Sermon Tone Analysis

I am so glad that you are here.

We are starting a brand new series and let me tell you, whether you make it here every Sunday or not, I hope you follow along online.

Killing Kryptonite is not a series about Superman.

But the parallels between his story and our life of faith are striking.

Superman isn’t from this world; a child of God is not of this world.

He possesses supernatural powers that normal human beings don’t possess; we are supernaturally empowered in ways those of this world are not.

He fights evil; we fight evil.

He protects and liberates those oppressed by villains; we guard the weak and set captives free.

My favorite similarity… He draws his strength from the sun; we draw our strength from the Son of God, Jesus Christ.

THE ONE THING

Only one thing can stop Superman; Kryptonite—a fictional radioactive substance originally from his planet.

And likewise, there is a “kryptonite” that originated on our home planet that can neutralize, paralyze, a child of God.

Kryptonite not only neutralized Superman’s supernatural abilities, but it also made him weaker than a mere human being.

Our kryptonite does the same.

What is our kryptonite?

Before we uncover what kryptonite is, we need to set up the story.

Kryptonite’s huge advantage over Superman is that it isn’t easily recognizable, so he could come under its effect prior to identifying it.

The believer’s kryptonite is weakening both individuals and the body of Christ, and to many it is still not recognizable.

In this series we want to identify and uncover how to eliminate it and its effects on us as individuals and as a community.

What is our greatest desire?

I say ours because deep inside we all share the same desire.

We want to be successful, to be the best in our field, to be popular, to be happily married, to enjoy great friendships, to be a part of a vibrant community, to enjoy good health, or to have enough resources to do anything we want.

All of these are extremely attractive desires, and some are even necessary.

But do they identify our greatest desire?

Don’t we know people who have all of these things and still feel empty?

You have heard it in Hollywood, the sports world, businesses, government, and really any place where someone has reached the maximum level of success in life, and yet still find themselves lacking something.

In their emptiness, some turn to drugs, alcohol, affairs, religion, new age spirituality, or occultism, hoping to fill the void that they feel deep inside their soul.

The true satisfaction every man and woman longs for, whether they realize it or not, can only be found in an intimate relationship with our creator.

No matter what you think about God, HE IS YOUR DEEPEST YEARNING.

God planted eternity in our hearts.

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Unless we have been deceived to think that there is other than God himself that can satisfy our soul, we all by instinct long in our hearts for “King of Eternity”.

God isn’t unknown to any human heart.

Anyone who has come into a relationship with Him know his presence, power, splendor, and majesty are impossible to comprehend in totality and that He is beyond comparison.

God is so mighty that some of the most powerful beings in the universe, called seraphim, continually stand in awe in heaven crying out to each other about His awesome greatness.

These massive beings do this with such passion and strength that their voices shake the doorposts of an enormous arena in heaven that likely holds more than a billion beings.

For centuries, humanity has searched and studied the secrets of God’s creation and never fully comprehended its complexity and wonder.

WE CAN’T COMPREHEND EVERYTHING ABOUT GOD.

And yet this God reached down to us to save us, to rescue us, to redeem us, and to give us an eternal promise.

God became flesh.

He could not get us back any other way.

This is the wisdom of Jesus being born of a virgin.

HE became 100% man but since His Father was the Spirit of God, He was free from the enslaved nature humankind had fallen into.

He knew He would suffer in order to rescue us.

He loved us so deeply and completely that He freely chose to pay the price for our freedom.

This freedom is the answer to our greatest desire.

We long for such freedom, for such love, we need God.

THE AVOIDED QUESTION

Since we are the children of God, simple logic would conclude that we should experience an extraordinary life; in fact, that’s exactly what scripture says.

Here are some of the promises from God to those who follow him:

His divine nature.

unselfish character

unconditional love and forgiveness

joy and peace beyond description

supernatural power

well-being

vitality

health

safety and stability

I am obviously not mentioning ALL the things that we are promised… here are a few more:

divine wisdom

knowledge

understanding

ingenuity

keen insight and creativity.

All of these are intended to produce fruitfulness and success in our lives.

Let’s just say that we are promised the attributes found in heaven.

Jesus emphatically declared that His kingdom is within us; therefore HIS will should be done on earth as it is in heaven.

THE AVOIDED QUESTION

But if we are honest, we don’t see these qualities manifested, at least in our context, at the level that Scripture tells us they should be manifested.

Do we really see a significant difference between the people of God and the people of the world?

Do we followers of Jesus STAND OUT?

Do we shine the light of Jesus in the midst of a dark generation?

Consider the issues happening in the world and

If we are honest and look closely, do we suffer from envy, jealousy, gossip, divisions?

Do we see character, integrity, and morality that are dramatically different from the corruption of our nation?

Is there a distinction between believers and unbelievers in our health and well-being?

Are we able to meet the needs of others and proclaim His gospel to every person?

May be this sounds like too much.

But I read, and re-read scripture, and there is no place where it says that we are to look like the world, but rather to shine the light of Jesus in a dark world.

The church should not beg for the world’s help to carry on.

And I am not talking about

Jesus promises that if we seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, everything we need will be given to us.

Not once did a lack of resources keep Jesus from doing what He needed to do.

It is unfortunate that there have been extreme teachings in the church about wealth and prosperity.

These unbalanced teachings have caused people to believe that abundance is a bad thing.

But what are we to give if we have nothing?

When we let the pursuit of God’s kingdom posses us, He entrusts us with the necessary possessions to advance His will on earth.

He will equip us in all areas to carry on with His will on earth as it is in heaven.

But He doesn’t want possessions to possess us.

It is not money but the “love of money” that is the root of all kinds of evil.

In the OT there were many generations that flourished in an incredible way—economically, socially, and militarily.

They had an abundance of resources, food, and wealth.

And Jesus came, the mediator of a better covenant, which is established on better promises.

Jesus changed communities wherever He went.

He never lacked what was necessary to meet any need to carry out the Father’s will.

If any attacks came against His team, no permanent damage was made, and very often bad situations turned into amazing success.

The members of the early church were referred to as,

They had no lack...

Acts