Opening Prayer

Dear God, you are stronger than anything — even death. Open our ears to hear your Word this morning. Amen.

Scripture: Ezekiel 37:1-14

God took the prophet Ezekiel to a valley full of bones — old, dry bones, scattered everywhere. There were so many of them, and they had been dead a very long time. God asked Ezekiel, “Can these bones live?” Ezekiel said, “Only you know, Lord.”

Then God told Ezekiel to preach to the bones. He said, “Tell them: I will put breath in you, and you will live.” So Ezekiel preached — and the bones started rattling and clicking together! Muscles and skin covered them. But they still weren’t alive. They were just bodies lying there, not breathing.

So God told Ezekiel to call to the wind: “Come, breath! Breathe into these bodies!” And the wind came, and they all stood up — a huge army of living people, breathing and standing on their feet.

God explained: “These bones are my people. They think they are finished, that all hope is gone. But I will open their graves and put my Spirit in them, and they will live.”

What This Means

Imagine you found a bird in the yard — completely still, stiff, not breathing. Could you make it alive again? Could you blow on it hard enough? Could you shake it? No. Once something is truly dead, nobody can fix it. Not a doctor, not a scientist, not anyone.

But God can.

That’s what this story is about. God’s people were in a terrible situation — they had been taken far from home to a place called Babylon. Their city was destroyed. Their church was knocked down. They felt like dead, dried-up bones. They said, “Our hope is gone.”

And here’s the amazing part: God didn’t say, “Well, try harder.” He didn’t say, “If you just believe enough, you’ll feel better.” He said, “I will do it. I will put breath in you. I will bring you back to life.”

God does all the work. The bones didn’t help. They couldn’t — they were dead! God spoke, and dead things came alive. That’s what God does every single time someone is baptized. He speaks his Word, and something dead comes alive. He’s been doing it since the very beginning, when he breathed life into the first person made from dust.

Let’s Talk About It

Eberley: Why do you think God asked Ezekiel, “Can these bones live?” — when God already knew the answer? What was he teaching Ezekiel by asking? And what does it tell us about how God works — that he uses a prophet’s words to do this miracle instead of just doing it silently?

Sonja: The bones heard preaching and came together — but they still weren’t alive yet. What was missing? What finally made them alive? When have you ever felt like you couldn’t do something on your own and needed someone else’s help?

Dahlia & Freddy: What happened when Ezekiel talked to the bones? Did they stay still, or did they move? Who made the bones come alive — Ezekiel or God?

Remember This

God makes dead things alive — and he doesn’t need our help to do it.

Closing Prayer

Lord Jesus, we can’t make ourselves alive. We can’t make ourselves good enough. But you speak, and dead things live. Thank you for breathing your life into us in baptism. Keep us close to your Word today. Amen.

Memory Verse

“I will put my Spirit in you, and you will live.” — Ezekiel 37:14