Sermon Tone Analysis

Good morning and welcome to First Baptist Church Los Alamos.

For those of you who don’t know me, I am Brian and I’m one of the Deacons here.

For the last 5 or so years I have been working with our youth group which is made up of Middle School and High School students.

We are currently meeting on Wednesday nights after the family meal (around 6:15pm) in the basement of Dulaney and on Sunday mornings in the Coffee House on the first floor of Dulaney during the Sunday School time (starting between 9:00 and 9:15am).

Any Middle School or High School students are welcome to join as at either time.

It is worth noting that there is also an AWANA class for the same age group on Wednesdays that these students can attend.

On Wednesdays we’ve been working through the Focus on the Family’s Truth Project since last summer and now we are on to more topical discussions.

On Sunday mornings we’ve been going through the book of Revelation for the last few months.

You don’t often hear sermons on the book of Revelation except for the first 3 chapters because there are so many theories about the author, intended audience, and focus on different aspects of the visions that make up most of the remaining chapters of the book.

For this reason, it is easier to discuss in a Bible study setting that allows for a dialogue where multiple interpretations can be discussed.

Regarding the author, we are told that he is named John and he is on the Isle of Patmos which is a prison colony.

Historically it was believed that the author was John the Apostle, but later theologians believe that it is a different John because the writing style of Revelation is significantly different from the Gospel according to John.

The other problem is that the book was probably written in the late first century AD and it is unlikely that the Apostle John lived that long.

Next comes the question of the intended audience.

Today it is generally interpreted as a series of visions given to John about the end times, but there have also been theories that it was meant for the Jewish Christians at the time it was written as an encouragement that the oppression under Roman rule will not last forever.

Of course, we already know that in the Bible texts can have multiple meanings.

This is one of the great things about the Bible.

A text can be read multiple times and each time the reader gets a slightly different insight.

For example, in the Old Testament there are descriptions of the messiah that some people believed to be different people throughout history.

These people can be seen as prototypes of the messiah, but only Jesus fulfilled all the prophecies and that is why we can now see that the previous “messiahs” were missing one or many of the descriptions we are given throughout ancient scriptures.

Similarly, Revelation mentions the Antichrist, but throughout history there have been multiple antichrists.

Hitler was one example and throughout the course of history there have been others.

The focus of the reading can be on the many references to numbers in the book, the various symbols, trying to focus on an exact wording or several other things.

It is dangerous to focus exclusively on the numbers because there is a great deal more content than the numbers and the other content can simply be missed if focusing on the numbers.

It is also not a great idea to focus on the symbols because most of them are John’s best guess on describing them.

The frequent use of the word “like” is because John is seeing things he has never seen before and therefore he doesn’t know exactly how to describe them.

A great example of this is his descriptions of the four living creatures.

He refers to them as like a lion, like a calf, like a flying eagle, and like a man, but also points out that they have six wings and are covered with eyes.

I’m certainly not going to try to go down the path of speaking about any of this, but I will talk about the letters found in chapter two and three.

We must remember that these letters are not things that John came up with, but rather they are dictated by Christ with specific wording that concerns and praise about the church that is being written to.

The letters generally follow a standard format.

First is an introduction of the sender (Christ) that is different in each letter and includes a description that corresponds to the closing of the letter.

In doing this it creates something known as an Inclusio so that each of the letters is clearly separated from the others.

Next is praise for the things that the church is doing correctly.

This is followed by Christ’s critique of the church.

The next portion is meant as an encouragement for the church.

Then there is a closing that ties to the introduction to the church and allows for a clear separation between books.

Finally, there is a close that tells us that the letters are not meant for just one church, but rather that each of the churches and in fact all churches, including ours, should read all the letters.

Whereas most of the churches have weaknesses, all the weaknesses may be present in each church even though some are more obvious in a specific church.

In fact, we still see these problems in churches today because they are based on on intrinsic elements of humanity.

The same is true for the strengths and we should all take the encouragement to heart.

This format is very close to some of the methods in Dale Carnegie’s book “How to win friends and influence people.”

Carnegie didn’t invent this method, God did, but Carnegie would probably never admit that it isn’t his creation.

These methods are also taught in many management classes to this day.

Let’s start by looking at the letter to Ephesus in .

On Wednesdays we’ve been working through the Focus on the Family’s Truth Project since last summer and now we are on to more topical discussions.

On Sunday mornings we’ve been going through the book of Revelation for the last few months.

You don’t often hear sermons on the book of Revelation except for the first 3 chapters because there are so many theories about the author, intended audience, and focus on different aspects of the visions that make up most of the remaining chapters of the book.

For this reason, it is easier to discuss in a Bible study setting that allows for a dialogue where multiple interpretations can be discussed.

Regarding the author, we are told that he is named John and he is on the Isle of Patmos which is a prison colony.

Historically it was believed that the author was John the Apostle, but later theologians believe that it is a different John because the writing style of Revelation is significantly different from the Gospel according to John.

The other problem is that the book was probably written in the late first century AD and it is unlikely that John lived that long.

Next comes the question of the intended audience.

Today it is generally interpreted as a series of visions given to John about the end times, but there have also been theories that it was meant for the Jewish Christians at the time it was written as an encouragement that the oppression under Roman rule will not last forever.

Of course, we already know that in the Bible texts can have multiple meanings.

This is one of the great things about the Bible.

A text can be read multiple times and each time the reader gets a slightly different insight.

For example, in the Old Testament there are descriptions of the messiah that some people believed to be different people throughout history.

These people can be seen as prototypes of the messiah, but only Jesus fulfilled all the prophecies and that is why we can now see that the previous “messiahs” were missing one or many of the descriptions we are given throughout ancient scriptures.

Similarly, Revelation mentions the Antichrist, but throughout history there have been multiple antichrists.

Hitler was one example and throughout the course of history there have been others.

“Write to the angel of the church in Ephesus:

“The One who holds the seven stars in His right hand and who walks among the seven gold lampstands says: 2 I know your works, your labor, and your endurance, and that you cannot tolerate evil.

You have tested those who call themselves apostles and are not, and you have found them to be liars.

3 You also possess endurance and have tolerated many things because of My name and have not grown weary.

4 But I have this against you: You have abandoned the love you had at first. 5 Remember then how far you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first.

Otherwise, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place—unless you repent.

6 Yet you do have this: You hate the practices of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate.

7 “Anyone who has an ear should listen to what the Spirit says to the churches.

I will give the victor the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in God’s paradise.

The focus of the reading can be on the many references to numbers in the book, the various symbols, trying to focus on an exact wording or several other things.

It is dangerous to focus exclusively on the numbers because there is a great deal more content than the numbers and the other content can simply be missed if focusing on the numbers.

It is also not a great idea to focus on the symbols because most of them are John’s best guess on describing them.

The frequent use of the word “like” is because John is seeing things he has never seen before and therefore he doesn’t know exactly how to describe them.

A great example of this is his descriptions of the four living creatures.

He refers to them as like a lion, like a calf, like a flying eagle, and like a man, but also points out that they have six wings and are covered with eyes.

I’m certainly not going to try to go down the path of speaking about any of this, but I will talk about the letters found in chapter two and three.

We must remember that these letters are not things that John came up with, but rather they are dictated by Christ with specific wording that corresponds to the church that is being written.

The letters generally follow a standard format.

First is an introduction of the sender (Christ) that is different in each letter and includes a description that each church would recognize.

Next is praise for the things that the church is doing correctly.

This is followed by Christ’s critique of the church.

The next portion is meant as an encouragement for the church.

Finally, there is a close that tells us that the letters are not meant for just one church, but rather that each of the churches and in fact all churches, including ours, should read all the letters.

Whereas most of the churches have weaknesses, all the weaknesses may be present in each church even though some are more obvious in a specific church.

In fact, we still see the problems in churches today.

The same is true for the strengths and we should all take the encouragement to heart.

This format is very close to some of the methods in Dale Carnegie’s book “How to win friends and influence people.”

Carnegie didn’t invent this method, God did, but Carnegie would probably never admit that it isn’t his creation.

These methods are also taught in many management classes to this day.

Let’s start by looking at the letter to Ephesus.

Christ identifies himself as the One who holds the seven stars (the leaders of the churches) and the seven lampstands (the churches being written to) in His hand.

This coincides with the warning given to Ephesus that God will remove the lampstand if they don’t change their ways.

He then praises the church for their works, labor, endurance, and refusal to tolerate evil.

Revelation 2:2-3

2 I know your works, your labor, and your endurance, and that you cannot tolerate evil.

You have tested those who call themselves apostles and are not, and you have found them to be liars.

3 You also possess endurance and have tolerated many things because of My name and have not grown weary.

[1]

The criticism is that they have “lost their first love.”

Since we are told of their works and endurance this probably doesn’t mean that they have lost their love of Christ.