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
0.16UNLIKELY
Disgust
0.13UNLIKELY
Fear
0.19UNLIKELY
Joy
0.18UNLIKELY
Sadness
0.51LIKELY
Language Tone
Analytical
0.69LIKELY
Confident
0UNLIKELY
Tentative
0.51LIKELY
Social Tone
Openness
0.69LIKELY
Conscientiousness
0.67LIKELY
Extraversion
0.3UNLIKELY
Agreeableness
0.9LIKELY
Emotional Range
0.55LIKELY
Tone of specific sentences
Tones
Emotion
Language
Social Tendencies
Anger
< .5
.5 - .6
.6 - .7
.7 - .8
.8 - .9
> .9
Pursuing the Wisdom of Leaders
Years ago, even before my time, there was a radio comedian named Fred Allen.
He had the reputation of being somewhat negative.
On one he was walking with a friend when a truck started to bear down on a newsboy in front of them.
Allen dashed out and snatched the boy to safety, then snarled at him/, 'What's the matter, kid?
Don't you want to grow up and have troubles?”/
Now I am NOT a negative person, although I do expect that will probably change as I get older.
And I am not a pessimist.
In fact, I think that pessimism is destroying this country!
I’m not a pessimist, but, dog-gone it, something will probably go wrong Friday night when they replay the episode of 24 we missed last nite.
But when I started looking at this passage we have to deal with today, all I saw were problems!
All of them are Matt Stafford’s fault for assigning me this passage.
Why do I get the hard passages?
Lynn Gardner gets “Thankfulness.”
I could do thankfulness in my sleep.
That’s something I really know about.
But instead, I get this!
Mark Moore preaches Thursday on the cross.
I already have a sermon on the cross!
It’s one I stole from Mark Scott several years ago.
Instead, I get 1 Cor.
1:10ff.
And all I see are problems here folks.
Let me show you the first one:
| Problem #1 |
I. My assigned topic is “Pursuing the Wisdom of Leaders,” but when I read this passage it seems to be a rebuke to people who follow leaders!
Just look at what it says,
/10 I have a serious concern to bring up with you, my friends, using the authority of Jesus, our Master.
I’ll put it as urgently as I can: You must get along with each other.
You must learn to be considerate of one another, cultivating a life in common.
/
/11 I bring this up because some from Chloe’s family brought a most disturbing report to my attention—that you’re fighting among yourselves!
/
/12 I’ll tell you exactly what I was told: You’re all picking sides, going around saying, “I’m on Paul’s side,” or “I’m for Apollos,” or “Peter is my man,” or “I’m in the Messiah group.”
/
/13 I ask you, “Has the Messiah been chopped up in little pieces so we can each have a relic all our own?
Was Paul crucified for you?
Was a single one of you baptized in Paul’s name?” /
You see the problem, don’t you?
Paul is not encouraging them to “Pursue the Wisdom of Leaders” – at least not on first reading.
How am I supposed to preach a sermon about following leaders if Paul is saying here don’t follow leaders?
Well, doggone it, this brings me to another.
| Problem #2 |
II.
Problem #2 . . .
you can see why I am so upset with Matt Stafford here, can’t you? . . .
Paul seems to be out of touch with reality.
That is /exactly /what some people claim.
Paul was out of touch with reality, just look at what he says here in the NIV, 1:10:
10 I appeal to you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you /agree/ with one another so that there may be /no divisions among you/ and that you may be /perfectly united in mind and thought/.
[1]
You know, you would think that Paul had never been to a church before.
Think about it!
Agree completely!
Uh-huh.
NO divisions among you!
Yah.
Perfectly united in mind and thought!
– Now folks, I am not at all sure you will understand this reference, but it is going to take more than a Vulcan mind meld to accomplish this.
I read dozens of sermons on this passage.
Some of them come right out and say that Paul had lost touch and is wrong in what he says here.
WE ARE NOT OF ONE MIND AND WE NEVER WILL BE. . . .
Paul is wrong if he believes that people can agree all the time.
Paul is wrong if he believes that we will all stand together.
We can’t all stand together because we are different people.[2]
Now here at Ozark, we’re a little hesitant about saying Paul is ever wrong on anything.
But at least we can say this: Paul seems to be a bit unrealistic here.
How can we in the church have the kind of unity Paul is talking about?
| Problem #3 |
\\ III.
Paul says here that we shouldn’t follow anyone.
Doesn’t he?
Just give it a quick read.
He rebukes them for dividing up and claiming allegiance to specific leaders.
He very clearly says, “Don’t do that!”
After all, these guys were not crucified for you.
You were not baptized into them.
You know there are some groups that teach this same sort of thing.
You can find groups that believe for example that no leaders are needed since we all have a direct line to the Holy Spirit & God.
The Quakers historically fall into that category, although some of them have changed that emphasis in more recent times.
One of our family memories from our time in England has to do with the time we attended a Quaker service.
We actually were running late so I was distracted and forgot to warn everyone about the kind of service they would have.
· Late, so everyone looked up as we entered
· Sat for several minutes with heads bowed.
TOTAL SILENCE!
· After probably 15 minutes of just sitting and squirming, my 10 year old son leans over to me and says, “Fun church, dad.”
/Is Paul saying that w/e don’t need leaders in the church.
That’s a problem here at a school that focuses on raising up Christian leaders for the church!
Okay, now you have all heard people say something like, “I love a good challenge.”
We have several good challenges here before us today, but as for me, I’m not all that fond of good challenges.
What I really like are good solutions!
Fortunately, there are good solutions to the problems we have mentioned.
Let’s take the problems in reverse order:
| Solutionto Problem 3 |
\\ Problem III.
Paul says here that we shouldn’t follow anyone.
Oh come on.
Paul can’t be saying here that we are not to follow anyone, that we are not to have any human leaders.
I know it /sounds/ like he is saying that, but you know that he can’t be saying that because . . . of all that he has to say about this kind of stuff elsewhere.
I felt more than a little sentimental last week after the Tuesday honor chapel for Brother Lynn, then his sermon on Thankfulness.
You know I hope that is not the last time he preaches in chapel, but if it is, I am /grateful/ to have had the opportunity to hear it.
Back when I was a student some of the classes were arranged a bit differently.
But the Bible interpretation class I had was taught by Brother Gardner.
I mean it when I say that I will always be eternally indebted to Brother Gardner for the things I learned in that class.
< .5
.5 - .6
.6 - .7
.7 - .8
.8 - .9
> .9