Pentecost 13 (7)
Notes
Transcript
21 Leaving that place, Jesus withdrew to the region of Tyre and Sidon. 22 A Canaanite woman from that vicinity came to him, crying out, “Lord, Son of David, have mercy on me! My daughter is suffering terribly from demon-possession.” 23 Jesus did not answer a word. So his disciples came to him and urged him, “Send her away, for she keeps crying out after us.” 24 He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel.” 25 The woman came and knelt before him. “Lord, help me!” she said. 26 He replied, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to their dogs.” 27 “Yes, Lord,” she said, “but even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.” 28 Then Jesus answered, “Woman, you have great faith! Your request is granted.” And her daughter was healed from that very hour.
One of the outstanding activities that Jesus did during his active ministry had to be the miracles that he did. Sometimes we use the word “miracle” rather loosely when something outstanding (but possible) happens in our lives. A young hockey team during the Olympics defeats a much stronger opponent and the announcer cries out, “Do you believe in miracles?” and the event become known as the “Miracle on Ice”. A child is born three months premature and we like to think that it is a miracle that he survived and thrives but it still falls within the realms of possibility. A person is in a very violent car accident and survives and we exclaim, “It’s a miracle she wasn’t killed.” Wonderful, but still not a a true miracle.
What is a miracle?
According to the Cambridge Dictionary, a miracle is defined as "an unusual and mysterious event that is thought to have been caused by a god because it does not follow the usual laws of nature." Essentially, a miracle is something so extraordinary and impossible that it could only have been performed by God.
In the Bible, miracles take a variety of forms. Some of the more commonly known examples of God's miracles include:
Moses parting the Red Sea (Exodus 14)
Mary's virgin conception and birth of Jesus (Matthew 1:18-25)
Jesus walking on water (Matthew 14:25-27)
Elijah raising the son of the widow of Zarephath (1 Kings 17:17-24)
Peter healing a paralyzed man (Acts 9:32-35)
Although Jesus isn’t the only person in the Bible to have performed miracles, his doing of miracles is unique because of the source of the power to do them. All others were able to do miracles when the power of God came on them. Jesus did them inherently because he is true God. He used his own omnipotence to do those miracles.
Why did he do them?
As evidence of him being the Messiah.
10 Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you are not just my own. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work. 11 Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the miracles themselves.
30 Jesus did many other miraculous signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. 31 But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.
To show compassion on others.
To confirm a person’s faith. (Note how in Nazareth he was not able to do many miracles but at other times he asserted that “Your faith has made you well.”
57 And they took offense at him. But Jesus said to them, “Only in his hometown and in his own house is a prophet without honor.” 58 And he did not do many miracles there because of their lack of faith.
As true God, Jesus has limitless power. If he wanted to do so, he could have done miracles all the time. But he did not. He would do them when they were consistent with God’s plans, but when they were not, he limited himself. (Could I not call down ten thousand legions of angels?)
Another example of when Jesus did not appear to do a miracle is in this account of the Canaanite Woman. Let’s explore this event closer to see how Jesue used miracles to carry out his work.
This foreigner must have heard about Jesus’ ability to do miracles so when he traveled to her area (uncommon), she reached out to him for help.
At times we do well to seek out the help of others. It is a prideful thing to boast that we can do it all ourselves. By God’s grace, he delights in helping his creatures and chooses to bless us and invites us to ask him for help. “Call upon me in the day of trouble, I will deliver you.” James teaches us to approach God with complete trust and faith. James 1:5–8 (NIV84)
5 If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. 6 But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. 7 That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord; 8 he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does.
Our faith is that when we ask God for help, he will hear and deliver us.
But that is not what happens immediately here, is it? Jesus seems to ignore her to the extent that the disciples think they have to step in with a plan. “Send her away.”
Opposite. Jesus teaches a parable about how one should always keep on praying and never give up in the parable of the persistent widow. Here Jesus seems to dismiss her attempts with a cryptic statement.
“I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel.”
What does this mean?
Matthew Jesus Sends a Demon Out of a Girl / 15:21–28 / 103
15:24 He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel.” Jesus’ words do not contradict the truth that God’s message is for all kinds of people (Psalm 22:27; Isaiah 56:7; Matthew 28:19; Romans 15:9–12). After all, when Jesus said these words, he was in Gentile territory. He ministered to Gentiles on many other occasions also, but always in Jewish territory (4:24–25; 8:5–13). Jesus was simply telling the woman that Jews were to have the first opportunity to accept him as the Messiah because God wanted them to present the message of salvation to the rest of the world (see Genesis 12:3). While on earth, Jesus restricted his mission to Jewish people. In doing so, he was doing his Father’s will (11:27) and fulfilling the promise God made to Jews in the Old Testament. The restricted mission of Jesus and the disciples echoes the principle recorded in 10:5–6. “I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel” does not mean Jesus came to the Jews alone; rather, it means that he would go to them first (Mark 7:27). “Sheep” was an affectionate term used often for God’s people in the Old Testament.
Jesus was not rejecting the Canaanite woman. Instead, he was explaining that his activities were limited (in his humanity); thus, he had to focus on his goal. Jesus had only a short time on earth. His mission focused on (but was not limited to) the Jews. Jesus tested (in the sense of “probed, challenged, encouraged”) this woman’s faith and used the situation to teach that faith is available to all people. Matthew alone recorded this interchange. His Jewish audience would have been very interested in Jesus’ miracle to help this Gentile woman.
This was said to the disciples but undoubtedly the Canaanite woman heard him too. She repeated her call for help. “Lord, help me!”
Jesus continues to use a word picture to describe the situation regarding priorities.
His statement is a truism that stands the test of time. When resources are limited, you need to prioritize who gets them first.
Illustration: Multiple injury situation. The medical staff has to determine who gets the most help first. You may recall this scene from M*A*S*H* at times or on a TV show like Chicago Med.
In the home it would be ridiculous for parents to make sure their pet dogs and cats were well fed and groomed while their children starved and went barefoot.
This woman accepts this and in faith asks for just a little that would not take away from Jesus priorities.
What does Jesus do? He commends her faith. It is instructive to note that when Jesus does commend the faith on someone coming to him, it is more often than not from a source not expected. This shows the importance of faith and that faith in Jesus is not limited to one race of people.
As noted above, Jesus’ primary mission was to show to the God’s people he was the promised Messiah, to die for the sins of the whole world, and to instruct a handful of believing Jews to be his witnesses to all the world.
Application: The apparent restriction on who has access to Jesus has been lifted. All are invited to come to Jesus in faith.
We all have access to our God.
We have been given the resources to spread the gospel to all regardless of their background.