Setting Up & Pulling Down Keywords

Tony Evans is a master at drawing analogous pictures using everyday events, objects, situations, activities, etc.  We can set up a template which quantifies this rhetorical technique and will do that after we view and/or listen to the beginning part of his message.

After being introduced by the President of DTS, and after some introductory humor and words by Tony Evans which . . . .

• relaxes the audience with humor
• establishes some ethos
• and sets up the analogy

. . . . the following begins at the 5:22 minute mark . . . . .

(Video Link Clip  — For full message — Tony Evans, Commencement Message at DTS – 2018)

(The Audio Clip  — begins at the 5:22 mark of the full video message)

 

[Part “A”]

In football and when you when you see a football game you watch three teams take the field.

There’s a home team

There’s a visiting team

which means for three hours there’s going to be a clash

there’s going to be a conflict

because these two teams can never get along

their goals are in two different directions

in the midst of this conflict a third team is introduced to the chaos on the field

this third team is known as the team of officials

these are seven officials who are on the field but they’re not of the field

they’re in the middle of the conflict but they’re not part of the conflict

their job is to represent 345 Park Avenue in New York which is where the NFL offices are located

you see the NFL offices up there have representatives down here

who represent the interests of their office up there – in order to bring order to a chaotic situation

these seven officials are very distinguished and distinguishable

they do not dawn the jerseys of the competing teams

they have black and white jerseys on because they represent a different Kingdom

each one of these officials have been handed a book

this book gives all the governing guidelines by which all decisions are to be made on the field of play

their personal desires must be subjected to that book

that personal preferences must be subjected to that book

because that book will control every decision that they make on the field of play in the chaos in which they find themselves

in the midst of all of this – there is the reality that the officiating crew understands — sometimes they’re going to be cheered

one of the teams will agree with them and if it’s a home town decision the crowd will agree with them

but sometimes they’re going to be booed because one of the teams or if it’s against the home team – the home crowd is going to boo them

but they also understand that they’re not there for popularity contests

they understand that their job is to represent the kingdom in New York in the chaos on the field as representatives of another Kingdom

 

[Part “B”]

as you come to this graduation today you are going to be graduating into a world of chaos and the teams are clearly divided

there is a racial division in which you will graduate to — on some level in this divided culture

there is a political divide between Democrats and Republicans –in this culture that you will graduate into

there is a class divide — between the rich and the poor –between the 99 percenters and the 1% is that you will graduate into in this particular culture

there is a gender divide that is growing in this culture with the me2 movement and its implications that you will graduate to in this particular environment

and you will graduate into a clash

but what God is looking for is a group of men and women who represent the kingdom up there in the chaos down here and are very distinguishable

because they don’t belong to any team they belong to a king and another kingdom

and they represent that in their life and in their ministry

this group

this officiating group that God has ordained — are known as disciples

like call them kingdom disciples because of the king and the kingdom that they represent

Jesus called for a graduation ceremony

he called for that in the Great Commission

there are five commissions in the New Testament Matthew Mark Luke John and Acts

but this one in Matthew is called the Great Commission

it comes at a book in a book that highlights the kingship of Jesus Christ and the kingdom that he came to offer and he now in that Great Commission describes the group of people who ought to represent him in the chaos down here

from the authority of there — based on the book that they have been entrusted with that is to govern all decisions on the field of play

There are three graduating groups in this great commission

the first group according to verse 16 are the eleven disciples who were called to the mountain

according to 1st Corinthians 15 — there 500 other brothers and sisters who gathered at this gathering

and for 500 to gather at one time meant they were gathering by appointment

and so there are either 511 or if the 11 are part of the 500 — that means that there are 489 that have gathered for this graduation ceremony as Jesus prepares to Commission them to their ministry in his physical absence

there is a third group that gathers for this graduation ceremony

because Jesus concludes his message with this statement

he says I will be with you even to the end of the age

well the ages not ended yet so you and I get to attend the graduation as well

so why don’t we all since we’ve all been invited mosey on up to the mountain of designation to hear the commencement address from our Lord Jesus Christ to his graduating classes so that we can understand what he had in mind for them which is the same that he has in mind for us since we are part of the graduation group to whom this Commission has been so dubbed and designated

it is in this context that they begin with a worship service . . .

 

Aside:  If you watch the video version, did you notice the response to what Evans was saying by the individual on the left.  His response was instructive because it reveals that he grasped early on the “spiritual allusions” which were being set up.  He also responded when Evans made the connections.  I well imagine that he was representative of the audience in following the allusion in both its construction and application — the audience’s applause reveals that to be true.

Contrast:  Tony Evans could have drawn a much simpler analogy.  He could have simply stated something like this . . . .

In football, there is a conflict between two opposing teams which each have their own goal, end zone.  That is the world you are walking into today.  The officials are there to make sure that everyone plays by the rule book.  Today, you are going to be a “walk-on” into a similar game where the world has one goal and you have another.  You represent another kingdom which operates by kingdom rules. . . .

However, in doing something like this, he would not be nearly as effective in driving the analogy or creating “an anticipation of arrival!”  Separating the analogy into two parts, establishing and repeating keywords, and establishing, stating and restating keywords all contribute to the effectiveness of this rhetorical technique.

 

 

The Template:

#1) Layout & Narrow –  Part “A”:  Begin by laying out the secular or natural world part of the analogy.  In this case, it was???  Can you be specific and narrow in stating what that was in regards to what you just heard or read?

Specifically, it was knowingly narrowed down to. . . .

the purpose and objective of the game — a clash between two teams which can never get along because they have different goals

the number of groups-teams involved in a football game — three teams on the field, which already sets up a curiosity as to who the third team is???

the aim and activity of the third group-team — to follow the rules of the book, of the game

He narrows down the focus by intentionally choosing the elements which he wants to and will pull down!

He focuses on — the broad nature and objective of the game, the three groups-teams involved, and the role of the third group-team.

 

#2) Anticipate & Establish The Key Words – In Part “A”:  What is rhetorical instructive is how Tony Evans sets up the items/words/phrases which he is going to pull down from the Part “A”  (from the secular or natural world of football) into Part “B.”

Evans is already setting up certain words and concepts which he knows . . . .

will effectively communicate his point

he will be able to use when he transitions to Part “B.”

will be easily and quickly caught by his audience as analogous in the spiritual world

That is why the individual behind Evans facially reveals his excitement as Evans sets up the first part of the analogy.  That excitement is present well before the analogy is pulled down and/or applied!  He, along with the rest of the audience, easily catch the words and phrases.  The words and phrase connect and say they know where Evans is going!

 

 

In football and when you when you see a football game you watch three teams take the field.

there’s going to be a clash

there’s going to be a conflict

their goals are in two different directions

in the midst of this conflict a third team is introduced to the chaos on the field

these are seven officials who are on the field but they’re not of the field

they’re in the middle of the conflict but they’re not part of the conflict

their job is to represent 345 Park Avenue in New York which is where the NFL offices are located

you see the NFL offices up there have representatives down here

who represent the interests of their office up there order to bring order to a chaotic situation

these seven officials are very distinguished and distinguishable

they have black and white jerseys on because they represent a different Kingdom

each one of these officials have been handed a book

this book gives all the governing guidelines by which all decisions are to be made on the field of play

their personal desires must be subjected to that book

that personal preferences must be subjected to that book

because that book will control every decision that they make on the field of play in the chaos in which they find themselves

. . . . . etc. — Evans continues calling up more and other understood references which are increasingly seen as applicable to the spiritual world, and which are anticipatorily understood by the audience as analogous – as proved by their applause when the anticipated analogy is finally made.

 

 

 

#3) “Pull It Down” – Into To Part “B”:  After the narrowly constructed, natural or secular part of the analogy is presented, pull down the intentionally chosen words and phrases you are going to use and reuse  — to part “B.”

 

as you come to this graduation today you are going to be graduating into a world of chaos and the teams are clearly divided

there is a racial division in which you will graduate to — on some level in this divided culture

there is a political divide between Democrats and Republicans –in this culture that you will graduate into

there is a class divide — between the rich and the poor –between the 99 percenters and the 1% is that you will graduate into in this particular culture

there is a gender divide that is growing in this culture with the me2 movement and its implications that you will graduate to in this particular environment

and you will graduate into a clash

but what God is looking for is a group of men and women who represent the kingdom up there in the chaos down here and are very distinguishable

because they don’t belong to any team they belong to a king and another kingdom

and they represent that in their life and in their ministry

this group

this officiating group that God has ordained — are known as disciples

like call them kingdom disciples because of the king and the kingdom that they represent

Jesus called for a graduation ceremony

he called for it in the Great Commission

there are five commissions in the New Testament Matthew Mark Luke John and Acts

but this one in Matthew is called the Great Commission

it comes at a book – in a book that highlights the kingship of Jesus Christ and the kingdom that he came to offer

and he now in that Great Commission describes the group of people who ought to represent him in the chaos down here

from the authority of there — based on the book that they have been entrusted with that is to govern all decisions on the field of play

There are three graduating groups in this great commission

the first group according to verse 16 are the eleven disciples who were called to the mountain

to their ministry in his physical absence

there is a third group that gathers for this graduation ceremony

so you and I get to attend the graduation as well

 

. . . . . etc. — As you continue  to listen, you will see that Evans continues pulling down more of the original words and phrases from part “A”

 

 

#4) Sprinkle Those Words & Phrases:  If you listen to the whole message, you will see that Evans calls up some of those words and phrases, adds other words and phrases, and also restates those words and phrases using other words.  Here are some of the keywords which Evans pulls down as they occur in the remaining portion of the message. 

• divide – 2 more times
• chaos – 4 more times
• clash – 1 more times
• team(s) – 2 more times
• game – 3 more times
• represent(ing) – 10 more times
• down here – 3 more times
• up there – 4 more times
• field – 7 more times
• rules – 1 more time
• officials – 5 more times
• refs – 1 more time

 

What Tony Evans does is masterful because his mind . . . .

√ sees an analogy

√ is able to establish keywords and phrases for intentional inclusion in the telling of Part “A” — [which he also knows will work in Part “B”]

√ grasps how to purposefully inject those same words and phrases into Part “B” — [which he knows will then drive the analogy]

√ understands the value of reusing and rephrasing those keywords and phrases

 

What you will find out when you attempt to do what Evans does, is that it takes work, real time-consuming mental work, to develop and use these kinds of impacting analogous allusions which seems so easily done by Tony Evans.

 

Start here 

This rhetorical ability can be learned!

It will take work most each and every time!

It will get easier!