A Sermon for the Great Vigil of Easter
March 30, 2024
Text: Ezekiel 37:1-14
Let none fear death, for the death of the Savior has set us free. Christ is risen and the demons have fallen. Christ is risen and the angels rejoice. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
From the Book of the Prophet Ezekiel: “The hand of the Lord came upon me, and he brought me out by the spirit of the Lord and set me down in the middle of a valley; it was full of bones. He led me all around them; there were very many lying in the valley, and they were very dry. He said to me, ‘Mortal, can these bones live?’ I answered, ‘O Lord God, you know.’ Then he said to me, ‘Prophesy to these bones, and say to them: O dry bones, hear the word of the Lord. Thus says the Lord God to these bones: I will cause breath to enter you, and you shall live. I will lay sinews on you, and will cause flesh to come upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and you shall live; and you shall know that I am the Lord.’”
Each year, at the Great Vigil of Easter, we begin the service outside in darkness. The memory of Good Friday still lingers, but the hope of Easter has been kindled in the lighting of the New Fire.
Then, after we light the Paschal Candle and process into the Church, we hear sacred stories told from Scripture, recounting the history of our salvation, beginning with the story of Creation in Genesis and continuing with the story of Israel’s freedom from bondage in the Book of Exodus.
The purpose of this time is for us to remember.
To remember God’s great love for us and all of Creation. To remember how God called us into covenant with him and remained faithful, despite our broken and sinful ways. To remember how, time and again, God showed mercy and called us to repent and return to the Lord.
Through the prophets of Israel, God renewed our hope for salvation, which is why I have a particular love for this passage from Ezekiel that we heard earlier tonight.
In the prophet’s vision, he is guided by the Lord to the middle of a valley filled with dry bones. It’s a dark, desolate wasteland filled with brittle, dried up, human bones—too many to number. Ezekiel doesn’t just stand in one place. The Lord God leads Ezekiel through the valley where he notices that these bones are very dry. We don’t know how long they’ve been there, but we know that it’s been a very long time.
And, after God shows him this vast valley full of dry bones, he asks Ezekiel, “Mortal, can these bones live?”
Ezekiel shakes his head. He couldn’t possibly know the answer. Only God knows whether or not these bones can be restored.
Then, God orders Ezekiel to prophesy to the bones. “Prophesy to these bones,” God says, “and say to them: O dry bones, hear the word of the Lord. Thus says the Lord God to these bones: I will cause breath to enter you, and you shall live. I will lay sinews on you, and will cause flesh to come upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and you shall live; and you shall know that I am the Lord.”
It’s a renewed promise to the people of Israel.
It’s God’s way of saying through the prophet, “You who have been in exile for so long and held in captivity in Babylon—you whom I love—you will be restored and brought back to your home in the land of Judah. I will breathe my spirit over you, and you shall live once again.”
In my mind, this story is a beautiful reminder and a sign to all of us that, even in the midst of death and despair—even when it feels like we’re walking through the valley of dry bones—there is always hope for new life.
God has the power to breathe new life into what was considered lost and hopeless. And, on this night especially, we’re reminded that God has the power to raise up that which was cast down.
God took what happened to Jesus on Good Friday and made a way for us to be reconciled with him forever.
Because of our Lord’s sacrifice on the cross and his victory over death, there is no power—in heaven or on earth—that can ever separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus. Sin and death have been defeated once and for all, opening up for us the way of freedom and eternal life with God.
That’s what this night is all about. It’s about victory. It’s about the light of God’s love overcoming the darkness. “This is the night,” as we heard earlier in the words of the Exsultet, “when all who believe in Christ are delivered from the gloom of sin, and are restored to grace and holiness of life. This is the night, when Christ broke the bonds of death and hell, and rose victorious from the grave.”
So, back to the question that the Lord asked Ezekiel when he showed him the valley of dry bones. “Mortal, can these bones live?”
Because of Jesus, we already know the answer, and we never have to ask the question again. Now and forever more, “Yes, Lord! These bones can surely live.” Amen.
The Rev. Eric Mancil 