and tells us what it means. One stick represents Israel and the other Ju dah, the kingdoms which were divid ed in 930 B.C. In the closing hours of the dispensation of grace here on earth, we see these two coming to gether again. Jeremiah is full of these promises: 23:6, 30:10, 32:27, 33:16, 46:27, 28. The 30th chapter is particularly helpful. Again, it was David Ben Gurion who declared, “The Bible is our man date! The land of Israel was the birthplace of the Jewish people. Here they wrote and gave the Bible to the world. Compelled by this historic as sociation, Jews strove throughout the centuries to go back to the land of their fathers and to regain their statehood. Now we’re back! We do not intend to ever leave again.” As the salmon would fight to get back up the river for spawning at the place from which it originally came, so the Jew is inexorably head ing back to the land of promise. As believers, we have a tremendous re sponsibility, even as Paul suggested in the 10th chapter and the first verse of the epistle of Romans, “Brethren, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for Israel is, that they might be saved.” That’s our desire. That’s our purpose. That’s our ear nest prayer and expectation. Part II A very inventive optometrist was anxious to secure business through some clever advertising. He sought to encourage people to have their eyes checked. He had a sign made to be placed in the window of his office. It read on this wise, “You can’t be optimistic with a misty op tic.” You know, as we think about the conditions which prevail in the world today, we should remind our selves that as believers we can’t be optimistic about the future if our spiritual eyes are cloudy, and if we don’t perceive the events spoken of
prophesies that the Jewish people will be returning as dry bones. The bones come together and then are covered over with flesh and sinew. Yet there is something vital which is missing. There is not any breath of life in the renewed corpse. So, even today, we see that the children of Israel are returning to their right ful land. These bones of hope long dead are returning from the ceme- taries of the world’s nations to which they had been dispersed. They are being gathered together with the flesh and sinew placed on the bones. What they now await is the Messiah from heaven to give the breath of life. It was Prime Minister David Ben Gurion who said, “If you can get three Jews to agree on any one thing in all the world, then legend has it that the Messiah will come.” That may be a facetious remark, yet spirit ually it is true. The valley of dry bones is not some rhythmic song that the Fred Waring group sings. It is a reality which speaks clearly of fu ture events in Israel. Also in Ezekiel 37:15-20 there is an interesting ac count of the two sticks coming to gether. This is not just some fanci ful story. Scripture explains itself
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Dr. Charles L Feinberg (left), dean of Talbot Thee- logical Seminary, makes a special award to Ron McDonald, a graduate from Talbot Theological Semi nary, majoring In New Testament. The award was for excellence in the field of homiletics. Looking on is James DeYoung from Illinois who was also graduated this year from TTS.
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