Sermon Tone Analysis
Overall tone of the sermon
This automated analysis scores the text on the likely presence of emotional, language, and social tones. There are no right or wrong scores; this is just an indication of tones readers or listeners may pick up from the text.
A score of 0.5 or higher indicates the tone is likely present.
Emotion Tone
Anger
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Disgust
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Fear
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Joy
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Language Tone
Analytical
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Social Tone
Openness
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Conscientiousness
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Extraversion
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Agreeableness
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Emotional Range
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Tone of specific sentences
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Anger
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Have you ever sat at a table with that person who you always avoid.
They have an opinion about everything.
They always seem to be right.
And, then, when you hit that certain topic, you want to run, because they get heated.
Too heated.
Like the cops-might-be-called heated.
And then, your other friend shows up, who believes completely differently than your first friend.
And you just want to become invisible, because you know what is going to happen.
Friend number one starts berating friend number two, because if friend number two actually had a brain, they would agree with friend number one.
Well, maybe this hasn’t happened to you at a meal table.
But, it might have happened on social media, Facebook and the like.
I have looked at friends’ posts and then at the comments and have been appalled at what has been said to each other.
Perhaps it happened on your news program last night.
We all know how network news treats those whom they do not agree with.
Maybe it happened in church last month, or last year.
Christians sometimes aren’t the nicest people to each other.
Paul, in 1 Corinthians, is moving from the subject of marriage, to the subject of freedom in Christ.
But, as he dips his toe into that discussion, he first speaks about so-called knowledge.
How are we to react when the knowledge that we have about life and Christianity is different from the knowledge that someone else has?
We all know that the Bible is the Word of God.
It is completely correct.
It is not flawed.
It never changes.
Then, we have our viewpoint on the Word of God.
We take the words and we apply them.
Sometimes, intentionally or not, we twist them.
Our viewpoint is flawed.
The Word of God is perfect.
We are not.
What do we do when our viewpoint, or our knowledge, is different from the viewpoint or knowledge of someone else?
Let’s read what Paul says:
This week, we will focus on the first 6 verses.
Next week, we will look at the whole chapter and talk about freedom in Christ and those with weaker consciences.
Today, we are just going to talk about knowledge.
We will see that knowledge puffs up, but love builds up.
Let’s look at knowledge
Knowledge puffs up
Paul teaches that knowledge puffs up.
Now, why in the world would Paul say that?
Focuses on ourselves
Well, because knowledge just focuses on ourselves.
We live on this side of the Age of Enlightenment.
We live in a world impacted by learning.
Every kid is expected to be in school from the ages of 6 to 17. And, they are trying to get parents to send their kids to school as early as 3, if not earlier.
Now, I am not here to give my thoughts on those early childhood opportunities.
We can talk at another time, if you want my opinion.
We live in a world where knowledge is king.
We just people based upon what they know.
Or what they perceive they know.
Groups are formed based upon what people know about the 2020 election.
Other groups based upon what they know about healthy living.
Other groups based upon what they know about the Bible.
The elderly in society talk about what the younger generation doesn’t know.
For if they actually knew something, they wouldn’t be doing what they were doing.
All this focus on knowledge.
If someone just knew something, they would make a different decision in life.
But, knowledge doesn’t cut it.
Have you ever heard the phrase, “Too smart for his own good”?
There are some people who are intelligent.
They have a bunch of knowledge.
But, they do not use that knowledge well.
In fact, they lack what many people call “common sense.”
But, what the Bible calls, wisdom.
Interesting to note, the wisdom books in the Bible, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, never really promotes gaining knowledge.
In fact, Ecclesiastes writes:
Every senior loves that verse.
Knowledge doesn’t bring satisfaction.
The wisdom literature focuses on wisdom.
Knowledge is information.
Wisdom is the ability to discern or judge what is true or right or lasting.
Knowledge is knowing how to use a gun.
Wisdom is knowing how to use it and when to keep it holstered.
“Knowledge is what is gathered over time through the study of Scriptures.
It can be said that wisdom, in turn, acts properly upon that knowledge.
Wisdom is the fitting application of that knowledge.
Knowledge understands the light has turned red; wisdom applies the brakes.
Knowledge sees the quicksand; wisdom walks around it.
Knowledge memorizes the Ten Commandments; wisdom obeys them.
Knowledge learns of God; wisdom loves Him.”
Knowledge by itself is just a bunch of facts.
Knowledge by itself turns into a worship of ourselves.
It’s amazing how many Bible Churches, solid churches with solid doctrinal statements, like ours, are filled with people who know the Bible, but are stuck in their knowledge of the Bible.
They are worshiping the fact that they know the Bible.
Look at me!
I know all the books of the Bible and what their main themes are.
Look at me!
I know the timeline of the end times, and I can prove it to you using 33 books of the Bible.
And I can show you all the places that Left Behind got it wrong.
Look at me!
I know, and you don’t.
If you were truly someone who studied the Bible, this is what you would believe.
What I say.
Knowledge for knowledge’s sake, puffs up, because it focuses on ourselves, what we know, what we have studied, what we have proven to be true, at least what we believe to be true.
Knowledge puffs up.
It focuses on ourselves.
Creates an illusion
It creates an illusion.
When we are focused on knowledge, continually gaining knowledge, we create an illusion of who we actually are.
There are two different type of elderly people.
There are those who talk about everything that they know.
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