Lenten Worship at Calvary

No King But the Emperor

SUNDAY, MARCH 22, 2026 AT 10AM

In this passage from John's gospel, we're reminded that while the occupying Roman government murdered Jesus, they did so with the encouragement of Jesus' own people. 

What does this story have to say for how we live together, how we acknowledge our mistakes, and how we are called to be faithful today?

Our next Worship Service on Sunday, March 22:
"No King But the Emperor"

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10am Sunday Worship Livestream

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Please enjoy this week's service.
Next week's service (3.22.26) will be uploaded Sunday before 10am.

Holy Week schedule - 
Palm Sunday - March 29 - 10am Worship Service
Maundy Thursday - April 2 - 5:30-7:30pm Dinner & Worship
Good Friday - April 3 - 7pm Worship Service
Easter Sunrise - April 5 - 7am Rooftop Worship
Easter Morning - April 5 - 10am Worship Service
Featuring Music from Handel's Messiah with choir, orchestra, and soloists

Sunday, March 22, 2026 at 10am

John 19:1-16a


Then Pilate took Jesus and had him flogged. And the soldiers wove a crown of thorns and put it on his head, and they dressed him in a purple robe. They kept coming up to him, saying, ‘Hail, King of the Jews!’ and striking him on the face. Pilate went out again and said to them, ‘Look, I am bringing him out to you to let you know that I find no case against him.’ So Jesus came out, wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. Pilate said to them, ‘Here is the man!’ When the chief priests and the police saw him, they shouted, ‘Crucify him! Crucify him!’ Pilate said to them, ‘Take him yourselves and crucify him; I find no case against him.’ The people answered him, ‘We have a law, and according to that law he ought to die because he has claimed to be the Son of God.’


Now when Pilate heard this, he was more afraid than ever. He entered his headquarters again and asked Jesus, ‘Where are you from?’ But Jesus gave him no answer. Pilate therefore said to him, ‘Do you refuse to speak to me? Do you not know that I have power to release you, and power to crucify you?’ Jesus answered him, ‘You would have no power over me unless it had been given you from above; therefore the one who handed me over to you is guilty of a greater sin.’ From then on Pilate tried to release him, but the people cried out, ‘If you release this man, you are no friend of the emperor. Everyone who claims to be a king sets himself against the emperor.’


When Pilate heard these words, he brought Jesus outside and sat on the judge’s bench at a place called The Stone Pavement, or in Hebrew Gabbatha. Now it was the day of Preparation for the Passover; and it was about noon. He said to the people, ‘Here is your King!’ They cried out, ‘Away with him! Away with him! Crucify him!’ Pilate asked them, ‘Shall I crucify your King?’ The chief priests answered, ‘We have no king but the emperor.’ Then he handed him over to them to be crucified.


Previous Sermons

A big starry night sky with the sun setting and the Milky Way galaxy. The text reads “I AM (not)
By Rev. Marci Glass March 8, 2026
In today's reading, Peter denies Jesus three times. Peter isn’t any worse than any other sheep in God’s flock. Here, at least, he’s also not better. We are people, like Peter, who deny. We deny our connectedness. We divide into “us and them”. We seek easy answers to complicated questions.
A coupon that reads ‘bread bath and beyond 100% free grace, never expire!’
By Rev. Victor Floyd March 1, 2026
On the night we expect bread and cup, John’s gospel gives us a towel and a basin. Jesus kneels, turning ritual into relationship and power into vulnerable love. Communion is not words at a table, but embodied connection that changes and binds us together—when we dare to be present.
An opening tomb with a rock moving out of the way to light - the text reads 'living, dying, rising
By Rev. Marci Glass February 22, 2026
The rhythm of living, dying, and rising is the story of our faith, and the rhythm of our lives. We worship a man who rose from the dead. After he had lived. And after he died. As we enter the season of Lent, we'll focus on the story of Lazarus, and see how living, dying, and rising affected him and his community.
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Join us for Bible Study

The Women of Calvary Bible Study

3rd Thursdays of the month • zoom • 6 - 7:15pm

The Women of Calvary Bible Study meets via Zoom on the third Thursday of the month from 6 pm - 7:15 pm starting on September 18, 2025.
This year's study is Finding Resilience, Joy, and Our Identity in Jesus Christ by Rhashell D. Hunter. In this Bible study, we will explore resilience. This is modeled for us by several biblical characters, gospel and epistle writers, as well as Jesus. The Bible study is also about joy. How do we find joy in a chaotic world? Christian joy may be different from how a lot of people define joy. We will also seek to rediscover our identity.
Please join us for this study whether you're new to Bible Study or have participated in this study for years. Books are $10, scholarships available!
Please contact Rev. Joann for Zoom info: joannlee@calpres.org. Click to Email Joann

Music

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Calvary enjoys a long and treasured legacy as a center for great music in San Francisco. Through weekly liturgies, regular concerts featuring our choir and orchestra and guest musicians, and as an essential venue for the many arts organizations who perform in our historic sanctuary, that rich tradition is vibrantly alive today. Our weekly worship services feature our 40-voice Chancel Choir, our 6,155 pipe organ and Bösendorfer Imperial grand piano, professional soloists and other fine guest musicians, children and youth, handbells, and a range of exceptional music you likely won’t encounter in many other places of worship.

Learn More About Our Music Ministry

Enjoy our 2024 Choir Tour of Europe



A group of choir members singing with the music in the pews of the Chapel

More Faith Services at Calvary