Sermon Tone Analysis
Overall tone of the sermon
This automated analysis scores the text on the likely presence of emotional, language, and social tones. There are no right or wrong scores; this is just an indication of tones readers or listeners may pick up from the text.
A score of 0.5 or higher indicates the tone is likely present.
Emotion Tone
Anger
0.13UNLIKELY
Disgust
0.08UNLIKELY
Fear
0.02UNLIKELY
Joy
0.72LIKELY
Sadness
0.1UNLIKELY
Language Tone
Analytical
0.26UNLIKELY
Confident
0UNLIKELY
Tentative
0.33UNLIKELY
Social Tone
Openness
0.67LIKELY
Conscientiousness
0.46UNLIKELY
Extraversion
0.08UNLIKELY
Agreeableness
0.99LIKELY
Emotional Range
0.39UNLIKELY
Tone of specific sentences
Tones
Emotion
Language
Social Tendencies
Anger
< .5
.5 - .6
.6 - .7
.7 - .8
.8 - .9
> .9
*Pentecost 9, Genesis 18:1-14, August 1, 2004*
*The Last Laugh?, */After Rev.D. Smith/
*Introduction:* * *George W. Bush, in an airport lobby, noticed a man in a long flowing white robe with a long flowing white beard and flowing white hair.
The man had a staff in one hand and some stone tablets under the other arm.
George W. approached the man and inquired, "Aren’t you Moses?"
The man ignored George W. and stared at the ceiling.
George W. positioned himself more directly in the man’s view and asked again, "Aren’t you Moses?" \\ The man continued to peruse the ceiling.
George W. tugged at the man’s sleeve and asked once again, "Aren’t you Moses?"
The man finally responded in an irritated voice, "Yes I am".
George W. asked him why he was so unfriendly and Moses replied, "The last time I spoke to a Bush I had to spend forty years in the desert....
*Relevant Context*
Laughter is a God given ability.
In our text from Genesis the laughter of Sarah is an important part of the account.
Unfortunately her laughter is the laughter of unbelief.
Fortunately, for Sarah and us, God turns her laughter into the laugh of faith and joy because God fulfills what seem to be His impossible promises.
It is important to understand basic elements of the text of Genesis.
This passage is significant as the fulfillment of the promise of God to Abraham that he would have a child in his old age -- And not just any child, a child of promise.
Ishmael was born to Hagar, Abraham’s and Sarah’s maid servant.
He was not the child promised by God.
As an old man, Abraham had taken matters into his own hands in the case of Ishmael, which provided nothing but dissension in his home.
The child of promise was one that would come by faith, even when nature ruled it impossible for Abraham and Sarah to have a child, God would give them one.
Miracle of miracles was brought about by the power of God, just as promised.
This first child of promise, Isaac, would establish the line for the child of promise who would be a blessing to all the nations of the earth—Jesus Christ.
But even as God reminded Abraham of the promised child Sarah laughed out loud.
After all, how could this be?
From time to time you hear someone say that God must have a sense of humor.
We know the word /joy/ is found frequently in the Scriptures.
What about the word /laugh/?
Laughter is mentioned 33 times in the Old Testament and 6 times in the New Testament.
Sometimes laughter is brought about by doubt and unbelief, almost a laughter to scorn.
At other times, there is, for lack of a better term, a laughter to salvation, which is a laughter of joy over the salvation God has won for us.
God wants us to laugh out of joy for the salvation he has won for us.
Jesus tells us in his own words, “Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh.”
There may be sorrow in our earthly lives, reasons for us to weep.
There will come a time when the weeping will be replaced by laughter over all that God has done for us, and we will weep no more.
In our text we find reference to Sarah laughing.
In Genesis 17 we hear that Abraham laughed.
Though the world laughs at our faith, we laugh in response to God’s promises, sometimes in Christian joy and sometimes in unbelief.
The question is, Who Gets the Last Laugh?
After all, the adage says, “He who laughs last laughs best.”
*I* Take for example, Abraham laughing at God’s promise.
When God promised Abraham a son, “Abraham fell facedown; he laughed and said to himself, ‘Will a son be born to a man a hundred years old?
Will Sarah bear a child at the age of ninety’?” Abraham did not think it could be.
Abraham had a son by Sarah’s maid.
Oh, maybe God was talking about him.
God was not.
God was talking about Sarah his wife.
God had invited Abraham to “look up at the heavens and count the stars—if indeed you can count them.
So shall your offspring be.”
Is it surprising that at age 100 Abraham laughed at such a promise?
Yet, God would work a miracle.
Abraham laughed in doubt when the promise was made.
God would keep the promise.
Abraham would laugh again, not in doubt but in joy over the birth of his son.
God kept his promise.
In our text three visitors came to Abraham.
Who were they?
We know that one was the Lord himself.
The other two were angels.
God was now going to let Sarah in on all of this.
God wanted Sarah to laugh for joy.
God wants us all to laugh for joy in his unique and astonishing promises.
God tells the events that will occur.
Sarah would have a child by the time they returned a year later.
“I will surely return to you about this time next year, and Sarah your wife will have a son.”
All the while Sarah is listening behind the tent flap.
When she hears these words she could not help but laugh.
Only, it was not laughter of joy.
By no means!
It was the laughter of doubt.
It angered God.
The laughter of unbelief always angers God.
He asked, “Why did Sarah laugh?”
To Sarah, the promise seemed utterly ridiculous.
Sarah was just too old to have children.
It could not be possible.
Sarah did not believe.
God’s promise brought the laughter of unbelief, not the laughter of joy.
Oh, people laughed at the Savior too.
Remember how he came to the house of Jairus, whose daughter had died?
When Jesus told them she was just sleeping, they laughed in unbelief.
But the laughter of unbelief changed to laughter of joy when the Lord Jesus raised the little girl from death.
Do we laugh at God’s promises?
Do we laugh in unbelief that sinful people like us will actually wind up in heaven?
Do we laugh at the promise that Christ has done all to save us?
Do we laugh at God’s promise to forgive us for the sins that we do over and over again in our weakness?
Do we laugh when we think God will provide for all we need every day?
We at times have laughed in unbelief at the promises of God.
When we are struggling with temptation, when we are beaten down by the world, when we are sick, when we are fighting financial troubles, we laugh inside at God’s promises.
They just can’t be.
They’re too good to be true.
No way!
God asked Sarah and Abraham a question, and this question is for you and me too: “Is anything too hard for the Lord?”
Is there a time when your troubles are too big for God? No.
God can change your laughter of unbelief to laughter of joy, most certainly?
Sarah would soon be laughing for joy.
God convicted her for her unbelief that day.
She came to believe the promise made.
For the writer of Hebrews says, “By faith even Sarah herself received ability to conceive, even beyond the proper time of life, since she considered him faithful who had promised” How was that again?
By faith!
< .5
.5 - .6
.6 - .7
.7 - .8
.8 - .9
> .9