Emotions

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Considerations on the place of emotions in sermons and talks.

1. Relying on emotions as truth is bad, for they are not truth.

2. Suppressing emotions is bad, for this is not reality.

3. Manufacturing emotions as the message is bad.

   • Hype as “joy”

   • hype as “sadness”.

   • Both of these are insubstantial and unsustaining.

4. Truth informs our emotions.

   • We respond emotionally to truth.

   • We can use truth to guide our emotions.

   • These make the truth even more potent at maturing us.

5. Our emotions are part of our understanding.

   • Part of application of any message must be emotion.

   • Part of “drawing near” is emotional.

   • Wrong emotions can impede understanding.

   • Our emotions need to be trained just as much as our intellect.