Sermon Tone Analysis

Explanation

This morning, I want to ask you a question.

Why do we sing?

I have been around singing, or as we say in my neck of the woods sangin’, my whole life.

I remember as a kid of a southern baptist preacher, we would go to sangin’s at least once a month.

People would come together on a sunday evening and just sing.

Someone may stand and give a testimony and then we would sing some more.

I dont hear of this happening anymore.

Im sure it does happen in small pockets, but it is cettainly not as popular as it once was.

I am not promoting that we do less preaching.

I am by all means the biggest fan of preaching the gospel of Jesus.

It must be done and it needs to be done more in our churches.

But what I am saying is that preaching isnt the only way we encourage in the word.

Preaching isnt the only way we share the gospel.

And preaching isnt the only way we speak of God’s goodness.We do it in song as well.

There is an emotion that is invoked in song too.Singing helps us communicate about God emotionally what we already know mentally.

But when I was trapped in fear and stuck in my apartment, depressed and contemplating my own life, it wasnt a sermon that got me through it.

When I was in the worst season of my life and felt as if God had abandoned me, it wasnt a sermon that got me through.

When I would stare at my ceiling for hours and not sleeping for days and consumed with fear, it wasnt a sermon that got me through.

It was a song. it was a song that God put in my heart.

Maybe it was a sermon or scripture for you, but for me it was a song.

I would lay there and put this song on repeat and play it over and over and over again.

The bridge is what I sing to myself and it would say this “In all of my life, in every season you are still God and I have a reason to sing, I have a reason to worship” Those were some of the hardest words I would ever sing, but I knew it was true and so I sang it over and over again.

It was with the work of the Spirit, biblical truth and counseling, and that song which pulled me through the darkness I was in.

Music and singing is a beautiful thing and it is a gift from God.

Many of you know this and have lived it.

Lets start this morning by proclaiming the gretness of God and sing How Great is our God.

We sing because he is worthy of Worship

We sing because he is worthy of Worship

The first song in all of scripture is found in .

Honestly, I have never done much study into this until studying for this sermon.

But, if you study scripture long enough, you learn and realize that there isn’t one thing recorded in scripture that is a mistake.

When God works, He doesnt work by luck or coincidence.

He works with great intention and purpose.

A little side note.

You can find comfort in that this morning.

If you are hoping I am going to say that scripture says you cant make mistakes, then you are mistaken..... What it does say though is that we may make mistakes, but God never does.

If we are trusting Him and following after His will, it may be difficult, but it is with purpose and intention.

So exodus 15, you have the Israelites that have just escaped from the grasp of the Egyptians.

They walk through on DRY ground and the see the enemies of God swallowed up into the WET sea.

You know what the Bible says they did when they were delivered or even more specifically says they saw the Mighty Hand of the Lord.

It says they sang.

They didn’t sing to a crowd or for a performance.

They didnt sing to impress someone.

BUT THEY SANG TO THE LORD.

And this is what they sang.

We see on display the amazing display of God’s power here.

We read this story with a lens like everyone does.

But think for a moment what it must have been like to see this happen first hand.

You have been enslaved by the egyptians for years and years.

You have lost all hope that God would ever deliver you or even that there was a God.

You have been surrounded by the little g gods of Egypt for years and probably many picked up a lot of egyptian practices which would come back to bite them in later chapters.

Moses comes along, makes things worse for a time but then FINALLY delivers you.

Your making your way down the path of deliverence.

And notice when they left egypt, there was no song recorded.

They complained and were upset at times and there was no singing.

But the moment they saw the worth and the power of God, they couldnt help but sing.

We see this in other parts of scripture too.

One of my favorite stories in scripture involves Peter.

This was early on in Jesus ministry and listen to this interaction.

You dont have to turn there.

(NIV) 1 One day as Jesus was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret, the people were crowding around him and listening to the word of God. 2 He saw at the water’s edge two boats, left there by the fishermen, who were washing their nets.

3 He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a little from shore.

Then he sat down and taught the people from the boat.

4 When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch.” 5 Simon answered, “Master, we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything.

But because you say so, I will let down the nets.”

6 When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break.

7 So they signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them, and they came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink.

8 When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus’ knees and said, “Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!” 9 For he and all his companions were astonished at the catch of fish they had taken, 10 and so were James and John, the sons of Zebedee, Simon’s partners.

Then Jesus said to Simon, “Don’t be afraid; from now on you will fish for people.”

When you see Jesus for who He really is, you cant help but worship.

Something that is easy to miss is that when Peter first talks to Jesus.

He calls him the greek word επιστατα meaning Master.

Then Jesus shows His power, and Peter falls to his knees, recognizing the worth of Jesus, and he calls him the greek word κυριος meaning Lord.

We sing not because we can carry a tune or because we want to impress someone.

The main source behind the reason we should sing is because He is worthy.

and just like the song in , we will sing this next song declaring Who is like the Lord.

The answer.... no one.

None are like Him.

SING “Build My life”

We sing because we are Grateful.

This is another reason why Christians do and certainly should sing.

We have so much to be thankful for.

And yes I know that some of you are walking in the hardest time of your lives right now and some of the darkest seasons.

Yet I see you here week after week singing praises to our God.

Why?

Why are we grateful?

Why do we say thank you to a God that the world sees as mean and hateful.

It doesnt make sense to so many.

It didnt make sense to many when Paul and Silas were singing in the jail after being beaten.

But why do we sing.

Because we know we have much to be grateful for.

We know what was given for us and we know WHO was given for us.

You see, I believe that the attitude you have is the fragrance or your heart and it comes out of your mouth.

Honestly there are some people around here that have some bad spiritual breath at times.

I know I certainly have some stanky spiritual breath at times as well.

But I also know that if we change our attitude to gratitude, then we begin to get this minty fresh spiritual breath that starts running all over the place.

And before you know it you got people coming up to you asking for some of your mints because they like the way it smells.

Gratitude is contagious.

And the Lord loves it when his Children sing to Him with an attitude of gratitude.