Sermon Tone Analysis

Introduction

I really love my children.

But, what I’ve come to realize is that my children are sinners.

Because they are sinners, they have to be disciplined.

And so, I’m in that uncomfortable position now of knowing exactly what our parents meant back when they said, “This will hurt me more than it will hurt you.”

In our house, lying is a capitol offense.

We have a zero tolerance policy on lying, and GK knows this.

But several weeks back, she and I were play together and having fun.

And, then, for no apparent reason, she lied to me about something that didn’t even matter.

I mean, we’re laughing and having the best time, and she just spews out this lie for a reason I will never know.

When I asked her, she confessed that she had lied to me.

When I asked her why, she didn't even know why she did it.

And, I had to discipline her.

And I hated every second of it.

But, I disciplined her because I love her.

I wasn't angry.

I was heartbroken.

I did not do it because it made me feel better or because I wanted her to be repaid for her wrongdoing.

The only reason that I disciplined my daughter is because I want her to be saved from the destructiveness of lying.

I want her to know that her own heart will deceive her and that consequences are definite.

This morning, we're going to see how this type of sorrowful, painful, gut-wrenching love is worked out within the life of a church family.

God’s Word

Read

Loving Lost Sheep

“does he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and go in search of the one who went astray?”

Now, the thing about this passage is that it can really be viewed as a negative passage, if you only lock in on these six verses.

Oh, but if you place it in the context of what Jesus has been saying, it is really quite beautiful, and you’re able to see what a description of love this really is.

In , Jesus has been talking with his disciples about what life is going to look like in the Christian community.

That is, Jesus is preparing them for life within the church for the long haul.

This conversation all came about because the disciples weren’t getting along very well.

A rivalry had came up among them and an argument had ensued.

And so, Jesus brought this little child into the middle of the group, and he held up this boy that had no standing in the world, no illusions of his own entitlements, totally dependent on others for his well-being, and He said this is what it looks like to be great in the Kingdom of God.

And then, Jesus told a story.

He told this story because He knew that his disciples would sometimes stray away, and He knew that the tendency of the others would be to look down upon the one who strayed and to kick the one who was down and to feel themselves as being greater than the one who has fallen.

So, Jesus tells the story of a shepherd with a modest flock of 100 sheep that has one wayward sheep that has strayed away.

The shepherd leaves the 99, and he pursues the one straying sheep until finally he is able to find it and bring it back into the flock.

Oh and the shepherd celebrates and rejoices with all of his heart upon finding the once lost sheep.

And, Jesus’ point to his disciples was that this is how they are to care for one another.

Because they are ‘little ones’ in the Kingdom of God, because they are humble, they will pursue any wayward disciple with all of their hearts so that they might bring them back into the fold.

And that is the context of verses 15-20.

This is about love.

This about grace.

This is about refusing to quit on someone.

This is about rescue and deliverance.

This is about the gospel!

(When) Your Brother Sins Against You

The Offended

“if your brother sins against you” In verse 15, Jesus starts off by saying, “If your brother sins against you.”

Now, your translation may exclude the phrase ‘against you.’

There is quite a bit of debate as to whether that phrase is actually a part of the original text.

Some of the oldest manuscripts exclude it, but it is found in others.

The good news is that it changes the meaning very little as it is still clearly instance of private sin that is intended to be handled privately if at all possible.

I do think that the ‘against you’ is probably part of the original text.

Now, Jesus uses the word ‘if’ here, but the truth is that He could have just as well have used ‘when’, couldn’t he?

Because this is going to happen.

Don’t hold your brother at arm’s length.

APPLICATION: Your brother or sister in Christ is going to sin against you.

Jesus here is telling us to expect it and how to handle it.

For many Christians, especially those who are young in their faith, when this happens, it throws them in a tailspin.

And, truthfully, I don’t care how long you’ve been a Christian or how long you’ve been in the church, when this happens, it’s painful.

But, the first thing that I want you to notice from the perspective of the one who has been sinned against is that you cannot let the presence of sin and the potential for pain in the church to cause you to hold the church at arm’s length.

Jesus’ first instruction to us when we’ve been hurt and wounded is not to run from our brother or to withdraw from our church; it is to go to him!

Go to him!

Go to him so that you can be unified.

Go to him so that reconciliation can happen.

(When) You Sin Against Your brother

It’s important to note in our text that there are essentially two main characters.

There is the one that has been sinned against, and there is the one that has committed the sin.

And, as we walk through this text, it’s important for us to realize that at one point or another, we will be each of these people.

As we walk as recovering sinners through this broken world, we will at some point be hurt by others, and at the same time, we will at some point hurt someone else.

So, this text prepares us not only to give correction, but to receive it.

You are always living with two simultaneous realities in the Church: You are a disciple, and you are a disciple-maker.

You are to receive instruction and correction and help, and you are to give instruction, correction, and help.

Don’t hold your brother at arm’s length.

APPLICATION: And, what Jesus was teaching his disciples that day is that kind, godly, humble correction is a gift of grace to the one in sin.

It’s an act of love, and Jesus’ disciples are to receive it that way.

When you're caught in sin, your heart will either harden or it will humble.

And, a regenerate heart, a heart filled with a passion of Christ, a heart sealed by the Holy Spirit is a heart that will humble itself and receive correction.

Have you ever considered that being caught in your sin is a gift of grace from God to save you from further damage?

APPLICATION: Your brother or sister in Christ is going to sin against you.

Jesus here is telling us to expect it and how to handle it.

For many Christians, especially those who are young in their faith, when this happens, it throws them in a tailspin.

And, truthfully, I don’t care how long you’ve been a Christian or how long you’ve been in the church, when this happens, it’s painful.

But, the first thing that I want you to notice from the perspective of the one who has been sinned against is that you cannot let the presence of sin and the potential for pain in the church to cause you to hold the church at arm’s length.

Jesus’ first instruction to us when we’ve been hurt and wounded is not to run from our brother or to withdraw from our church; it is to go to him!

Go to him!

Go to him so that you can be unified.

Go to him so that reconciliation can happen.

Have you ever considered that being caught in your sin is a gift of grace from God to save you from further damage?

Pursue your brother’s good.

“you have gained your brother” Now, I want you to really look at the language that is being used here, especially in verse 15.

Truthfully, verse 15 is a very regular part of our discipleship, and 95% of the time it should never go a step past this very step.

This is just part of living with other sinners, whether it’s in your house, or it’s in your church.

But, 95% of the time this is as far as it even goes because this is just part of our discipleship in the faith.

But, notice the language that’s used here because it sets the tone for the rest of the text.

It calls him your brother, and so right out of the gate, Jesus is saying that this is about family!

Then, He says that it’s about ‘gaining’ your brother.

Your translation may even use the phrase ‘you have WON your brother.’

In other words, the whole goal of going to your brother, the whole reason that you are supposed to ‘go to him’ is that He might be saved.

The goal is not to make you feel better.