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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Tone of specific sentences

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Emotion
Anger
Disgust
Fear
Joy
Sadness
Language
Analytical
Confident
Tentative
Social Tendencies
Openness
Conscientiousness
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Agreeableness
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Anger
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A calling is the place where your gifts, abilities, desires, and feelings of worth all meet.
—Mike Yaconelli
INTRO - I am really enjoying this series.
Last week we spoke about the nobleness of Joseph and God’s provision for those in his service.
This morning we’re moving into the second book of the Pentateuch to discover more of God’s principles for his people.
Our story begins where God is calling to Moses to be the great emancipator of Isreal and lead them from their bondage in Egypt.
Moses is reluctant and offers excuses for not wanting to be the leader of Isreal.
Countering Moses, as we will see, God asks what is in Moses’ hand.
This is a heart searching question with present-day lessons for you and I.
EST - God will ask Moses what is in his hand and Moses will tell God it is a staff.
ESS - Our message will note God’s call to all of us, call us to examine what we bring, as well as inquire if there is something we must let loose.
OSS - Our time will conclude with an opportunity to recall God’s grace and his reassuring voice in our life as we seek his face in our daily lives.
TRANS - Let’s travel with one another to the days of Moses and listen in to hear God’s principles that transcend all of time.
PRAY
What does it say?
What does it mean
3 things
An Appeal “What is that in your hand?”
God calls you to his service.
He wants all of you and will use all of you.
Listen to God’s appeal to Moses - 2 things.
An appeal to surrender
“What is that in your hand?”
God wants all of us.
Do you give God everything?
He may ask:
for your time
for what is in your billfold
you share your story
or to start a fellowship in your home
God wants us to trust and submit.
Trust him for needs and submit when he asks “what is that in your hand?”
God wants our all, but never leaves us empty handed.
We must never forget that the word persevere comes from the prefix per, meaning through, coupled with the word severe.
It means to keep pressing on, trusting God, looking up, doing our duty—even through severe circumstances.*
God puts you and I into his community of grace.
God loves you BIG TIME.
Sure, Jesus calls on us to give everything, but once we answer “yes” in faith, he gives us so much more.
God is not asking because he lacks anything.
God asks because he wants to give us everything.
God wants people to know his crazy, super, radical, and amazing love for us.
Yet, the only way we can receive all God has for us is by surrendering, in faith, all we have to him.
An appeal to submit
“What is that in your hand?”
God wants the very thing Moses is holding, what he possesses.
God does need what we hold, our possessions.
God wants wants our will.
The appeal to Moses is to his will, to submit to God.
Submission to God is obedience to God.
Many years ago in Russia a regiment of troops mutinied.
They were at some distance from the capital, and were so furious that they murdered their officers, and resolved never to submit to discipline; but the emperor, who was an exceedingly wise and sagacious man, no sooner heard of it than, all alone and unattended, he went into the barracks where the men were drawn up, and, addressing them sternly, said to them: “Soldiers!
you have committed such offenses against the law that every one of you deserves to be put to death.
There is no hope of any mercy for one of you unless you lay down your arms immediately, and surrender at discretion to me, your emperor.”
They did so, there and then.
The emperor said at once: “Men, I pardon you; you will be the bravest troops I ever had.”
And so they were.
Now, this is just what God does with the sinner.
The sinner has dared to rebel against God, and God says: “Now, sinner, you have done that which deserves My wrath.
Ground your weapons of rebellion.
I will not talk with you until you submit at discretion to My sovereign authority.”
And then He says: “Believe in My Son; accept Him as your Savior.
This done, you are forgiven, and henceforth you will be the most loving subjects that My hands have made.”
We’ve discussed God’s appeal to Moses to surrender and to submit.
Now let’s consider Moses’ response.
An Appraisal “A staff.”
That is Moses’ reply to God, “A staff.”
The staff is simply a shepherd’s crook, nothing more.
2 things
Appraisal of depravity
“A staff.”
Moses does not see anything special about a staff that it might serve the Lord.
Perhaps you don’t have some special ability that God can use?
Perhaps you are short on talent, not a gifted speaker, or not a teacher.
Some even go as far as thinking they seem useless, worthless, and work out ways to disqualify themselves.
The appraisal of sinful people is not what God recognizes in the one he fills with his Spirit.
Okay, so we see Moses’ appraisal.
Now, how does God see things?
Appraisal of Deity
God works on a different scale.
He makes us of things in ways we may not expect.
This staff, for example, has a great work ahead:
It is called the “staff of God” Ex 4:20 & 17:9
It is stretched toward Heaven and over Egypt in a prominent way during the miracles of a snake in Ex 9 & 10
We note it’s presence in the opening of the Red Sea in Ex 14:16
It’s used to strike the rock to provide water for the people in Ex 17
It is noted as lifted in the hands of Moses during the victory over the Amalekites (Ex 17)
Sure it’s just a staff, but yielded to God is can become great and powerful.
Do you recall the story of the boy with the few fish and little bread?
Too often the problem is not a matter of having enough, or what it takes, but a lack of surrender and submission.
Okay, so God is saying surrender and submit and I can do much more with that staff than you can ever imagine.
Now, the staff is not anything special.
It’s just a staff.
But, say it were something wicked?
Does that change the story?
An Admonition “What is that in your hand?”
This sounds the the question of an inquiring mother to a big-smiled son holding his hands behind his back.
It could be phrased, “are you holding something that you shouldn’t be holding?”
To and adult, it could even be, “Are you holding something unholy?”
Things such as:
porn magazines, that includes internet
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