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 1601 results

1. A Place for You

Ruth 1:16-18

Sermon

Mark Trotter

... is celebrated in song, as you heard this morning in the beautiful solo. Ruth was a Moabite woman. Which meant for the Jews reading this story for the first time, that she was a foreigner. By definition, as far as a Jew was concerned, that meant that she was a nobody, she had no status at all. Naomi and her husband and their two sons are Jews. They traveled to Moab during a famine, which was a common occurrence in those days. In fact, it was how the Jews got into Egypt. There was a famine in their land. They ...

2. God Is Amazing

John 1:43-51

Sermon

Richard Gribble

... people to apply for a position as a teacher in the religious education program. Everybody thought Anybody would apply; Anybody thought Somebody would apply. So, guess who applied? You are right — Nobody! My friends, let's not be an everybody, somebody, or anybody. Rather, let us truly strive to be a nobody. In such a way we empty ourselves so we can be filled with the amazing power of Christ, who died to set us free and, thus, will always be our brother, friend, and Lord.

3. Building God’s Kingdom: The Christian Challenge

Romans 10:8-13

Sermon

Richard Gribble

... apply for a position as a teacher in the Sunday school program. Everybody thought Anybody would apply; Anybody thought Somebody would apply. So, guess who applied? You are right, Nobody! Let's not be Everybody, Somebody, or Anybody. Rather, let us seek to be a Nobody, working not for ourselves but for others. Let us take up the challenge of building God's kingdom in our world upon Christ, the rock foundation. We have a good example of how disaster brought the world together. Let us not wait until disaster ...

4. Jesus Out of Character

Mark 7:24-30

Sermon

Donald B. Strobe

... a white man’s world. But he had committed his life to the ministry of a love that identifies with suffering humanity, of reaching out to “nobodies” of this world in the name of Jesus Christ. Well, Jesus knew what it was to be a “nobody.” “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” the people asked. Some even accused Him of being illegitimate. He was despised and rejected Himself. And that is why I cannot accept any explanation of this strange story which has Him despising and rejecting another ...

5. Two Women

Luke 1:39-45

Sermon

Mark Trotter

... with this wonderful line. "I'm nobody! Who are you? / Are you Nobody too?" As far as the world was concerned, that's who Mary was. And the revelation coming to us at Christmas is, God does not treat her that way. God does not treat her as a nobody. God treats her as if she were special. And it must have shown, because the minute Elizabeth sees her, she says, "Blessed are you among women." She must have seen the radiance that surrounded Mary. Mary knew that what was happening to her was not happening just to ...

6. Boast In The Lord

1 Corinthians 1:18--2:5

Sermon

Richard Hasler

... any boasting to be done, Paul's exhortation is: "Boast in the Lord." Church history has been a continuing commentary on Paul's contention that Paul uses the "nobodies" of the world to bear witness to the Lord's kingdom, power and glory. John Bunyan was a nobody. Born in 1619 to a poor family near Bedford, England, his formal education was meager, consisting of only two years. After serving in Oliver Cromwell's army for a few years, he returned home to follow his father's humble trade, a mender of pots and ...

7. It Dawned on Me

Sermon

Ron Lavin

... put those pompous Pharisees and priests in their place like he had done so often before? Why was there no way out for this man who provided a way out for so many losers and nobodies and sinners like me? Why did he have to die like a nobody? The priests secretly knew that he was somebody, somebody important, somebody who could overthrow their system and upset the status quo. They knew. That's why they insisted that a guard be placed by Jesus' tomb that Saturday. Pilate, tired of games, told them to use their ...

8. You Will Never Walk Alone

Luke 24:13-20, 25-26, 28-35

Sermon

Mark Trotter

... of the twelve, then that would be reason for including it in the text, because the twelve had superstar status in the Church, and anything that happened to them was remembered and recorded. But if there is an anecdote about someone who is not an apostle, just a nobody, it is not there because this event happened to them. It is there because this event can happen to you. If it happened to them, be prepared for it to happen to you. Cleopas and Mary, or whoever it was, walking down the road, talking it over ...

9. Hail, King!

Jeremiah 23:5-6 · Psalm 93 · Revelation 1:4b-8 · John 18:33-37

Sermon

Will Willimon

... we are apt to think of Charles and Di, a pleasant woman with an omnipresent purse, but we don't think of power or sovereignty. The Dutch are fond of saying of themselves, whenever someone is belittled, "Trix ist Nix -- Beatrix (the Durch Queen) is also a nobody. Royalty looks as common as the rest of us. We've done to kings and queens what we have done to most sources of authority -- everything has been rendered common, everyday, impotent. Nothing or no one rules. OK. You don't want a king. But do you ...

10. Do You Have The Glory?

John 17:20-26

Sermon

King Duncan

... Lover," this young Italian immigrant was hounded by women who tore his clothes and even followed him to bed. His film name, if you haven't already guessed, was Rudolph Valentino. On a trip back to Italy in 1923, however, Rudolph Valentino learned he was still a nobody back home. "No one paid any attention to me," he wrote in his diary. "There were hundreds of Valentinos in Italy far more handsome than I can ever hope to be. In America, my type stands out somewhat . . . but in my own country I am simply ...

11. Prophets and the Powerful

1 Kings 21:1-3, 17-21

Sermon

Will Willimon

... . But that isn't surprising. You don't get to be king by being nice. He is a man of power, accustomed to getting what he wants. But King Ahab isn't rude. He could be, if he wanted because, after all, he is dealing with a poor man, a nobody. Ahab is polite, condescending. He offers Naboth an even swap or hard cash, the choice is his. He could take the vineyard if he wanted, but no, this is an enlightened government where such things are not done. Everything h re is done according to law and with propriety ...

12. Moving on Up

Luke 14:1, 7-14

Sermon

Mark Trotter

... beside the door, waited for her to finish. When she finished the conversation she stood up. That is when she noticed Coles. She asked, “Do you want to speak to one of us?” He was astounded. Dorothy Day was famous. This man with her was a nobody. He’s a derelict. “You wanted to speak to one of us?” Coles had never seen anything like this before. Humility that can identify with another person so completely as to remove all distinctions between them. It cut through all of the boundaries, all the ...

13. Designer Religion

Matthew 23:1-39

Sermon

King Duncan

... cheerfully. “Death.” “Aren’t you afraid to die?” he was asked. “Yes, I am.” he answered. “Then why did you commit a crime which you knew was punishable by death?” they asked. The man swallowed hard and then answered, “I’m a nobody. All my life I’ve been a nobody. I’ve never done anything to distinguish myself and I knew I never would. I wanted to do something to make people notice me . . . and remember me.” (2) Many of the worst crimes in the history of our nation have been ...

14. The Lord of the Harvest

Matthew 9:35-38

Sermon

James Merritt

... contained at least three million people. Jesus went about village to village, city to city, trying to minister to as many of them as He could. He could not get to everybody. But he was willing to get to anybody, whether they were a somebody or a nobody, if they needed ministry. Jesus was in the soul business because "there is no business like soul business." We are told that He had a threefold ministry: teaching, preaching, and healing. Now when you think about it, you realize why that pretty much sums up ...

15. The Edge Of Night

Philippians 2:1-11

Sermon

King Duncan

Gloria Swanson was one of Hollywood's top actresses from the 1920s to the 1950s. She was quite ambitious. Early in her career, Swanson was quoted as saying, "I have gone through enough of being a nobody. I have decided that when I am a star, I will be every inch and every moment the star! Everybody from the studio gate man to the highest executive will know it." And Swanson made sure of that. Before returning from a trip to France, Gloria Swanson sent a telegram ...

16. What Would You Have Him Do For You?

Mark 10:46-52

Sermon

King Duncan

... meat and cheese. (2) Annie had stepped from the road which seemed to have been chosen for her and cut herself a brand new path. That takes courage. That's what Bartimaeus was saying he wanted to do when he called out to Jesus. By all definitions Bartimaeus was a nobody. In society's eyes he was a worthless blind man who begged for food and money outside the city gate all day. No one really paid much attention to him. It was almost as if he didn't exist. But he was determined to change his situation. The ...

17. What Is That in Your Hand?

Exodus 4:1-17

Sermon

James McCormick

... do something finds a way; the other kind finds an excuse.” Listen to Moses’ excuses and see if they have a familiar ring. First, he said, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh? I’m just a sheep herder, and they are not even my sheep. I’m a nobody. Why should the most powerful man in the world listen to me?” And, you know, he was right. Everything he said was right. But God cut through all the excuses and said, “It doesn’t matter who you are. I’ll be with you.” It was God’s presence ...

18. Faces of Failure: Peter

Matthew 26 (selections)

Sermon

Don Tuttle

... Jesus and his disciples carefully over the years. Nor would it be hard to imagine a guard sent to arrest Jesus spying Peter and saying, “Hey, weren’t you with Jesus?” But instead the person who confronts him is a servant girl. She is a nobody even among nobodies. “You were with Jesus the Galilean,” she says. If those words had come from someone in authority, one could understand why Peter might be frightened. But they came from a servant girl, someone with absolutely no power. And yet Peter’s ...

19. The Gift Unwrapped

Luke 2:1-20

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... . Not in thirty years. So, you can see, according to the world's standards, this Gift came in the wrong package. IV. Through The Wrong People The wrong gift, the wrong time, the wrong package. Not only that but this Gift came Through the wrong people. Joseph was a nobody. Oh, sure he was a distant relative of King David but so was Mary and probably half of the Jews in Israel at the time. My wife Mary is a distant relative of Charlemagne and I treat her like a queen but that doesn't make her royalty. These ...

20. To Be Somebody

Luke 19:1-10

Sermon

... to this house, since he also is a son of Abraham. For the son of man came to seek and to save the lost. I’m calling this third part "The Gospel Restores His Dream." He who was lacking in height had become nine feet tall. He who’d been a nobody now felt he was a somebody. He who’d been tromping on people now saw himself blessed to be a blessing. And so salvation - wholeness - had come to his house. I’m assuming some of us - perhaps most of us - haven’t reached the top as Zaccheus had. I’m ...

21. Ordinary Tragedy

John 13:1-17, 31b-35

Sermon

Will Willimon

... up for Jesus, to set the world aright, with swords drawn in righteous indignation, only to nick off a piece of an ear and then scurry into the night? Here we are. We've found our place on stage. She was only a maid. One on the bottom of society, a nobody without a name. But oh the power of that woman! The chief of the disciples, the rock on which the church is built, trembles before her accusing word and blurts out, not once but thrice, "I never really knew the man." It may not be much as high drama goes ...

22. Determining Your Destiny

Luke 16:19-31

Sermon

James Merritt

... . Just as there are two men in this story every one of us are one of those two men. These two men were different in so many ways. They were different in their positions. In the eyes of society, one was a somebody and the other was a nobody. They were different in their possessions. One was billionaire and the other was a beggar. They were different in their passions. One loved gold and the other loved God. It was that difference that actually determined their destiny. As we study these two men they teach us ...

23. Mary: The Promise Conceived

Luke 1:26-55

Sermon

James Merritt

... the angel by-pass Judea for Galilee, but he by-passed the city of Jerusalem, the capitol, the royal city for a hick town called, Nazareth. Then the angel announces that God is going to keep this promise of sending this Savior and this Messiah through a nobody, peasant girl, named Mary. The God of the Universe descends from heaven and is born as a baby to live among the people He created Himself. God had a whole world of women to choose from and He chooses a poor, peasant, young teenage Jewish girl, named ...

24. What Outsiders Can Teach Us

Luke 7:1-10

Sermon

David R. Cartwright

... . He listened to what they each had to say, and he acted accordingly. In a word, he treated the centurion like he was already an insider. And in the process, Jesus healed a hurting boy, a boy who was not even a Jew, not even a Roman, but a slave, a nobody, but in Jesus' eyes, he was a boy who just happened to be a somebody. He was a fellow human being in need of help. The moment the church stops acting like a club for the like-minded, and begins treating nonmembers the same as members, that's the day ...

25. The Source of Self Esteem

Romans 8:14-25

Sermon

Mark Trotter

... . It's not easy. It's like the pain of new birth. Or the pain of growing up. The pain that comes from rejection and failure. The pain that you experience when you want to be somebody, but the world keeps putting you in your place, and saying you're a nobody. Paul wants you to know that the gospel means, that's not right. You are a child of God. Now live that way. Living with a school teacher means I have heard a whole lot of stories about children. Many of them about kids who are groaning inwardly to become ...

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