Sermon Tone Analysis

Introduction

You are in a job where you have been treated just above the position of slave

You have a very low salary, just enough to get by

Very little vacation time or sick leave

Boss doesn’t appreciate what you do and never recognizes you.

You have an opportunity to go somewhere else where you will make good money, but you don’t have the money to go.

You ask your boss.

He gives you the money.

He sets up transportation for you.

He gives you a bonus before you leave

He gives you so much, that he is actually left with very little.

Sounds make believe and to good to be true, but isn’t this what happened to the Jewish people when they left Egypt?

Read

21 And I will give these people such favor in the sight of the Egyptians that when you go, you will not go empty-handed.

22 Each woman will ask her neighbor and any woman staying in her house for silver and gold jewelry, and clothing, and you will put them on your sons and daughters.

So you will plunder the Egyptians.”

And I will give this people favor in the sight of the Egyptians;

b Background-Departure (c) and when you go,

c Denial you shall not go empty,

22 a Prediction but each woman shall ask

b Source of her neighbor, and any woman who lives in her house,

c List-Item for silver

d List-Item and gold

c List-Item jewelry,

e List-Item and for clothing.

f Prediction You shall put them on your sons and on your daughters.

g Prediction So you shall plunder the Egyptians.”

b.

And what God promised actually happened.

Read

35 The Israelites acted on Moses’ word and asked the Egyptians for silver and gold jewelry and for clothing.

36 And the LORD gave the people such favor in the Egyptians’ sight that they gave them what they requested.

In this way they plundered the Egyptians.

c.

The Israelites did as they were told, and they took so much stuff that the Egyptians gave to them, it would have appeared that they had been robbed.

4. God Prompts People

God had the Egyptians look upon the Israelites and give them everything they asked for.

The Egyptians basically plundered themselves.

The Israelites didn’t have to steal anything, it was given to them.

How did this happen?

We really don’t know

Scripture says , “the Lord had made them favorably disposed toward the Isrealites.”

The Egyptians did all of this out of free will which was exactly what God wanted them to do.

The Israelites future was in the hands of other people, but God was able to control those hands.

We’ve all found ourselves in situations where our future depended on other people and their actions towards us.

a grade on a test

a promotion or raise that is dependent on someone over us

performance reviews

We all have our own responsibilities in these areas, but what we do also relies on what other people do for us or to us.

Suppose we have someone who wants to harm us or our reputation.

Can we trust God to intervene in the heart of that person?

Can God change the minds and attitudes of people towards us?

The answer has to be yes.

People will argue that this goes against free will.

If we can’t answer this yes, then there is a huge area of our lives where we shouldn’t be able to trust God to take care of us.

A king’s heart is like streams of water in the LORD’s hand:

He directs it wherever He chooses.

This statement is clear about the way God can control our thoughts and our actions towards others.

We saw how God moved Pharoah and the Egyptians, but He also did the same to Cyrus for the rebuilding of the temple.

Read Ezra 1:1

1 In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, the word of the LORD spoken through Jeremiah was fulfilled.

The LORD put it into the mind of King Cyrus to issue a proclamation throughout his entire kingdom and to put it in writing:

This passage directly tells us of God working in the heart of Cyrus to make this proclamation regarding Israel.

Their fate was in the hands of the most powerful of this time.

Isaiah also gives us more insight to God’s working in Cyrus’ heart.

Isaiah 45:4-5

4 I call you by your name,

because of Jacob My servant

and Israel My chosen one.

I give a name to you,

though you do not know Me.

5 I am Yahweh, and there is no other;

there is no God but Me.

I will strengthen you,

though you do not know Me,

4. Neither Cyrus nor the Egyptians believed in God.

Nor did they want to follow His revealed will.

But they did follow the direction of their hearts which were directed by God.

God also had to move in the hearts of the Israelites as well for the project of rebuilding the temple.

Ezra 1:5

5 So the family leaders of Judah and Benjamin, along with the priests and Levites—everyone God had motivated i—prepared to go up and rebuild the LORD’s house in Jerusalem.

He also moved in the heart of another king to see the project through to the end.

Ezra 6:22

22 They observed the Festival of Unleavened Bread for seven days with joy, because the LORD had made them joyful, having changed the Assyrian king’s attitude toward them, so that he supported them in the work on the house of the God of Israel.

Another instance of God working in the hearts of people is found in the life of Daniel.

When Daniel isn’t wanting to defile his body by eating the food offered to him, the official could’ve reported this to the king and caused great trouble.

But scripture says the official showed favor towards Daniel and his friends.

This wasn’t normal.

The Bible talks about how God caused the official to show Daniel favor in this request he had.

One final instance is from Titus

2 Cor 8:16-17

16 Thanks be to God who put the same concern for you into the heart of Titus.

17 For he accepted our urging and, being very diligent, went out to you by his own choice.

Notice that Paul gives both thanks to God and Titus.

To God for putting the concern in Titus’ heart and to Titus for acting on it.

God Restrains People

We’ve taken a look at how God works in the hearts of people to have them do certain things, but God also will work in the hearts of people as well to restrain them from causing harm to His people as well.

Abraham

He lies about who his wife is for fear that Abimelech may kill him to have Sarah.

He says she is his sister.