Sermon Tone Analysis

*Introduction: *“The Lord thy God in the midst of thee [within thee] is mighty; he will save, he will rejoice over thee with joy; he will rest in his love, he will joy over thee with singing.”

What is the joy of God?

Imagine the joy of a loving physician when he has rescued his patient from the very jaws of death?

Imagine the joy of a loving parent who has rescued his child from ruin?

Some such joy as this — infinitely superior — is the joy of God over regenerated humanity.

In this joy the redeemed get a chance to participate!

“Enter into the joy of thy Lord.” “Rejoice over thee with singing.”

/Does God sing?

/I believe that he does; and you can hear it,  especially in the shouts of the redeemed

The Lord's Joy in Saving Sinners Is* *

*                                                            1*.

True and tender.

\\ *                                                            2*.

Full and deep.

\\ *                                                            3*.

Perfect and abiding.*

*

The Lord's Joy in Saving Sinners Is* *

*I:* As the Shepherd's over His Sheep  (*Luke 15:5 (NRSV) **/5 When he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders and rejoices.

)/** **Ministry— Seeking Lost*: the sheep was sought until found.

Note four things.

*1.

The lost sheep was sought*.

The shepherd left the ninety-nine to seek the one lost sheep.

The ninety-nine were safe; they were already in the shepherd's fold.

*But the one sheep was lost.*

It was the one that needed to be sought.

It was this sheep that needed the attention of the shepherd and was to occupy the time, energy, and effort of the shepherd.

As long as the sheep was lost, seeking it was the primary purpose and reason for the shepherd.

(What a lesson for the church and ministers!)

*2.

The search was urgent.*

The shepherd /went after/ that which was lost (Luke 15:4).

He was gripped with concern.

He went after the one lost sheep as though it was the only one.

We must not overlook the  shepherd's dedication and commitment to seeking the lost.

*3.

The shepherd sought until he found the sheep.*

He did not seek complacently or slowly, as though there was plenty of time.

*Nor did he give up,* despite the difficulties that lay along the rough terrain and the weariness of the long hours and the tediousness of running into dead end after dead end.

*He sought and kept on seeking until he found the lost sheep.*

He never slackened, never backed off, never gave up.

4.    When the shepherd found the sheep, he embraced the sheep and threw it over his shoulders.

He received it...•    with arms wide open.•

embracing it.•

rejoicing in heart.•

supporting and carrying it to his home (Luke 15:6).

The shepherd tenderly called the lost sheep "my sheep"—"my sheep which was lost*.*"*

It was his*, no matter how *dirty, filthy, unclean, destitute, depraved, ugly or lost it had been.*

It was still the shepherd's sheep.

Note that God did not send an angel as a servant, but He sent His Son to seek the lost (cp.

Isaiah 53:4-6,

*II:* The Lord's Joy in Saving Sinners Is* -*As the Buyer's in His Treasure */(Matthew 13:44 (NRSV) \\ 44 "The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which someone found and hid; then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.

)/*

*/ /**The Parable of the Hidden Treasure: Giving Up All for Christ, *there are two main interpretations of this parable.

1.

Some say that Jesus Christ is /the man/ and /the treasure/ in the field represents potential believers who are in the world.

In this interpretation Jesus sees the treasure of men in the world, and seeing them He does four things.

a.

He /hides/ the treasure: He takes what the Father has given Him and tucks it away in His heart, choosing and protecting them until He can complete the work of salvation.

b.

He /goes/: He comes to the world.*"For the son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost" (**Luke 19:10**).*

c.

He /sells/ all: He gives up heaven in all its glory and splendor.*"And

she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn" (**Luke 2:7**).*

d.

He /buys/: He pays the ultimate price.

He gives His life for the life of man.

e.

He /joys/: He envisions the glorious day when all His treasure shall be possessed by Him.

*"Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God" (**Hebrews 12:2**).*

*The second interpretation:* Others say /the treasure/ is the gospel of Christ, the gospel of the Messiah who is ever so precious.

The focus is different, in this view, A man sees the gospel, the saving message of Christ as never before; that is, He understands the immense treasure of salvation.

a.

He /hides/ the treasure: he tucks it away in his heart, protecting it, not letting it loose.

He seeks and continues to seek the truth of Christ.

b.

He /goes/: approaches Christ and makes a decision.

c.

He /sells all/: repents and turns from his former life to God.

d.

He /buys/: commits all and gives all to possess the treasure of salvation.

e.

He /joys/: experiences the completeness and satisfaction of the treasure and envisions and hopes for more and more, eternally.

Either interpretation fits what is said, and we are probably safe in saying that neither one exhausts the meaning. in the first interpretation*/: God rejoices over man’s found condition, in the second interpretation, the joy of the man that finds new life in God, makes God glad!/*

The Lord's Joy in Saving Sinners Is* *

* III:* As the Bridegroom's over His Bride (*Isaiah 62:5 (NRSV) **5 For as a young man marries a young woman, so shall your builder marry you, and as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so shall your God rejoice over you.)**

**The Holy City will be repossessed by believers (**v.5).

And the Lord will rejoice over Jerusalem like a bridegroom rejoices over His bride.*

The Lord announced that He will continue to work on *Jerusalem’s* behalf until her *righteousness . . .

salvation,* and *glory* are observed by the rest of the world (61:10-11) and the city is *called by a new name.*

That name is not stated here but several names are given later, in 62:4, 12 (cf.

60:14).

In the ancient Near East names often signified one’s anticipated or present character.

So Jerusalem’s having a new name means it will have a new righteous character.

Like *a crown* or *diadem* adorning one’s head so Jerusalem will be an adornment to *the* *Lord*.

She will display His *splendor* that is, her inhabitants will manifest His character in their conduct.

The city’s new relationship with God is compared to the happiness of a marriage.

Rather than being called *Deserted* (cf.

62:12) or *Desolate,* previous characteristics of the city, Jerusalem will be named (”My delight is in her“) and (”Married one“) *God* will be happy about the wonderful state of affairs.

The Lord's Joy in Saving Sinners Is* *

*IV:* As the Reaper's over His Sheaves  */(/**/Psalm 126:6 (NRSV) /**/6 /**/Those who go out weeping, bearing the seed for sowing, shall come home with shouts of joy, carrying their sheaves./**/)/*

*V:* With nearly four hundred instances of the specific vocabulary of joy and rejoicing, joy is a major motif in the Bible.

While there is joy in human life in the earthly realm, such as joy at a victory (Ps 20:5) or a harvest (Is 9:3), its overwhelming context is spiritual.

The emphasis is captured in so many famous verses, expressing the sentiment that “the joy of the Lord is your strength”.

Joy and rejoicing are a special preoccupation in the psalms (approximately 80 references) and the Gospels (approximately 40 references).

Your Joy makes God glad!

*Joy is a by-product of life with God *In the OT, joy comes with God’s presence (1 Chron 16:27; Job 22:21-26; Ps 9:2; 16:5-11).

In the NT that presence is identified as the Holy Spirit (Acts 13:52; Rom 15:13; Gal 5:22; Eph 5:18, 19; 1 Thess 1:6).

Joy is something that fills a person (Ps 4:7; 16:11), and is frequently associated with the heart (Ps 4:7;