It's Not Over Yet | Pastor Daniel Groves | Hope City

Ezekiel 37 opens in a low place, not a palace, not a thriving city, but a valley full of bones that were “very dry.” God leads Ezekiel back and forth through what looks dead dead, done, wrapped up, and over. The valley becomes the place where God proves that when people see an ending, God sees a beginning.

The dry bones name the condition of God’s people in exile. Israel had lost home, identity, future, and hope. God does not ignore that reality, and faith does not pretend dead things are alive. Faith believes God can breathe on it again. The word over the valley is simple and strong: it is not over yet.

The enemy rarely destroys people overnight. The enemy dries them out over time. The disconnected life can still look normal, like the same plant, same pot, same house, but without the right connection it starts to droop. Jesus is the vine, and disconnected branches do not need more activity first. The soul needs the source.

God takes Ezekiel through the bones because revival is not pretending dead things do not exist. Revival is watching God breathe on dead things again. The valley strips away self sufficiency and develops dependency. God often leads into the valley before he leads out of it, because the place no one would choose can become the place God uses the most.

God asks Ezekiel, “Can these bones live?” The question is not about what Ezekiel sees, but what Ezekiel believes. Faith is evidence before evidence exists. Faith does not deny reality, but faith refuses to let reality have the final word. God has the final word.

God commands Ezekiel to prophesy before anything changes. Obedience looks ridiculous before it looks miraculous. Ezekiel speaks, bones rattle, tendons form, flesh appears, and structure returns. But structure is not life. The bones still need breath.

The Hebrew word “ruach” carries wind, breath, and Spirit. Genesis begins life with God breathing into Adam, and Ezekiel sees life return when God breathes again. Revival has always been connected to the breath of God. God does not breathe on the perfect. God revives what is surrendered. The cry becomes, “Lord, revive me,” because if God is still breathing, it is not over yet.

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Key Takeaways

• 1. Dry bones are not final Faith does not ignore what is dead, and faith does not call brokenness something cute. Faith brings the dead place before the sovereign Lord and refuses to give reality the last word. When God breathes, the thing that looked wrapped up can stand again as a testimony of resurrection power. [10:13]
• 2. Drift dries the soul slowly The enemy rarely destroys people overnight. An ordinary day of disconnection becomes another ordinary day, until prayer, joy, calling, and hunger feel far away. The warning is not meant to shame the dry soul, but to send it back to the source before dryness starts feeling normal. [13:09]
• 3. The source is Jesus The drooping plant did not need a new identity, a new pot, or a new house. The plant needed connection to what gave it life. The soul can chase a new job, new relationship, or new opportunity, but fruit follows connection to the vine, not escape from the room. [15:56]
• 4. Valleys form surrendered dependence God does not waste valleys, and God does not lead into low places just to leave people discouraged. The valley strips away self sufficiency and teaches what the mountaintop only displays. The place that looks lifeless can become the place where God reveals miracle working power. [22:14]
• 5. Breath matters more than structure The bones had tendons, flesh, and skin, but they still were not alive. A church, a marriage, a calling, or a life can have activity, structure, and talent while still suffocating. The deepest need is not better polish, but the breath of God bringing life where routine cannot.
  
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Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [00:30] - July Commitments And New Beginnings
• [01:36] - Hebrews 11 Faith For Unseen Things
• [03:11] - Ezekiel The Exiled Prophet
• [05:43] - Dry Bones And The Breath Of God
• [10:13] - It Is Not Over Yet
• [13:09] - The Enemy Dries People Out
• [15:56] - Same Plant, Different Connection
• [17:19] - Revival Faces Dead Places
• [22:14] - God Leads Through The Valley
• [27:20] - Faith Before The Breath
• [30:19] - Resurrection Needs Breath
• [36:39] - Ruach, Wind, Breath, Spirit
• [38:52] - Lord, Revive Me
• [43:16] - Invitation To Follow Jesus

Bible Reading

Ezekiel 37:1-14
“The hand of the Lord was on me, and he brought me out by the Spirit of the Lord and set me in the middle of a valley; it was full of bones. He led me back and forth among them, and I saw a great many bones on the floor of the valley, bones that were very dry. He asked me, "Son of man, can these bones live?" I said, "Sovereign Lord, you alone know." Then he said to me, "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. I will attach tendons to you and make flesh come upon you and cover you with skin; I will put breath in you, and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the Lord.'" So I prophesied as I was commanded. And as I was prophesying, there was a noise, a rattling sound, and the bones came together, bone to bone. I looked, and tendons and flesh appeared on them and skin covered them, but there was no breath in them. Then he said to me, "Prophesy to the breath; prophesy, son of man, and say to it, 'This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Come, breath, from the four winds and breathe into these slain, that they may live.'" So I prophesied as he commanded me, and breath entered them; they came to life and stood up on their feet—a vast army. Then he said to me: "Son of man, these bones are the people of Israel. They say, 'Our bones are dried up and our hope is gone; we are cut off.' Therefore prophesy and say to them: 'This is what the Sovereign Lord says: 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. Then you will know that I am the Lord, when I open your graves and bring you up from them. 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 have spoken, and I have done it, declares the Lord.'” [06:18]

John 15:5
“I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.” [16:39]

Hebrews 11:1
“Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” [01:36]

Genesis 2:7
“Then the Lord God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature.” [37:12]

Observation questions

1. In Ezekiel 37, what details show how hopeless the valley looked before God moved, and what specific changes happened as Ezekiel obeyed and spoke? [08:45]
2. What does Ezekiel say when God asks, “Can these bones live?” and what does that response show about his posture before God?
3. In John 15:5, what two roles does Jesus give in the picture of the vine and branches, and what result comes from staying connected to him? [16:39]
4. What is still missing in Ezekiel 37 after the bones have come together and are covered with flesh and skin? Why is that detail so important? [30:21]

Interpretation questions

1. God leads Ezekiel back and forth through the bones instead of around them. What might that reveal about how God deals with places of loss, grief, or dryness in a person’s life? [17:37]
2. Hebrews 11:1 says faith is confidence in what is hoped for and conviction about what is not seen. How does that help explain why God asks Ezekiel what he believes before the breath comes? [27:51]
3. The bones receive structure before they receive breath. What might that say about the difference between looking put together and actually being spiritually alive? [36:10]
4. Genesis 2:7 and Ezekiel 37 both connect life with the breath of God. What does that suggest about where true renewal comes from when a person feels dry, stuck, or empty? [37:26]

Application questions

1. Where does life currently feel “very dry” right now: prayer, joy, marriage, hope, calling, or something else? What makes that area feel dry, and what would it look like to bring it honestly before God instead of hiding it? [10:13]
2. Drift usually happens slowly, not all at once. What are some small signs that disconnection from Jesus may be happening in everyday life? Which of those signs feels most familiar right now? [13:33]
3. The source is Jesus, not just a change of surroundings. Is there an area where the heart has been expecting a new job, new relationship, or new opportunity to fix what only deeper connection with Jesus can heal? [16:27]
4. Valleys can strip away self-sufficiency and teach dependence on God. What kind of valley season is being faced right now, and how might God be calling for deeper trust in that very place? [23:33]
5. Obedience can look ridiculous before it looks miraculous. Is there something simple God may be asking to do right now—pray again, forgive, reach out, confess, worship, rest, or speak life—even if nothing has changed yet? [28:53]
6. A life can have structure and activity but still be missing breath. Where is there a danger of going through motions spiritually while feeling empty underneath? What might surrendered prayer for God’s breath look like there? [34:29]
7. “It is not over yet” is easy to say and hard to believe. What situation has started to feel final, and what would it look like this week to trust that God still has the final word? [41:26]