Sermon Tone Analysis
Overall tone of the sermon
This automated analysis scores the text on the likely presence of emotional, language, and social tones. There are no right or wrong scores; this is just an indication of tones readers or listeners may pick up from the text.
A score of 0.5 or higher indicates the tone is likely present.
Emotion Tone
Anger
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Fear
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Analytical
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Social Tone
Openness
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Conscientiousness
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Extraversion
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Agreeableness
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Intro:
Last week, California had it’s largest earthquake in quite some time.
The Ridgecrest earthquake was measured at a 7.1 on the richter scale.
If you’re wondering how powerful that is, one source compared it to the power of 45 nuclear bombs.
That’s pretty scary to think about the ground shaking with that kind of force.
Most of you know Janelle and I are from California.
I can remember quite a few earthquakes in my life.
One in particular was right after my oldest son was born.
After his birth, he spent 10 days in the NICU.
Because of the care he needed, he was taken to a hospital in near Anaheim, about 90 mins north of San Diego.
I can remember Janelle and I wanting a break from the hospital room, so we decided to grab breakfast at the local Dennys.
Now, some of you know that Anaheim is where Disneyland is located.
I mentioned this because Georgie was born in the Summertime (actually his birthday is in a couple of weeks) and Disneyland was in full tourist-mode.
As we entered Dennys, it was packed with people who had traveled from all over to visit the Magic Kingdom.
Our meals had just gotten to the table when we began to notice a vibration.
Then, it got stronger and stronger.
We soon realized we were having an earthquake!
So, we calmly got under the table - something all southern Californian children are trained to do in school.
However, when the shaking stopped, we got up and noticed the restaurant was nearly empty.
No, it wasn’t the rapture.
What happened was all the tourists (those who weren’t used to earthquakes) had panicked and ran out of the restaurant and literally ran into the parking lot and streets.
Slowly, they begun to come back in to gather their belongings, but they were crying and talking about how they just wanted to go back home.
Janelle and I looked at each other and laughed.
It wasn’t even a strong earthquake (5.5).
It’s amazing how where you grow up and what you’ve experienced affects your perspective on life.
We grew up expecting earthquakes.
It was just a reality of life in California.
So, we prepare for them.
And when they happen, life goes on.
But for the tourists who weren’t expecting an earthquake or had never experienced one, it was like the world was ending.
What we’ve experienced and what we expect can shape both what we’re afraid of and what we’re prepared for.
It can impact our outlook on life and our hopes for the future.
Georgie’s birth:
California.
Earthquake.
Just had one.
Tourists - Shaking.
We’re trained for it.
It’s amazing how where you grow up and what you’ve experienced affects your perspective on life.
It shapes what we’re afraid of and what we’re prepared for.
It can impact our hopes and future?
Like California, Philadelphia was a region impacted by earthquakes.
Early in the first century, an earthquake rocked this city and it took a while for them to recover.
Especially since aftershocks lingered for a long time.
They literally lived on shaky ground.
Always wondering when the next quake would hit.
This changed the way they viewed life.
One bible commentator said the people “made all their plans with earthquakes in mind.”
If you will, this “fear” influenced the hopes and future of the community.
And I’m sure you can agree, living in constant fear is no way to live.
You may have heard before that God says (in one way or another) in His Word, “Do not fear” 365 times.
At the very least, that’s significant because there is a command to not fear every day of the year.
God doesn’t want His people to fear.
Rather, He wants us to trust Him - to put our faith in Him.
The Bible says:
We also read...
God’s people don’t need to be afraid, because God is “their” God!
Growing up, I was DEATHLY afraid of the dark.
Honestly, I still kinda am.
Unfortunately, I think I passed this gene to my sons.
My kids are afraid of the dark.
They don’t like going upstairs at night by themselves.
The basement - forget about it!
However, when I’m with them, that fear goes away.
Why?
Because in their mind, “I got them.”
I’ll take care of them.
They trust me.
They trust I will protect them.
And the fear goes away.
That’s how God want us to live.
He wants us to trust Him, no matter how scary and unpredictable the circumstances, because He is with us.
That was his message to the Philadelphians.
He wrote...
Exegesis:
The language here is emphatic to both titles of “the holy one” and “the true one.”
Jesus really wants us to pick up on this.
He wants us to understand - this is who I am!
He is “the holy one”… the title reserved for God alone.
And He is “the true one”… the one who is perfectly true, perfectly genuine, perfectly faithful.
He is God and we can trust Him!
Then, Jesus adds something interesting.
He says, “[the one] who has the key of David, who opens and no one will shut, who shuts and no one opens.”
Very likely Jesus is referencing ...
Back in Isaiah’s day, there was a steward to King Hezekiah.
He was probably the 2nd most powerful person in Judah.
And he had a ton of responsibility.
But in this passage, Isaiah the prophet was calling him out.
You see, he was an unfaithful servant.
One of his duties would be to care for the citizens of the kingdom.
Yet, this steward (Shebna), was only concerned about leaving a legacy for himself.
And so Isaiah prophesied that another man - a man of no reputation - named Eliakim, would take his place.
Only Eliakim would be faithful.
He would be given the keys to the kingdom and could be trusted to fulfill his responsibilities.
The king and the people could trust him.
He was even described as a peg securely holding the tent (or house of Judah) in place.
But then we read...
This wasn’t to say that Eliakim would eventually be unfaithful.
Rather, it points to the fact that Eliakim was just
a man.
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