Sermon Tone Analysis
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Introduction
Examples of emptiness:
“I have nothing left to give.”
“I’m spent”
Runner who finishes a race and then collapses at the finish line.
What is emptiness?
Emptiness occurs when your emotional or physical reserves run dry.
You get up in the morning, you look at what your kids needs and you consider what you have to offer them, and you feel empty.
You come home from work, you consider what your spouse or extended family need against what resources you have left in your soul and you realize you have nothing left to offer them, and you feel empty.
“I don’t like myself, and frankly, I don’t see why anyone else would like me either.”
Your dad didn’t do things you believe he should have—so you’re empty.
Your father did things you believe he should not have—and you’re empty.
You’re not a father—and this makes you feel empty.
You are a father, but your kids have gone astray—and this makes you feel empty.
When you’re empty, it is easy to think thoughts like this…
You don’t measure up.
You wonder if you will ever have what it takes to make it.
You’ve come to the middle of your life, and you wonder if you have anything to show for it.
And so words like this take root on the landscape of your thinking…
Dry.
Wilderness.
Desert.
Alone.
Rejected.
Unloved.
Cold.
Numb.
Void.
Lost.
Don’t measure up.
I am depleted.
No courage.
No strength.
And if not addressed, these feelings of emptiness can turn darker…
I’m worthless.
I’m not good.
I’m not valuable.
Life is meaningless.
Life is dark.
Life is empty.
So, when emptiness persists, you arrive at the belief that you have…
No power
No vision
No direction
No ability
No money
No friends
No love
No joy
No happiness
You’re empty.
In the OT, I discovered two primary kinds of human emptiness.
Empty - I have nothing
(reqam - empty hands or empty resources)
Empty - I am nothing
(hebel - breath, idol, vapor)
Both words are translated as: vanity, vain, void, empty.
But as I studied the Bible looking for examples of human emptiness, I discovered something.
Everyone experiences emptiness (for different reasons).
| Ruth 1:21
Consider some of these examples.
Jacob at the loss of Joseph.
When Israel realized they had royally messed up and missed the victory God would have given them.
Saul had no more strength after realizing he had entirely disregarded God.
Saul is physically, emotionally, and spiritually empty.
David.
Losing Ziklag.
David.
No more power to weep.
Heman the Ezrahite
Sennacherib returned empty to Assyria.
The Bible called this “shame of face”.
In other words, he had no honor.
Jeremiah wrote about the emotional emptiness of the people of Jerusalem over the seige of Nebuchadnezzar’s army.
Daniel because of seeing who God is compared to who man is.
Ezra, realizing a failed legacy in Jerusalem.
The church in Revelation that has only a little strength, and yet they remain faithful to stand for God.
Jesus emptied himself.
These Bible examples can lead us to a few conclusions about emptiness.
Moments of emptiness can be experienced by any or all of us.
John the Baptist, as he sat in prison, had some serious questions.
Elijah, after a long walk and 40 days without eating, struggled with questions.
I wonder how Eve felt after sinning with Adam.
Or I wonder how Adam felt after one of his sons murdered his other son.
In an of itself, emptiness is not a sin.
You might be empty because of some sin in your life.
But emptiness all by itself is not necessarily a sin.
Emptiness becomes detrimental when you allow it to persist.
All of us have probably experienced a flat tire at some point in our life.
There is nothing necessarily wrong with getting a flat tire.
And having a flat tire will not ruin a tire.
But if you drive on it while it’s flat, it will ruin the tire.
Or if you let it sit empty for a long period of time, it will ruin the tire.
That prepares us to consider the next thought I discovered about emptiness in Scripture.
Emptiness is not bad, but seeking to fill your emptiness at the wrong well is bad.
Filling your emptiness at the wrong well will never fill the void that you crave to fill.
| Ruth 1:2
Elimelech tried filling himself at the wrong well.
It was a well that wouldn’t satisfy in the end.
We try all kinds of things to fill our emptiness.
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