Sermon Tone Analysis

Welcome

Good Morning!

I’m Pastor Wayne and I’d like to welcome you all to the gathering of Ephesus Baptist Church.

We believe we are a called people!

Called to worship and exalt our God among the nations in order that His glory may be spread over all the earth!

If you are visiting with us this morning, we want you to know that ...

We are all one family of faith: “giving our all to love God, love others, proclaim Jesus, and make disciples in our generation.”

We have a connect card in the pew in front of you.

I invite you to take one and fill it out!

If you have prayer needs, you can let us know about those as well.

I promise, our prayer team will lift you up soon.

You can place those cards in the offering plate when it comes around.

Memorial Day Moment of Silence

Scripture Memory

Opening Scripture

Introduction

Who’s Your One?

We started talking about the importance of reaching your a few weeks ago before Mother’s Day.

Hopefully, you have been praying for your one every day.

Maybe you have been bold enough to strike up a conversation with them or to invite them out to lunch.

Some of you have begun inviting your one to join us here in worship at our church gathering.

If you haven’t, may I ask you, “why not?”

What is holding you back?

I am sure there are good reasons for why you haven’t.

But are those reasons legitimate or are they simply excuses.

Our adversary, our enemy, the deceiver, the slanderer, the prince of this world, the one we call the Devil or Satan would love nothing more than to help you create excuses for why you don’t want to suffer potential ridicule or shame by sharing the Good News of the Gospel of Jesus Christ with your one?

On this Memorial Day, “Do you realize that we are at war?”

Do you remember, I preached a sermon to you last July, almost a year ago, titled, “Serving on the G.K.S. Ephesus.”

In that sermon, I attempted to relay a message from Captain Jesus where we used our imaginations to hear him say...

“Realize that you are on a warship!

We are at war! Satan will fight against us at every leg of the journey.

He does not want to see the G.K.S. Ephesus become a formidable foe.

He will even use other people against us, possibly even some of this crew.

Again, you must be humble and loving at all cost, especially towards those who oppose us.

Please allow God’s Word to transform them as it is transforming you.

Be brave, courageous, and strong.

It will be very difficult to know what issues are worth drawing a line in the sand and saying this far and no farther.

Pray for discernment and when the time comes to act, act boldly and decisively!”

Ephesus, do you realize that we are at war?

Our sermon today is titled, “Battle Stations!”

Today’s call to man our Battle Stations comes from the pen of the Apostle Peter in the epistle named after him.

I want to share with you three things we need daily as we man our battle stations as well as the promised result of faithfully standing firm in those battle stations.

Join me in 1 Peter, chapter 5.

I am going to start reading in verse 5. Please stand in honor of the reading of God’s inspired and inerrant Word.

Context:

Peter wrote the letter we call 1 Peter while he was on mission in Rome.

The letter was written to a group of churches in Asia Minor who have been affected by the dispersion.

We know from the letter that the original readers were facing suffering and persecution because of their faith in Jesus Christ.

The persecution was not state sponsored or an official policy of the Roman empire at this time.

Instead, the suffering was local and sporadic.

Being a Christian was not technically illegal.

But these disciples were called “strangers” and “aliens.”

They are the new people of God, but as God’s people they are disenfranchised, discriminated against, and mistreated.

Their home is not earth but heaven.

This was not a time of peace and comfort, rather it was a time of war and of suffering.

Peter has a few things to say to these believers about how we should approach the harsh reality of spiritual war.

I think all he says to them is extremely relevant for us today, for we too are at war, whether we realize it or not.

1.

As we man our battle stations, we must man them with humility.

Peter has just given some final instructions to the Pastors and Elders who are leading God’s flock through this difficult season of suffering for the Gospel.

Now he turns his attention to those who are “younger” in the faith.

He reminds them of their need to be submissive to their elder leaders.

Then he describes how they are to do this.

Now, this applies to each and every pastor and leader as well, but it is originally spoke directly to those who are their followers.

Listen to what Peter tells them in regard to humility.

You can’t man your battle stations effectively without humility.

Since God resists the proud and pours his grace upon the humble, “therefore” believers should humble themselves.

By humbling themselves they will experience God’s grace, for God bestows his favor on those who acknowledge their need of him.

So we are to clothe ourselves with humility.

As Charles Spurgeon once wrote,

“Humility is to make a right estimate of one’s self.”

Humility is to be aware of personal strengths and to be thankful to God for them.

Humility is to be aware of personal weaknesses and to be dependent upon God to help you improve in those areas.

Beyond this, humility describes an attitude which puts others first, which thinks of the desires, needs, and ideas of others as more worthy of attention than your own.

Beyond that, humility describes a heart that seeks to submit to God’s will and authority over their life.

It is a life that puts God’s glory ahead of its own glory.

When we lack humility, we dance with pride.

We trust only in ourselves, our opinions, our ideas.

In our pride we seek attention and glory for ourselves.

God stands opposed to this sinful attitude.

As followers of Christ, we are to humble ourselves under God’s mighty hand.

Although we may experience deep pain and suffering, humility before God will still protect us and bring us safely through.

Pride, leads to worry because it denies the care of our immensely good and sovereign God.

How do we humble ourselves under the mighty hand of God?

Thomas Schreiner comments,

“Believers humble themselves by casting their worries on God.

Conversely, if believers continue to worry, then they are caving in to pride.

How can anxiety and worry be criticized as pride?

We can see that it might be a lack of faith, but does it make sense to identify worry as pride?

Worry is a form of pride because when believers are filled with anxiety, they are convinced that they must solve all the problems in their lives in their own strength.

The only god they trust in is themselves.

When believers throw their worries upon God, they express their trust in his mighty hand, acknowledging that he is Lord and Sovereign over all of life.”

It has been said,

“Affliction either drives one into the arms of God or severs one from God.”

What are you worried about?

God is in control, what can other men do to me! Verse 7 reminds us that God “cares for you!”

Bring on the battle!

Share the gospel with no fear because Christ will be glorified in you if you trust Him!

As we man our battle stations, we must man them with humility.

2. As we man our battle stations, we must man them with vigilance.

With two aorist imperatives, Peter implores and summons us to be vigilant: “Be sober - minded (self-controlled); be watchful (alert).”