Sermon Tone Analysis

Introduction

In the world we live in, both today and in the days of the early Church, many different ideas exist about how the world works and what, if anything comes next.

If not careful, it is easy to become susceptible to some of the unbiblical ideas and teachings that are prevalent in our society.

We need to know how to make sense of the non-sense that we encounter so often.

Christians around the world often differ to a certain degree in terms of how they understand the Bible and practice their Christian faith.

We don’t always see eye to eye on some of the finer aspects of Christianity and how to live it our; however, in most cases, these are areas we call the negotiable aspects of Christianity.

These are areas that we may agree to disagree on, yet still hold to the same common faith, calling ourselves Christians.

For example, we have some who disagree on whether or not it is appropriate:

for women to wear pants,

for mixed company—men and women—to swim together or sit in Church together,

for Christians to partake of alcoholic beverages in limited amounts,

for Christians to smoke,

on whether or not it is biblically permissible for women to serve as Deacons or be ordained as Ministers

and even on things such as whether or not it is OK to have drums in Church.

There are those who debate whether we are saved because we hear the message of the Gospel and choose to give our life to Christ, or if we are saved because God chose us to believe.

We have those who disagree on the events of the Last Days.

We can disagree on all these things, and more, yet still hold to the same fundamental teachings of the Christian faith that identifies us as Christians.

None of these are salvation issues.

None of these are among the non-negotiable teachings of the Christian faith.

However, there are many teachings today that contradict areas, which are not negotiable.

There are some points on which we cannot waver and still rightly call ourselves Christians.

The early Church faced similar problems.

Recognizing the need for a simple statement that defined the necessary elements of the Christian faith, before any formalized Church existed as we know it or the division of any separate denominations, and before it was possible for people to have their own individual copy of God’s Word, the Church put together a statement of beliefs, based on the Apostle’s teachings that defined the essential aspects of the Christian faith known as the Apostles Creed.

It reads as follows:

I believe in God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, And in Jesus Christ his only Son our Lord, Who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, Born of the Virgin Mary, Suffered under Pontius Pilate, Was crucified, died, and buried.

He descended into hell; On the third day He rose from the dead; He ascended into heaven, and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty; From there he will come to judge the living and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Spirit; The Holy catholic Church, the Communion of Saints; The Forgiveness of sins; The Resurrection of the body, And the Life everlasting.

Amen

These are the essential elements of the Christian faith that the Church felt could not be divested from the faith without renouncing the faith altogether.

It is essential for Christians, and those considering accepting Christ, to understand at least the basic elements of the Christians faith, because there are many teachings that exist in our world today, just as there were in Paul’s day, that mimic many of the qualities of the faith, while denying the essential aspects of it.

They often focus on the social morality of the faith without the personal responsibility.

They focus on the potential of man, while ignoring the sovereignty of God.

If one is not careful, it is easy to get swept away and deceived by these teachings, just as many in the Corinthian Church did, because they often sound close to the truth, but leave a little more room for the pleasures of life.

In the Church at Corinth, the issue that began to cause problems was the belief in the resurrection of Christ.

To the Greek philosophers, the idea of a bodily resurrection was foolishness.

In their understanding of the World, which taught that the flesh was the source of evil, they could not understand why anyone would want to be resurrected in the flesh.

As people in the Church began to listen to this teaching, they began to believe that the rewards promised by God were only what they experienced in the here and now, which led to their degradation into sexual immorality and carnal living.

It was so bad that in , Paul criticized them for making a mockery of the Lord’s Supper by stuffing their faces before anyone else was served and becoming drunk on the wine meant for communion.

Being open to every teaching they heard left the Church at Corinth vulnerable to sinful practices and heretical teaching that had the potential of completely derailing their faith altogether.

As Paul addresses this poor teaching that led to poor behavior in , his intention is to clarify the message that he first preached to them in such a way that they would not only understand the implications these new teaching had on salvation, but also how they were leaving them with no foundation for their faith.

Paul essentially tells them that what we believe about salvation is as essential as our belief in salvation.

There are many different ideas in this world about God and Heaven, but not all of them are true.

In todays world, there are several teachings that many people hold that provide them with a false sense of security, with no scriptural, historical, or logical foundation whatsoever, and too many people are slowly being swallowed up by these false teachings.

All Roads lead to God.

There are many different ideas in this world about God and Heaven, but not all of them are true.

Knowing how to evaluate what you hear is essential to maintain a right belief in God.

God loves everyone too much to judge them.

There is no objective truth—no eternal lawmaker and judge.

As Paul addresses the issue of the resurrection, he gives us several areas in which we should evaluate every teaching that we hear in this world so that we can Make Sense of the Nonsense.

he gives us several

Is it Consistent with the Evidence?

Many people hold to the Christian faith on the grounds that you must have faith, despite what the facts say.

Unfortunately, not only does that do little to sway most people to Christ, but it is contrary to the examples of the Apostles or Christ Himself.

The Bible saves that we are saved by grace, through faith.

However, Jesus taught on several occasions that we only need a kernel of faith to be saved.

The faith we need is in the promise that Jesus’ sacrifice was sufficient to pay for our sins, and that because He was resurrected to a glorified body, so shall we.

However, the birth, death, and especially the bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ is not something we have to take on faith.

Paul tells us in that it was foretold in the Scriptures, it was witnessed by followers who knew Him intimately; it was witnessed on more than one occasion, and by a large number of people, at the same time.

He appeared to His own brothers.

Now, it might be argued that all of these testimonies are invalid, because people may have seen what they wanted to see; However, Paul says that lastly, Jesus appeared to Him.

While one might argue that his close disciples and His brothers saw what they wanted to see, or that the large number experienced a case mass of hypnotic suggestion or hallucination, even though they touched Him, spoke with Him, and ate with Him on numerous separate occasions, Paul was an enemy of Christ, who violently persecuted the Church.

Not only did he witness the resurrected Jesus, but his witness was so powerful and convincing that He became the most outspoken witness for Christ.

Anytime we encounter a teaching in this world, it is essential that you evaluate it based on the evidence available.

Is it evidentially supportable, and does it line up with what we know about reality.

Christianity is the only worldview that is supported historically, forensically, Scripturally, and scientifically.

Unfortunately, many beliefs held by people today are simply that, beliefs.

They have no concrete foundation beyond their personal opinion, yet people hold to them passionately.

Is it Consistent with the Christian Faith?

If you are a Christian, whenever you hear something that claims to be true, especially as it relates to the way the world works, the nature of man, and the issue of life after death, you should always evaluate it based on how it lines up with the Bible.

If it contradicts the Bible, especially in the areas that matter the most, you need to disregard it as being wrong.

Paul points out to them that this teaching they were embracing, that there is no resurrection of the dead was inconsistent with the proclamation that Jesus has been raised.

Essentially, Paul says that there is a contradiction between the two beliefs.

On one hand, they believed in the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

They held to the Christian faith, believing they would receive God’s blessings as a result.

However, at the same time, they used this teaching that there would be no resurrection of the dead as an excuse to live however they wanted, claiming that the pleasures of this World represented the rewards of God.

Paul tells them that this teaching is a blatant contradiction of what they had believed, and proceeds to point out the logical conclusion of this new teaching.

He says that if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been resurrected, and if Christ has not been resurrected, then He is still dead.

If that is the case, then everyone who has fallen asleep in Christ have truly perished, and they themselves have no hope whatsoever.

They were holding what is referred to as contradictory truth claims.

One of the major problems that the Church faces today is the widely accepted idea that each person has their own truth, based on their own personal opinion.

The World claims that what is true for one person might not be true for another, which is a logical fallacy.

They were holding what is referred to as contradictory truth claims.

One of the major problems that the Church faces today is the widely accepted idea that each one of us can hold to our own truth, based on your own personal opinion.

The World claims that what is true for one person might not be true for another.

We often see hints of this in the Church, where people will make statements like, “Well, this is what this means to me.”

Now, they might mean that they apply it differently to their life and their individual circumstances, but there is only one truth to Scripture.

First, the nature of truth is that if something is true, it is always true no matter what time or place, and no matter what the situation.

Second, you cannot have two contradictory statements that are both true.

For example:

If I told you that 4 + 4 equals 10, what would you say?

You would say I was wrong.

4 + 4 = 8.

In the same way, if I said that 4 + 4 equals 10, and you said that 4 + 4 = 8, can we both be right?

Can we both be right?

What if I told you that might be true for you, but it’s not true for me?

You would probably tell me that they are exclusive statements and both cannot be right.

One or both of us would have to be wrong.

Many people who count themselves as Christians believe things that are equally contradictory with the Christian faith.

Many of the teachings in our world today are just as incompatible with the truth of the Gospel message as saying 4+4 = 10.

Many of the teachings in our world today are just as incompatible with the truth of the Gospel message as saying 4+4 = 10.

In the same way, Paul tells them that this teaching is a blatant contradiction of what they had believed.