Pentecost

May 19, 2013

Opening Hymns:

139 Praise to the Lord Thee Almighty http://www.hymnsite.com/lyrics/umh139.sht

Scripture Reading:
Ezekiel 37:1-10

37 The hand of the Lord was upon me, and carried me out in the spirit of the Lord, and set me down in the midst of the valley which was full of bones,

² And caused me to pass by them round about: and, behold, there were very many in the open valley; and, lo, they were very dry.

³ And he said unto me, Son of man, can these bones live? And I answered, O Lord God, thou knowest.

⁴ Again he said unto me, Prophesy upon these bones, and say unto them, O ye dry bones, hear the word of the Lord.

⁵ Thus saith the Lord God unto these bones; Behold, I will cause breath to enter into you, and ye shall live:

⁶ And I will lay sinews upon you, and will bring up flesh upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and ye shall live; and ye shall know that I am the Lord.

⁷ So I prophesied as I was commanded: and as I prophesied, there was a noise, and behold a shaking, and the bones came together, bone to his bone.

⁸ And when I beheld, lo, the sinews and the flesh came up upon them, and the skin covered them above: but there was no breath in them.

⁹ Then said he unto me, Prophesy unto the wind, prophesy, son of man, and say to the wind, Thus saith the Lord God; Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe upon these slain, that they may live.

¹⁰ So I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived, and stood up upon their feet, an exceeding great army.

Message:
God created heaven and earth. He breathed life into all the creatures of this world. The scripture for today describes another one of God’s wonders. The Lord breathes life into those that have fallen and passed away. They have been dead so long that their bones are dry. The scripture describes this miracle and we can read it with astonishment. 

Today is Pentecost, the day we celebrate the Holy Spirit coming down onto the disciples. Through the Spirit they work many wonders. They speak in tongues so that even foreigners can understand their words. Jesus’ disciples go out into the world teaching the Gospel, healing the sick, and even raising the dead in the name of Jesus. 

Through faith God truly does work wonders, but not all wonders need to be as astonishing as the scripture reading today. The Holy Spirit is acting in each of our lives. You can feel God’s presence with you during prayer and at church. We can feel the love of God during the birth of a child, and His comfort during the death of a loved one. The Holy Spirit is with us here on earth as we go through our daily lives. The Spirit serves as a comfort when we are sad, as a guide when we are lost, and helps us reach a hand to others who need healing. Let us remember the Trinity and the Holy Spirit as we go through this week. Let us feel the comfort that the Spirit offers, and let us each reach out to others and offer the same healing comfort that has been given to us.

Time of Prayer
Dearest Heavenly Father, thank You for sending Your Spirit to be with us here on earth. Guide us with Your spirit so that we may show Your love to the world. Amen

The Lord’s Prayer

Closing Hymn
57 Oh for a Thousand Tongues to Sing http://www.hymnsite.com/lyrics/umh057.sht

May the Lord bless you and keep you: May the Lord make His face shine upon you, and be gracious unto you: May the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace." Amen.

Go in peace, serve the Lord
Thanks be to God