Sermon Tone Analysis

Well, I have some bad news to share with you all this morning: We are going to die.

I don’t mean “we” as in “you and I” - it’s not news to know that a bunch of individual humans are going to die some day.

No, I mean “we” as in this church.

This congregation.

Now, give me a chance to explain before you shut me out.

See, there was this study published last fall, and it proved conclusively that “Conservative” churches are growing, while “Liberal” churches are “dwindling away.”

Those are the exact words used in the headline of the article that first reported on this study.

This study has been shared with me by well-meaning friends on at least a monthly basis.

I’ve pretty much memorized it at this point.

And lest you think “oh, that doesn’t apply to us, we’re not a Liberal church!” let me assure you, by the understanding of the authors, we are.

According to their report, we don’t take the Bible literally enough, as evidenced by the rainbow flags occupying various locations around this building, or the fact that most folks in this room have no qualms with scientific research regarding the evolution of life or the age of the universe.

Those things alone make us liberal, and so we are going to dwindle away.

So, we have no choice.

If we want to be able to live, we have to embrace theological conservatism.

It’s the only way.

Except… except no, it’s not.

As we read the story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, I can only imagine the sort of advice the three of them were receiving.

They were far from the only Hebrews in Nebuchadnezzar’s court.

Surely many of the others had made the pragmatic choice already.

They’d read the research.

They’d seen the studies.

Not worshiping Nebuchadnezzar gets one thrown in a fiery furnace.

Being thrown in a fiery furnace carries a strong correlation to death, and death is bad.

Therefore, worshiping Nebuchadnezzar must be good.

Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, however, knew that there was an even greater good: the good of remaining steadfast in their convictions and commitment to God.

They refused to be cowed by the evidence, relying instead on the deeper truth, and although they were indeed thrown in the furnace, they emerged unscathed, because God was with them.

The thing about furnaces is, they’re not stronger than God.

And the thing about studies is, they’re open to interpretation.

Remember when I said I pretty much had that study memorized?

Well, let’s just say the articles about it are pretty misleading.

It turns out, the people who did the study may have had an agenda.

So they asked a few leading questions.

And they shared the data which backed their desired conclusion.

What the study really revealed had nothing to do with conservative and liberal.

Instead, it revealed what Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego knew to be true: In the face of overwhelming odds, our best hope will always be in remaining faithful to God.

The declining churches in that study weren’t particularly liberal, but they did lack dedication.

Their pastors rarely read the Bible.

Their members weren’t really sold on the idea of prayer.

Only about half the people attending their churches said yes when asked if they believed Jesus was resurrected in the flesh.

They said society is changing, and there’s just not much need for church any more.

Those growing churches, on the other hand, weren’t especially conservative, but they were committed to Christ.

They read their Bibles.

They prayed.

More than 9 out of 10 of them said Jesus is risen, and if I had to guess, the other 7% were probably skeptics who couldn’t help but come and check out this dedicated church.

Above all, they were certain that God still had a purpose for the church, and they were going to do their best to fulfill that purpose.

On this first Sunday of Advent, the Sunday of Hope, we need to be reminded how to build our hope.

It has to be built on the foundation of knowing that God has a purpose for us.

That so long as we draw breath, God can use us.

And if we remain committed in our faith, our prayers, our study, and our actions, then we can - and will - thrive.