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“Happenings on the journey” by Emmanuelle McCall PDF pages 69 – 71, print pages 139 – 142“Happenings on the journey” by Emmanuelle McCall PDF pages 69 – 71, print pages 139 – 142
Sermon Analysis Speech Instructions
This speech incorporates aspects of an informative speech, a manuscript speech, and a persuasive speech as described in your textbook. You will be assigned a specific sermon from a PDF. You must reference it in the works cited page and all other sources you use. Format is still MLA! Use a suggested example outline shown in the sermon analysis folder as a guide. You must provide a copy of your speech to me prior to giving it, as always!!
This speech should be 2-3 minutes (no more).
To begin, prepare a brief introduction, including a thesis statement, something like but not necessarily word for word:
“Today, I am presenting biographical information about (your speaker), the relevant context of his sermon, Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God (title of your sermon), a concise meaning with excerpts from that sermon (cited page #), and will close with a personal response” ( a kind of a reflection/meaning or even revelation is communicated to you)
(Transition: Let me begin with a brief biography & background …)
Next, find biographical information about the Christian speaker or writer. You will have to dig to find this information (remember to cite its source under works cited. Discuss any important contexts surrounding the sermon. Use at least 3 of the following about the speaker/author:
- Title, if applicable (i.e. Doctor, Pastor, etc.)
- Religious affiliation (denomination, position within the church)
- Hometown
- Approximate age
- Length of time as a speaker
- Political or historical identity
- Any relevant event or date when it was delivered or written
(Transition: I will now present an excerpt from the sermon …)
Present the sermon. (Type out the portion of the sermon that you will use.)
(Transition: Finally, I would like to close with a personal response …)
Write a reflection and/or response. Analyze the speech. Tell us what you think about the issue that is raised. Questions to help you with this include: Do you agree with the speaker? Was it too harsh or on the wrong side of the issue? Was the speaker exactly right and courageous? Did you find the speech to be persuasive? How has this sermon impacted you?
Pay careful attention here. You are not presenting this as a sermon. You are analyzing it and reporting to your audience about it and its meaning. Your time is 2-3 strictly minutes. This speech is worth 18% of your final grade so you would be well served to put in the effort and do an outstanding job!
Outline Format
Introduction
- Attention Getter (Surprising fact, story, personal experience, question, etc.)
- Credibility (Do you have personal experience with the topic? Or, why did you choose this topic? Why do you care about it?)
- Preview (State the title of the sermon and the name of the speaker)
Summary of sermon
Your judgment of the message
Body
- Summary of sermon (cite the source where you retrieved the sermon)
- Your evaluation of the speaker (do you agree/disagree/both?)
Idea you agree/disagree with (develop with personal experience and/or human examples)
Idea you agree/disagree with (you may cite Bible verses here to support your ideas)
1. Date the sermon was delivered
2. Location where the sermon was delivered
3. Context in which sermon was delivered (is there a specific issue the speaker is addressing?)
4. Historical significance of the sermon (did the sermon have lasting con sequences?)
2. Quote the speaker
1. Your words
2. Quote speaker
(transition: sentence that connects the two main points)
- Summary (Restate purpose and main points)
- Audience Response (What do you want the audience to do/think as a result of hearing your speech?)
- Closing Statement (What did the sermon cause you to reflect upon?)
HOW TO OVERCOME YOUR FEAR OF WITNESSING TO OTHERS
Thad Hamilton
“For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind”
(2 Tim. 1:7, KJV).
Introduction
Ever since I received Jesus Christ as a teenager, I have wanted others to know about Him. When I became a Christian, I came to understand that my job was to win others to Him. But I have been a Christian for 16 years, and I have a confession to make to you. I have a fear of witnessing.
Some of you would say, “Thad Hamilton, how can you have a fear of witnessing? You are always talking and enthusiastic and excited.”
Well, I have to admit to you that whenever the opportunity comes up in the course of daily life to share Jesus with someone, or whenever visitation time at our church is approaching, I become afraid of what may happen. I really do. And as I have talked with many other Christians over the years, I have found that they, too, have a fear of witnessing. How about you? Do you have a fear of witnessing to others about Christ?
After much study, observation, and prayer, I am convinced that of all the enemies of soul-winning efforts, fear is the most deadly. Fear keeps us from doing anything at all about sharing Jesus Christ with those who need Him. I am sharing this message with you in the hope that what God has shown me about overcoming my fear of witnessing will be helpful to you.
How do we overcome our fear of witnessing to others? I think there is a two-fold plan, a two-fold remedy.
I. Why we are afraid to witness to others
We should to analyze two things: our adversary and our attitude.
1. Our adversary
When a person is afraid to witness to others, what is the real problem? As we look in the Scripture—“for God hath not given us the spirit of fear” (2 Tim. 1:7, KJV)—we see that the problem is not
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the spirit of fear, but the person, who causes us to be afraid.
As we read Scripture, it’s very apparent that Satan, the devil, is
the one who gives us the fear. The devil makes us afraid. But let me ask you a question. Has the devil ever given you anything good? Can you think of one good thing that the devil has ever given you? Listen carefully. Jesus says, “The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy” (John 10:10, KJV). The devil has never given you anything good. He’s a taker.
Let me ask you another question. Has the devil ever told you the truth? Jesus said to some of the Jewish leaders, “Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do: he was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar and the father of it” (John 8:44, KJV). So, if the devil wants you to be afraid, he is telling you a lie.
So, when we analyze our adversary, we come up with this: Our enemy, the devil, has told us to be afraid of witnessing to others, but he is a liar who wants to take us out of God’s plan for our lives.
2. Our attitude
In analyzing our attitude, I want to ask three questions.
(1) What is fear? Fear is an attitude of the mind.
(2) What is an attitude? An attitude is a way of looking at things. So, fear is a certain way of looking at people, situations, and ourselves.
(3) What is this kind of fear? What is the fear of witnessing? The New Testament uses two primary Greek words that are trans lated “fear.”
The most frequently used Greek word is phobos—-the word that we translate phobia, such as claustrophobia. This word in itself has neither a good nor bad connotation. It can be either, depending on what it refers to.
Then there’s the other word for fear in the New Testament, dilia. This word is only used once in the New Testament, in 2 Timothy 1:7. In other literature, it’s always used in a bad sense. The word can be translated cowardice. This is the kind of fear that makes a person a coward in witnessing to others. And fear paralyzes us so that we do no witnessing at all. Perhaps the title of this message should be “How to Quit Being a Coward in Witnessing to others.”
We’ve seen what fear is. It’s an attitude of the mind. It’s a way of looking at things. We’ve seen what this kind of fear is. It means to be a coward. But now, what is the actual reason for the fear? Why do we have fear?
First of all, some of us have fear because of personality. You may have a more introverted personality. You will not come forward to meet people; instead you let people come to you. My wife, Camille, has this kind of personality. She has said, “It’s hard for me to approach people and witness because they may not be interested in what I have to say. It’s easier for me to let them approach me. Then I know they are interested enough to start the conversation.”
Sometimes fear comes from our past. You may have the kind of past where you’ve been rejected by friends or family. I often feel fear in witnessing for this very reason. I’m afraid the other person may not like me, may not receive me, or may just outright reject what I’m saying about Jesus Christ. I’m afraid of being rejected person ally.
The third reason we fear witnessing is pain. In the Bible, there are many occasions when the disciples were afraid to witness because of the threat of bodily harm or death. Sometimes, even in our day, we may be scared that the person we are going to witness to is rough and mean and may do us some bodily harm. A man I know ran off two people who wanted to witness to him and threat ened to shoot them if they ever returned.
Now we’ve analyzed our adversary and our attitude. We know where the problem is.
II. What God will do to enable us to witness to others
Let me share with you the second part of overcoming your fear of witnessing to others.
Second Timothy 1:7 tells us, “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.” As I’ve tried to study this and pray through this and understand how this works in my life, I have come up with three areas of accep tance.
1. Accept His authority over us
The Bible says that when I accepted Jesus Christ, God gave me His Holy Spirit. God, without a body, comes into my body and lives there. Why? The Bible says that God has given us His Holy Spirit to be the God of every area of our lives. And so, the first step is to accept God’s authority over us, and to do this each time we
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Introduction
HAPPENINGS ON THE JOURNEY
Emmanuel McCall
Acts 15:36—16:40
Learning to live life one day at a time, rather than from special event to special event, represents growth in one’s pilgrimage. The special event mind-set begins in our childhood. We live from birth day to Easter; from the end of the school year to July 4, to Labor Day (when school begins); from Thanksgiving to Christmas; from preteen to 13, then to 16 (driving age); from graduation to college, to becoming 21, to marriage—from event to event. The problem with that style is that we miss a lot of living between events. It is the in-between times that determine the substance of life. The special events are ethereal, fantasy, and show. This truth can be fleshed out by looking at the daily events in Paul’s life mentioned in Acts 15:36-41 and Acts 16.
I. Paul and Barnabas separated (Acts 15:36-41)
Here were two men who had become efficient in their work for
Christ. Each complemented the other. Their first missionary trip had been both eventful and successful. When the suggestion was made that they retrace their steps to see how their efforts contin ued, their friendship ended.
Neither had a way of knowing that a visit from Peter would set up lifelong dynamics. It was during Peter’s visit to Antioch that a harmonious relationship between Jewish and Gentile Christians blossomed as a result of the efforts of Paul and Barnabas. A surprise visit from some Judaizing Christians from Jerusalem caused Peter to act hypocritically (see Gal. 2). Barnabas followed Peter’s lead, prob ably not out of conviction, but from convention. He may have felt the need to follow Peter due to Peter’s rank. Paul confronted both men. Barnabas began seething with resentment that exploded when the decision was made for the second missionary trip. While the unpredictable behavior of John Mark became the excuse, the dynamics for separation were already in place.
II. Conflicts—new opportunities for expanded service
Barnabas took John Mark and confined his ministry to the island of Cyprus. There began a nurturing process of Mark that produced
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the quality genius of the writer of the first-written Gospel. Mark became such a powerful force that even Paul later requested his assistance (see 2 Tim 4:11).
Paul selected other companions. Silas was the first. He had made a tremendous impression on Paul at the Jerusalem Conference with his attempt to heal the fragile relationship with the Gentile Chris tians.
A second companion was young Timothy, a convert from the first missionary trip. He was to become Paul’s closest companion and son in the ministry. During the first visit, Timothy followed Paul and Barnabas, learning all he could. He became leader of the church at Lystra. Paul’s investment in Timothy paid off in big divi dends. He was Paul’s administrative assistant, handling the impor tant details.
III. Nighttime visitations
It was a nighttime vision of a man standing in front of the back drop of Macedonia, whose appeal to Paul—“Come over into Macedonia, and help us” (Acts 16:9, KJV)—changed the direction of Paul’s travel and, perhaps, his ministry.
IV. An original Annie Armstrong
At Philippi, a chance prayer meeting introduced Paul to one who would become the Annie Armstrong of her day. Philippi was a Roman center of culture. It was intolerant of other cultures, espe cially Jewish culture. The believers in God could not have a syna gogue, so they worshiped by a river. Among those Jewish wor shipers were Gentile “God-fearers.” A woman of prominence named Lydia was among them. To describe her merely as a seller of purple cloth fails to give the whole picture. Purple dye was extracted from the murex seashell. Because it was hard to obtain, it was expensive. Only wealthy people could wear, or trade in, purple cloth. Lydia was wealthy, but when she heard and received the gospel, she brought her whole self into the faith. Nothing was omit ted. She invited the missionaries to stay in her home. She had both space and servants to care for their needs. Her home was large enough for the church to meet there. She also opened her pantry for those in need and her pocketbook for the Lord’s work. Paul later commended the church at Philippi for the generous support of him, led by this woman. Women at Thessalonica, Berea, Athens, and Corinth caught the spirit of mission support from Lydia of Philippi.
V. Painful witnessing
At Philippi, a young woman with psychic powers attached her self to Paul’s company. Generals and even emperors sought her for- tune-telling services. Battle strategies were based on her predic tions. Her clientele made wealthy the syndicate that owned her. Following Paul, she observed his divine powers. Her report was accurate, but her witness gave confusing signals to those needing the gospel. Don’t expect unholy people to give holy messages with holy results. Paul recognized and exorcised the demonic spirit. The loss of gain caused the syndicate to seek Paul’s indictment, even on false charges (paraphrased): “These men are Jews (prejudice). They are throwing the city into an uproar (law and order). They are introducing foreign customs (illegal proselytizing).”
Paul and Silas were jailed without benefit of trial, but their responses were unusual compared with others in similar circum stances. They rejoiced in being counted worthy to suffer for Christ. They sang and prayed with thanksgiving.
Although earthquakes were common, God sent a special one to free Paul and Silas. The building was destroyed from around them without harm to them. Instead of running, they remained calm. The jailer was about to commit suicide rather than face Roman jus tice. Paul and Silas led him to two kinds of salvation: first, from sui cide; second, from sin. The jailer heard the girl say they were sav iors. His question to them was, “What must I do to be saved?” These men turned his temporal question regarding Roman justice into one of eternal significance. They proclaimed Christ to the jailer and his household.
VI. Free reign in Philippi
The demonstration of the power of God left the city magistrates impotent to disturb Christians again. Their abuse of Roman citizens (Paul and Silas) brought fear of removal from office and municipal financial punishment. The church moved freely and respectfully in Philippi. The work of God’s kingdom flourished.
Life is not lived only by special events, but also by the day-to- day routine of living.
Raymond Francis (Chunky) Harvey, Tuskegee, Ala., selected this poem for his memorial service.
Lord, is this the right road home? The clouds are dark and still,
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The stony path so sharp and hard, Each step brings some fresh hill.
I thought the way would brighter grow
And that the sun with warmth would glow
And joyous songs from free hearts flow,
Tell me, Lord, is this the right road home?
Yes, child, this is the right road home! The clouds were dark for me,
The stony path so sharp and hard, Not sight, but faith, could see
That at the end the sun shines bright, Forever, where there is no night,
And glad hearts rest from earth’s fierce fight, Yes, child, this is the right road home!