Sermon Tone Analysis

WHAT DOES IT TAKE TO MAKE YOU TREMBLE?

*Time to wake up!* Are you a “leaper” or a “creeper”?

– In the morning some people leap out of bed as fresh as a daisy – others of us, well it takes a bit more to get us out of bed!

I tend to be the first up in our house – how do you go about waking someone when it is time to get up?

You may start quietly telling them the time; if there is no response, you may tap them on the shoulder lightly; *[P]* if they just creep lower in bed you might flap the sheets to let a bit of cold air in; before you resort to the shock tactics of ripping the blankets off or a bucket of cold water.

You start subtly but, when there is no response, you get firmer; because “IT IS TIME TO WAKE UP!”* [P] *I think that sometimes God does a similar kind of thing with us.

He gives us a warning, if we ignore it, the warning becomes more severe; increasing until we pay attention – until we */lay it to heart/*.

We see an example of this in *[P]* [*Amos 4:4-12* “/Enter Bethel and transgress; in Gilgal multiply transgression!

Bring your sacrifices every morning, your tithes every three days.

Offer a thank offering also from that which is leavened, and proclaim freewill offerings, make them known.

For so you love to do, you sons of Israel,” Declares the Lord יְהוָה/ (He declares their transgression – they were religious but far from God)/.

“But I gave you also cleanness of teeth in all your cities and lack of bread in all your places, yet you have not returned to Me, declares YHWH.... / (1.

sent famine)/.

“Furthermore, I withheld the rain from you while there were still three months until harvest.

Then I would send rain on one city and on another city I would not send rain; one part would be rained on, while the part not rained on would dry up.

So two or three cities would stagger to another city to drink water, but would not be satisfied; yet you have not returned to Me,” declares YHWH... /(2.

sent drought)/.

“I smote you with scorching wind and mildew; and the caterpillar was devouring your many gardens and vineyards, fig trees and olive trees; yet you have not returned to Me,” declares YHWH..... /(3.

sent disease and pestilence on their crops)./

“I sent a plague among you after the manner of Egypt; I slew your young men by the sword along with your captured horses, and I made the stench of your camp rise up in your nostrils; yet you have not returned to Me,” declares YHWH..... /(4.

getting more severe, disease and death through war)./

“I overthrew you, as God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah, and you were like a firebrand snatched from a blaze; yet you have not returned to Me,” declares YHWH.... /(5.

judgement from heaven sparing only a remnant)/ “Therefore thus I will do to you, O Israel; Because I will do this to you, *prepare to meet your God*, O Israel.” ]/ They ignored five warnings, so they had to face God, meet their Maker in judgement.

If only they had repented!

God was very patient, trying to get their attention.

Do you think that God might be trying to get our attention?

*[P]*

It is now 4½ months since the earthquake – enough time to look at it with a bit of distance and perspective, not just a knee jerk reaction.

First I want to look at an example from relatively recent history, and then have a look at what the Bible says regarding earthquakes, before lastly applying it to our own situation.

*Historical earthquake:* At the beginning of last century, in 1906, there was a devastating earthquake in San Francisco.

*[P]* Now that is before the Richter scale was invented, but based on the destruction caused, it is estimated to have been about magnitude 7.9 – 10x more powerful than that we experienced.

There was a man called Frank Bartleman who was an early leader of the Pentecostal movement at the Azusa Street Mission in Los Angeles, California.

There was a great spiritual revival there in 1906, it was really the birth of the modern Pentecostal movement.

He was a central figure in that revival, but he was also a journalist.

His reports published in the holiness press heralded a world-wide revival.

Bartleman's journalism helped to inform the world of the Pentecostal renewal and was largely responsible for promoting the revival.

His account has been republished (“Azusa Street”), and he records that the earthquake to the north had considerable spiritual impact.

I want to read a portion from his book: “/I found that the earthquake had opened many hearts – distributed 10,000 tracts, the workers seized them eagerly and scattered them quickly throughout the city.

Nearly every pulpit in the land was working overtime to prove that God had nothing to do with earthquakes and thus allay the fears of the people.

The Spirit was striving to knock at hearts with conviction through this judgement.

I felt indignation that the preachers should be used of satan to drown out His voice.

I had been much in prayer since the earthquake, after the shock in Los Angeles the LORD told me definitely He had a message for the people.

/(He wrote another tract/) I kneeled before the LORD and He met me in a powerful way, a powerful witness that the message was from Him.

I was wonderfully taken up in the spirit of intercession.

I seemed to feel the wrath of God against the people and to withstand it in prayer.

He showed me He was terribly grieved at their obstinacy in the face of His judgement on sin.

San Francisco was a terribly wicked city /(it is again today)./

He showed me all hell was being moved to drown out His voice in the earthquake, if possible.

Men had been denying His presence in the earthquake – now He would speak.

The question in almost every heart was: “Did God do that?”

But instinct taught men on the spot that He had.

Even the wicked were conscious of the fact/.

(He records that the enemy tried to hinder, part of the type was smashed in the press, followed by a man raving like a maniac, who tore up his tract publicly)./

Many threw down the tracts in a rage, only to pick it up again and read it.

The saddest part was the fact that nearly all the preachers worked with the enemy in the matter.

But I was only giving them the Word of God /(in fact the portion of the tract in the book is 100% Scripture)/.

A policeman was put on my track, the people were stirred up so.

75,000 distributed in three weeks – all by hand.

Another 50,000  were distributed by another brother.

The following are some extracts from the “Earthquake” tract//:/ “"But what had God to do with earthquakes?

’When Thy judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world learn righteousness' (Isaiah 26:9).

'Which removeth the mountains, when He overturneth them in His anger, which shaketh the earth out of her place, and the pillars thereof tremble' (Job 9:5-6).

'The mountains quake at Him, and the hills melt; and the earth is upheaved at His presence, yea, the world, and all that dwell therein.

His fury is poured out like fire, and the rocks are broken asunder by Him' (Nahum 1:5-6).

'And I will punish the world for their evil.

Therefore I will make the heavens to tremble, and the earth shall be shaken out of her place, in the day of His fierce anger' (Isaiah 13:11, 13).

'Then the earth shook and trembled, the foundations also of the mountains moved, and were shaken because He was wroth.

There went up a smoke in His wrath, and fire out of His mouth devoured.

The Lord thundered from Heaven, and the Most High uttered His voice.

Then the channels of the sea appeared, the foundations of the world were laid bare, by the rebuke of the Lord, at the blast of the breath of His anger' (Psalm 18).

"'Behold, the Lord maketh the earth empty, and turneth it upside down, and scattereth abroad the inhabitants thereof.

The foundations of the earth do shake, the earth is utterly broken, the earth is moved exceedingly.

The earth shall stagger like a drunken man, and shall be moved to and fro.

The transgression thereof shall be heavy upon it.'

(Isaiah 24:1, 18, 20).

'Thou shalt be visited of the Lord of Hosts with earthquakes, and great noise, and the flame of a devouring fire.' (Isaiah 29:6).

'Men shall go into the caves of the rocks, from before the terror of the Lord, when he arises to shake terribly the earth' (Isaiah 2:19).

'And the seventh angel poured out his vial into the air and there was a great earthquake' (Revelation 16:17,18).

And will you claim there is no God in earthquakes?

John Wesley has said, 'Of all the judgments which the righteous God inflicts on sinners here, the most dreadful and destructive is an earthquake.'"

/- From "Earthquake Tract," April 1906.//”

The San Francisco earthquake was surely the voice of God to the people of the Pacific coast.

It was used mightily in conviction, for the gracious after revival/.

Bartleman was adamant: It was the hand of God! *[P]* It is interesting that there was a great response of repentance and turning to God amongst the poorer classes in Los Angeles, but the spiritual effect in San Francisco was limited.

God acts – what is our response?

*[P]* Terror in San Francisco, but revival in Los Angeles, transformation in the lives of those that repented and God touched.

*Earthquakes in Scripture:* So that is an example in history of how God used an earthquake, what does the Bible have to say on the matter?

What do we learn about יְהוָה’s use of earthquakes from the Scripture?

I was reading through the book of Amos just before Christmas (there was an aftershock around that time) and he has a bit to say about earthquakes.

So we have looked at the example of San Francisco *[P]*, now let’s look at the example of Amos.

Remember it was from Amos we read about the wake-up call.

The whole context of the book of Amos is an earthquake that occurred in the days of Uzziah – that’s how he starts the prophecy, there was a message from יְהוָה in that event!

[*Amos 1:1* /The words of Amos, who was among the sheepherders from Tekoa, which he envisioned in visions concerning Israel in the days of Uzziah king of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam son of Joash, king of Israel, two years before the earthquake/.]

He prophesied the event before it took place.

He warned that there was coming a shaking.

[*Amos 8:7-8* /יְהוָה has sworn by the pride of Jacob, “Indeed, I will never forget any of their deeds.

“Because of this will not the land quake and everyone who dwells in it mourn?

Indeed, all of it will rise up like the Nile, and it will be tossed about and subside like the Nile of Egypt./]

He foretold a coming earthquake – and it was for a reason: יְהוָה said that He would never forget any of their deeds – it was because of what they had done *[P]*.

Amos describes the shaking, people staggering: [*Amos 8:12* /“People will stagger from sea to sea and from the north even to the east; they will go to and fro to seek the word of יְהוָה, but they will not find it/.]