Sermon Tone Analysis

Introduction

Did you ever wish you had a manual on how to deal with personal life problems?

We are surrounded and at times overwhelmed by everyday problems.

Some days are good, other days not so good.

Some days are encouraging; other days are very frustrating.

Some days are joyful, other days are sorrowful.

Life is full of ups, and downs.

Life is chock-full with dilemmas, impasses, and sometimes dead-locks.

So, when we are confounded with predicaments, we would like answers on what to do and how to solve our problems.

We’d always want to know the best way to deal when situations arise.

Problems and questions come in many shapes and forms, ranging from simple questions like: “what job I should take?” or tough ones like, “what to do when terminally ill?” Questions manifest in our workplace; in relationships with friends or family; in our marriage; in personal finances; health issues; or whatever else.

In our every day, we are confounded with choices that we must make.

It is true that some of us have more significant problems to deal with than others at different times in our lives; but irrespective of the extent of our issues, we always want the best solution to all we face.

Sometimes just pointing us in the right direction is good enough.

Growing up I remember an event that happened in high school.

My school was not the best of schools nor did it have the best of students.

There was a group of bullies that wanted to mess with this new kid.

Word got around that a new kid came from NYC and he had a bad attitude.

The first day of school the new kid got into with kid named Billy Bob, who was a real delinquent, and in fact, he got arrested years later.

For a while, they messed with the new kid, harassed him, and bothered the crap out him until he befriended a regular Joe.

It ended up that this regular Joe was the son of a somebody.

As a matter of fact, that somebody was a known criminal.

In effect the whole family were criminals.

The students in the school knew that.

As a result, the school hoodlums stopped messing with the new kid.

As a matter of fact, they stayed away from the new kid altogether.

It happened that the new kid was me.

The regular Joe was my friend James, whose father was part of some organized crime syndicate, a Mafia of sorts.

Some of the students were always careful around him, and it seemed that even the teachers were aware of him.

He was not big; he did not look any different than any other kid.

Regardless, people were careful around him.

At first, I did not know anything about his background, so my friendship was not because I need him for protection.

Later on, I looked up to James because he radiated distress towards other people.

In my eyes, he had a father whom people feared.

In my eyes, his father knew things.

In my eyes, James had the upbringing to survive.

The mere fact that people feared him was enough for me to believe that he was street smart.

James’ family knew how to survive and get ahead of people, in a world that no one cares about anyone else but themselves.

In my eyes, he knew what’s up.

He knew how to navigate life.

It was enough for me to listen to what he said, and what he said was true and gold.

His advice came from his family, and whatever advice he gave me was true.

He gave me plenty of advice and I listened.

He was a treasure trove of wisdom.

But there was this one particular advice that stuck with me many years, even to my adulthood.

The advice was, “never trust anybody.

Be careful with your own family.

You have to take care of yourself first.

That is how the world works” I took that too heart for many years.

Needless to say, it wasn’t good advice.

In fact, it worst advice that I was told, and I reaped the bad fruits of it.

If I had kept that advice, I wouldn’t be here with you.

I wouldn’t care for you.

Regrettably, that advice marked me for a long time.

I want to tell that there is a real legitimate treasure trove of wisdom right under our noses that can guide us through our life’s questions.

A guide that can teach us and we can teach others as well.

However, it requires something.

It requires that we understand where to go, how to get it, whom to get it from, and the attitude we need to attain this guide in the art of living.

1. Recognize the authority of the proverbs.

“The proverbs of Solomon, son of David, king of Israel:” (, ESV).

Proverbs begin with a prologue, and the prologue wants to let you know what kind of book, what kind of genre you are reading.

To know the genre is to realize the way you are going to read and understand this book.

The prologue also wants to assert its authority by letting you know its authorship.

Beginning with verse 1, from the onset the writer is telling you that these are proverbs.

Most Christians will quickly identify proverbs as one of the Bible’s books of wisdom.

Thus, a collection of wise sayings.

However, there is more to it than what we generally understand.

The Hebrew word for proverb is ‘mashal,’ which covers a much wider range of meaning than does the simple English understanding.

A much closer definition would be to say that a proverb is a “lesson” or an “artistic instruction.”

If you’ve read the proverbs before, you notice that it has some unique characteristics.

I want to highlight three of them, in the hope that you journey into reading them more often.

(1) If you have noticed most proverbs are composed of two parallel statements that teach one truth.

The second statement generally present a likeness of the previous statement.

(2) Proverbs often contain truths expressed by comparisons.

For example, writes, “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in a setting of silver.”

(3) Proverbs use images, words, or stories that convey and extended meaning.

Jesus was apt in using this type of rhetoric to teach a concept.

In fact, the word parable comes the Hebrew word ‘mashal,’ the same word for proverb.

You need to understand that proverbs are synonyms piled on top of each other meant to teach us wisdom.

The repetitions are literary devices that Hebrew authors used to expand and reinforce the meaning of a concept.

The teacher hoped that this cumulative style would add something to our understanding.

Next is the authorship, and the remainder of verse 1 tells you that the author is Solomon, son of David, king of Israel.

He is asserting the validity, the truthfulness, and authority of what you are about to read.

However, in my early Christian walk, I couldn’t stand reading anything that was written by Solomon.

The idea that Solomon, a hypocrite who failed to live by what he taught, who led a sinful lifestyle, and who fell away from God could have a book worthy of the canon was unfathomable to me.

In effect, I thought that whoever put the canon together made a mistake.

You see, Solomon authored the Song of Solomon, a book on godly love, and yet we are told he accumulated a harem of 1000 wives and concubines.

However, I recognized that I was not much different from him.

In fact, as just as much of a hypocrite as any of us.

How many of us have not lived inconsistently to what we profess?

How many of us have not faltered?

We naturally lean towards the people we respect, like once upon a time my friend James.

The reason why I rejected Solomon, is because I saw a little of myself in him.

I could not respect that since I knew I had nothing to offer anyone.

How could Solomon’s failed character offer me anything?

I ultimately had to relent that Solomon had all the authority he needed.

God chose him, and the Holy Spirit illuminated him.

For we are told that Solomon authored more than 3000 proverbs, and his wisdom was incomparable to none.

Although he failed miserably to live by his own teachings, he was also successful, for he had unparalleled wealth.

It was because of his wisdom that Israel prospered and was envied by its neighbors.