Sermon Tone Analysis
Overall tone of the sermon
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Tone of specific sentences
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*Psalm 56 *
*1 Sam.
21:10-15 (Background study)*
*/Introduction:/*
A. Illus.: Two weeks ago I was sitting in a worship planning meeting.
I was
nursing a tall cup of Starbucks coffee.
I noticed what was written on the back of her cup.
It says, /“The/
/Way I See It #247” /and then I saw these words: /“Why in moments of crisis do we ask God for strength/
/and help?” /We were at that moment planning this service with the theme, “God is our protector,” so I
picked up the cup and slid the sleeve away to read the rest.
/“As cognitive beings, why would we ask/
/something that may well be a figment of our imagination for guidance?
Why not search inside ourselves/
/for the power to overcome?
After all, we are strong enough to cause most of the catastrophes we need to/
/endure.
– Bill Scheel, Starbucks customer from London, Ontario.
He describes himself as a ‘modern day/
/nobody.’”
/It was odd, reading that as we planned a service to worship God for the help he gives us.
I’m
surprised Bill Scheel hasn’t learned this yet, but there are times in life when you can /“search inside/
/ourselves for the power to overcome,” /and not find any help at all! Just ask David.
B. David was between the proverbial rock and a hard place!
The story is in *1 Sam 21:10-15*.
He was on the
run from King Saul, who saw David as a threat to his crown.
All the king’s horses and all the king’s men
were closing in on David when he found himself looking down from a mountain bluff on the coastal
plains of Philistia and the town of Gath.
He couldn’t go back, because the king’s men were closing in.
Ahead of him were the Philistines—Israel’s archenemies.
So with what one writer called /“the courage/
/of despair” /he walked into Gath.
I suspect he was hoping they wouldn’t recognize him, or maybe the
Philistines would figure if he was running from Saul, “the enemy of my enemy is my friend.”
But
whatever he thought would happen, things went south fast.
You may not remember that Gath was the hometown of Goliath—the giant David had killed.
And if
that’s not bad enough, David had just begged a weapon from Israel’s priest—the only weapon he had—
the sword of Goliath.
Very distinctive, I assume, not to mention big!
So here’s David, walking into
Goliath’s hometown, carrying Goliath’s sword, and in *v.11*, /“the servants of Achish [the king of Gath]/
/said to him [the king], ‘Isn’t this David, the king of the land?
Isn’t he the one they sing about in their/
/dances: “Saul has slain his thousands, and David his tens of thousands”?’” /So they thought David was
already king when he was actually on the run from the king.
And if that wasn’t bad enough, those /“tens/
/of thousands” /David had killed were Philistines.
So David is standing alone in Goliath’s hometown with Goliath’s sword, surrounded by Philistines,
and out beyond the Philistines was the waiting army of Saul.
David was in the bull’s eye! *V.12 *says,
/“David took these words to heart and was /*/very much afraid /*/of Achish king of Gath.” /Very much afraid.
What do you think, Mr. Bill Scheel, coffee cup philosopher?
Do you think David should /“search/
/inside himself for the power to overcome”/?
You wonder what goes through someone’s mind in a time like that!
Well, actually, we know what
went through David’s mind.
He prayed, and later he wrote down for Israel just what it was he prayed.
And God delivered him in a weird way: *vv.13-15*...
That was clever, to be sure, but it had to be
humiliating, too, for a warrior like David.
And when they kicked him out of Gath, it wasn’t like his
troubles were over.
But the next verse says, /“David left Gath and escaped to the cave of Adullam.”
/22:1
C. I bet you know what it is like to feel trapped; to be caught between a rock and a hard place; to be the
bull’s eye.
You know what it is like to be */“very much afraid,” /*don’t you? *When we are **/very much/*
*/afraid /**the most practical, urgent thing we can do is to pray—and to pray well*.
*Ps.
56 *is our
template for how to pray in such times.
Turn there and notice the inscription... Let’s add this prayer-song
to our repertoire.
We’re going to need it!
*I.
I**N YOUR PRAYER**, **PUT YOUR ENEMY IN **G**OD**’**S HANDS…**(56:1-2, 5-7)*
A. The first thing we need to get straight if we’re going to pray psalms like this is who our enemy is.
David’s enemies weren’t generic bad guys.
God had promised David that he would be the father of a
royal dynasty over Israel that would reign forever.
God was pinning all his future plans for his people on
this man and his descendants.
Ultimately, God’s salvation would come through the Jesus, “son of
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David”.
So those trying to kill David threatened the eternal purposes and the absolute promises of God.
They were Enemies with a capital E.
Jesus faced the same threats as David, and as followers of Jesus, so will we.
Our Enemies (capital E)
aren’t just people who make our lives difficult.
They are those who would rob us of our royal privileges
and promises given us in Christ.
Your real enemies are not the bully at work or school, nor a bill
collector or an obnoxious relative.
In fact, Paul says our enemies aren’t ultimately flesh and blood at all,
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