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
0.5UNLIKELY
Disgust
0.11UNLIKELY
Fear
0.11UNLIKELY
Joy
0.59LIKELY
Sadness
0.48UNLIKELY
Language Tone
Analytical
0.77LIKELY
Confident
0UNLIKELY
Tentative
0.59LIKELY
Social Tone
Openness
0.87LIKELY
Conscientiousness
0.91LIKELY
Extraversion
0.27UNLIKELY
Agreeableness
0.5UNLIKELY
Emotional Range
0.73LIKELY
Tone of specific sentences
Tones
Emotion
Language
Social Tendencies
Anger
< .5
.5 - .6
.6 - .7
.7 - .8
.8 - .9
> .9
Last week we looked at the great opportunity we have as Christians to display the love of God and of Christ by choosing what we say, when we say it and how we say whatever we say.
The light shines brightest in the darkness and many Americans feel the darkness during this election season.
What if every Christian they met refused to do down into the mud and slander or attack people.
What if Christians they met discussed the issues and did so in such a way that whether or not the other person agreed with them, that the speech would be full of grace and truth?
This week we are going to look at some other scriptures that deal with this subject.
I know that there are some who would like me to make clear which candidate we should choose.
I believe that our Constitution gives me the right to do that.
The IRS has threatened to take away our tax-exempt status if we do.
Churches that declare that they will endorse candidates from the pulpit have challenged them.
The IRS has not taken any to court, I believe, because the IRS knows it will lose.
My purpose in not endorsing a candidate has nothing to do with that.
If I felt God wanted me to do so, I would.
I also know that there are some that would interpret my reluctance with cowardice.
They would believe that I am afraid or too weak to endorse a candidate.
Cowardice has nothing to do with this.
I have been called to proclaim the Word of God.
I have chosen to deal with issues and not with personalities.
The Spirit of God will lead you if you want guidance from God.
Some don’t want God’s guidance.
They feel that there is the religious and the political and never the two shall meet.
We are Christians.
That is not a religious statement, that is a label that defines who we are, where we go, what we say, who we sleep with, how we treat others, and who we follow.
We are followers of Jesus Christ.
We cannot stop following Jesus in order to vote.
We vote as followers of Jesus Christ.
When we do so, the Word of God must guide us.
Which is why I chose this passage this morning.
This section of scripture begins with the king and ends with the servants of the king.
28 In a multitude of people is the glory of a king, but without people a prince is ruined… Proverbs 14:35 (ESV) — 35 A servant who deals wisely has the king’s favor, but his wrath falls on one who acts shamefully.
In between are some Proverbs that can apply to both the king and the servants.
We don’t have a king; we have a president.
We are not servants; we are citizens.
Yet, as Christians, we are part of the kingdom of God.
We answer to a higher power.
We are followers of Jesus.
The Proverbs that are here are suggestive for us to examine what a political leader should be like as well as how we should act as citizens.
The verse that sums up this section is verse
34 Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people.
As I walk into the voting booth, this verse is one of the verses that will guide my vote.
There is a problem with using righteousness as criteria.
In the book of Daniel several kingdoms are portrayed in one person.
The feet are feet of clay.
This reminded me that any leader would have feet of clay.
They will have some characteristic, some flaw, or some area of concern.
In other words, no leader will be fully righteous.
Jesus Christ will be the only ruler who rules perfectly.
I would vote for Jesus, but he is not running for any elected office.
God has already given him a name above all names.
He has made him Lord and Judge over all the earth.
The presidency of the United States would be a huge step down for him.
People have feet of clay.
Their policies, on the one hand, may sound good, and on the other hand, give great concern.
Their character, on the one hand, may be ok, but on the other, highly questionable.
No one is perfect and it only takes running for office to find people willing to point out your imperfections and sins.
We cannot use the fact that we are all sinners as an excuse to excuse sin.
Nor can we expect that political leaders are going to be fully righteous.
What do we do?
If righteousness exalts a nation, and sin is a reproach to any people, what do we do?
I don’t have an answer for you.
I just know that as I evaluate my Christian duty, I want righteous people promoting righteous policies leading us because righteousness exalts a nation.
In truth, every candidate has some good policies and some bad.
How do we make the choice?
We are not totally at loss.
In between the mention of the king and the servant are several other Proverbs.
This proverb that righteousness exalts a nation is simply the summation of the previous Proverbs.
In between these Proverbs are five other Proverbs.
Three of these Proverbs speak about character.
The other two are general statements that make us aware.
First, let’s look at the three Proverbs that deal with character.
29 Whoever is slow to anger has great understanding, but he who has a hasty temper exalts folly.
The first proverb deals with anger.
Anger is a very powerful weapon.
Many of us are careful what we say or do because we are afraid of the darts of anger.
When we look at a candidate, we need to ask how they deal with anger.
Are they slow to anger or do they get angry quick?
People who get angry at the drop of a dime do unpredictable things.
Some of the worst decisions we have ever made in our lives have been made when we were angry.
There are things we should be angry about.
Child abuse, domestic violence, murder, rape, injustice all should give place to some anger.
There are people who are angry at everything.
They have a “hasty temper”.
That should not be us and that is not a good trait for a leader to have.
30 A tranquil heart gives life to the flesh, but envy makes the bones rot.
The second proverb deals with a healing heart.
Tranquility comes from a Hebrew word meaning, “healing.”
Whereas envy or jealousy tends to destroy, a healing heart gives life to the flesh.
Both the king and the servant, both the governing people and the citizenry, best serve our nation when they heal rather than destroy.
Notice that Solomon writes that we need a tranquil or healing heart.
In this sinful world we will always have division and discord.
We will meet people who seem to thrive on dividing.
We also have people who stand their ground, but from their heart are looking for a peaceful solution to the problem.
Envy or jealousy, as some translations put it, wants something for ourselves.
Jealousy is appropriate when a third party threatens a marriage.
Jealousy is appropriate when promises are broken.
Our God is a jealous God.
He wants us to follow him and him alone.
Jealousy or envy is self-centered.
As we have seen, this is ok in some cases.
However, if a person is put in a position of power and they serve their own interests, this is wrong.
North Korean people are in great poverty while the leaders live in luxury.
< .5
.5 - .6
.6 - .7
.7 - .8
.8 - .9
> .9