Sermon Tone Analysis

This Sunday is known as Trinity Sunday.

The focus of the worship service is on the teaching that our God has revealed himself to us as one God in three persons.

Christians are monotheists which means that we agree with the Jews and the Moslems that there is only one God.

We support our belief with passages such as:

But unlike the Jews and the Moslems, we believe that our God has come to earth by taking on human flesh in a unique way.

The Jews believe that God had promised to do this but do not accept that Jesus is the one.

The Moslems believe that Jesus was a great prophet (not as great as Mohammed) but that neither one is divine.

Christianity teaches that through the incarnation God took on human flesh.

Therefore, we have God revealing himself to us as the Father and the Son.

Not two gods but two persons of the same godhead.

We also believe that the Holy Spirit is not just the divine person but a unique person as well.

They are spoken of equally in the baptismal formula “In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.”

So we teach that God is three (tri) persons in one (une) or Triune.

The word itself is made up but the teaching is not.

Our three ecumenical creeds teach about the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit with each successive one being more detailed that the previous one.

On Trinity Sunday it is the custom to read or recite the longer and less familiar of the three as we will do today.

Our text, although its main focus is not in teaching the Trinity but Justification by Faith includes all three persons of the Trinity so it is good to focus on it today.

The book of Romans is a very detailed doctrinal letter.

The first part emphasizes that we are saved by faith in Jesus.

We cannot be right with God through obeying the Law because is Law is perfect and we are not.

Our sins against God deserve condemnation not only because of the seriousness of our sins but the prestige of the person we are sinning against.

Illustration: If you were walking out of church and I told you to stop and you did not, that may be a sin because of what Hebrews says.

(NIV) 17 Have confidence in your leaders and submit to their authority, because they keep watch over you as those who must give an account.

Do this so that their work will be a joy, not a burden, for that would be of no benefit to you.

But that would depend on the circumstances.

17 Have confidence in your leaders and submit to their authority, because they keep watch over you as those who must give an account.

Do this so that their work will be a joy, not a burden, for that would be of no benefit to you.

But if you were running away from a crime scene and a police officer ordered you to stop, that is a criminal offense because the law gives him greater authority.

This was recognized in biblical times as well.

So when the ultimate authority (God) commands us to do even the smallest thing and we disobey(sin), he has the right to exact the greatest punishment.

Romans continues by teaching that even though we deserve condemnation, God sent Jesus to take our place and that through faith in him, we are justified (declared not guilty) and that God will not punish us for our sins.

We receive this blessing by trusting in Jesus (faith) and not by what we do (works).

summarizes this.

(NIV)

1 Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2 through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand.

And we boast in the hope of the glory of God.

We now have peace with God (the Father).

Several years ago I preached on this text on Memorial Day weekend and gave the example that on Memorial Day we remember those who gave the ultimate sacrifice (their lives) so that we may have peace.

Living at peace with other nations is a great blessing.

None of us has ever experienced the turmoil of living in a country in which war was being carried out on home soil.

We don’t have to run for shelter during a bombing run, avoid certain roads because they are mined, house enemy troops, leave our homes because they have been destroyed, etc.

We have peace.

Our conscience will at times question a greater peace we have received.

The Law make us conscious of sin.

When we are reminded of God’s Law, we must confess that we have disobeyed in our thoughts, words and actions.

We feel guilty and ashamed and fear the consequences.

Being justified by faith means we can trust that God has forgiven our sins and that we have access to the grace of God.

Justification by faith isn’t just about what happens to our souls when we die, it is about how we relate to God day in and day out.

With peace comes hope.

(NIV)

1 Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.

Hope basically is the confidence we have that the circumstances we are currently in will improve.

The opposite is despair.

Despair says that if you think things are bad now, they are only going to get worse.

It is very negative.

Hope on the other hand is very positive.

It assures us that no matter how difficult the situation, in the end all will be well.

Jesus had this hope as he was dying on the cross for our sins.

(NIV)

1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles.

And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, 2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith.

For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 3 Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.

Notice how the Bible teaches us to have hope for future glory by trusting in Jesus.

Romans teaches this too.

Paul writes to people who suffered.

He himself was not immune.

At times we also suffer.

The person who undergoes surgery will do so because they hope that their bodies will be better afterwards so they endure the pain and the rehab.

Athletes who train for competition will push their bodies so they become stronger and build stamina.

We work hard during the week so we can enjoy the weekend.

Many hours are spend in study to earn a degree.

Not all suffering involves persecution.

But even that will result in a better future.

As confirmation that this is true, St. Paul could point to past examples of how this happened.

He could also point to the third person of the Trinity who confirmed God’s love for his people.

Last Sunday we had seen how the Holy Spirit came on the apostles on Pentecost and how later in answer to prayer he came to the believers in Jerusalem.

At other times the New testament tells how the Holy Spirit came in connection with the preaching of the Gospel on those who believed.

This was evidences by signs and wonders.

We don’t see the outward signs so much now because the Gospel has been confirmed but we can be confident that he still comes to our hearts even today through the means of grace and that our hope is strengthened.