Sermon Tone Analysis

When God showed up at the Red sea He divided the waters

When God showed up at Jericho the walls came tumbling down

When the glory of God filled the temple the priest stood in silence before the Lord

When God showed up in the earlier church they boldly proclaimed the gospel and thousands were saved

When God showed up during the great awakening revival swept across the land and countless lives were changed

Sometimes it is a process -

Getting the children of Israel from Egypt to the Promised land was a series of events in which God showed up.

From the Passover to the collapse of Jericho God showed up and showed himself faithful and mighty and powerful and awesome and majestic and amazing.

Sometimes it is instantaneous

I have so many favorite stories in the Bible of the miraculous workings of God one of my favorites is

2 Ki 13:21 “21 And it came to pass, as they were burying a man, that, behold, they spied a band of men; and they cast the man into the sepulchre of Elisha: and when the man was let down, and touched the bones of Elisha, he revived, and stood up on his feet.”

Sometimes it's Quiet

The Woman with an issue of blood who quietly touched the hem of Jesus' garment and turned to leave.

Sometimes it's dramatic

Elijah, Ahab & the Rain

The Swimming Ax head

It's always Amazing

The Impossible becomes Possible - In Matthew 19:25-27 When the rich man walked away from the Jesus I think Jesus had tears coursing down his cheeks, shaking his head sadly, the disciple ask in the discussion following if it is hard for rich men to go to heaven who then can be saved?

Jesus said with man it is impossible but with God all things are possible.

Think of this an impossibility - no way Peter or Apollos or any other man could persuade Saul, It was impossible.

but when God showed up Saul changed directions, became a completely different person.

Same with you and me

Alternate Illustration

A story is told of an atheist who made his home in London.

His wife possessed a Bible she consistently read.

One day in raging anger he hurled this Book of books into a flaming fire and stormed out the door.

Later he returned to watch this Bible burn.

Gazing into the fire he noted one small portion unburned.

Fastening trembling fingers to the page he read, “Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my word shall not pass away.”

Soon the infidel fell before the fire seeking God’s forgiveness.

The story seems to end with the happiest of endings, yet, we note an interesting sequel.

A sister of this wicked man had prayed for years for his conversion.

In fact, the very night of his conversion she had engaged in persistent prayer.

Here it is again, the power of a persevering prayer.

Dick Eastman (2003-06-01T05:00:00+00:00).

No Easy Road: Discover the Extraordinary Power of Personal Prayer (Kindle Locations 1428-1433).

Baker Books.

Kindle Edition.

Charlie was born in 1890 in a two room mountain hut, in a remote section of eastern Kentucky, to very poor parents.

There were a total of nine children born to them.

From the beginning of his life, he had to have a heart of the jungle.

It was kill or be killed.

He says:

I carried, from the time I was in my early teens, a single action .45

caliber revolver in my shoulder holster on my left shoulder, which is lower today than my right, probably because of growing up with that heavy pistol weighing down on that shoulder.

I also carried a double action, improved Smith & Wesson in my pocket.

We mountain boys had no use for men of high caliber.

They didn't appeal to us.

Our ideal was the man who had the most notches on his pistol handle, denoting the number of men he had made to bite the dust.

Our warped minds looked upon them as heroes and we wanted to be like them--ambitious to be bad.

Surprisingly, Charlie did survive to reach adulthood, becoming one of the most feared men of the town.

No one dared get in his way.

A traveling evangelist, Brother Tom Roberts, also known as "Nighthawk Tom," stopped at the town and was convicted to try and reach the youth.

A lady he spoke with, Sister Connoy, said to the evangelist, "Brother Roberts, this man they call Bulldog Charlie…is being used as a handyman of the devil as no other man in town.

He has an influence over the young people, and he is wrecking homes and blighting the lives of our young people.

If we could only get that man converted, it would mean the turning of the town toward God."

The man of faith said, "There is nothing too hard for our God.

Our God is able.

Suppose that you and I enter into a covenant of prayer, and call others into the covenant in the day service tomorrow, and fast and pray, until God either saves that wicked young man or moves him out of the way of a revival in this town."

Within the next couple of days, as he was going about his usual dirty business, a most miserable feeling seemed to settle over Charlie and he had no idea what it was.

He knew nothing about the covenant of prayer and that all over that town the saints of God with burdened hearts and weeping eyes, were calling on God on behalf of Charlie's hellward-bent soul.

He knew nothing of how the Holy Spirit convicts one of their sins.

He just knew he wasn't feeling well, so he left his work early and traveled home.

On the way, he was resting while leaning on a lamp post, when in a nearby home, he heard a mother praying with her little children.

They were the usual prayers for the family, and he wanted to move on, but strangely, he was unable to move.

Then, suddenly, her voice rising in pitch, she cried out, "Oh, God, we now remember our covenant to pray for poor, sinful, wicked, Charlie."

Was that him she was praying about?

He was dumbfounded, but he believed it was.

He walked on home where his family was sitting down at the supper table but he couldn't eat.

In his bedroom, he laid down but tossed and turned and then he felt he'd smother to death if he didn't get out for some fresh air.

Outside, he walked the porch, back and forth, like a caged lion.

All heaven seemed marshaled to get him to the revival that had begun, all hell was marshaled to hinder that move.

He stepped out onto the street, angry at religion, angry at the preacher.

Just a few days earlier, some of his friends had told him what was going on down at the revival.

From his vantage point in his office, he could see out but others could not see him, inside.

His friends pointed out who the evangelist was and he told them he was not going to kill the preacher, but he was going to beat him and run him out of town.

Well, standing outside to get that fresh air, here came this preacher, walking down the other side of the street.

He crossed over to his side, and never having met Bulldog Charlie in person, he grabs his hand and says, "I am holding a revival in the Methodist Church.

I don't believe I have noticed you in the revival.

Won't you come and be with us?" Suddenly admiration rose up in him, for the preacher.

Why would he walk across the street and invite someone like himself to this revival?

He found himself walking to the house of God.

Sister Connoy, who had initiated the prayer covenant, gave a war hoop of victory as Charlie came in.

A few minutes later, the preacher gave a very convicting message that reached the depths of Charlie's heart.

Every sin Charlie had ever committed was exposed that night by the preacher and when that inspired talk was finished, Charlie nearly ran up front to what is called the mourner's bench, and got on his knees to pray.

The town's prayers had worked and God had brought the man with the most notches on his gun to the point of salvation, but as Charlie's ears adjusted to hearing the voice of the Holy Spirit instead of just his own depraved voice, Charlie understood there was more work to do, before his salvation would be assured.

One can't just be instantly free from the past.

If the heart is truly changed, then the Lord moves people to ask forgiveness of everyone they've wronged.

In Charlie's case, the town was full of people he had badly mistreated as well as mothers and fathers of people he had killed, from which he desired their forgiveness.

In some cases, forgiveness was hard to obtain, for resentment was high against him, but he found he had to try.

When he had completed that task, and in the days to come, the Lord then asked him to turn himself in to the sheriff.

The list was very large of crimes he had committed, but he told the sheriff he had been convicted in his heart by the Lord and he wanted to get right with the law.

The sheriff, who had been under Charlie's thumb and greatly feared him, went from trembling at seeing Charlie walking into his office, to tears of joy, as he recognized that Charlie had truly had a change of heart.

The sheriff and Charlie walked over to see a new judge who was temporarily in town as the regular judge was occupied with other duties in another part of the state.

Charlie asked the judge if there was any way he could continue going to the revival, then turn himself in.

The judge asked him if he could obtain bail.

Charlie said no one in town would provide that.

The weeping sheriff believed Charlie would turn himself in after the revival and the judge agreed to let him go on his own recognizance, despite the fact that he had so many heinous crimes to his name.

Charlie kept going to the revival and continued making as much restitution as he could with the townsfolk.

The revival continued for many days and people came from all around to see for themselves that the Lord had gotten a hold of the worst man alive in that area, at that time.