Sermon Tone Analysis

One of my favorite authors from my ministry courses was a Disciples of Christ minister, Fred Craddock.

He wrote and taught about how to prepare sermons and how to preach.

I hope that I’ve learned some from him.

There is a story that he told about an incident that occurred when he was teaching about preaching at a seminary out west.

He related that story that went something like this.

Just before the first lecture, one of the students stood up and said, "Before you speak, I need to know if you are Pentecostal."

The room grew silent.

Craddock said he looked around for the Dean of the seminary!

He was nowhere to be found.

The student continued with his quiz right in front of everybody.

Craddock was taken aback, and so he said, "Do you mean do I belong to the Pentecostal Church?"

He said, "No, I mean are you Pentecostal?"

Craddock said, "Are you asking me if I am charismatic?" the student said, "I am asking you if you are Pentecostal."

Craddock said, "Do you want to know if I speak in tongues?"

He said, " I want to know if you are Pentecostal."

Craddock said, "I don't know what your question is."

The student said, "Obviously, you are not Pentecostal."

He left.

Do you know that when the Church of the Nazarene was first started that the name was the Pentecostal Church of the Nazarene.

It remained that until about 1919 when the term “Pentecostal” was dropped from the name.

Pentecostal has come to mean charismatic.

Pentecostal though refers back to our scripture text this morning.

One thing that I’ve learned about gardening and planting crops is that you do all the necessary preparation of tilling the soil, fertilizing it, making sure it has all the right nutrients and then you plant the seed and then you step back and wait.

It’s amazing that you can take a tiny seed that for all intents and purposes appears to be dead and you put that seed in the soil and with the right conditions it will sprout and grow and produce a crop greater than the tiny seed that it sprouted from.

The disciples had just spent the past 3 plus years with Jesus.

Jesus had invested his life in them, teaching them, demonstrating to them how to the live the life that he was calling them to live.

Now he was gone.

They had witnessed him being arrested, crucified and they had placed him into the grave.

They rejoiced when they realized that he had indeed been resurrected.

But, Jesus ascended into heaven and he told them to wait for the promise that the Father was going to send them, the Holy Spirit.

Jesus told just before he ascended into heaven:

The disciples head back to Jerusalem and they wait.

They have no idea what is about to happen to them.

Luke writes: “When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place.”

The day of Pentecost, what does that mean?

The word Pentecost means 50 days.

It was fifty days after the celebration of the Passover.

There were three feasts or festivals that God had commanded the Jews to celebrate each year.

Pentecost or as written in the Old Testament as the Feast of Weeks was one of those feasts that were to be celebrated every year.

This was one of three times that all Jewish males were to appear before God.

Pentecost or the Feast of Weeks marked the end of the barley harvest and the beginning of the wheat harvest.

It was also known in scripture as the feast of the harvest or the feast of first fruits.

It was a holy day, no servant type or ordinary work could be performed on that day.

Two freshly baked loaves of bread from the harvested barley flour would be brought to the Priest who would then wave them before the Lord.

It was a celebration of the blessings of God.

It was during this feast that all Jewish males unless they were providentially hindered would be in Jerusalem.

There would be people from literally around the known world there.

So it’s not surprising that Luke mentions all those from different countries.

I did some additional digging into the Feast of First Fruits, Pentecost to try to understand it better.

In the Old Testament when it was instituted it was to celebrate God’s provision of grain so that flour could be ground.

Winter was over and the first grain was harvested, God had provided for them once again.

Think about tithing.

When you put your tithe into the offering plate you’re celebrating the fact that God has provided for you.

It all belongs to God to begin with but when you give that one small portion to God you’re celebrating God’s blessing on you.

If you don’t tithe you’re not only violating God’s requirement but you’re also missing out on God’s blessings on you.

A second thing and more important is the linkage to Jesus.

I was reading Paul’s first letter to the Corinthian church.

It was interesting to read that Paul referred to Jesus as the first fruits in chapter 15 when he wrote:

Jesus in John 6 said “I am the bread of life.

Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.”

With the celebration of the Feast of Weeks there was the yearly reminder that they had to plant crops and harvest them and then prepare loaves of bread to bring to the Priest as a thank offering of praise to God for His provision to them.

Jesus came as the bread of life.

When we come to Jesus, when we’re nourished by Him we will never go hungry spiritually because He will give us all we need.

Do you remember what Jesus said in the Beatitudes?

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.

Do you feel like you’re running on empty spiritually?

If so, are you hungering and thirsting for righteousness?

Jesus, the bread of life will fill you full to overflowing.

He does it.

Pentecost is another reminder that God has done everything necessary for us.

Jesus is the firstfruits of the dead.

He’s the first to die and be resurrected and is still living.

Paul says that just like Jesus, we who are Christians will be resurrected just like Him.

I don’t think it’s any coincidence that God choose the Pentecost as the day to send the Holy Spirit.

God the source and giver of life that Pentecost celebrated choose that day to send the Holy Spirit to fill the lives of the Disciples and to empower them for the mission that Jesus was sending them on.

Pentecost had celebrated the life giving bread to sustain the people physically and now it celebrated the fact that God the Holy Spirit had come to indwell and empower us.

Do you know where the Church of the Nazarene is growing the fastest?

It is not here in the United States.

It is in Asia, Africa, and South America.

There are many reasons why the church is growing in those areas.

It is true not only in our denomination but in denominations across the board.

I believe that one of the key factors in that growth is prayer.

Pastor Brett Blair wrote:

While it is true that churches that are together, in one accord can accomplish much, no church can be truly Pentecostal, if it does not pray.

And it seems to me that much of the church has lapsed into a weekly routine of Sunday morning sermons and Sunday school.

We have lost our desire to dedicate ourselves to prayer expecting the Holy Spirit to move in our presence and change lives.

[1]

An unknown author captured the need for prayer in a poem that captures the need very well.

I got up early one morning

and rushed right into the day;

I had so much to accomplish

that I didn’t have time to pray.

Problems just tumbled about me,

and heavier came each task.

“Why doesn’t God help me?”

I wondered,

He answered, “You didn’t ask.”

I wanted to see joy and beauty,

but the day toiled on, gray and bleak;

I wondered why God didn’t show me,

He said, “But you didn’t seek.”