Sermon Tone Analysis

Brief Biography

[Describe John’s impact in the church and love for God’s work]

What can we say about John, a whole lot...

John was a beloved member… Head Elder for many years

Served faithfully, generous with his time and resources, always available, big heart.

John was also very talented, good preacher, big booming voice, sang well… pastoring three congregations don’t get opportunity… heard John

Did you know that John played guitar… coaxing him to play for our services...

John was also an excellent poet.

Dissapointment

John was hit by major dissapointments towards the tailend of his life.

First wife passed away and left him alone, this was very difficult for John

Health complications...

Unable to be joined in Canada by Rose… this was a devastating blow to John, I saw it written all over his face

He often told me how much he loved serving the Lord, and was eager...

First hospitalized, I visited him and thought we were going to lose John.

He could barely speak, was weak...

Was thrilled when he made a remarkable recovery… had a hole in the preaching schedule during the summer months and didn’t know what to do....

I receive an email from John… [read email]

Called John right away to ascertain if this was wishful thinking… he preached that Sabbath...

Then suddenly he fell… back in the hospital, I was confident that this was a minor setback in comparison to how I first saw him… never dreamed that I would not hear from or see John again

Life can be so full of dissapointment...

Light Affliction

I would ask John, how he was holding up, was his faith in God being shaken… never.

Never blamed God for the dissapointments, suffering etc… After so much suffering and dissapoinment why didn’t John crumble and lose all hope...

He had burning within him, The Blesssed Hope

Might seem like the Bible is minimizing or trivializing suffering.

Oh no, when Lazarus died, the Bible tells us Jesus wept.

When Jesus was rejected by his people… wept bitterly, when on the Cross… “My God, my God...”

How can what we suffer, what John suffered be called “light affliction.”

Momentary, fleeting, passing...

In comparison to what’s coming, on the scales of life, the eternal life that believers in Christ will enjoy far outweighs...

A time is coming when the dead will hear a loud trumpet

I don’t know how God will do it, but the ashes or the dust are going to come together, the dead are going to respond to the blast of the Life Giver’s trumpet, John is going to hear that trumpet, and he is going to be remade, but this time with an immortal body, no more aches, full use of his legs, no more reading glassess, no more heart problems, no more dialysis

That’s the hope that John died with.

The Blessed Hope, a hope that will soon become reality… everything distabilized, lost in a moment, as 1 Cor 4:17 says, “momentary.”

if you want more than what this temporary, fleeting, dissapointing life has to offer, you’ve got to be connected, you’ve got to have Jesus.

You see friends, though John is no longer with us, or as the Bible says, is “sleeping.”

His sleep is momentary, it won’t be long, a change is going to come.

John had Jesus, John was connected to Jesus, grafted into Jesus, plugged into Jesus, attached to Jesus, joined to Jesus, and he will live again, of this I am certain.

He will live again when Christ comes in his Glory.

So hold on… a change is coming, hold on… a change is coming… hold on Rose… a change is coming

And forever we will be with Lord