Sermon Tone Analysis
Overall tone of the sermon
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PRAY
I finished writing todays sermon in Munich airport on Friday,
during a 10hour layover on my way back home from Lesotho.
last week.
If ever an airport was like a tree planted by streams of water which yields it’s fruit in season - it would be Munich.
If ever an airport was like a tree planted by streams of water which yields it’s fruit in season - it would be Munich.
Voted best airport in Europe apparently.
And then I flew back into London Stansted.
Somewhat of a contrast.
Or perhaps I could contrast the horrendous living conditions of the 2 missionaries I visited in Lesotho
- in small dark stone huts,
smokey,
dirty,
bed bug infested,
uncomfortable,
cold mountains,
smelly and miserable
- and the contrast that with the homes that are planted by metaphorical streams of water in Worcester Park.
Or I could contrast
The cleaner who begs for spare change in Johannesburg airport,
with your good job in the city.
But this Psalm is not about those sort of contrasts, as if Christians
- planted by streams of water are free from poverty of all descriptions because they delight in the law of God.
No - as we saw from a few weeks ago,
it doesn’t matter what class you travel in through this life
- whether it’s first class, business class,
economy class or even the broken toilet at the back
- it’s the destination that matters.
But while the destination of the Christian is always a glorious joy
- this Psalm does seem to offer fruitfulness and prosperity now which is in contrast to non-Christians.
This blessed man v1, or righteous man v6 prospers and is fruitful v3.
Not so the wicked — they are like chaff blown away v4.
So I guess there are a couple of questions we want answered as we begin a new academic year in 2018.
1 - Can I be fruitful and prosper - can I be the blessed and righteous man or woman of
2 - And if I can - what does it look like - because it sure feels like I’m sitting on the economy class toilet at the moment.
Let me answer that first question straight away - and i hope this clears things up.
The answer to
1 - Can I be fruitful and prosper - can I be the blessed and righteous person of ?
Is - yes, well sort of, but also no!
Shall we begin then!
and 2 act somewhat as a gatepost for the Psalms as a whole.
They introduce the overriding theme of the Psalms (and in fact most of what we call the ‘Wisdom Literature’ of the bible - so Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Psalms etc..
They contrast the wise with the foolish,
Or the wicked with the righteous.
But they also leave us with another theme, That righteousness or wisdom rely on a greater power.
A king, a Lord.
And from today’s Psalm...
You see, the wicked and the righteous are not descriptions of how ‘accurately’ we obey God or not - for the righteous still require the Lord’s refuge, the Lord’s watchfulness over them.
But, rather, wisdom literature
gives us a righteous and wise way to live that demonstrates we trust and fear the Lord.
Or contrastingly they show us the way of the wicked or the foolish that demonstrates that we don’t trust and fear the Lord.
To put it simply - the righteous are those who trust the Lord to have mercy on them despite their failing - but who at the same time strive to live righteously in reverence for the Lord’s kindness.
The wicked however, they live with out reverence for the Lord - and as such all their ways are against God whom they deny.
(It doesn’t mean they appear evil or wicked within society - it means they haven’t seen their need for God) - That could be you today.
AS we work through the Psalm this will all become clearer...
So - our fist point is a negative encouragement...
1 - Wicked Ways
There is a direction of movement in this verse.
A sense that once we start to allow ourselves to be influenced by the way of the wicked,
This will lead to a complete absorption into their thinking.
First we might just walk in their counsel,
but then we’ll stand still in their ways,
until we eventually sit down on their seats.
Imagine trying to drive your family car across a soft and deep sandy beach.
You may hit the sand at speed hoping the momentum will carry you through,
But the speed will disappear fast until you come to a stand still.
And then the more you try to drive out, forwards and backwards, the deeper the wheels sink until the belly of the car is sat contentedly on the sand.
Such is the danger of the wicked,
If you want the prosperity of v3, then your first mission is to avoid the counsel of the wicked.
The wicked will tell us that joy and prosperity is in money, and health, and power.
Joy is in first class travel through life!
Of course, those things are not bad,
in fact they are can be great gifts we can enjoy from God.
But the counsel of the wicked is not declaring that they are good gifts to enjoy,
but that they are where joy and satisfaction itself lies.
This lie has spread across most the globe - materialistic satisfaction is what life is all about.
You deserve these things,
you need these things,
you want these things
and you cannot be happy without them.
Believing the lies that the best education,
the best paid jobs,
the nicest house will bring joy and satisfaction.
Again - these ‘materialistic things’ are not the issue.
They can all be wonderful things to work hard for and enjoy.
It is the counsel that tells us that these things are where you find satisfaction and joy that is the problem.
You see once we start walking in this counsel,
the next step is to stand in the way of sinners.
Now we’re not just believing and starting to dream after these things for our happiness,
Now we are actually sinning to get them.
We have started to turn our backs on the God
who wants us to truly be fruitful and prosperous -
but we have turned to these idols instead.
Stopped in wonder at the worlds attractions as end in and of themselves.
We now put more money into our houses and less into gospel work.
We put sports clubs for our children before church familiy on a Sunday.
We encourage our children - even ourselves -
that a ‘proper job’ is where satisfaction lies,
Not that a job is our vehicle to serve God and do his will.
We are afraid to consider reaching the unreached of the world with the gospel as missionaries,
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