Sermon Tone Analysis

Hook

Pass out note cards to all the kids along with pencils.

Ask them to write down three things that are most important to them.

Ask them to write down what their purpose is.

Ask them to write down what makes up parts of your character.

Those things make up a part of what you’re “rooted” in.

What does that mean?

Think of it like a tree.

A tree has roots that grow down into the soil and cause it to grow.

So, what kind of soil are you rooted in?

What kind of tree will you be?

Will your soil cause you to be healthy or unhealthy?

Lots of people root themselves in different things.

Some people root themselves in themselves.

This means that they are seeking primarily what is important to them, looking for their own interests, and seeking to serve themselves.

Some people root themselves in things.

The more money, stuff, and possessions they can have the better.

This can be money, cars, technology, houses, collections, or whatever.

Their entire life is built around this.

Some people might root themselves in fun.

The more fun stuff they can do, the better.

They’re always looking for the next thrill, the next thing that brings them happiness and enjoyment.

They root themselves in always having a good time.

Some people even root themselves in relationships.

These people might look for as many relationships as possible (friendships or romantic), or they might thrive off of having that one person they connect with deeply.

Either way, they entirely seek these relationships and root themselves in them.

Being rooted is a good thing.

Everyone needs to be rooted in something.

What matters is what you root yourself in.

There is good soil, but there is a lot of bad soil.

People who root and plant themselves in bad soil will have a life where they may grow, but they grow poorly.

They’ll grow in a life filled with hurt, disappointment, betrayal, anger, suffering, and dissatisfaction.

Tonight we’re going to see what Paul recommends being rooted in.

Pay attention, and compare what you might be rooted in and look at what Paul says.

The Beautiful Mystery

Paul starts talking about a mystery in this passage.

He says that this is a mystery that was not known by people in the past, but it was just starting to be understood now through the messengers God sent; the apostles and prophets.

He says,

When I think of all this, I, Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus for the benefit of you Gentiles … 2 assuming, by the way, that you know God gave me the special responsibility of extending his grace to you Gentiles.

3 As I briefly wrote earlier, God himself revealed his mysterious plan to me. 4 As you read what I have written, you will understand my insight into this plan regarding Christ.

5 God did not reveal it to previous generations, but now by his Spirit he has revealed it to his holy apostles and prophets.

For this reason I, Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus on behalf of you Gentiles— 2 assuming that you have heard of the stewardship of God’s grace that was given to me for you, 3 how the mystery was made known to me by revelation, as I have written briefly.

4 When you read this, you can perceive my insight into the mystery of Christ, 5 which was not made known to the sons of men in other generations as it has now been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit

So what is this mystery?

I think he’s hyped us up long enough, so let’s find out what it is.

This mystery is that the Gentiles are fellow heirs, members of the same body, and partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel.

6 And this is God’s plan: Both Gentiles and Jews who believe the Good News share equally in the riches inherited by God’s children.

Both are part of the same body, and both enjoy the promise of blessings because they belong to Christ Jesus.

Paul says that the mystery is that Gentiles (who we talked about last week, we’re all Gentiles), also have the opportunity to be heirs and can enjoy the promises that come from Jesus Christ.

What he’s saying is that the Gospel is for everyone!

The State of the Gentiles

I touched on this last week when we talked about Jews and Gentiles.

There was a lot of division and hatred between Jews and Gentiles.

They couldn’t stand each other.

The Jews thought that they were the only ones to inherit blessings from God, and that the Gentiles were outside of this.

What Paul said here must have rocked their world.

Instead of a distinction between who the Gospel is for, Paul says it’s for everyone!

So tell me, what is the Gospel?

The Gospel is good news from God.

The Gospel is the news that God saw our hopeless state as we are lost in our sinful ways and separated from Him, that He sent Jesus to die in place of us sinners.

He payed the price and suffered the cost.

He rose from the dead to prove that He had beaten the power of sin and death.

This is all so that ANYONE who trusts this and turns to Him will be saved from their sins, and offered a new identity and purpose.

Mission of the Church

Paul next talks a little about himself, let’s read what he says.

7 By God’s grace and mighty power, I have been given the privilege of serving him by spreading this Good News.

8 Though I am the least deserving of all God’s people, he graciously gave me the privilege of telling the Gentiles about the endless treasures available to them in Christ.

9 I was chosen to explain to everyone this mysterious plan that God, the Creator of all things, had kept secret from the beginning.

10 God’s purpose in all this was to use the church to display his wisdom in its rich variety to all the unseen rulers and authorities in the heavenly places.

11 This was his eternal plan, which he carried out through Christ Jesus our Lord.

12 Because of Christ and our faith in him, we can now come boldly and confidently into God’s presence.

13 So please don’t lose heart because of my trials here.

I am suffering for you, so you should feel honored.

7 By God’s grace and mighty power, I have been given the privilege of serving him by spreading this Good News.

8 Though I am the least deserving of all God’s people, he graciously gave me the privilege of telling the Gentiles about the endless treasures available to them in Christ.

9 I was chosen to explain to everyone this mysterious plan that God, the Creator of all things, had kept secret from the beginning.

Paul says that he had the PRIVILEGE to share this wonderful news to Gentiles, to you and me.

It was Paul’s job to share this mystery.

It changed him so much that he couldn’t help but to share it.

He then says...

10 God’s purpose in all this was to use the church to display his wisdom in its rich variety to all the unseen rulers and authorities in the heavenly places.

11 This was his eternal plan, which he carried out through Christ Jesus our Lord.

12 Because of Christ and our faith in him, we can now come boldly and confidently into God’s presence.

13 So please don’t lose heart because of my trials here.

I am suffering for you, so you should feel honored.

The effect of the Gospel has amazing results.

The first, is that the Gospel and the wisdom of God is so powerful that it’s going to effect heaven.

When Paul says the “rulers and authorities in the heavenly places”, he’s talking about angels and heavenly beings.

The church has been so affected by the Gospel that even the angels see it and realize the amazing things God is doing.

Finally, he says that anyone who is in Christ, who is a christian, can come into God’s presence.

Jesus-followers have direct access to God.

There’s nothing stopping them.

Find your Roots

Paul starts this chapter with the amazing Mystery that is the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

He closes the chapter with a prayer for the church.

This all stems from the beauty of the Gospel.

In this prayer we’re going to see what a Christian should be rooted in.

What does it mean to be rooted?

To be rooted means to be firmly established.

It means to know where you come from, to know who you are, to know your purpose, to know what is important, and to know where you’re going.