit ourselves to the teachings of God s Word. For it is through the promises of the gospel that the Spirit sustains our lives. The Spirit sustains us by constantly pointing us to our Saviour Jesus Christ. He suffered and died on the cross to grant forgiveness for all our sins. He rose from the dead to grant us new life in him. Christ is the source of our comfort and strength. Our comfort comes from knowing that we belong with body and soul, both in life and in death to our faithful Saviour. Our strength is derived from the fact that he upholds us with his right hand, and sustains us as we travel on the Rev. Joe Poppe 5
road to glory. Our peace, joy, and hope are all centred on Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit sustains us by continually putting the spotlight on him and his wondrous works. This brings us to our final point. In it we ll see that the Holy Spirit perfects our lives. It s wonderful to know how the Holy Spirit gives us life and sustains our lives. Yet all that would be in vain, in the Spirit were to depart from us. For without the Spirit we could not stand. If it were not for the Spirit s continued work in our hearts and lives, we would fall from grace. Yet in John 14:16 Christ has promised that the Spirit will abide in us forever. Part of believing in the Holy Spirit is knowing that he will remain with me forever. (LD20). In this life we can face all kinds of trials and disappointments. At times we can even lose hope. Satan will do whatever he can to take our eyes away from the Saviour Jesus Christ. Because of the sadness we face in life, because of the sin we have fallen into we can begin to doubt our very salvation. Yet we do not need to lose heart. For if God has begun a work in us he will bring it to completion. David speaks about this in Psalm 138. He says, Though I walk in the midst of trouble, you preserve my life; with your right hand you save me. The LORD will fulfill his purpose for me; your love, O LORD, endures forever-- do not abandon the works of your hands. (Ps.138:7-8). God never does that beloved. He doesn t abandon his work before it is finished. If he has begun his work of salvation in us, he will complete it. This is not to say that we can never face struggles in our faith, or in our walk with God. At times God s children may fall into serious and grievous sins. Think of David, who committed adultery with Bathsheba, and even murdered her husband Uriah in order to try cover up his sin. Or of Peter, who despite being told beforehand, denied his Saviour three times. God s children can be tempted, and may fall into sin. We need to ever be on guard for Satan prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour (1Pet.5:8). At times it seems that some of God s children have fallen from grace. Yet, beloved, the Scriptures make clear that God will never forsake his own. Those whom God has led to a true faith in Jesus Christ, cannot be lost forever. Christ s preserving care over us in clearly taught in the Scriptures. In John 6:39 Jesus said, And this is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all that he has given me, but raise them up at the last day. What Jesus promises here is that he will hold fast those in whom the Spirit has worked repentance and faith. In John 10:27-29 Jesus confirms this. He said, My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father's hand. Paul says in 1 Corinthians 1:8 that God will keep you strong to the end, so that you will be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. Thus we see that by the mighty working of his Spirit God preserves us unto eternal life. So we see the riches of our confession of the Holy Spirit. The work of the Spirit in regeneration is so marvellous that Scripture teaches that it is not inferior in power to creation or the raising of the dead (CD,III/IV,Art.12). Truly the Holy Spirit is the Lord and Giver of life. It is by his mighty work that he makes us alive, sustains our lives, and perfects our lives. He connects us to Christ, comforts us with Christ, and keeps us in Christ. Let us praise the Spirit for his wondrous work in our hearts and lives! Amen. Rev. Joe Poppe 6