Download the accompanying printable tract here!
"... they dragged out Jason and some of the other believers instead and took them before the city council. 'Paul and Silas have caused trouble all over thr world,' they shouted, 'and now they are here disturbing our city, too. And Jason welcomed them into his home. They are guilty of trason against Caesar, for they profess allegiance to another king, named Jesus." Acts 17:6-7 (NLT)
"As Christianity spread into the Gentile world, it was inevitable that there should be conflict with competing cults, and particulary the Roman state and the cult of the emperor. Not only were the heathen gods of the mystery cults called "lord," but Caesar himself was "Lord." While this title was refused by the first two emperors, Augustus and Tiberius, the emperors who followed accepted it, and Domitian insisted on the use of the expression Dominus et Deus foster, "Our Lord and God,"- in referring to him.
"In an age when Caesar was designated as both "lord" and "god" it meant something for Christians to swear their allegiance to Jesus Christ as Lord. In many ways the Caesars were tolerant of various religions.
"They would have allowed Christians to call Jesus Lord if they had been willing also to recognize the imperial cult. But the Christian position is plainly stated in I Corinthians 8:5, 6: "For although there may be so-called gods in heaven or on earth—as indeed there are many 'gods' and many lords'—yet for us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist" (R.S.V.).
"The issue thus was sharply drawn. The Roman emperor demanded that he be regarded as lord and god. But for a Christian to apply these terms to any human being was a repudiation of Christianity, and men gave their lives rather than to call Caesar "lord." Even in the days of Paul there is documentary evidence from Thebes to show that Nero was designated as "the lord" by the Roman world.
"In Carthage in A.D. 180 a Christian named Speratus was brought before the judgment seat of the Roman proconsul, P. Vigellius Saturninus, and commanded: "Swear by the genius of our lord the Emperor." His reply was "I know no imperium of this world. . . . I know my Lord, the King of kings and Emperor of all nations."'
"Polycarp, the Bishop of Smyrna, was burned alive at an advanced age on February 22, A.D. 156, because he would not compromise on this point. As the story goes, the police captain and his father asked, "But what harm is it to say, 'Lord Caesar,' and to offer sacrifice, and so forth, and to be saved?"8 Later when urged to swear by the genius of Caesar to revile Christ, and be set free he replied: "For eighty and six years have I been his servant, and he has done me no wrong, and how can I blaspheme my King who saved me?" 9
"The record of his martyrdom closes with these words: "Now the blessed Polycarp was martyred . . . , a great sabbath, at the eight hour." Then significantly it says: "And he was arrested by Herod, when Philip of Tralles was High Priest, when Statius Quadratus was Pro-Counsul, but Jesus Christ was reigning forever, to whom be glory, honour, majesty, and an eternal throne from generation to generation."'
"Is not the very essence of Christianity today, as anciently, to "reverence Christ as Lord" in our hearts (1 Peter 3:15, R.S.V.)?" https://www.ministrymagazine.org/archive/1963/01/kurios
CARE INSTRUCTIONS:
To maintain the quality and fit of your t-shirt:
Following these instructions will help prevent shrinkage and extend the life of your t-shirt.
| S | M | L | XL | 2XL | 3XL | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Width, in | 18.00 | 20.00 | 22.00 | 24.00 | 26.00 | 28.00 |
| Length, in | 28.00 | 29.00 | 30.00 | 31.00 | 32.00 | 33.00 |
| Sleeve length, in | 8.23 | 8.50 | 8.74 | 9.02 | 9.25 | 9.49 |
| Size tolerance, in | 1.50 | 1.50 | 1.50 | 1.50 | 1.50 | 1.50 |
