Sermon Tone Analysis

Becoming A Pillar

Pray: Father, help us endure and become pillars in Jesus name.

I want to talk to you about becoming a pillar.

About responsibility, stability, and longevity in your life and faith.

The city Philadelphia was subject to earthquakes and was almost completely destroyed during the reign of Tiberius.

The church had been tested and challenged in their faith.

They had been persecuted and pressed by the culture around them.

But they persevered.

The door that Jesus opened for them could not be shut by anyone else.

He commended their strength, though it wasn’t much, and their perseverance.

He called them to hold fast and continue and promised to make those who do to be pillars in the temple of God.

Life can be demanding.

It can pull us in many directions and leave us shallow and spread thin.

Life also can be tumultuous and chaotic leaving us without peace and stability.

Some days, it simply demands endurance and perseverance to just make it.

Sometimes it can be so challenging that even after putting on the whole armor of God and withstanding evil and the pressure of the day, it is all that you can do to simply stand (Ephesians 6.13).

Let’s be honest, we know that Jesus said that we were to be lights set on a hill shining brightly into the darkness around us and to shape the environment, but sometimes it seems to be that we are not strong enough to make a difference (cf.

Matthew 5.16).

And just like He did to the church in Philadelphia, the Lord is speaking encouragement to stand fast and remain in His strength in the face of shaky times.

And we are facing the shaky times of societal decline and the rise expressive individualism.

All around us we see an exodus of biblical values and a rise of self.

One way that this shows in the way commitment is declining.

Currently 2.9 out of every 1,000 marriages end in divorce.

In 2017 there were approximately 787,251 divorces.

In America, almost 23% of children are in single-parent households.

In February 2022 almost 4.4 million Americans quit their jobs.

47 million left their jobs in 2021.

This trend has been called “The Great Resignation.”

According to an Unstuck Church report, church attendance declined 36% in 2020 and 28% in 2021.

When you see such a departure from values and relationships you can’t help but wonder what kind of life does that leave us now and what kind of legacy will we leave for our children and our children’s children.

Choosing to become a pillar means that we will be found responsible, stable, and resilient until the end.

It means that we will become a part of the solution and the kind of people who Jesus blesses.

Take the Ancient Paths

We know that for many of us that if we approach life and faith the same way that we have been, things are not likely to change for the better.

In fact, our culture has made it both easy and convenient to avoid commitment and Christlikeness.

Jim Collins in his book From Good to Great made the insightful observation that technology is an accelerator.

In the context of business it enables you to do what you do good even better, faster, etc.

Or, it exposes what is bad or broken more widely and rapidly.

In our lives, it works in a similar way.

It enables private secret conversations…that can lead to quick and easy affairs which can result in broken homes.

It enables making finding new jobs easier.

It makes finding new churches easier, or not even going to church easier.

Tickle the ears vs planting where the Holy Spirit says.

Schools enable parents to avoid parenting.

Cars allow us to travel and work away from home limiting the time we spend and work alongside family.

Distractions and drama are fueled by social media and 24/7 streaming services.

There are many ways in which modern technology serve as a threat to spiritual life.

Illustration: In the Acropolis at Athens there are some Corinthian pillars.

They are all that remain of the once famous Temple of Olympian Zeus.

The Athenians worked hard to preserve them and keep them.

One morning they woke up to find that one of these amazing pillars broken down and fallen on the ground.

There was no storm, and it didn’t make sense that this massive structure should fall.

Upon inspection they found that a colony of ants had found a small crevice and had gradually eaten the cement until it could stand no longer.

— James Burns, Encyclopedia or 7700 Illustrations

Just like the ants, there are a multitude of ways that work against our souls and seek to undermine the strength, stability, and longevity of our life and faith.

The Way of Jesus is the eternal path.

It is the good way.

It is the way that leads to life and rest for your soul.

But following the Way of Jesus requires that we go all in and follow God.

All day, every day (cf.

Luke 9.23).

Following Jesus requires that we become pillars.

His way enables us to stand up and meet the needs of the world that we live in.

It empowers us to counter the flood of culture and evil.

By the work of the Holy Spirit, the church becomes a part of the restraining force holding back the lawless one (2 Thessalonians 2.5-12).

Following the Way of Jesus enables us to become pillars in our homes, our church, our community.

Illustration: I recently heard of a study that about 72% of Americans claim to be a Christian.

A different study was taken to see if it were possible to find out how many Americans practiced the ways of Jesus and that came to be around 8%

There has always been a remnant that God has had.

Those who do not bow the knee to culture and false gods but who stand in the strength and beauty of God’s grace (cf.

Romans 11.1-6).

This will work.

It has worked.

This is the way that Christ followers throughout the centuries have changed the world and brought the good news of the kingdom of heaven.

Steps for Becoming

Here are a few things that we can do to become like a pillar.

We Bear the Weight of Responsibility

One of the things that pillars do is bear weight.

In this passage, we see that three apostles are considered to be pillars.

They bore the weight of responsibility and authority.

If we are going to be pillars in our homes or in the church or on our jobs or community then we need to be able to carry responsibility.

Are you taking responsibility for your spiritual life?

Are you taking responsibility for your home life?

Are you taking responsibility for your finances?

Are you taking responsibility within the church?

Are you taking responsibility on your job?

Are you the kind of person that can carry weight?

Following Jesus means carrying the weight of the cross wherever we go.

It means that we deny our flesh and self and choose to follow Him.

We Build on the Right Foundation

For pillars to stand they must be positioned wisely.

They have to be built on a solid foundation and they help hold up the structure of a building.

Notice that Jesus ties strength and stability in life to two things: His word and obedience to His word.

If we are going to be the strength and stability in our homes we need to stand on His word.

If we are going to push back against the unrelenting tides of evil in the world we need to stand on His word.

This parable was not to unbelievers.

Jesus was talking to believers.

His message is clear: to be a pillar that has strength, stability, and longevity we must base our lives on His word.

We Work With the End in Mind

In order to endure and persevere to the end we need to have the end in mind.