Sermon Tone Analysis
Overall tone of the sermon
This automated analysis scores the text on the likely presence of emotional, language, and social tones. There are no right or wrong scores; this is just an indication of tones readers or listeners may pick up from the text.
A score of 0.5 or higher indicates the tone is likely present.
Emotion Tone
Anger
0.14UNLIKELY
Disgust
0.07UNLIKELY
Fear
0.11UNLIKELY
Joy
0.66LIKELY
Sadness
0.21UNLIKELY
Language Tone
Analytical
0.43UNLIKELY
Confident
0UNLIKELY
Tentative
0.13UNLIKELY
Social Tone
Openness
0.74LIKELY
Conscientiousness
0.52LIKELY
Extraversion
0.2UNLIKELY
Agreeableness
0.78LIKELY
Emotional Range
0.76LIKELY
Tone of specific sentences
Tones
Emotion
Language
Social Tendencies
Anger
< .5
.5 - .6
.6 - .7
.7 - .8
.8 - .9
> .9
Introduction
Christmas 2017
Introduction
Connecting with God – people through the ages have sought to connect with God.
· Many different means
· Built idols and altars and temples
· Set up different religious systems and rules
· Have gone on pilgrimages to find God
· Often they have worn themselves out in this pursuit.
They have been frustrated in their searching.
· But we also find stories through the ages of when God takes the initiative and reaches out and finds people - sometimes when they had given up hope in ever finding him him.
The story of Jacob’s ladder
· Many years ago about 4000 years ago, a man named Jacob wanted God’s blessing.
He thought his older brother was going to get that blessing instead of him.
So he used bribery and deceit to try to get this blessing.
· His older brother Esau got really angry and threatened to kill Jacob.
So his parents hurriedly sent the younger brother away to visit relatives in another country
· Jacob runs for his life.
He ends up sleeping outside one night.
He found a stone that served as a pillow, and went to sleep.
· That night he had a strange dream.
In his dream, he saw a stairway resting on the earth, with its top reaching to heaven, and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it.
· Then from the top of the staircase, God spoke to him and promised him that he would be with him, bless him, and make him a great nation and give him this land.
· When the man woke up, he realized that he had just an unexpected meeting with God.
He wasn’t even looking for God, and God had found him.
He decided to call that place “the House of God” or Bethel.
A place as a dwelling for God’s name
· About 500 years later, a man named Moses talked with God and God told him that one day the Lord would choose a place as a dwelling for His Name and all God’s people were supposed to go to this place to worship God.
· For decades, no one knew where that place would be.
People worshipped God in many different places.
The main place of worship was a tent or tabernacle that could easily be moved to various locations.
A temple is built
· But finally after about 500 years, the great King Solomon built a temple in Jerusalem and God declared that this was going to be God’s house – a place for him to dwell forever.
· Jerusalem became the holy city, the place where God lived.
· For centuries, God’s people came to this city and to the temple in that city to pray and worship God – and God met with them there, spoke to them through prophets, answered their prayers and blessed them.
· God’s people would sing songs with words like this - “Let us go to his dwelling place, let us worship at his footstool” .
Let us go to Jerusalem.
That is where God is.
That is where his house is.
That is where his throne is.
· But unfortunately, God’s people were very disobedient and started worshipping other gods right in the temple that was supposed to be God’s house – and God allowed the Babylonians to destroy the temple, his house.
He was no longer going to allow his people to meet with him in His house.
Another temple is built
· Then about 500 years after the construction of the first temple, God told the Jews to build his house again.
· So for another 500 years, God’s people came to this second temple and worshipped God there.
Eventually King Herod decided to make the temple a lot larger and it came to be even more impressive than Solomon’s temple.
· But God seemed to be strangely silent.
This was his house, but he was no longer speaking.
· The Jewish people kept coming faithfully to the house to offer sacrifices and pray – but it became more of a ritual, rather than connecting with the God of heaven.
· Then one day, a strange thing happened in Jerusalem.
Some important religious leaders came to Jerusalem to worship.
· Why was this so strange?
Let’s read the story and I will show you.
Text:
The Magi from the East, not the Jewish leaders, came to worship.
Who were the Magi?
· from Persia, 2000 km away.
About the same distance from Jerusalem as Kyiv is from Jerusalem
· Religious leaders, priests
· studied the stars, interpreted the stars - astrologers
· Advisors to the king - They were the leaders of a council whose duty was to organize the process of electing a king and to serve as his advisers in governing the nation.
· Important, educated powerful people
They come to Jerusalem
· One day, when they were looking at the stars, they had seen a special new star.
Using their understanding of what the stars meant, they determined that a new king had been born for the Jews.
· They expected that this new king would be found in Jerusalem.
All kings of Judah after David had been born in Jerusalem.
This was where kings lived.
· They came to Jerusalem to worship this king of the Jews – not just to see him, but to worship him.
This was not their king – but they still came from 2000 km away to worship him.
Very strange!
The Jews in Jerusalem were not interested in worshipping their new King – also very strange.
· they did not seem to be aware that a king had been born.
· They were surprised by the news.
They already had a king (King Herod) and Herod did not have a new-born son.
· The Bible says that King Herod and all Jerusalem was disturbed ().
Not rejoicing, but troubled.
Actually, very troubled.
The king was very threatened by this announcement.
· But the king pretended that it did not bother him at all.
· He has a secret meeting with the Magi and tells them to go to Bethlehem to see if they can find this king- and then come back and tell him.
· He had no interest in worshipping this king.
If the story is really true, he planned to murder this threat to his throne.
Those in power generally do not welcome a new king.
· God’s truth, even though it is good news, always threatens those who are in power.
Why?
Because God’s good news is about God coming to rule this world – and that threatens those who are currently in power.
· Soviet Union – outlawed the proclamation of the Gospel outside the church buildings
· China – singing of Handel’s Messiah in public is now forbidden.
Afraid that these Christian songs will bring Western influence.
Or is it the words, “King of Kings, Lord of lords, And He shall reign forever and ever” that trouble them.
· The 7 most dictatorial countries in the world are also among the 20 countries where Christians are persecuted for their faith.
· Don’t be surprised when the educated and powerful people in the world do not seem interested in the Good News.
The Magi came to worship a certain person, not in a certain place.
The Magi came to Jerusalem.
· The Holy City, the place where God’s temple was located
· 3 times a year, all Jewish men gathered in this city to offer burnt offerings and to rejoice in the presence of God.
· Even people from other nations occasionally came to worship at the temple in Jerusalem.
Eg the Ethiopian eunuch.
· But these magi were not interested in worshipping in Jerusalem or in the temple.
< .5
.5 - .6
.6 - .7
.7 - .8
.8 - .9
> .9