This the manuscript of the, second in a series titled "Who is the Holy Spirit" that guides us beyond common misunderstandings of the Holy Spirit as an impersonal force or abstract feeling. The series establishes the Spirit’s identity as the Third person of the Trinity, reveals His work in believers and equips the church to walk in His power daily.
In the first sermon, “The God We Often Miss”, we established that the Holy Spirit is not an impersonal force or an abstract feeling, but fully God—a distinct Person of the Trinity who desires daily communion with us.
Today, in this second sermon, “The Breath of Life”, we move from the Spirit’s personal identity to His transforming work in human hearts. The Holy Spirit is the active divine agent who breathes life into dead spaces showing us that genuine spiritual awakening is an act of resurrection, not human self-improvement.
John 3:5-8 NIV [5] Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit. [6] Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. [7] You should not be surprised at my saying, ‘You must be born again.’ [8] The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”
Key Takeaway: Spiritual awakening is not a matter of self-improvement; it is an act of resurrection by the Spirit.
Scripture:
Ezekiel 37:1-14 NIV [1] 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. [2] 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. [3] He asked me, “Son of man, can these bones live?” I said, “Sovereign Lord, you alone know.” [4] Then he said to me, “Prophesy to these bones and say to them, ‘Dry bones, hear the word of the Lord! [5] This is what the Sovereign Lord says to these bones: I will make breathenter you, and you will come to life. [6] 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.’ ” [7] 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. [8] I looked, and tendons and flesh appeared on them and skin covered them, but there was no breath in them. [9] 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.’ ” [10] So I prophesied as he commanded me, and breath entered them; they came to life and stood up on their feet—a vast army. [11] 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.’ [12] 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. [13] Then you, my people, will know that I am the Lord, when I open your graves and bring you up from them. [14] 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.’ ”
Text:
John 3:5-8 NIV [5] Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit. [6] Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. [7] You should not be surprised at my saying, ‘You must be born again.’ [8] The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”
From Dry Bones to Living Flesh
Friday was the 25th anniversary of 9/11. Many of us remember where we were on September 11, 2001. We watched in horror as towers crumbled into ash, leaving behind a landscape of ruin, smoke, and unimaginable loss. Ground Zero became a stark, painful image of death—a place where life was abruptly extinguished, leaving only rubble, dust, and deep grief in its wake. In moments like that, human strength feels utterly helpless. You cannot rebuild broken lives or restore lost breath with mere human words or self-help strategies.
Long before that fateful September morning, God placed the prophet Ezekiel in a scene of similar tragedy. Houston read it this morning.
God sets Ezekiel in the middle of a vast valley full of dry, scattered bones. The picture is complete, irreversible death and ruin. God asks Ezekiel a humanly impossible question: "Can these bones live?" Ezekiel's response is the only honest one left: "O Lord God, you know." God then commands Ezekiel to speak His word to the bones
Ezekiel 37:9 NIV 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.’ ”
Notice what happens next. The bones come together, sinews and flesh appear, but there is still no life in them. They are just organized, structured corpses.
Ezekiel 37:7-8 NIV [7] 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. [8] I looked, and tendons and flesh appeared on them and skin covered them, but there was no breath in them.
It is only when the Ruach—the Hebrew word for breath, wind, and Spirit—is called forth from the four winds that the dead stand on their feet as a vast army.
Ezekiel 37:9-10 NIV [9] 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.’ ” [10] So I prophesied as he commanded me, and breath entered them; they came to life and stood up on their feet—a vast army.
Whether it is the catastrophic rubble of Ground Zero, the valley of dry bones, or the quiet, hidden ruin inside a human heart, spiritual life does not begin with human effort, structural reform, or political solutions. It begins when the Holy Spirit breathes into dead spaces.
The Mystery of Spiritual Rebirth
Centuries after Ezekiel’s experience, a deeply religious man named Nicodemus comes to Jesus under the cover of night. Let’s read about it.
John 3:1-8 NIV [1] Now there was a Pharisee, a man named Nicodemus who was a member of the Jewish ruling council. [2] He came to Jesus at night and said, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the signs you are doing if God were not with him.” [3] Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.” [4] “How can someone be born when they are old?” Nicodemus asked. “Surely they cannot enter a second time into their mother’s womb to be born!” [5] Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit. [6] Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. [7] You should not be surprised at my saying, ‘You must be born again.’ [8] The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”
Nicodemus has everything going for him religiously: moral standing, biblical knowledge, and high status. Yet Jesus looks at this spiritual elite and says, "Unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God".
Nicodemus is confused, because he pictured physical birth. But Jesus points him directly to the Spirit: "The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit".
You cannot physically grasp or see the wind itself, but you can clearly observe its effects: trees swaying, leaves rustling, and the rush of air against your skin. Likewise, the Holy Spirit is invisible, yet His work inside a person produces unmistakable, observable fruit:
A transformed character and priorities.
A renewed heart that loves God and others.
A shift from self-reliance to surrender.
While the internal moment of rebirth is hidden and divine, its evidence becomes visible to everyone around.
Remember the first two verses of the bible;
Genesis 1:1-2 NIV In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.
Just as the Spirit hovered over the dark waters to bring forth creation, the Spirit breathes upon spiritually dead human hearts to regenerate them and give new, eternal life. Spiritual awakening is an act of divine resurrection, not behavioral modification.
Surrender the Fix-It Project
If you have been exhausted by your spiritual life, it may be because you are trying to do the Holy Spirit’s job with your own muscles. You cannot pull yourself out of spiritual death any more than dry bones can stitch themselves back together. Real, lasting transformation begins when you stop trying to "fix" yourself and surrender to the One who resurrects.
In our culture—and often within religious circles—we tend to approach spiritual growth as a personal self-improvement project. We attempt to correct our character flaws, manage our habits, or earn God’s favor through willpower, discipline, and behavioral modification.
Human effort can never repair a spiritual life that is completely lifeless. Our fundamental problem isn't that we are merely sluggish, out of shape, or in need of self-improvement—it is that, apart from God, we are spiritually dead, and dead tissue cannot regenerate itself; it requires life to be imparted from an outside source.”
When Ezekiel stood in the valley of dry bones, he didn't see bones attempting to assemble or revitalize themselves. The bones remained cold and motionless until God commanded His Spirit (Ruach) to breathe life into them. When Jesus spoke to Nicodemus, He emphasized that spiritual rebirth is an act of the Spirit—like the blowing wind—not something manufactured through human status or religious rigor.
Real, lasting transformation is not behavioral modification; it is spiritual resurrection. The Holy Spirit does not come just to polish our natural inclinations or help us become "better versions" of ourselves; He comes to impart divine life where there was spiritual death.
Surrendering to "the One who resurrects
Means admitting, "I cannot resurrect my own heart, fix my own deep-seated struggles, or manufacture true peace on my own strength".
Transformation oconnected to the Source of life, just as a branch bears fruit not by effort, but by remaining connected to the vine and that vine is Jesus.
John 15:1-8 NIV [1] “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. [2] He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. [3] You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. [4] Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. [5] “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. [6] If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. [7] If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. [8] This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.
When you stop treating your spiritual life as a self-improvement project and yield control to God, you step out of the cycle of exhaustion. You allow the Holy Spirit to breathe His resurrecting life into the dry, stagnant places of your heart—bringing about a transformation that human willpower could never achieve on its own.
Conclusion
Remember that you do not have to breathe life into your own dry bones. You don't have to manufacture spiritual vitality, nor do you have to force yourself into a state of rebirth through sheer religious effort. The same Spirit that hovered over the waters of creation, the same wind that breathed life into the valley of dry bones , and the same Holy Spirit that Jesus spoke of to Nicodemus is present with us right now, ready to resurrect what has been dead in your life. So lay down the self-improvement project today. Stop striving in your own strength, and open your heart to the heavenly wind. Yield your dry, weary places to God and allow the Holy Spirit to do what only He can do: and that is to breathe His resurrecting life, hope, and power into your soul.
Heavenly Father, Almighty God,
We come before You today acknowledging our deep need for Your Spirit. Forgive us for the times we have relied on our own strength, trying to fix ourselves, improve our habits, or earn Your favor through sheer willpower and human effort. We recognize today that we cannot improve our way into eternal life, nor can we pull ourselves out of spiritual deadness.
Holy Spirit, Breath of God, we invite You into the dry and weary places of our lives. Just as You breathed upon the valley of dry bones in Ezekiel’s vision, and just as You blow like the wind to bring about divine rebirth, we ask You to blow across our hearts today. Resurrect what has felt dead, revive what has grown cold, and awaken new spiritual life within us.
Help us lay down our self-improvement projects and yield completely to Your transforming power. Teach us to abide in Christ, the True Vine, knowing that apart from Him we can do nothing. May Your resurrecting presence move freely in our lives producing real, lasting fruit for Your glory.
In the precious and powerful name of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior, we pray.
Amen.
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