WE ARE EVIDENCE OF GOD’S POWER TO BRING LIFE FROM DEATH AND RESTORATION FROM DESTRUCTION. 

SCRIPTURE | Ezekiel 37:1-14 

CENTRAL TRUTH 

God breathes life into what appears hopelessly dead and abandoned—into us, even when we were hopeless and dead in our sin. 

KEY QUESTION 

WHY DO YOU THINK GOD SHOWED EZEKIEL THESE BONES? WHAT MIGHT GOD WANT HIM (AND US) TO REALIZE? 

KEEP IN MIND 

Students may wonder if they can mess up so badly that God would leave them? They may ask if He has a boundary concerning how far He will go before He gives up on them. These are questions God’s people probably asked in their exile. Had God left them? Sure, their own rebellion landed them in exile. Israel was destroyed, and the temple was obliterated because the people repeatedly ignored God’s warnings. They were exiled and scattered by their own doing. So, surely God was done with them? Since the temple was gone, surely God’s presence was gone too? The short answer is this: God never left them. He was never confined to the temple. He was with them even in their consequences, even in their exile. If students have called on Jesus for salvation, then as God’s children, they have assurance that He is always with them and working in them (Phil. 1:6). God can cross any boundary. They can’t wander far enough that they’re out of His reach. Even in their consequences for sin, the Lord is with them. Students may suffer from relational distance when they sin, but God will never leave them. We must help them not to mistake consequences for abandonment. 

APPLICATION 

HOW DOES THIS PASSAGE GIVE YOU HOPE EVEN WHEN WHAT YOU’RE FACING FEELS HOPELESS? 

THE WIN 

FOR THE STUDENT: Your students may be facing unfathomable circumstances. Their future with God in heaven will be far better than anything else—any relief—they’re longing for here on earth. He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and God Himself will be with them like never before (Rev. 21:1-4). 

FOR THE LEADER: Rejoice because God has restored you and transformed you! May it prompt your obedience to Him so that others may share in the hope of the gospel.