Sermon Tone Analysis

Introduction

Pastor Don

Fear will rob you of the potential that God wants to do through you.

There are many kinds of fears:

Strange Fears:

Nomophobia - The phobia is characterized by feelings of anxiety that arise from being out of a phone’s range of service, not having one’s phone charged, having no credit on one’s phone or misplacing it.

It is believed that over 50 percent of cell phone users are affected by nomophobia.

ancraophobia — Fear of wind.

People who suffer from ancraophobia tend to become anxious out of doors and near open windows.

Anxious feelings can also manifest themselves when passing hand dryers or overhead air vents.

It is believed that the fear is triggered by an experience embedded in the person’s subconscious.

Spectrophobia — is a fear of mirrors and one’s own reflection. is a fear of mirrors and one’s own reflection.

Ablutophobia — persistent fear of cleaning, washing or bathing and occurs more in children and women than men.

It is not a very common phobia.

Chorophobia — is the fear of dancing.

It also manifests itself into a fear of any situation, event or person that is associated with dancing.

(Or it can also be considered the fear people have AFTER they see me dance!)

Arachibutyrophobia — Fear of Peanut butter sticking to the roof of one’s mouth.

Optophobia — Fear of opening one’s eyes.

NOHOPEOPHOBIA — Totally made that up - fear of having no hope.

Hope (especially in the Christian understanding) is settled expectation that the best is yet to come.

When you have hope you can weather almost anything.

Without it, you feel crushed under almost everything.

Illust - USS Indianapolis

When you have hope you can weather almost anything.

Without it, you feel crushed under almost everything.

Illust - USS Indianapolis

v

Hope is an important thing because without it, you feel like your sinking.

Behind the lights of the Christmas tree, many of our neighbors and family members have a fear of hopelessness:

problem at work, in health, in marriage that seems so permanent.

The divorce or death means that things will definitely look different this year.

The career or job that seemed so stable now isn’t

It leaves you asking “Will I ever be happy again?”

Maybe you, too, understand the fear of hopelessness.

Even if one of those scenarios has not happened to you, you carry a fear that one day it will.

(ESV)

26 In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, 27 to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David.

And the virgin’s name was Mary.

34 And Mary said to the angel, “How will this be, since I am a virgin?”

35 And the angel answered her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy—the Son of God.

36 And behold, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son, and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren.

37 For nothing will be impossible with God.” 38 And Mary said, “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.”

And the angel departed from her.

Mary’s full of hope (like a bride)

Not sure how old Mary was but could marry as young as age 12

Betrothal in the 1st C meant you were essentially married.

Part of 2-step process

1— formal agreement, bride price

2— about a year later the actual marriage happened and the husband took wife home

During that year, husband would prepare home, etc.

Mary like a young bride-to-be planning her wedding, filling up one Pinterest board after another thinking about all of the possibilities she has in front of her.

Might be dreaming of how many children she and Joseph would have and what their names would be.

Gabriel arrives

Not a cute little baby angel

Name means “God is my warrior”

one of two angels named, along with Michael, serve as archangels for God.

When you have hope you can weather almost anything.

Without it, you feel crushed under almost everything.

Illust - USS Indianapolis

29 But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be.

30 And the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God.

Do not be afraid?!

What was she afraid of?

Angel - probably

but is also ‘greatly troubled’ at the saying

“favored” = graced

Unlike what we are told about Zechariah, nothing is said here about Mary’s piety (although we’ll see in her response to the angel that she trusts God)

What God as about to do was solely based on HIS grace toward Mary and not anything Mary would or could do.

(When Jesus breaks into our world it is completely an act of grace)

‘Do not be afraid’ — favored — prophetic for what the angel knew was coming.

31 And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus.

32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High.

And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, 33 and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”

34 And Mary said to the angel, “How will this be, since I am a virgin?”

Mary may be young but she’s not dumb — she understands how life works

Hope (as Mary understands) is about to be shattered

How would she / could she explain this?Hope (as Mary understands) is about to be shattered

How would she / could she explain this?

Mary’s response is “How can this be?”

Jesus’ real father was God and his mother was Mary — this is how Jesus can be both human and without original sin.

Original sin through Adam — Jesus had no original sin..

35 And the angel answered her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy—the Son of God.

36 And behold, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son, and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren.

37 For nothing will be impossible with God.” 38 And Mary said, “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.”

And the angel departed from her.

How would she / could she explain this?

**Ever feel hopeless?

Four ways to overcome fear of hopelessness:

1. Recognize the favor of God.

28 And he came to her and said, “Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!”

Think for a minute about the situation Mary is in:

She has just been told she is going to be pregnant with no

husband in a culture where this is not only frowned upon but punishable by death.

The man she loves, Joseph, is probably not going to understand

the situation and will probably leave her.

She is already poor... if Joseph rejects her she’ll be destitute.

She might have to beg.

How could Mary rejoice and sing with this news?

Because she believed by faith in who this child would be - the Son of God!