Reading the prophet Ezekiel recently revealed that it required three stages of his prophetic proclamations to raise up those dry bones, clothe them with flesh, fill them with the breath of life, and then mobilize them toward their destiny in their own promised land. It didn’t happen all at once for them and Ezekiel, and it is not likely to happen all at once for us either as we proclaim the word of God over ourselves, our own families and churches and situations, and over our world. It will serve us well to be patient and persistent in our proclamation ( it has been aptly described as “aggressive confession”) and to learn to discern the various stages of fulfillment; as in first the blade, then the ear, then the full corn in the ear. (Mark 4) If we are aware of the earlier stages and what they might look like, we are not as vulnerable to discouragement.
When Ezekiel first began to prophesy to the dry bones he only heard a rattling sound of bones coming together bone to bone, as if one relationship or connection at a time. That rattling wasn’t necessarily a pleasant sound. It still didn’t look like much. Then tendons, and flesh and skin followed covering the bones. It was beginning to look better, but there was still no life in those basic bones.
Ezekiel was then commanded to prophesy to the breath to come from the four winds and breathe into the slain (not merely dead but slain) so that they would live. Again there was an immediate result and the flesh-covered bones came to life and stood on their feet as a vast army yet un-mobilized. It looked impressive, but it couldn’t yet deliver victory because it had no marching orders.
There was physical life in this army but it had no hope. It could not be deployed without hope. It had signs of life but not resurrection life, so it was a discouraged army, an army low in morale. Thus Ezekiel was commanded to prophesy resurrection to them, that Yahweh was going to bring them out of their graves and lead them into their promised land of Israel. They were going to see the tables turned and situations dramatically and favorably reversed both individually and collectively. Hallelujah!
They were going to be deployed for Yahweh’s purpose with Yahweh’s victorious resurrection power, because Yahweh’s Spirit was going to dwell richly within them. Not only would they be led into their land but they would be established there. Why? So that they and the surrounding nations would know that this God was Yahweh, the true covenant-keeping God who always keeps His word. This final stage, because it contains so much and so many details, would not be as immediate as the others, but it would unfold just as relentlessly, as the prophet continued to prophesy and thank Yahweh for the outcome before it was fully visible, taking note of and celebrating the progressive signs along the way.
Interesting how soon after in Ezekiel we find a river of glory flowing from the temple that deepens in a similarly progressive manner. First it is only as deep as a human ankle, then up to the knee, then the waist, and finally over the head so that the river cannot be crossed. At that point one must swim and flow with the current and trustingly yield full control of one’s body to the river. Our walk with God over the years can be like that as we are drawn more deeply into the things of the Spirit and into His fullness. At some point we are overwhelmed and in “over our heads” and must trust the flood of His powerful love and wisdom to carry us. I experienced a little of this in a service in Venezuela, for example, when I was called over to pray for a man who was thinking of killing himself and his family.
Whether it is making Biblical proclamations or flowing in the river of the Spirit, we can be thankful that we have a merciful and gracious God who meets us where we are and leads us to where each of us needs to be, and all at a pace that is perfectly and personally appropriate.
trbarlow 