Sermon Tone Analysis

Entering the Kingdom of God (3: 1-3)

Hopelessness of the unclean/lost

2.“Hope is one of the Theological virtues.

This means that a continual looking forward to the eternal world is not (as some modern people think) a form of escapism or wishful thinking, but one of the things a Christian is meant to do.

It does not mean that we are to leave the present world as it is.

If you read history you will find that the Christians who did most for the present world were just those who thought most of the next.”

--- C.S. Lewis mere Christianity

The power of Christ.

(3:4-6)

Not always what we expect.

(3:5)

The beauty of the temple’s gates and the architectural wonders of its stones and colonnades are useless to the disabled beggar.

The temple offers him no healing or help, only banishment.

The apostles lack money and insist on eye contact because their interaction with the beggar will not be a degrading exchange of money.

They act and speak in the name of the risen Jesus to restore the man to wholeness both physically and spiritually.

Power of prayer through Christ.

(3:6)

i.

There is an oft-repeated story that has persisted over the years that reinforces Spurgeon’s appreciation for the prayers of the church.

It has been reported that one day some college students were sightseeing in London when they decided to hear the famed C. H. Spurgeon preach.

After arriving early, they were sitting and talking among themselves when a man from the congregation came by and greeted them.

After an exchange of pleasant conversation, he said, “Gentlemen, let me show you around.

Would you like to see the heating plant of this church?”

The young men were not particularly interested; nevertheless, not wanting to offend the hospitable stranger, they agreed.

The young men were taken inside and down a stairway.

Quietly, a door was opened, and their guide whispered, “This is our heating plant.”

Surprised, the students saw hundreds of people quietly bowed in prayer, seeking a blessing on the service that was soon to begin above in the auditorium.

Closing the door, the gentleman then introduced himself.

It was none other than Charles Haddon Spurgeon.[1]

ii.

David Peterson rights, Prayer was a necessary accompaniment because it

expresses dependence on the Lord, to give boldness in speaking the word, to

protect its agents and to provide opportunities for the word to be heard and

believed.

Physical healing power of Christ.

(3:7)

Spiritual healing power of Christ.

(3:9)

Effect of Christ on others (3:9-10)

Recognize the change in those who are touched by Christ.

i. Spurgeon credited his success to the faithful prayers of the people in his church.

He told his students in the college he led, “We may discover, after having labored long and wearily in preaching, that all the honor belongs to another builder, whose prayers were gold, silver, and precious stones, while our sermonizing, being apart from prayer, were but hay and stubble.”