Matthew 15:21-28 (Mark 7:24-30)
06 September, 1998
INTRODUCTION: How You Can Tell When It's Going To Be a Rotten Day
We all have those experiences in life that we would consider adverse and that we would rather not experience. But the Bible tells us that it is those times of trouble that is intended to test us in many areas of our lives.
Jesus was always putting His disciples to the test in some way. Sometimes they passed - sometimes they did not do so well. But sometimes He put others to the test and the outcome was quite surprising. I would like to introduce you to you one of those situations from the gospel of Matthew, chapter 15:21-28
BACKGROUND: We find Jesus in this narrative attempting to find a place where he could retreat for a while. He had just had a confrontation with the Pharisees and he needed to get away to a place where he could spend time alone and with His disciples and away from those who were always on His case about something. So He withdraws to the region of Tyre and Sidon and it is there that He enters a house so that no one could find Him.
The region of Tyre and Sidon was an area close to the Mediterranean Sea formerly called Phoenicia. It was an area where He could be pretty sure that he would be safe from the Pharisees and the other religious leaders who out to shut Him up because no Jew would dare travel to this territory. But like His many other retreats, this one is interrupted by a woman who came to Him with a very serious need.
And what about this woman? She was a Canaanite. The gospel writer Mark calls her a Greek and Syro-Phonecian by birth. What that means is that she was a woman who was part of the ancestral enemies of the Jews - the Canaanites. She was a direct descendant of those who had been driven out of the Promised Land by Joshua. She was a Gentile and though her people would eventually be those to whom the gospel would be taken, they were not the primary focus of Jesus' ministry. And whether she knew that or not, she came to this One whom she obviously knew could help her. And when she did, she was put to a test that maybe she did not expect and learned and experienced something that I think changed her life.
There are three areas of this woman's life that was put to the test that day in the region of Tyre and Sidon - the same three areas of our lives that are very often put to the fire. It is not a game but it is a crucial time of growth and an opportunity to see God do what we never thought He would or could. That was the case with this woman that called upon Jesus in a very crucial time.
What are those three areas that are often put to the test?
1. OUR PERSISTENCE
This woman was very persistent is asking Jesus to deliver her daughter from the demon. And the more Jesus seems to "ignore" her, the more persistent she becomes. When Matthew writes that she "cried out to Him" he uses a word implying that she kept on calling out to Jesus. It is even suggested that she cried out to Him from a distance, not daring to come too close because of her being a Canaanite. The narrative also says that she cried out to Jesus, "Have mercy on me Lord..." The word mercy is in the imperative mood which indicates a demanding kind of calling. Though she did not literally demand that Jesus do for her what she was requesting, she was certainly being persistent. And even though "...He answered her not a word," as the narrative tells us, she must have kept on asking Him because we see the disciples urging Jesus to just send her away with her request granted so that she would leave them alone.
Jesus told His disciples a parable as recorded in Luke 18 about a persistent widow coming to a judge in her town seeking justice from her adversary. I'm not going to take time to read that parable but the narrative that tells us about that parable begins with these words: "Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up." Luke 18:1
Persistence in prayer was obviously important to Jesus. And it should be to us as well. Regardless of how grave our circumstances might be or what others might tell us about our circumstances, we should never give up in our seeking the Lord to intervene in our situation. Nothing is certainly too big for God and we should never give up praying about a matter or seeking an answer in a matter until we know that the matter has been resolved. This narrative does not tell us but I wonder how many people tried to discourage this woman from calling on Jesus with the mindset that says, "He'll never help you." But she persisted in cry out to Jesus and He met her need.
And most of what God allows us to experience is a test of our persistence...how long we will pray and will we not give up.
2. OUR ATTITUDE - 15:22,27
When you consider how Jesus initially responded to this woman, you can imagine how she could have really taken an attitude with Jesus.
Even though His comment to her was not meant as harsh as it sounds, she could have been offended. "By referring to her as a dog it may seem that this was a grave insult.
William Barclay points out that "the dog was not the well loved guardian that it is today; more commonly it was a symbol of dishonor. To the Greek, the word dog meant a shameless and audacious woman; it was used in the same way that many today use the word bitch. And to the Jew it was equally a term or contempt. But the term that Jesus used for dog was a diminutive word which described, not a filthy, foraging dog but rather a puppy owned by a family. In other words, Jesus used such a word that He took the sting out of it. By saying that it was not right to take bread from the children, referring to the Jesus' ministry to the lost sheep of Israel, the Jews, and give it to the dogs (those who were non-Jews) Jesus was basically testing her attitude. And the spirit of her attitude comes through loud and clear.
And let me say this, some people are offended no matter how you say something to them.
You can say something to some people in an almost humorous and non- threatening way, as Jesus did here and they are still offended. And it all comes down to attitude. And that was what made this woman so special.
So what kind of attitude was evident in the midst of this woman's ordeal?
a. An Attitude of Humility - 15:25
You can see this in how she made her request to Jesus and how she responded to His comments.
All she wanted was that her daughter be delivered even though she knew she was undeserving of such a miracle.
ILLUSTRATION: The story is told of an elderly Christian man, who was a very fine singer and who learned that he had cancer of the tongue that required surgery. In the hospital after everything was ready for the operation, the man said to the doctor, "Are you sure I will never sing again?" The surgeon found it difficult to answer his question. But he simply shook his head no. The patient then asked if he could sit up for a moment. "I've had many good times singing the praises of God," he said. "And now you tell me I can never sing again. I have one song that will be my last. It will be of gratitude and praise to God." There in the doctor's presence the man sang softly the words of Isaac Watts' hymn:
"I'll praise my Maker while I've breath,
And when my voice is lost in death,
Praise shall employ my nobler power;
My days of praise shall ne'er be past,
While life, and thought, and being last,
Or immortality endures."
(Our Daily Bread, January 15 )
That is having the right attitude in the midst of adversity. To be able to sing a song of praise when you know you will never be able to sing again, is having and attitude of humility that is translated into worship.
b. An Attitude of Dependency - 15:25
This woman simply utters those words that most of us either have or should have uttered at one time or another - "Lord, help me." In other words, she was making the statement, "If you don't do this, it will not get done. If you don't take care of this need, it will never be taken care because you are the only One who can." That is an attitude of dependency. She knew that Jesus was the only One who could do anything about the need her daughter had.
3. OUR FAITH - 15:27,28
Faith means a lot of things to a lot of people. And most of what we go through is simply a test of faith because it is only we our faith is tried and tested that it will grow. And that is what I believe happened to this woman as Jesus drew from her this expression of genuine faith.
And what is faith? Aside from what we read in Hebrews 11, I believe the kind of faith this woman had was two-fold
a. It Is a Confidence in What God Can Do
The faith mentioned here speaks of trust or confidence in an active sense. It is used here of a belief or trust in the Lord's help in physical or spiritual distress. This woman was certainly in distress but she also had the confidence that Jesus could do what needed to be done. If she did not believe that, I doubt she would have taken the risk to approach Him the way she did.
b. It Is a Refusal to Give Up When Put to the Test
Jesus was not playing games with this woman but He was putting her faith to the test. It appeared as though He was ignoring her request or that He was being inconsiderate but in reality He was testing her faith.
Did she really believe that He would do this for her even though she was a Gentile? And Jesus recognized her as having such faith as He describes it as being a "great faith", using a word that can be translated as meaning "firm." She had such faith that she would not take no for an answer. It was a faith that caused her to be optimistic even when she was not really sure how things were going to turn out. Her faith was tested and it was real. And it was this firm and genuine faith that Jesus loved and moved Him to act on her behalf.
Oswald Chambers says it well when he wrote: "Faith for my deliverance is not faith in God. Faith means, whether I am visibly delivered or not, will stick to my belief that God is love. There are some things only learned in a fiery furnace. (Oswald Chambers in Run Today's Race)
To be truthful, sometimes things do not work out like we want them to. And when that happens we must have faith that God has worked on our behalf even when the end result is not what we expected.
This woman's faith was rewarded with her daughter being healed. Sometimes our faith is tested and rewarded in other ways....
CONCLUSION: I certanly don't know what you are going through but maybe it will be time of growth and an opportunity to see God do a might work in your life. Things may not turn out like you want them too, as this woman of Canaan experienced, but if you persist in prayer, if you maintain an attitude of humility and dependency and if you stand firm in your faith, you will most likely see God do in your life what you cannot and what will certainly have a lasting impact on your life.