Sermon Tone Analysis

Author

Mark Barnes

Description

This workflow is based on Bryan Chapell’s Christ-Centered Preaching.

If you’re not already done so, reading the book will be a big help in following the workflow.

The majority of the questions and nearly all the explanations in this workflow are quotations from that book.

Links are provided to enable to read the quotations in context.

The order of the workflow is based on appendix 3, rather than the order the topics are dealt with in the body of the book.

1.

Spiritual Preparation

TextBefore you begin, pray!

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2.

Read and digest the thought of the text

TextListen to the text, absorb it, wrestle with it, digest it, immerse in it, breathe it in as God’s breath for your life, pray over it.

The greatest danger you will face is that you will focus too narrowly or too quickly on certain features of the text and, by neglecting surrounding details, will misinterpret the whole.

[Read in context]

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2.1.

Observe the text

TextRead through the passage, in its context, several times.

Expandable TextA preacher uses the faculties of observation to determine what is present.

The method is simple: read, read, and reread the text.

Read broadly enough to see the context.

Read closely enough to identify important or unique phrasing.

Reread until the flow of thought begins to surface.

Look up unknown words, names, and places so that you are sure you are reading with understanding.

Make sure you are familiar with the features of the text even if you do not yet grasp its full meaning…

[Read in context]

Read

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2.2.

Meditate on the passage

Question/AnswerWrite down a prayerful response for each phrase, sentence or paragraph — turn each one into worship.

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3.

Identify the Fallen Condition Focus

TextThe Fallen Condition Focus (FCF) reveals a text’s and a sermon’s purpose.

Expandable TextConsideration of a passage’s purpose ultimately forces us to ask, Why are these concerns addressed?

What caused this account, these facts, or the recording of these ideas?

What was the intent of the author?

For what purpose did the Holy Spirit include these words in Scripture?

Such questions force us to exegete the cause of a passage as well as its contents and to connect both to the lives of the people God calls us to shepherd with his truth.

The Fallen Condition Focus is the mutual human condition that contemporary believers share with those to or about whom the text was written that requires the grace of the passage for God’s people to glorify and enjoy him.

Preaching… (1) focuses on the fallen condition that necessitated the writing of the passage and (2) uses the text’s features to explain how the Holy Spirit addresses that concern then and now.

Ultimately, a sermon is about how a text says we are to respond biblically to the FCF as it is experienced in our lives—identifying the gracious means that God provides for us to deal with the human brokenness that deprives us of the full experience and expression of his glory.

The more specific the statement of the FCF early in the sermon, the more powerful and poignant the message will be.

An FCF of “not being faithful to God” is not nearly as riveting as “How can I maintain my integrity when my boss has none?”

A message directed to “the prayerless patterns of society” will not prick the conscience or ignite resolve nearly as effectively as a sermon on “why we struggle to pray when family stresses make prayer most necessary.”

Generic statements of an FCF give the preacher little guidance for the organisation of the sermon and the congregation little reason for listening.

Specificity tends to breed interest and power by demonstrating that Scripture speaks to the real concerns of individual lives.

Specific sins such as unforgiveness, lying, and racism are frequently the FCF of a passage, but a sin does not always have to be the FCF of a sermon.

Grief, illness, longing for the Lord’s return, the need to know how to share the gospel, and the desire to be a better parent are not sins, but they are needs that our fallen condition imposes and that Scripture addresses.

Just as greed, rebellion, lust, irresponsibility, poor stewardship, and pride are proper subjects of a sermon, so also are the difficulties of raising godly children, determining God’s will, and understanding one’s gifts.

An FCF need not be something for which we are guilty or culpable.

It simply needs to be an aspect or problem of the human condition that requires the instruction, admonition, and/or comfort of Scripture.

Thus, an FCF is always phrased in negative terms.

It is something wrong (though not necessarily a moral evil) that needs correction or encouragement from Scripture.

Early statements of an FCF in a sermon may open the door to application in a number of ways.

A preacher may open a spiritual or an emotional wound in order to provide biblical healing, identify a grief in order to offer God’s comfort, demonstrate a danger in order to warrant a scriptural command, or condemn a sin in order to offer cleansing to a sinner.

In each case, the statement of the FCF creates a listener’s longing for the Word and its solutions by identifying the biblical needs that the passage addresses.

[Read in Context]

Question/AnswerWhat does the text say?

Question/AnswerWhat spiritual concern(s) did the text address (in its context)?

Question/AnswerWhat spiritual concerns do listeners share in common with those to (or about) whom the text was written?

Question/AnswerTherefore, what is this sermon’s fallen condition focus?

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4.

Background the Text (Where Does It Fit?)

TextThe interrogation of a text is not complete until the preacher uncovers the background of the text.

Determining the background of a text locates the passage in its historical, logical-doctrinal, and literary setting.

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4.1.

Historical Context

TextA preacher determines the historical context by reading about and researching the culture, concerns, and events that surrounded and stimulated the writing of a text.

Expandable TextUnderstanding the historical situation will cause a preacher to look at the chronology of events, the biography of the people, and the details of the culture at the time of the passage’s writing and the place of the passage in the development of God’s redemptive plan.

[Read in Context]

Question/AnswerWhat is the historical context of this passage?

Expandable TextIt will help you if you have a background commentary collection to focus your reading.

If you have such a collection, open the section below in a new panel by clicking on the icon in the top-right corner of the section.

Then hover over the Commentaries heading, and clicking on Settings to select your collection.

Commentaries

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4.2.

Logical-Doctrinal Context

TextReading broadly enough to see the development of the biblical writer’s argument or concerns in this and other relevant Scripture passages will reveal the logical-doctrinal context of the passage through the truths God is expressing by direct statements or interactive relationships.

[Read in Context]

Use the Outlines and Compare Pericope sections to quickly view the logical context of this passage.

Outlines

Compare Pericopes

Question/AnswerWhat is the logical-doctrinal context of this passage?

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4.3.

Literary Context

TextSurrounding passages, the literary form (or genre) of the passage, the intended use of the text, the narrative voice, the role of this portion in the broader book or scope of Scripture, figures of speech, parallel passages, echoes and quotations of other references, or rhetorical patterns expose the literary context of the passage.

[Read in Context]

Figurative Language

Parallel Passages

Literary Typing

Theme

Question/AnswerWhat is the literary context of this passage?

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5.

Research the text

Question/AnswerWhat questions would a thoughtful reader ask of this text, if they wanted to discover what it means?

[Read in Context]

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5.1.

Compare different versions

Textual Variants

Text ComparisonCompareESV, NIV 2011, NIV 1984, NKJV, KJV (1900)