The Seven Winds of God Part III



                                                           The Wind of Life

 

      Our scripture text for today is found in Ezekiel 37.  But before we begin I want to explain to you what had happened to Israel in the natural and show you how spiritually bankrupt they had become.  Around 597 B.C.  the second deportation of Israel to Babylon had taken place. Israel once again had become a sinful nation and in rebellion against God they began to worship idles and caused her to know abominations. Their prophets were prophesying falsehood and lying divination and declaring it was from God. So God brought judgement upon them and allowed the Babylonians to capture them and exile then to Babylon. 

 

     One of the prophets of Israel that went to Babylon in that time of deportation was Ezekiel. It was there in Babylon, God began to give Ezekiel visions and show him why God had allowed Babylon to capture Israel and also what would happen to Israel and what would take place in their future. In Ezekiel 37 we find one of the visions God gave to Ezekiel concerning Israel and as we unpack these verses we will see how it relates to us, the body of Christ today.

    

    So lets begin in Ezekiel 37:1.  The hand of the Lord was upon me, and He brought me out in the Spirit of the Lord and set me down in the mist of the valley; and it was full of bones.

 

     Verse 2:  and He caused me to pass round about among them, and behold, there were very many (human bones) in the open valley or plain, and behold, they were very dry.

 

     Lets talk about the word dry:  When something is dry, what happens to it?  It becomes dried up, parched and drained of life and its source.  And the word "bones" is used in the sense of what had been strong and firm. God had taken Ezekiel to an actual battle field where men had fallen and death had prevailed.  Spiritually speaking this is the place all must go.  Many of us are even now in the heat of the battle and the enemy is charging in hot pursuit.  We have become parched and we are loosing our strength; we've become weary in well doing and why?  Because we have relied on our own strength and not allowed the Lord to become strong in our life.  We have not armed ourselves with the weapons He has given unto us nor understood the tactics of the enemy. Don't be naive, we are in a battle and the enemy shows no mercy. The enemy's plan for you is defeat and retreat.  Some of these battles we have won and other we have lost.  It's been a battle between our flesh and our own will verses our spirit and the will of the Lord. In the valley is where death must be experienced; death to the old nature and  our flesh is brought into submission to the will, ways and purposes of the Lord. For some of us death does not come easy.  It wars against the spirit man and rebels to get its way.  But before we can rise into the fullness of life and in the power of the Spirit a death must take place. 

 

     Verse 3:  And He said to me, Son of man, can these bones live?  and I answered, O Lord God, You know!

 

     Verse 4:  Again He said to me, Prophesy to these bones and say to them, O you dry bones, hear the word of the Lord.

 

     What does it mean to Prophesy?  To pour forth words abundantly by speaking Gods message by divine power under the influence of the Holy Spirit.  To foretell by divine inspiration or to predict.

 

     So part of the function of a Prophet is to:  Speak to you concerning destiny and to call it forth.  A Prophet brings light to those whose faith needs confirming and hope during times of discouragement to inspire you and to trust in God.  This is what God had instructed Ezekiel to do and that was to prophesy to Israel.  Ezekiel spoke "Life" to something that was dead.  He spoke a creative word to a people that had been slain in battle in the natural because of their spiritual condition.  God doesn't let the natural boundaries of mans thinking dictate to Him what He has destined for us.  If He wants dry, dead bones to hear, they will hear and respond.

 

     If we look at the word "Hear" in verse 4, this is what it means:  To give undivided attention to, to understand what one has heard and to understand with the heart.  So what did they "Hear"?  they heard the voice of the Spirit and it brought "Life".  God wanted them to understand with their hearts what God had destined for them as a people and they obeyed the command.

 

     Verse 5:  Thus says the Lord God to these bones:  Behold I will cause "Breath and Spirit" to enter you and YOU SHALL LIVE.

 

          Verse 9:  Then said He to me, Prophesy to the breath and spirit, son of man, and say to the breath and spirit, thus says the Lord God:  Come from the four winds, O breath and spirit and breathe upon these slain that they may live.    

 

          Verse 10:  So I prophesied as he commanded me and the breath and spirit came into (the bones), and they lived and stood up upon their feet, an exceedingly great host. 

 

     This breath is the creative Word of God that is the invisible, intangible, divine miraculous power by which that, that once was inanimate begins to move. It is the very breath of God the Spirit that breathes His power and "Life" is regenerated, recreated, and restored to live again. 

 

     It took speaking and declaring the powerful Word of God to recreate that which once stood strong and mighty.  But how did this once Great host, Gods people manage to get themselves to this point?  And why?  There were those that had not properly equipped themselves for battle (the armour of God).  Those that didn't understand and discern the strategy's of the enemy.  There were those that had no confidence in the source that held their very life in His hands and they forgot who and where their strength comes from. They had turned from worshipping God and began to worship idles.  Does that sound like some of us?
 

     So who is to be that exceedingly great host today?  We are, the body of Christ.  We are called to stand upon our feet and be that exceedingly great army of the Lord.  Just as Ezekiel was commanded to prophesy to the four winds that represent the Spirit of God, so are we to prophesy unto the forces of darkness, the principalities and spiritual wickedness in high places, power, thrones, dominions and world rulers and every demoniac spirit that tries to come against us and rob us of our life.  We are to stand strong and valiant in the face of the enemy and hold back the forces of darkness. We are to speak life where there has been death and victory where there has been defeat. 

     In verses 11 - 13 it says that Israel had lost hope and their very life (bones) were dried up from a lack of strength. God needed to resurrect them from their graves of desperation and so He told Ezekiel to prophesy to them again and this is what the Lord said to them.

     Verse 14:  And I shall put My Spirit in you and you shall live, and I shall place you in your own land.  then you shall know, understand, and realize that I the Lord have spoken it and performed it, says the Lord.

 

     In what area do you need the "Winds of Life" to blow?  You see, this wind is the very breath of God that breathed life and spirit into man in Genesis 2:7 and it says that he became a living being. So Prophesy unto those mountain in your life to be removed. Prophesy and speak forth the Word of God over your family, your children and your grandchildren.  You see, when you speak the God Word it will not return void, without producing any effect, but it will go forth and accomplish that which He purposes and it shall prosper in the thing for which He sent it. 

     So Prophesy Gods Word and bind up the enemy that is coming against you and you will see change come into those situation and circumstances and life will be restored to those involved. The wind of life will blow upon your body, healing will come and those crooked paths will be made straight. For some, there are things in your life that can only be changed, conquered and overcome by and through the power of the Spirit and when your positioned and in place you can receive all that He has for you. Stand up and be part of His exceeding great army.

Blessings,

Elma Garlock