Sermon Tone Analysis

4 Reasons for Suffering --

Someone else’s fault

Your fault

No one’s fault -- Fallen world

For God’s glory -- opportunity of a lifetime

Someone Else’s Fault --

Cause -- Someone sins directly against you and you suffer as a result

Gn 8:21

Ps 37:14

Response -- Forgiveness

Mt 6:14-15; Mt 18:21-35

Jesus gave us an example - Lk 23:34

Your Fault --

Cause -- You are lost and sin and reap the consequences of that sin or you are saved and sin and God disciplines you to turn you away from that sin

All sin has consequences

1Co 11:27-32 shows us that one way God disciplines his children is through sickness in order to turn them from their sins and that if they do not repent that sickness may even lead to their death.

This situation by the way is a group of early believers in Corinth who were participating in the Lord’s Supper in an unworthy manner.

This is why we take very seriously who and how we participate in the Lord’s Supper here at this church.

Heb 12:3-13 tells us that God will discipline His children, those who are saved, in order to turn them from their sin, and every christian needs to know this.

If you sin, it’s not ok, and God has already forgiven you and you may have to face the natural consequences that your sin may cause but you don’t have to worry about God actually punishing you.

That’s just simply not true.

The truth is, you don’t have to worry about being condemned, which means you will lose your salvation and be sent to hell, on the day of judgment, but that is a far cry different than you won’t be punished.

If you are saved and a child of God, you absolutely will be punished by God for your sins on this earth, why?

In order to turn you from those sins.

Why do parents punish their children when they do wrong, such as spanking them?

To cause them to not want to do that wrong thing again.

Now is a loving father, patient, and lenient, and forgiving?

Of course and so is God, but a loving father will also discipline his child and so will God.

So if you think God is punishing you, you may be right, my question is first, Are you saved?

Have you accepted Jesus’ call to follow Him with your life?

Have you accepted the price that Jesus paid with His own blood on your behalf?

Do you value His blood and the price he paid or do you consider it trivial.

And if you are saved, and if you have accepted the brutal death of God’s son on your behalf to save you from your sins, are you currently living in sin?

Are you currently living a life that the God who bought you and bled his blood for you told you not to live?

Then you very well may be being disciplined by God so that you would wake up, come to your senses, and turn from those sins.

Give them up.

Stop sinning against the God who gives you existence and love Him.

Love Him, because He loves you, otherwise He wouldn’t be trying to wake you up and getting you to turn from sin, he would just let you live life however you want and send you to hell forever when you die.

If God wasn’t disciplining you and trying to get you to turn from sin and turn to him, only then could you say that God doesn’t really care about me, God doesn’t really love me.

Respones -- Repent

James tells us that if you are sick that you should call for the elders and confess your sins to them and they will pray for you and anoint you with oil and if your sickness is God’s discipline for your sins and you repent then you will be healed but if your sickness is not God’s discipline then even if you are not physically healed your soul will still be saved.

Jam 5:13-20

Jesus said to his disciples after His resurrection that forgiveness of sins is linked to repenting from sin.

Lk 24:46-47

Ac 2:38

Ac 3:19

Ac 11:18

2Pe 3:9

No One’s Fault --

Cause -- We live in a fallen world full of sinners who are sinning and an enemy who is stealing, killing, and destroying

Ro 5:12

Ro 8:22-23

Response -- Take hope in the one who has conquered the world and has promised a better life to come.

Ti 1:1-2

Ac 24:15

Heb 6:17-20

1Jn 3:1-3

Jn 16:33

For God’s Glory --

Cause -- God is the source of some form of suffering in your life in order for you to use that situation to glorify God to a people who need him because we live in a fallen world.

(ex.

man born blind -- would not have happened if the fall never happened)

Jn 9:1-3 - A whole chapter, 41 verses are devoted to his story

Response -- Thankfulness that you get to play such an important role in the story of God, as Christians, this is what we should long for

Jesus told us that it is a blessing to be persecuted for our devotion to God.

Mt 5:10-12

The Apostle Peter gave us this warning and encouragement.

1Pe 4:12-16

This is not just the advice we are given, it was the reality of the early church.

Ac 5:41

Job’s suffering was for God’s glory, Aside from the person of Jesus Christ Himself, no one in the scriptures brings more glory to God with his or her life than Job.

Satan attacked God by saying that Job lived a life of holiness turning from evil, not because Job actually loved God, but only because of what God had given him.

If God allowed him to take everything away from Job he would curse God to his face because, according to Satan, God is not worth that kind of devotion.

Jb 1:1

Jb 1:8-11

So then Job lost oxen, his donkeys, his sheep, his camels, his children, and many of his servants, and this was his response

Jb 1:20-22

So then Satan again attacked God’s worth by saying that Job would not stay devoted to God if he was allowed to attack his health, no-one, not even God is worth that kind of devotion, everyone including Job would curse God to his face then.

Jb 2:7-10

In the end Job did not abandon his faithfulness to God, Job wanted answers but even without answers he still believed that God was worthy of his praise and he still earnestly looked forward to being with Him forever.

Jb 19:25-27

And no matter what suffering we face in this life, we should be sincere in forgiving others, we should be quick to repent, we should cling to the hope that awaits us, and we should rejoice in our opportunities to suffer for the glory of God and for the good of others, just as Christ suffered for HIs glory and for our good.

Rom 8:18