Sermon and Worship Resources

Synonyms: ruler, sovereign, monarch, supreme ruler, crowned head, majesty, Crown, head of state, royal personage, emperor, prince, potentate, overlord, liege lord, lord, leader, chief, star, leading light, luminary, superstar, mogul, giant, master, kingpin, celebrity, lion

Antonyms: queens, peasant, serf, slave, subject, servant, average joe, common man, rank and file, lower class, common person, workers, commoner, the masses, the poor, plebians, bourgeois, proletariat, laborer, working class, middle class, blue-collar, a nobody, subvassal

Showing 1 to 25 of 414 results

1. The Emperor’s Son-in-law

Luke 12:22-34, Luke 12:35-48

Sermon

Carveth Mitchell

This Gospel hinges on responsibility, and the culmination of it is in verse forty-eight: "Everyone to whom much is given, of him shall much be required." One of the favorite stories of the great Danish philosopher, Soren Kierkegard, concerns an emperor, touring his domain and receiving the accolades of his people. When the entourage reached the market square of one village, his carriage was surrounded by cheering villagers and peasants. To the amazement of his neighbors, one brash young farmer stepped out ...

2. The Emperor’s Son-in-law

Luke 12:35-48

Sermon

3. Like Parent, Like Child

Matthew 22:15-22

Sermon

King Duncan

... the way of God in accordance with truth.” Say, what? They didn’t believe that for a minute, but they wanted the people listening to think they were giving Jesus a fair chance. Then they asked him a loaded question. “Is it lawful to pay taxes to the emperor or not?” Uh-oh. If Jesus says it’s all right to pay taxes to the Roman government, then he will lose face with the majority of his audience. For the pious Jew it was offensive to pay taxes to the hated Romans. Paying taxes was tantamount to ...

4. Paying What's Due

Matthew 22:15-22

Sermon

David G. Rogne

... have on a particular issue. They may have done better to accept the whole statement as Carl Schurz stated it in an address before Congress in 1872: "Our country, right or wrong. When right, to be kept right. When wrong, to be put right." "Pay to the emperor what is the Emperor's." The second thing Jesus says is "(Give) to God the things that are God's" (v. 21). Surely one of the things due to God is worship. In the story on which the play Fiddler on the Roof is based, Tevya the dairyman prays three times ...

5. Another Tricky Question

Matthew 22:15-22

Sermon

Johnny Dean

... and none of these things. Jesus IS the Son of God, the Prince of Peace, the Messiah, and that’s a category that lies far beyond the scope of political correctness. It would be easier to interpret this passage if Jesus had just said, "Give to the emperor the things that are the emperor’s," and stopped there. But he didn’t. He couldn’t. Jesus could not stop until he had shown us once and for all what "give to God the things that are God’s" means. Every time we enter God’s house and see a cross we ...

6. Where Are You From?

John 18:1-19:42

Sermon

David T. Ball

... the region who had the power to pronounce the death sentence. And he did have a legal basis on which to convict Jesus: if Jesus had claimed to be King of the Jews, this was sedition, and an offense against the Roman people, by disrespecting their emperor. With the crowd about to riot, why spare Jesus and lose all Judea? More afraid than ever, he reentered his headquarters and out popped what seems like an odd question: "Where are you from?" This getting-to-know-you question, usually no big deal. A question ...

7. The Triumphant Christ

Revelation 1:1-3

Sermon

King Duncan

... . What he preached, he practiced. No one who knew him ever called him a fraud. Even Judas, the friend whose kiss sealed his doom, declared that he had betrayed innocent blood. Yet there were few admirers at Jesus' funeral. He did not die a celebrity as did Emperor Norton of San Francisco. THAT'S ALL RIGHT. NOT MANY OF US WILL DIE AS CELEBRITIES EITHER. Ruth Graham, Mrs. Billy Graham, tells a humorous story from one of their trips to Europe. Dr. Graham and a member of his team, Grady Wilson, had left for ...

8. The Fox

Mark 6:14-29

Sermon

David G. Rogne

... used to a lot more luxury when I was Tetrarch of Galilee and Perea in Palestine. All that has been taken from me now by the Emperor, and I am consigned to remain here on the fringes of the Empire for the rest of my life. My family has exercised power in ... north of me, died. I thought that perhaps I could add his province to mine, but before I could act, the new emperor, Caligula, gave the province to Agrippa, who happened to be Herodias' brother. With the province, Caligula also gave Agrippa the title ...

9. Called to Freedom

Matthew 11:25-30

Sermon

Mark Trotter

... to what to do. Luther asked for twenty-four hours to form a reply. It was granted. The next day Luther entered the room. The room was packed with people straining to hear him. He began the speech that he had prepared to defend his writings. The emperor interrupted him, and said, "Answer the question. Will you recant?" What followed is one of the most famous speeches in all history. Unless I am convinced by the testimony of scripture and by clear reason, for I do not trust either in the pope or in councils ...

10. In Whose Likeness?

Matthew 22:15-22

Sermon

Chris Ewing

... , citizens of Israel, who have no king but God and God's anointed, to pay tribute to an occupying pagan power whose emperor demands to be worshiped as a god? Or again, is it right for citizens of a conquered nation to withhold taxes from ... treasury, but live by the pagan stuff all week long. Think again. If the coin belongs to Caesar, if the likeness it bears is that of the emperor, to whom it should be given, then what should be given to God? What belongs to God? What is stamped with God's likeness in this ...

11. Curiosity and Questions

John 3:1-7

Sermon

Kristin Borsgard Wee

... . Nahum was immediately taken to the treasury and his bag was filled with precious jewels. Then Nahum returned home. On the way he stayed in the same inn, where he told his story. The same men who had stolen from Nahum decided to take some dust to the emperor. But when their dust was tested it did not turn into swords. All of those men were put to death.1 What conclusions are we to draw from this story? The rabbis weren't interested in answers. They used stories to make their students think, raise questions ...

12. Prayers For the President

1 Timothy 2:1-7

Sermon

David E. Leininger

... seeing is a mud bath and slime spray. That our leaders actually sit down and talk to one another, in my estimation, is an urgent prayer. Prayers for the president — the reason for them is the same now as it was for those prayers for the Emperor two millennia ago: "That we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness" (1 Timothy 2:2). The decisions that our leaders make have a direct bearing on the kind of lives we lead. In the period immediately following the death of Franklin Roosevelt ...

13. Keeping Your Eye on the Ball

Matthew 22:15-22

Sermon

Lori Wagner

... and used as a means to pay the Jewish Temple tax. In fact, even after the closing of the mint in Tyre, Roman authorities allowed the Jewish Temple to mint the coins in Palestine, as long as they continued to bear the image of the Roman Emperor upon them. Although these were coins used for Jewish religious purposes, the coins clearly impressed upon them that they were nevertheless “owned” by Rome, and that the Jewish faith existed only by Rome’s favor. In a sense, Jews were forced to produce and to use ...

14. A Truly Universal Operating System

Romans 14:1-12

Sermon

Larry Lange

... practice of eating meat sacrificed to idols makes you no different than the leaders of any other industry. It makes you no different than most of the citizens of the empire itself — all of whom worship gods other than our own; they even worship the emperor himself! Eating meat sacrificed to idols is a way of begging for the blessing of other gods for businesses and products and livelihoods. Now when a potential Christian or a Christian who is weak in our faith hears that a famous Christian like yourself ...

15. Stamped with God’s Own Image

Matthew 22:15-22

Sermon

Albert G. Butzer III

... knew that the coin was not a Jewish coin but a Roman coin. The image on the coin did not belong to some hero of Jewish history. It was not the face of Abraham, Moses, David, or Ruth. Rather, the image on the coin belonged to a foreigner, the emperor of Rome, a constant reminder to the Jews that their land had been overrun by a foreign military power that ruled their lives with an iron fist and threatened crucifixion to anyone who stepped out of line. The image on that coin did not fill them with pride but ...

16. Joy

Luke 2:1-11 · Isaiah 9:2-6

Sermon

Will Willimon

... Why were these Jews being registered? The Roman occupation forces can't keep up with these Jews without their being registered. Even if you were a woman like Mary, expecting a baby, you had to make the long journey back to your husband's town and be registered. The Emperor said it. It was law. And then, in the dark of night, a baby cries, out back in the manger. There is a flutter of wings and the shepherds, huddling in the dark cold, are terrified. But the angel says to them, "Don't be afraid, I bring you ...

17. Getting and Giving

John 13:31-38

Sermon

Glenn E. Ludwig

... . Now my children will be hungry when winter comes." The small children tried to comfort their mother. "It's all right," they said. "The wind has given the grain to the birds. They are hungry, too." The dance of the wind brought back the words of the emperor and empress. Suddenly, the prince and princess saw with new eyes. "We shall share our grain with you," they said at once. They hurried to pour some of their grain into the woman's basket, and helped her on her way. After the family had gone, the young ...

18. Yes, No, Someone Else

2 Samuel 7:1-17

Sermon

Curtis Lewis

... dropped behind it an ugly, distended, shriveled wing which was useless. The exercise the moth would have gotten in the struggle would have animated its wings. In the Old Testament lesson for today, David is much like the little boy who snipped away at the emperor moth's cocoon. For the first time since ascending the throne, David is in a position to snip the cocoon from which he had been emerging. David is established in his new house and is secure from his notorious Philistine enemies. No doubt David has ...

19. No Fear

Psalm 23:4

Sermon

James Merritt

... you away from every human being and you won’t have one friend left.” Chrysostom said, “You can’t do that either, for I have a friend in heaven who sticks closer than a brother from which nothing can ever separate us.” Chrysostom then stood up, looked the Emperor in the eye and said, “You need to understand, in my heart there is no fear, for there is nothing you can do to hurt me.” If the Lord is your Shepherd and you are His sheep, whether in life or death, there should be no fear. 1. Rick ...

20. Who Is The Prisoner? Who Is The Judge?

John 18:33-37

Sermon

Frank Ramirez

... the people did not rise up in arms to protect him or to free Jesus. Other than Peter’s act of cutting off the ear of a slave, one that Jesus immediately repudiated, the message should have been obvious — Jesus posed no threat to the Emperor. No political threat, anyway. The trouble was, Jesus didn’t deny his kingship — not exactly — not fully. He had just said that his kingdom was not of this world, because if that were so his followers would be fighting — the word is agonizomai, an athletic ...

21. Remembering The Saints

Matthew 5:1-12

Sermon

Larry R. Kalajainen

... raised from death had spread significantly over the whole Roman Empire, as far west as Gaul, or what is now France and Spain. Christians made up a significant block of the population and were recognized as (potentially at least) a powerful political force. This made the emperor Domitian a bit edgy, and to make sure he was able to hold the empire together, large and unwieldy as it was, he instituted a kind of pledge of allegiance, similar in intent to our own pledge of allegiance to the flag, but with more ...

22. Moving Words

Matthew 10:1-42

Sermon

Larry Goodpaster

... , “I will take away your life.” To which Chrysostom said, “You cannot, for my life is hid with Christ in God.” Next threatened with the loss of his treasure, this saint replied, “You cannot, for my treasure is in heaven where my heart is.” The emperor made one last effort: “Then I will drive you away from here and you shall have no friend left.” But again Chrysostom responded, “You cannot, for I have one Friend from whom you can never separate me. I defy you for you can do me no harm ...

23. What Is God Like?

2 Samuel 18:1-18

Sermon

Edward Chinn

... to run out on the road to meet his father’s chariot. A Roman soldier who was guarding the road spotted the boy, did not recognize him, held him back, saying, "You can’t run out there! Don’t you know that’s the emperor?" The boy laughed and replied, "He may be your emperor, but he’s my father!" In this old story, retold in a book by William Barclay, is an excellent example of Jesus’ attitude to God as father. When Jesus prayed to God, he called Him by the Aramaic word Abba (Mark 14:36). This ...

24. A Man Who Walked the Talk

Acts 7:55-60

Sermon

King Duncan

... why did you not return the ruby until now, the thirty-first day?” The rabbi responded, “I did not return it within the thirty days so that you could not say I returned it because I feared you. I returned it because I believe in God.” The emperor was impressed by the rabbi’s witness to his faith and he exclaimed, “Blessed be the God of these Jews.” (1) It is impressive when someone who believes in God bears witness to his faith--particularly if such a witness could cost him his life. Our lesson ...

25. What Are You Afraid Of?

Matthew 10:1-42

Sermon

King Duncan

Showing results