The pastor ought to have two voices: one, for gathering the sheep; and another, for warding off and driving away wolves and thieves. The Scripture supplies him with the means of doing both.
John CalvinRead
Against the persecution of a tyrant the godly have no remedy but prayer.
Interpretation
What this quote means
In the face of tyranny, the righteous can only turn to prayer for protection and solace.
This quote by John Calvin reflects the idea that when oppressed by a tyrant, individuals who possess strong moral beliefs may find their only recourse in prayer. It emphasizes the power of faith and spirituality as a means to seek justice and support when earthly solutions appear inadequate or impossible.
Themes
PrayerTyrannyPersecutionFaithRemedy
In practice
Example use cases
A pastor might use this quote during a sermon about the importance of faith in tough times.
More from John Calvin
All quotes βMan is never sufficiently touched and affected by the awareness of his lowly state until he has compared himself with God's majesty.
John CalvinRead
Whomever the Lord has adopted and deemed worthy of His fellowship ought to prepare themselves for a hard, toilsome, and unquiet life, crammed with very many and various kinds of evil.
John CalvinRead
For as the aged, or those whose sight is defective, when any book, however fair, is set before them, though they perceive that there is something written, are scarcely able to make out two consecutive words, but, when aided by glasses, begin to read distinctly, so Scripture, gathering together the impressions of Deity, which, till then, lay confused in our minds, dissipates the darkness, and shows us the true God clearly.
John CalvinRead
When God wants to judge a nation, He gives them wicked rulers.
John CalvinRead
Wherever we see the Word of God purely preached and heard, there a church of God exists, even if it swarms with many faults.
John CalvinRead
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When you compare what people endured in the South in the 60s to try to get the right to vote for African Americans, and to compare what people were subjected to there to what happened in Philadelphia - which was inappropriate, certainly that . . . to describe it in those terms I think does a great disservice to people who put their lives on the line, who risked all, for my people.
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I had insecurities and fears like everybody does, and I got over it. But I was interested in the parts of me that struggled with those things.
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You can kill a revolutionary but you can never kill the revolution.
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