Sermon Tone Analysis

Rocky Soil Introduction

Rock wall near Potrerillos, Panama: The name "Potrerillos" means "Little Pastures," and is derived from the numerous stone walls built by the indigenous population several centuries ago.

The walls were constructed through forced labor under the direction of Spanish settlers to form pastures and fields for the settlers' cattle and farms.

Rock wall near Potrerillos, Panama: The name "Potrerillos" means "Little Pastures," and is derived from the numerous stone walls built by the indigenous population several centuries ago.

The walls were constructed through forced labor under the direction of Spanish settlers to form pastures for the settlers' cattle.

Where did the rocks come from?

They were in the fields naturally.

The rocks interfered with farming and ranching.

Therefore, in order to get the most out of the land, they had them moved out of the pastures and used them for something more beneficial, walls.

Often a farmer must remove rocks so he can increase his yield.

Jesus described our hearts as soil.

His desire is that our hearts would hear His word and produce fruit 30, 60, and 100 times.

However,

Our hearts are much like these fields.

God wants to produce in us excellent results for His kingdom.

He wants all of us to lead people to Christ and to learn obedience, but we have rocks strewn throughout our hearts which smother spiritual fruit.

In this series, we will identify these rocks as attitudes we carry.

God’s desire is to move these rocks out of your life.

God wants our hearts to yield 30, 60, 100 times the seed that is planted.

I want my life to produce spiritual fruit for God’s glory and I hope you do too.

I sure want to see people saved, baptized, and mature in Christ because God has worked in my life.

Don’t you?

I want my life to produce spiritual fruit for God’s glory and I hope you do too.

I want to be a faithful Great Commission Christian.

I sure want to see people saved, baptized, and mature in Christ because God has worked in my life.

Don’t you?

What are these rocks?

I sure don’t want to miss out because I held ungodly attitudes in my heart.

In the Parable of the Sower, Jesus describes our hearts as soil.

If our soil is good, it receives His word like a seed and His word produces an abundant crop, which is spiritual fruit.

For the purpose of this sermon series, these rocks are attitudes that smother spiritual fruit in our lives.

God wants to use you to bear great fruit, but many of us miss out because we hold ungodly attitudes in our hearts.

My hope is this message will help us all identify such attitudes and support the Lord as He works to remove them from our hearts.

My hope is this message will help us all identify such attitudes and move on from them and on to the good things Christ has for us.

n the Parable of the Sower, Jesus describes our hearts as soil.

If our soil is good, it receives His word like a seed and His word produces an abundant crop, which is spiritual fruit.

We know good soil.

It’s loamy, meaning a fertile mixture

In the ideal case, our hearts are like good soil (loamy), on which the seed falls (that is, Jesus’ teachings) and it produces a crop 100, 60, or 30 times what was sown.

The crop is salvation, spiritual fruit, and spiritual growth and maturity.

In the ideal case, our hearts are like good soil (loamy), on which the seed falls (that is, Jesus’ teachings) and it produces a crop 100, 60, or 30 times what was sown.

The crop is salvation, spiritual fruit, and spiritual growth and maturity.

In this series, I want to share with you from God’s word about rocks in your soil which smother spiritual growth.

All of us have stones which prevent our lives from bearing an abundance of spiritual fruit.

Jesus wants these rocks out of the way say His word will have a greater yield in your life.

He has this great plan for you to be spiritually strong in Him.

Therefore, we must work these stones out of the soil.

In the parable, Jesus mentions several other kinds of soil (packed, rocky, and full of weeds) which do not bear fruit.

Discontent

In this series, I want to look at attitudes we carry in our hearts which smother

Discontent

The first attitude I want to address is discontent.

Philippians 2

Discontent means we are unhappy because of our life circumstances.

Unhappy=Joyless

Circumstances=people, possessions, profession, providence, purpose

We look at these and say “bah humbug!”

A. When we bear a spirit of discontent, it is impossible for us to be satisfied for very long.

This is different than a hunger for excellence.

Rather, it is an attitude of “Woe is me, things do not meet my refined preferences!”

Really, it is dissatisfaction beyond what is reasonable.

When discontent takes hold in our hearts, it manifests itself through complaining, criticism, cynicism, worry, and general negativity.

When we become discontent, we become a Downer Debbie, Chicken Little, Eeyore, and a Nervous Nelly.

When we bear a spirit of discontent, it is impossible for us to be satisfied for very long.

This is different than a hunger for excellence.

Rather, it is an attitude of “Woe is me, things do not meet my refined preferences!”

Really, it is dissatisfaction beyond what is reasonable.

Like having a melt-down because I put star wars toothpaste on the brush instead of Disney princess toothpaste.

It’s a hyper-sensitivity to things not being how you want them to be.

B. Discontent means we choose to suffer in our hearts because things do not measure up to our precise expectations.

Sure there are people who legitimately suffer and appear to be justified in their complaints, but the majority of us who foster discontent in our hearts choose to suffer because things do not measure up to our refined preferences.

It’s interesting that the wealthier a society is, the more indulged we become, the more discontent and complaining there seems to be! (JM)

There’s a tongue-in-cheek reference to such discontent: First World Problems.

Living in a wealthy society in which we have escaped most life and death threats regarding,disease, hunger, and safety, we make up things to complain about.

A person in a developing country would scoff at such complaints.

I am so mad at Amazon Prime because they didn’t deliver my package in two days!

first world problems.

Thing

This discontent can shape your perspective and feelings about your country, your job, your church, your family, your health, your bank account.

C. With an attitude of discontent, we are constantly on the hunt for whatever will satisfy the hole in our hearts.

The discontent believes the grass is greener on the other side and tells others how non-green the grass is on this side.

And as I’ve said to you on a number of occasions, it is a curiosity to me that the most indulged society is the most discontent society, that the more people have the more they seem to be discontent with what they have and the more complaining they seem to be.

When we become discontent, we become a Downer Debbie, chicken little, and nervous Nelly.

Grass is greener on the other side

D.

When discontent takes hold in our hearts, it bears fruit- complaining, criticism, consumerism, cynicism, whining, worry, and general negativity.

When discontent takes hold in our hearts, it manifests itself through complaining, criticism, cynicism, whining, worry, and general negativity.

When we become discontent, we become a Downer Debbie, Chicken Little, Eeyore, and a Nervous Nelly.

How the Soviets used to negotiate.

Take shoe off and slam on the table.

When we become discontent, we become a Downer Debbie, Chicken Little, Eeyore, and a Nervous Nelly.

E.

Some use discontent and complaining as a power tool.

They’ve learned from an early age that the squeaky wheel gets the grease.

From childhood, parents gave them what they wanted just to keep them from crying and whining.

Unfortunately, in adulthood, they keep on with this immature strategy.

F.

Discontent wreaks havoc on the Lord’s church!

It smothers spiritual fruit in a church.

1.

People who are discontent tend to not be soul winners.