Sermon Tone Analysis

Intro

Opening Story/Illustration: We all like a good secret.

Probably about a year ago, Bailey and I started playing this game, where I’ll say, “I’ve got a secret.”

And then I’ll whisper something in her ear.

She started playing back with me and does the same thing.

THere’s something about a secret that everyone wants in on.

A friend of mine recently lost a lot of weight, and guess what everyone wants to know?

HIS Secret.

Talk to students in middle school, and most of them can’t wait to be in high school.

Talk to the high school student and they can’t wait to be in college.

Talk to the high school student and they can’t wait to graduate and start their career.

Talk to the guy in his career and he can’t wait to retire.

In summer, we can’t wait for winter and in winter we can’t wait for summer.

We complain when there is no rain and then we complain when there’s too much rain.

We want to be on vacation, but when we are there we can’t wait to get back home.

We always want to be somewhere else doing something else and want to have something else.

We have restless hearts that are full of discontent.

Transition to the text: In the book of Philippians Paul writes to the church at Philippi and as he ends the letter, he pulls them in close and tells them a secret.

The Book of Philippian is a letter written by the apostle Paul

He writes it to a church in the Roman City of Philippi

Paul had planted the Church here - He saw a vision of a man from Macedonia (Philippi is in the province of Macedonia) and came to Philippi.

(See )

It was here that he and Silas were beaten and jailed and the Lord provided a way of escape via an earthquake.

Paul had gotten to know this church over the years and he was evidently very close with them.

He’s writing to thank them for the gifts they have sent his way, to encourage them through their own sufferings, and to challenge them to continue to walk out their salvation without allowing it to be diluted down by false teachers.

He’s writing from Prison, yet the letter carries with it a sense of Joy and peace.

If anyone should be discontent, it should be Paul, yet he writes this letter with a sense of joy and contentment that is hard to explain.

This is a more subtle theme of the book of Philippians - That God is going to come through and provide everything that is needed.

He’s in prison for something

This is a more subtle theme of the book of Philippians - That God is going to come through and provide everything that is needed.

Paul reminds them that:

God was going to finish the work he started ()

God was working - even through his sufferings ()

As Paul closes his letter he reminds them one last time that God was going to provide all that they needed.

In the closing words of this letter, Paul says to us that he’s figured something out - He’s learned a secret.

He’s figured out how to be content no matter what he faces.

How does he do this?

Something I’ve noticed about human nature is that we are, as a whole, very discontent.

We always want to be somewhere else and we always seem to want something more.

Something I’ve noticed about human nature is that we are, as a whole, very discontent.

We always want to be somewhere else and we always seem to want something more.

Talk to students in middle school, and most of them can’t wait to be in high school.

Talk to the high school student and they can’t wait to be in college.

Talk to the high school student and they can’t wait to graduate and start their career.

Talk to the guy in his career and he can’t wait to retire.

In summer, we can’t wait for winter and in winter we can’t wait for summer.

We complain when there is no rain and then we complain when there’s too much rain.

We want to be on vacation, but when we are there we can’t wait to get back home.

We always want to be somewhere else doing something else and want to have something else.

We have restless hearts that are full of discontent.

So What is Paul’s secret?

Biblical Text:

Transition to points: Paul’s reminding us that we can have joy and peace even in the midst of life’s difficulties because God is going to take care of us and he will provide.

Points

Paul can be content because he has chosen to be thankful

At the end of the letter Paul, yet again, returns to a theme of thankfulness and worship.

Here, stuck in prison for Jesus, Paul, once again, chooses to be grateful.

He closes this letter by thanking the Philippians for their gifts and support.

Remember that they had sent Epaphroditus to Help him.

They had evidently sent help and support “more than once.”

Here’s a man who has been through imprisonment, beatings, and had been mistreated more times that we can imagine - Yet he chooses to be thankful.

Remember in Acts - Paul and Silas are in Prison in Philippi, yet they choose to praise God! (

Paul had a track record of learning to look at the positive in life.

This isn’t just mind over matter or positive thinking

He had learned to look at the Big picture.

He says this in

He can be thankful because he knows that God is in control and will ultimately work things out.

We must to choose to be thankful

You can praise or pout - You can either gripe or be grateful!

The choice is yours to make!

You can praise or pout - You can either gripe or be grateful!

The choice is yours to make!

If you get nothing else out of tonight, remember this: Choose to be grateful.

Choose to rejoice in the Lord no matter the circumstance.

If you look hard enough, there is always something to complain about!

But If you look hard enough, there is always something to be thankful about!

Illustration: There’s a story that you may have heard before, but it illustrates this point so well.

There was once a set of twin girls and one of them was forever the optimist and one of them was a terrible pessimist.

So the parents decided they were going to take care of this situation.

So for Christmas one year, they got the pessimist the most lavishly amazing gift they could find.

They got her a brand new doll house.

With all the bells and whistles.

She opened it up and the parents were convinced she was finally going to be excited about something.

But much to their surprise, the little girl opened the package and started complaining right away.

It was too small.

The color was all wrong.

It wasn’t exactly what she wanted.

The other little girl opened her package and found in it simply a pile of horse manure.

The parents thought, surely she wouldn’t be excited about this, but much to their surprise she digs in and start throwing the manure around the room and screaming excitedly - “Where’s the pony?

Where there is this much manure, there’s go to be a pony!”

At every situation in our life, You always have the choice to be thankful!

And what you choose, will determine the outcome.

Make choosing thankfulness a habit!

Paul can be content because he knows that his strength and provision come from Christ

Paul tells us that he’s learned something

In verse 11 - I have learned how to be content

In verse 12 - I have learned the secret of living in every situation

SO WHAT’S THE SECRET??

This verse (13) often gets misused.

It’s not a blanket verse that’s just supposed to encourage you when something gets hard.