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.
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Emotion Tone
Anger
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Disgust
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Fear
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Joy
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Sadness
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Language Tone
Analytical
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Confident
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Tentative
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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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Introduction
What brings you joy at this time of year?
What brings a smile to your face at Christmas?
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Is Joy that first taste of Christmas cake? or Cherries?
Is Joy when the relatives all roll in from out of town?
Is Joy that anticipation of what gifts you will receive tomorrow?
I for one love feeling after a Christmas lunch when you roll your belly that grew two shirt sizes at lunch into the lounge and just relax in the company of friends or family.
I love that after lunch bliss.
The unfortunate part of this is that it’s all short lived.
My joyful post lunch bliss soon gives way to the dread of washing up.
The joyful anticipation of Christmas gifts gives way to the disappointment of a well-meaning but underwhelming present.
The joyful reception of the rellies gives way to bickering and backhanded comments about nagging about some unresolved family issues.
The joyful first taste of Christmas cake gives way to a second, and a third and a fourth and a fifth then growing sick of the taste and wishing you’ll never see another slice again!
(well not for twelve months anyway!).
The thing is that all the joys of this life are quite fleeting.
They come with great anticipation, they are enjoyed and then they fade with surprising quickness.
They are like flowers which after heaps of waiting, they bloom in brilliant colouring, and then fade into a wilting death.
Our fading joy and happiness is a common feature of this human life, and will probably be part of your Christmas this year, and the next.
But,
I want to tell you this morning about a Christmas Joy that transcends these fading and fleeting joys.
A Christmas Joy that transcends history.
A Christmas Joy that both transcends our lives, and can change our lives forever!
I’m going to spend some time talking about that portion of the Christmas story we read from the Biography of Jesus written by Luke.
We’re going to run through and have look at Three aspect of Christmas Joy.
1. Christmas Joy is Good News for All
The story starts with some fellas out in the paddocks watching sheep about 2000 years ago in Palestine.
These guys are not well respected in society.
They looked after the sheep to protect from thieves and wild animals.
But you know, they don’t need much training or skill for this work.
These shepherds were lower class folk.
There just minding their own business on the night shift.
Then an angel appeared!
Angels are God’s messengers.
They are not cute or cuddly.
They are terrifying!!
They are overwhelming!!
That is why the shepherds lose their cool.
They are scared and afraid.
It’s not uncommon for folks in the Bible to just fall down in shock when they come face to face with an angel.
Despite this instant fear, the angel says:
The angel comes with a message, from God to people.
A divine message from the heavens!
This message is Good News for All.
Good news of Great Joy!
Not "some” joy...
Not “a decent amount of” Joy...
Not “mediocre” joy...
GREAT JOY!!
The angel brings good news of Great Joy for all the people.
That news was not only for the shepherds, but for all.
For the low class, for the well off, the sick, the healed.
This news was for their kids, and their kids, and the kids, kids kids.
This Good News is for us even today.
This Good News of Great Joy is even for us today.
This Good News means Christmas Joy for us.
This news of the angel, this message he brought can bring Joy to all.
It brings Joy to the World.
Anyone can receive this good news.
Anyone may hear it - Race, gender, class, age, sexuality, past failure, doesn’t restrict you from this good news.
You’re never too dirty, or too far gone to receive this Good News!
Whoever you are, whatever you have done, you can have everlasting Joy by receiving this good news.
But what is the content of this message?
What is the Good News?
2. Christmas Joy is a Saviour Born
Well, the angel announces the birth of a Saviour: One who saves.
If you’re stuck at the side of the road and you have to call RACV, the mechanic they send to you is your saviour; they came to rescue you from a difficult situation - where you were trapped and needed help beyond your power.
But the saviour who brings everlasting joy is no mere technician - but strangely it is a baby!
This is a baby who from birth is expected to rescue people!
It says:
Why is this good news?
Why is it so significant?
When a future doctor is born, angels don’t turn up in the maternity ward and say “some day this baby will save lives”.
So what is special about this Christmas baby?
Why do angels turn up to announce it?
He is the Messiah.
He is called Christ the Lord.
That’s what sets him apart!
He is the Christ, the Messiah.
The “anointed one”.
If you read or watch enough fantasy and sci-fi, you will be very familiar with the “promised one” trope.
It has been done to death.
It’s basically a cliche now to have a prophesy of an unexpected person who will arise to save the day.
Here’s the thing, long before it was an overdone storytelling mechanic, Jesus embodied the reality of it.
He was the OG promised one - prophesied and expected, yet still unexpected when he turned up.
He is the long awaited rescuer.
He is the baby that was prophesied centuries before he ever turned up.
He is a baby that will bring Rescue.
He will bring Salvation to mankind.
People have been hanging out for his arrival since the dawn of time.
His Rescue will transcend fading and fleeting political empires.
A Rescue that transcends the ebb and flow of history.
A Rescue that both transcends our lives, and a Rescue that can change our lives forever!
But What do we need rescue from?
Why do we need a Saviour?
Most of us have pretty comfortable lives, roof over our heads, food in our bellies, clothes on our backs.
We’re not an enslaved country, we pretty free to do as we please.
We’re living a good life.
So why would you and I need rescue?
What do I need rescue from?
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