Sermon Resources on Rights

Quote

Author

Keywords

The sacred rights of mankind are not to be rummaged for among old parchments or dusty records. They are written, as with a sunbeam, in the whole volume of human nature, by the hand of the Divinity its...

Quote

Author

Timothy Keller

Keywords

Scripture

Romans 12:1, Luke 1:38, Luke 5:1-11, Mark 10:17-27, Genesis 22:1-18, Ephesians 2:10

I asked her what was so scary about unmerited free grace? She replied something like this: If I was saved by my good works -- then there would be a limit to what God could ask of me or put me through....

liturgy

Strong in Lords Mighty Power

Author

Trinity Lutheran Church, Lisle, Illinois

Keywords

Scripture

Ephesians 6:10-13, Deuteronomy 31:6, Philippians 4:13, Psalm 27:1, Joshua 1:9

Pastor: Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. People: Put on the full armor of God to stand firm against the devil’s schemes. Pastor: with the belt of truth buckled at t...

illustration

Fumbling for the Right Words

Author

The Pastor's Workshop

Keywords

Scripture

Proverbs 16:24, Ecclesiastes 10:12, 1 Corinthians 8:2-3, James 1:5, Psalm 39:17-18

The renowned Russian pianist and émigré Vladimir Horowitz (1904–1989) sometimes struggled with the nuances of the English language. During a meeting with Mrs. Hoover, the wife of U.S. President Herber...

Quote

Author

Dr. Seuss

Keywords

I know, up on top you are seeing great sights, but down here at the bottom we, too, should have rights."

illustration

A Theology of Mourning and the Civil Rights Movement

Author

Esau McCaulley

Keywords

Scripture

Matthew 5:4, 6

Jesus explains what undergirds the actions of Paul, Isaiah, and Rev. Dr. King in two of his Beatitudes. He says, “Blessed are those who grieve, for they will be comforted. . . . Blessed are those who ...

Quote

Author

N. T. Wright

Keywords

"Righteousness," within the lawcourt setting-and this is something that no good Lutheran or Reformed theologian ought ever to object to-denotes the status that someone has when the court has...

illustration

MKL’s Letter from a Birmingham Jail-a Short History

Author

Esau McCaulley

Keywords

On April 12, 1963, eight clergy—two Methodist bishops, two Episcopal bishops, one Roman Catholic Bishop, a Rabbi, a Presbyterian, and a Baptist—wrote a letter addressed to the citizens of Alabama. Thi...

illustration

The Segregated South: Separate and Unequal

Author

John M. Perkins

Keywords

Scripture

Exodus 23:9, Leviticus 19:33-34 , Isaiah 1:17, Luke 10:25-37 , Galatians 3:28, Psalm 82:3-4

Desegregation was one of the big goals of the civil rights movement. “Separate but equal” in the South became “separate and unequal.” The disparities were in things as small as water fountains and as ...

illustration

Dying from the Unspoken War Back Home

Author

John M. Perkins

Keywords

Scripture

Exodus 2:11-25 , Amos 5:21-24, Isaiah 1:16-17 , Luke 4:16-21 , Romans 12:17-21 , Psalm 34:18-19

I was sixteen when a white deputy sheriff shot and killed my twenty-five-year-old brother, Clyde, in New Hebron, Mississippi, where we had grown up. Clyde had returned home from fighting in World War ...

illustration

Biblical Rigtheousness Goes Beyond the Private

Author

John R. W. Stott

Keywords

Scripture

Micah 6:8, Isaiah 1:16-17, Amos 5:24, Jeremiah 22:3, Zechariah 7:9-10

For biblical righteousness is more than a private and personal affair; it includes social righteousness as well. And social righteousness, as we learn from the law and the prophets, is concerned with ...

liturgy

The Way of Peace

Author

Lisa Ann Moss Degrenia

Keywords

Scripture

Isaiah 59:8, John 14:23-39, John 14:8-17

Based on Isaiah 59:8, NRSV The way of peace they do not know, and there is no justice in their paths. Their roads they have made crooked; no one who walks in them knows peace. You You are t...

illustration

We cannot have true justice unless

Author

John M. Perkins

Keywords

Scripture

Micah 6:8, Exodus 22:21-22 , Isaiah 58:6-7 , Matthew 22:37-39, James 2:1-9 , Psalm 103:6

We cannot have true justice unless it is motivated by love, just as God’s greatest act of justice, sending Jesus to die for us, was motivated by love. Years ago, before the emancipation of slaves, Fre...

illustration

Great God Almighty Done Parted the Red Sea One Mo’ Time

Author

Andrew Young

Keywords

Scripture

James 1:2-4, Hebrews 12:1-2, Romans 8:31, 2 Corinthians 4:8-9, Matthew 5:10-12, Isaiah 41:10, Psalm 46:1

Easter Sunday dawned with Martin [Luther King] in jail. . . . We planned a march from New Pilgrim Baptist Church to the city jail for the afternoon of Easter Sunday. . . . By the time church ended som...

Quote

Author

Bartolomé de las Casas

Keywords

The entire human race is one … all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.

Quote

Author

John C. Maxwell

Keywords

When you become a leader, you must focus more on your responsibilities than on your rights.

illustration

Religious Faith in the Workplace? The Resistance May Not Be What You Think

Author

John C. Knapp

Keywords

More often than not, park-it-at-the-door thinking [about religious faith] has less to do with hostility to faith than with the avoidance of risk, for many employer’s fear that any hint of religion is ...

Quote

Author

Nicholas Wolterstorff

Keywords

Scripture

Ephesians 2:14, Colossians 3:15, Matthew 5:9, Isaiah 9:6-7, Romans 14:17, Psalm 85:10, Micah 4:3-4

In shalom, each person enjoys justice, enjoys his or her rights. There is no shalom without justice. But shalom goes beyond justice. Shalom is the human being dwelling at peace in all his or her relat...

illustration

Recognizing Privilege (is Hard)

Author

D. L. Mayfield

Keywords

Privilege

Talking about affluence and privilege is hard, but it doesn’t have to be. I am continually grateful for the perspectives of people outside my own fold. Like Dr. Martin Luther King, for instance, who t...

illustration

The Meaning of Entitlement

Author

Kristen Welch

Keywords

Selfishness

Entitlement is a hot topic today. The root word entitled means exactly what it says—to give someone a title or a right. It used to be reserved for the wealthy and the privileged, based upon economics ...

scripture guide

Scripture Guide, 1 Peter 3:13-22

Author

Eunice McGarrahan

Keywords

Scripture

1 Peter 3:13-22

Summary The Text: 1 Peter 3:13-22 In the first chapter of this letter, Peter sets out the reason for writing. He affirms the eternal state of the believer: Blessed be the God and Father of our Lo...

scripture guide

Scripture Guide, 1 Peter 2:18-25

Author

William Rowley

Keywords

Scripture

1 Peter 2:18-25

What do you say to someone who is suffering? And what do you say when it is not just that they are in pain, but that they are being harassed and singled out for violence or slander because of their fa...

liturgy

He-They-We Poem

Author

John Oxenham

Keywords

Scripture

John 12:12-16

They hailed him King as he passed by, They strewed their garments in the road, But they were set on earthly things, And he on God. They sang his praise for that he did, But gave his mes...

blog

MLK Day Prayers for Church Services: Liturgy & Sermon Resources

Author

The Pastor's Workshop

Keywords

Scripture

Micah 6:8, Amos 5:24, Isaiah 1:17, Galatians 3:28, James 2:1, Ephesians 2:14

Updated for 2026. January 19, 2026 is Martin Luther King Jr. Day— the only U.S. national holiday commemorating a pastor. Under his leadership, non-violent civil rights advocacy achieved leaps f...

scripture guide

Scripture Guide, Romans 13:11-14

Author

Stuart R. Strachan, Jr.

Keywords

Scripture

Romans 13:11-14

Introduction This text is used in the first week of Advent, but preparing for Jesus' return isn't something for just one time of the year. For a treatment that is more focused on Advent, see ...

illustration

A New Thing Has Been Made

Author

Jonathan Cornell

Keywords

Scripture

Matthew 3:1-12, Galatians 3:26-29, 2 Corinthians 5:17, Ephesians 2:14-16, Colossians 3:10-11

My kids love the movie Remember the Titans . It’s the story of the integration of the TC WIlliams High School Football Team in Alexandria, Virginia, in the 1960s Civil Rights era. The white players a...

lectionary

Sixth Sunday of Easter

Author

Eunice McGarrahan

Keywords

Scripture

1 Peter 3:13-22

Summary The Text: 1 Peter 3:13-22 In the first chapter of this letter, Peter sets out the reason for writing. He affirms the eternal state of the believer: Blessed be the God and Father of our Lo...

lectionary

Fourth Sunday of Easter

Author

William Rowley

Keywords

Scripture

1 Peter 2:19-25

What do you say to someone who is suffering? And what do you say when it is not just that they are in pain, but that they are being harassed and singled out for violence or slander because of their fa...

scripture guide

Scripture Guide, Genesis 15:1-12, 17-18

Author

William Rowley

Keywords

Scripture

Genesis 15:1-12, 17-18, Romans 4:13-25, Romans 10:8-13

Ancient Lens What can we learn from the historical context? The Old, Old Story Jesus’ resurrection and ascension (and perhaps Pentecost) are the resolution of a story that starts with all the way...

scripture guide

Scripture Guide, Acts 16:16-34

Author

Andrew Van Kirk

Keywords

Scripture

Acts 16:16

Textual Overview By the time we reach Acts 16, we’ve come a long way from resurrection morning. The good news about Jesus Christ has burst out of the tomb, out of Jerusalem, out of Judea, out of Juda...

liturgy

illustration

illustration

illustration

illustration

illustration

illustration

liturgy

illustration

illustration

illustration

illustration

illustration

scripture guide

scripture guide

liturgy

blog

scripture guide

illustration

lectionary

lectionary

scripture guide

scripture guide

A

B

C

D

E

F

G

H

I

J

K

L

M

N

O

P

Q

R

S

T

U

V

W

Genesis

Exodus

Leviticus

Numbers

Deuteronomy

Joshua

Judges

Ruth

1 Samuel

2 Samuel

1 Kings

2 Kings

1 Chronicles

2 Chronicles

Ezra

Nehemiah

Esther

Job

Psalm

Proverbs

Ecclesiastes

Song of Solomon

Isaiah

Jeremiah

Lamentations

Ezekiel

Daniel

Hosea

Joel

Amos

Obadiah

Jonah

Micah