Sermon Tone Analysis
Overall tone of the sermon
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Tone of specific sentences
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To say we live in a youth-oriented culture, is to say the least, an understatement.
Old age in our society is often looked upon as a blight rather than as a normal and even desirable part of one's life cycle.
Youth is "in" while Old is "out."
The market place gives little attention to the elderly in our society.
Few, if any, of the great clothing designers of the world create for the elderly woman.
The beauty industry is obsessed with finding oils and creams and lotions that supposedly restore the skin, hide the lines and reverse the aging process.
Hair restoration for men is a multi-million dollar industry.
As the Baby Boomers grow older they have increasingly turned to plastic surgery which is now a multi-billion dollar industry.
Madison Avenue continues to perpetuate the myth that aging is an undesirable consequence of life and best to be avoided.
I mean, let's face it, what do you see the elderly advertising on T.V.? Things like Denture Cream, Ex-Lax and Depends undergarments.
Even our language reveals our dim view of old age.
How many times have you heard someone drag out this time-worn cliche', "She's not old.
She's seventy-two years young!"
It is, of course, an attempt at a complement.
The implication, however, is that old is bad and young is better.
Even church ministry and outreach are geared toward the young.
Many churches call a Minister of Youth.
How many call a Minister of Old? Yet most of our churches and communities have vastly superior numbers of retired people than they do of children and teenagers.
1985 was a milestone year in America, albeit one which passed very quietly.
For the first lime in the history of our nation there were more people in our society 65 and older than thee were of those who were 18 and younger.
Did you know that two-thirds of all the people who have lived beyond 65 in the entire history of the world are alive today.
The over-65 crowd now constitutes 14% of our nation's population.
As we look at the Scriptures this morning, we need to face two questions: 1) What does the bible have to tell us about old age and aging?
and 2) How must the church respond to an increasingly aging society?
!
I. THE BIBLE PULLS NO PUNCHES ABOUT THE REALITY OF OLD AGE
#. first, how do you know when you're getting old?
* ILLUS.
I used to not think about getting old, but there are too many signs present for me to ignore any longer.
There are a few more aches and pains now.
I only weigh about ten pounds more than I did 20 years ago, but my weight seems to be shifting to places I don't want it to go.
So you see, aging is becoming more salient to me as time goes on.
A few years ago, Linda were Mt.
Vernon, Ill.
attending her Uncle Ralph’s funeral.
At dinner that afternoon we were eating when one of Linda's cousins looked at me, smiled and said, "Good lord, you're getting gray!"
According to my wife, the real tell-tale sign that I'm aging is that I'd rather listen to talk-radio than music!
#. those may be the tell-tale signs that I'm aging, but how do you know when you're really old?
#. let me share with you some warning signs
#. 'You know you are getting old when ...
#. /You know you're getting older when you finally reach the top of the ladder and find it leaning against the wrong wall."/
#. /You know you're getting older when your knees buckle and your belt won't."/
#. /You know you're getting older when a fortune teller offers to read your face rather than the lines in your hand."/
#. /You know you're getting older when everything hurts, and what doesn't hurt, doesn't work."/
#. /You know you're getting older when you sit in a rocking chair but can't get it going."/
#. /You know you're getting older when you look forward to a dull evening."/
#. /You know you're getting older when you little black book contains names ending only in M.D."/
#. /You know you're getting older when you sink your teeth into a steak, and they stay there."/
#. /You know you're getting older when your favorite part of the newspaper is '25 years ago today."/
#. /You know you're getting older when you watch a pretty girl go by and your pacemaker makes the garage door open/
#. /You know you're getting older when the only thing you want for your birthday is not to be reminded of it/
* ILLUS.
During his presidency, Ronald Reagan told the following story at a White House reception.
"It seems that an 80-year-old man's golf game was hampered by poor eyesight.
He could hit the ball well but he couldn't see where it went.
So his doctor teamed him up with a 90-year-old man who had perfect eyesight and was willing to go along to serve as a spotter.
The 80-year-old man hit the first ball and asked his companion if he saw where it landed.
'Yep,' said the 90-year-old.
Where did it go?' the 80-year-old demanded.
The 90-year-old replied, 'I don't remember.'"
#. we can laugh at those, but seriously, there is not one problem associated with aging that the bible does not refer to and which God does not understand
!! A. THE BIBLE IS HONEST ABOUT THE PHYSIOLOGICAL PROBLEMS ASSOCIATED WITH AGING
* Ecclesiastes 12:1 /"Remember your Creator in the days of your youth, before the days of trouble come and the years approach when you will say, "I find no pleasure in them"/
#. the days of trouble the writer refers to are the twilight years of life
#. the author speaks of a weariness oflife--
#. he is tired and his body no longer measures up to his expectations
#. the years have not been kind to his physic
#. this becomes obvious when the author writes, /"I find no pleasure in them"/
#. in verses 2-5 the writer poetically details some of the physical problems associated with aging
#. "when keepers of the house tremble, and the strong men stoop"
#. his bones have become brittle and his posture is not longer firm and erect
#. /"when the grinders cease because they are few"/
#. his teeth are falling out
* ILLUS.
In the ancient Eskimo culture, women used their teeth to chew the skin of animals to make them soft for sewing into garments.
When her teeth wore out she became useless to the tribe.
At that point in her life she was expected to wander out unto the frozen tundra and die.
Aren't you glad you're not an Eskimo?
#. praise God for Denture Grip
#. /"those looking through the windows grow dim"/
#. his eyesight is becoming poor
#. /"when the doors to the street are closed"/
#. he is talking about digestive tract trouble and constipation
#. /"when the sound of grinding fades"/
#. he is talking about a loss of hearing
#. you know you're getting old when you can't even hear yourself chew!
#. /"when men rise up at the sound of birds"/
#. here he is talking about sleeplessness
#. /"when men are afraid of heights"/
#. for some, aging is marked by loss of equilibrium -they lose their balance easily
#. /"afraid of dangers in the street"/
#. loss of strength/inability to defend oneself
#. /"when the almond tree blossoms"/
#. the hair begins turning gray
#. /"when the grasshopper drags himself along"/
#. arthritis!
#. /"desire no longer is stirred"/
#. sex is something you used to do
* ILLUS.
John MacArthur tells the story of an elderly couple who came back from a wedding one afternoon.
Being at the wedding put the wife in a romantic mood.
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