Sermon Tone Analysis

*“Clinging to the Lord, our Treasure”*

John 4:23-24; Jeremiah 13:1-11

 

Owen Juhlke

May 24, 2009

First Baptist Church, Beamsville, Ontario

 

At a recent conference for new pastors for those within the CBOQ, which was held in Beaverton, we were introduced to many things that new pastors should be acquainted with.

One speaker, Dr. Joyce Bellous did a spiritual styles test with us.

We had to answer 36 questions, add up four different columns in order to determine which one of the four spiritual types we were.

The four spiritual styles were WORD, ACTION, EMOTION, AND SYMBOL.

As I went through the test, I thought for sure that I would have fallen into the word category, which did turn out to be my second highest score – but I was surprised at first that my category was symbolic.

I didn’t believe it at first, but then quickly realized that I am highly symbolic.

I like making the connections between things, whether things found in the scriptures, or in life experiences and seeing patterns, or whatever that links people together.

This is what Dr. Bellous was trying to accomplish in her test to us as pastors, that we all are different and have different ways of learning, listening, operating.

It was also a way for us to understand that when we preach, we’re speaking to different types of people who learn in various ways as well.

Not only do individuals have unique styles, but different church denominations do as well.

If I was to ask what the Salvation Army was, what would you say is there style?

Pentecostal?

Do you know what the number one category for Baptists is?  (Word)  But again, we should not peg people into the groups major style, but allow them to have their uniqueness within the group.

Otherwise, it would be quite boring and dangerous.

When we realize that we all are different, we can understand others without offending, or being offended when we don’t always see things in the same way.

Unity -  amidst diversity.

So I’m symbolic, and I like it.

I have always enjoyed it, especially when it comes to Scriptures - I am fascinated by symbology in the Bible, which is abundant, especially numbers in the Bible.

Think of it: 40 is a frequent number used in the Bible: 40 years of wandering in the desert, Moses was 40 days on top of the mountain, for 40 days the rain fell on the ark.

12 disciples, 12 tribes of Israel.

One of those is found in the last chapter of the book of John, in John 21:11.

Jesus had just instructed the disciples to throw their nets into the water as they fished on the Sea of Galilee.

And when they had done that, they caught, the Scriptures tell us, 153 large fish.

Of what importance is the 153?

It must have been important so that John recorded it - precisely.

Some theologians have come up with their own conclusions, the one being the most interesting for me is that throughout the book of John, Christ touched 153 lives, and each one was being represented through a fish.

Has Christ touched you?

If so, then you’re not only a sheep in his flock, but also a fish brought into his net.

But today, I want to share a number with you, a number that does have real significance in our Christian journey, even though the number is not recorded within the scriptures at all – yet it is referred to directly throughout the entire Bible .

And that number is 168.

A great number, but what does it mean?

Think about it as I share these words with you today.

But please, don’t get too caught up in that, as I want you to hear the message that I’m preaching today.

Well, let’s begin by examining the Scripture text for today, John 4:23-24.

It reads, “The time is coming when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, and that time is already here.

You see, the Father too is actively seeking such people to worship him.

God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.”

These verses focus primarily upon worship.

How we are to understand worship, how we are to experience worship.

And the question is: How can we, and how often should we offer God substantial worship?

We live the world, and in our earthbound daily schedules, we tend to neglect one of the most powerful gifts God has given us as our heavenly Father.

Worship!

The Bible speaks numerous times about worship.

In fact, the word worship and praise appears thousands of times in the Bible.

It is done purposely, and for a reason.

God desires our praise and worship towards him.

The Psalms in particular, are filled with chapters that instruct us about praising our God.

Psalm 96; is just one.

It tells us,

“Sing to the Lord a new song; sing to the Lord, all the earth.

Sing to the Lord and praise his name; every day tell how he saves us, because the Lord is great; he should be praised at all times.”

And it goes on, that even the skies rejoice, the seas shout towards him, the trees of the forest sing for joy, because even these things, which we do not associate with the ability to formulate thought, do worship God.

And they do it at all times, perfectly – unlike many Christians.

Yet we’re told that the Lord desires our worship towards him – He desperately desires us to be in relationship with him at all times, but sometimes things get in the way, and we fall away from Him and things change.

Ten years ago, when my four children were rather young, we decided to put in a fence along the front of our property.

As I dug holes with my auger, I suggested to the children that we should create a time capsule and put it underneath one of the fence posts.

We found an old tin container, and the kids all gathered up “treasures” and put them into the box.

They found photographs, a few coins, drawings that they had made, and a host of other little items.

We sealed up the tin with tape, and then put it into freezer zip lock bags in order to keep the moisture out.

When we just about to place it into the hole, we had a conversation as to how long we would let it sit in the hole before we would retrieve it.

My youngest, thought that one week would be sufficient time.

In the end, we decided to wait five years.

So there it sat, under the fence post in the earth – our treasures.

We forgot about it until one day seven years later, we were looking through our photo album, and we saw the picture that Mom had taken of us while we all worked on the capsule.

I reminded the kids, and off to work we went to dig it up.

We took apart the fence and retrieved the box.

We took it to the backyard to the picnic table and opened it.

Well, I should say, we looked at what was left.

Even though we had tried to “waterproof” our time capsule, water had found its way in.

Everything that was paper was gone, or an ooze.

Anything metal was rusted beyond recognition.

Even the penny was terribly corroded.

We were terribly disappointed.

I recently read the book of Jeremiah, and I was reminded of this incident in my life when I read through chapter 13 and, being the symbolic type, I read about Jeremiah and his dirty underwear incident.

You know, as we heard read this morning, that the Lord tells Jeremiah to do three things.

1. go and buy a linen loincloth and put it on, but do not wash it.”

(It almost sounds like a teenager.)

So he does this, and then the Lord gave him another message: “Take the linen loincloth you are wearing, and go to the Euphrates River.

Hide it there in a hole in the rocks.”

And then thirdly - after a long time, and we don’t know how long, the Lord told him to go back and retrieve the loincloth.

When he does this, he found that it was rotting and falling apart.

The loincloth was good for nothing.

The symbolism that is used in this story is interesting.

Even the naming of the river where Jeremiah was to hide this dirty underwear is probably symbolic, as Jeremiah was in Anathoth, which is not close to the Euphrates River at all.

It would have been a trip of about 800 miles if it was.

Scholars believe that it was the Parah River, which was very close to him.

But why the Euphrates?

It was one of the four rivers that flowed from the river than ran out of the Garden of Eden.

Perhaps there is a connection being made here to the closeness of God that was experienced there.

A flowing of living water.

So, what does this mean?

Jeremiah received the answer as he continued saying what the Lord told him.

“This shows how I will rot away the pride of Judah and Jerusalem.

These wicked people refuse to listen to me.

They stubbornly follow their own desires and worship other gods.