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
0.1UNLIKELY
Disgust
0.09UNLIKELY
Fear
0.09UNLIKELY
Joy
0.59LIKELY
Sadness
0.52LIKELY
Language Tone
Analytical
0.51LIKELY
Confident
0UNLIKELY
Tentative
0.17UNLIKELY
Social Tone
Openness
0.93LIKELY
Conscientiousness
0.37UNLIKELY
Extraversion
0.26UNLIKELY
Agreeableness
0.71LIKELY
Emotional Range
0.61LIKELY
Tone of specific sentences
Tones
Emotion
Language
Social Tendencies
Anger
< .5
.5 - .6
.6 - .7
.7 - .8
.8 - .9
> .9
Introduction
After Jesus ascended to Heaven, what it meant to be a first century Christian?
Acts 11:19–30 “Now they which were scattered abroad upon the persecution that arose about Stephen travelled as far as Phenice, and Cyprus, and Antioch, preaching the word to none but unto the Jews only.
And some of them were men of Cyprus and Cyrene, which, when they were come to Antioch, spake unto the Grecians, preaching the Lord Jesus.
And the hand of the Lord was with them: and a great number believed, and turned unto the Lord.
Then tidings of these things came unto the ears of the church which was in Jerusalem: and they sent forth Barnabas, that he should go as far as Antioch.
Who, when he came, and had seen the grace of God, was glad, and exhorted them all, that with purpose of heart they would cleave unto the Lord.
For he was a good man, and full of the Holy Ghost and of faith: and much people was added unto the Lord.
Then departed Barnabas to Tarsus, for to seek Saul: And when he had found him, he brought him unto Antioch.
And it came to pass, that a whole year they assembled themselves with …”
Acts 1:3 To summarize, after His resurrection Jesus showed Himself alive by “many infallible proofs.”
1 Corinthians 15:6 After that, he was seen of above five hundred brethren at once; of whom the greater part remain unto this present, but some are fallen asleep.
Said another way, a ton of indisputable data made His literal resurrection unquestionable and irrefutable.
He stayed on earth for more than forty days, showing Himself to more than a dozen more, time in and time again.
He was preparing His disciples for the Great Commission.
Teaching them what to do when He was gone.
a. express love b. hope to hold on to.
Peter preached with great courage, in Jerusalem that Jesus is the Saviour and the need to repent from their dead religions and return to the true God, revealed as Jesus Christ.
Three thousand people were saved and were baptized.
Acts 2:41-42.
v.41 Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls.
v.42 And they continued stedfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers.
Being baptized in those days was a death warrant, the Romans and the Jewish rulers didn’t like Jesus.
It wasn’t long before three thousand became five thousand.
Acts 4:4 “Howbeit many of them which heard the word believed; and the number of the men was about five thousand.”
Acts 6:7 “And the word of God increased; and the number of the disciples multiplied in Jerusalem greatly; and a great company of the priests were obedient to the faith.”
The news of the resurrection it it spread like wild fire.
The world literally was being turned upside down.
Acts 17:6 “And when they found them not, they drew Jason and certain brethren unto the rulers of the city, crying, These that have turned the world upside down are come hither also;”
Roman authorities and Jewish rules were scrambling to stomp out the fires aggressive action.
Oppression and persecution poured out upon the new followers of Jesus.
they were being arrested, falsely accused, fake trails, tortured, imprisonment, beatings, stoning, beheading, and more were meted out with fiery fury and viral publicity.
So how did Christianity spread?
More importantly, how do we know it is legitimately the truth of God?
In this study we will examine these questions and three others.
1. Would You Die for Your Own Lie?
It seems like the first disciple would have turned back, doesn’t it?
Unless the story was indisputable.
Unless the evidence was absolutely compelling, this new Christianity would have faded into obscurity like a flash in the pan.
So basically, the disciples would have faded and fizzled out and just died.
Unless the story was so true, so validated, so in control unquestionable, that is worth dying for.
People don't die for a lie.
Gone fishing disciples don't randomly assault Navy seals, steal the body, the makeup of a ridiculous con, and then allow themselves to be brutalized and martyred to keep their cover story.
Especially these disciples.
Spineless, gutless, and fickle, they had no loyalty to the dead Jesus.
Why would they waste their time stealing a body, risk fighting professional killers, and fight for the cause that died on the cross?
Why would they go back to the dead Jesus?
More so why would they go back and die for the dead Jesus?
Why would so many thousands of people believe how could so many 1st century minds buy into something so impossible?
unless the evidence was there.
Not a few people died for this story.
Tens of thousands did.
And many were eyewitnesses of the resurrected Jesus or new eyewitnesses of such.
A. Transformed Disciples
Consider this as the persecution came to those thousands of early followers they didn't forsake their story.
They didn't turn their back to the old way of life.
They didn't return to their old beliefs.
They fled for their lives but held on to their faith.
Ask yourself Why? because they knew it was true.
They knew he was the truth.
They knew him.
They not only fled for their lives, but they also fueled their faith, they furthered the story.
Threats couldn't make them shut up.
As they fled they took their news with them, Jesus rose from the dead Jesus is the God-man.
Jesus paid it all.
Jesus is the only savior.
Believe in him.
Receive him.
Repent changed your beliefs about Jesus, about God.
Acts 5:40-42 “And to him they agreed: and when they had called the apostles, and beaten them, they commanded that they should not speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go.
And they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for his name.
And daily in the temple, and in every house, they ceased not to teach and preach Jesus Christ.”
Christianity is more than a body of beliefs, it's a risen body that leads us to God and his body of truth.
It's all about Jesus and what he did.
Yes, Christianity has a body of beliefs but all of that revolves entirely around and rests completely upon the resurrected body of the living Jesus.
This is God’s story come and his whole redemptive plan is based upon his exceeding grace and goodness in man’s complete inability and destitution.
B. Unlikely Convert
As if the story can't get any more intense, another bizarre turn of events ratchets the whole thing up.
Remember Romans and Jews are using all of their collective might to stop this message and squelch the spread of this way.
Like zealous extremists, they're aggressively punishing all followers of Jesus.
Every time they stomp out a fire it spreads in 15 other directions.
They are herding cats it's like they're trying to put a fire out by pouring jet fuel on it.
Then along comes there are #1 persecutor of Christians Saul.
He basically defects and he becomes one of the greatest minds of the 1st century.
He's unbelievably brilliant.
He's highly educated and credentialed.
He is a dual citizen both Jewish and Roman.
He's powerful respected.
He's passionately zealous for Judaism.
He's fearless loyal.
he's incredibly well connected.
Think of it this way, Osama bin Laden, Saddam Hussein, think of Adolf Hitler all being combined into one person, but had a few PhD.s to his resume.
He was smart.
Saul was bloodthirsty, Christian exterminator who believed he was doing God a favor.
Saul knew the Scriptures as good as anyone.
He was given full authority by the Jews and the Romans to exterminate people.
How do you convert someone so calloused?
How do you get the anti-Jesus poster child to become a Jesus follower?
How do you convince an archenemy of Jesus to become an ardent follower of Jesus?
He was the last guy on the planet that you would ever convert to be a Jesus follower.
< .5
.5 - .6
.6 - .7
.7 - .8
.8 - .9
> .9