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
0.48UNLIKELY
Disgust
0.16UNLIKELY
Fear
0.07UNLIKELY
Joy
0.59LIKELY
Sadness
0.48UNLIKELY
Language Tone
Analytical
0UNLIKELY
Confident
0UNLIKELY
Tentative
0.17UNLIKELY
Social Tone
Openness
0.72LIKELY
Conscientiousness
0.73LIKELY
Extraversion
0.23UNLIKELY
Agreeableness
0.79LIKELY
Emotional Range
0.74LIKELY
Tone of specific sentences
Tones
Emotion
Language
Social Tendencies
Anger
< .5
.5 - .6
.6 - .7
.7 - .8
.8 - .9
> .9
May the words of my mouth and the meditations of all our hearts be truly acceptable to you - Amen
Ø WHAT WE DO - even things that on the surface look righteous and pleasing to God
o Mean nothing to God - if we don’t do them with a *truly* sincere heart
Ø Our Old Testament reading, today from second Samuel, shows us how even one of the greatest heroes of scripture, King David, gets it wrong
o Wrong, yet on the surface it all seemed right
Ø I will set the scene for you
o In the two chapters right before today’s some pretty significant events transpire
§ All the leaders of the tribes of Israel have come together - and in their uniting together they anoint David as King over all Israel
§ Jerusalem is made capital of the united Israel
§ David leads the March of the ark covenant to Jerusalem
· He was dancing before the ark of covenant with all his might
Ø Then today’s passage - which starts out innocently enough
o we are told that the Lord had given him rest from all his enemies
Ø David - in this moment of rest - gets a bright idea
o David contemplates that he is living in a mansion - a house built of cedar and he wants to build a temple for the Lord to house the ark of the covenant
§ The prophet Nathan, which seems to be David closest advisor agrees
· As far as he can see the Lord has been *with* David, therefore the Lord must be *with* David in his intention to building the temple
Ø On the surface it all looks to make sense
o On the surface David’s intentions seem honorable
§ David is showing his respect for God and the things of God by wanting to build a temple for the ark of the covenant
o his closest advisor and therefore likely all those close to the new King, see David’s intentions as a sign of worship to God
Turning point
Ø But God knows better!
Ø There is an old joke “how do you make God laugh?
o tell him YOUR plans” (pause)
§ This joke runs to the very heart of passage today
Ø You see God instructs Nathan through a vision that David’s is to be rebuked (told that his plans for building a temple are not going to happen and why)
o Now how would you to be Nathan?
§ He is faced with telling the most powerful man in Israel that God knows better - that God knows David’s intentions - and they are not honourable
· Yet we are told of no resistance at all from Nathan - nowhere do we see Nathan second guessing his vision
o Truly this was a faithful servant and prophet of God, in touch with God’s will and ways
Ø So what was God saying when he rebuked David
o God questions David with a wonderfully sarcastic line “Are you the one to build me a house to live in?”
Ø Aside : there is an important key to understanding the whole rebuke
o there is a significant literary emphases on the word house - it is used in four ways - name, place, house and ancestors
Ø God knew David’s heart - knew his intentions and his motivation
o You see David thought he was doing something for God
o And God called him on it
§ /He says through Nathan…/
· “Go and tell my /servant/ David”
· no longer is this David the King - but David the servant
· /he says that /God has been present with them in all their wanderings in every situation
· /God says through Nathan that /All of David’s success is due to God and not to David’s effort alone
o David is taken “From the pasture to the prince”
§ As the smallest of the brothers, not big enough to go to war with the Philistines - as the shepherd - home to tend the sheep
§ Yet over about 15 years transformed in the King over all Israel
· /He says that /It is God has defeated his enemies
· /That /God will appoint a place for /his/ people - and they will be disturbed no more
o This is a promise and prophecy
§ This is the David’s covenant
§ God will make David a great name
§ God will make a /House/ for David
Ø Why was God putting a halt to the best intentions of David
§ Or at least - what on the surface seems like the best intentions
o Because God knows our hearts - God sees through it all - and knows our true motivation
o God knows that David was trying to do something FOR God - he was going to build a House for God - and God’s calls him on it
§ I guess here I should be careful what I say about “*temple building”* in light of the new Parish Hall
/ /
o God doesn’t want our stuff
§ God wants our hearts
§ There are countless examples of how God through the prophets telling us that what WE give to God is not the important thing.
/ /
§ Our *duty* given as an heartless offering does not impressed God
/ /
Ø To illustrate the point here is a passage from the prophet Amos
I hate, I despise your festivals, and I take no delight in your solemn assemblies.
Even though you offer me your burnt offerings and grain offerings,
I will not accept them;
and the offerings of well-being of your fatted animals, I will not look upon.
Take away from me the noise of your songs; I will not listen to the melody of your harps.
But let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.
Ø You see just as God spoke through Nathan and Amos
o God wants us
§ God wants our hearts directed to him
/ /
Ø In all this you may be wonder why */is/* David the most famous king of all time for Jews and Christians alike
o The person which served as the model, the model for the messiah figure
o The one in which Jesus, our Lord and saviour - genealogy is prophesied and fulfilled
§ Why is David so special
· Why do we see Him - “warts and all”
o And we know that God did want a temple - later
§ that only a generation away - David’s son Solomon is instructed to build the temple
o Why David - why his house - his lineage
o why does David get such an important role - a covenant
/ /
Ø Because David gets it right some times
§ gets it right in a big way
o Like his righteous zeal against the taunting of Goliath - the cursing of the Lord by Goliath
o Or like dancing before the procession of the ark of the covenant coming into Jerusalem - and it says “dancing with all his might”
§ Wearing in an ephod - which some scholar identify as a ceremonial under garment - a giant diaper looking thing (and I know diapers) not kingly thing to do
/ /
/ /
/ /
Ø Why David?
Ø Because - in David we are shown our human frailties and our greatest successes
o In David we see the power of God working through one - that - when he is truly listening to God’s will - achieves the great commandment of them all
§ Jesus new commandment - The servant commandment
· “to Love one another as He has loved us”
· As a servant - willing to risk embarrassment, great sufferings or against great odds even to death in service of others and God
o In David we see both roles shown in Proverbs 12:15
- where “/Fools think their own way is right, but the wise listen to advice.”/
Ø David was rightly rebuked for thinking of doing anything FOR God
o something that God didn’t ask for
§ something David wanted to do for his own pride
· /“look what I built for God”/
Ø David *is* there to show us that /attitude is everything/
o and God’s knows our hearts and knows when our attitude is rightly pointed to his will not our own
o And the good news of this story is the scripture immediately after today’s passage
< .5
.5 - .6
.6 - .7
.7 - .8
.8 - .9
> .9