Israel

Great Faith Even On A Bad Day

8.16.26 [Matthew 15:21-28] River of Life (13th Sunday after Pentecost)

Have you ever had a bad day? We all have, right? Sometimes, it’s a bad day because nothing is going your way. It’s a bad day when nothing goes according to plan. When you’re living through Murphy’s Law—anything that can go wrong has gone wrong. When, no matter how hard you try, things go from bad to worse. 

Sometimes, it’s a bad day because you’re not where you want to be. Maybe all your friends or family are on an exotic vacation, and you’re stuck at work, stuck at home, stuck in school. 

Sometimes, it’s a bad day because everyone else is in a bad mood. Everyone around you seems extra cranky. Their patience has worn thin. They’re tired, disappointed, frustrated, angry, and overwhelmed. 

We’ve all had bad days like that. We’ve also had to deal with people who are having a bad day. You know what it’s like to have to deal with a teacher, a boss, or a child who’s having a bad day. 

In our Gospel text, we meet someone who is having a bad day. She’s a mother. She’s from the region of Tyre & Sidon. Matthew describes her as Mt. 15:22 a Canaanite woman, although it’s likely she wouldn’t call herself that. She approached Jesus and cried out: Mt. 15:22 Lord, Son of David, have mercy on me! My daughter is demon-possessed and suffering terribly. On any other day, to any other person, you and I would think this, a demon-possessed girl, is the strange thing. 

But if we immerse ourselves in the Gospels, this no longer seems strange. Instead, it almost feels commonplace. Throughout the Gospels, there are at least seven individuals whom Jesus encounters who are demon-possessed. And this doesn’t include the times when the Gospel writers tell us: Mt. 8:16 many who were demon-possessed were brought to Jesus and he drove out the spirits with a word. 

If you’re new to the life and ministry of Jesus, the demon-possession is the part that grabs your attention. But if you’re not, if you recognize his voice and remember his life, there’s something else that is strange. It’s in verse 23. Mt. 15:23 Jesus did not answer a word. 

Here is Jesus, the fullness of God in flesh, being pestered by this woman, and it’s almost as if he pretends not to hear her at all. 

Is this just a bad day for the Son of God? We might wonder that. Matthew tells us Jesus withdrew to the region of Tyre and Sidon. Typically, Jesus spent the bulk of his time in Galilee, Judea, or Jerusalem. Tyre was 25 miles north of Galilee. Sidon was another 25 miles further north. This wasn’t a vacation, but Jesus was trying to get away from it all. Things were not going well in Israel. Most recently, even his own disciples told Jesus that Mt. 15:12 he had offended the Pharisees. 

The leaders of Israel were plotting with the Roman government to put Jesus to death. Eventually, that plan would come to fruition, but now was not the time. So Jesus eluded them by going to a place they would never go—to Tyre and Sidon. To the land of pagan idols and people.   

But, even though things were not going well for Jesus, his silence was not the result of him having a bad day. Watch Jesus closely and you will see him strategically carrying out God’s plan of salvation. Listen carefully and you will see the where great faith comes from. 

The woman keeps on crying out. Jesus remains strangely silent. And the disciples have had enough. They come to Jesus urging him to do something. Mt. 15:23 Send her away, for she keeps crying out after us. They are telling Jesus the best way to get rid of her is to get rid of the demon. Do that and we can be done with her, the disciples suggest. 

But then Jesus reminds his disciples about his own mission. Mt. 15:24  I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel. As far back as Abraham, God had promised to send his Redeemer to the Israelites. Born in Bethlehem. The Messiah would be a brother from among the Israelites, a prophet who spoke as Moses did. He would be a Shepherd King, like David. He would be a priest of the Most High God, like Melchizedek. 

As Jesus reminded his disciples of this primary mission, the distressed mother Mt. 15:25 came and knelt before him. Did she hear what Jesus just said? He answered his disciples, not her, but we don’t know. If she did hear it, she wasn’t dissuaded. Lord, help me! 

Jesus’ subsequent reply is even more troubling than his silence. Mt. 15:26  It is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to the dogs. 

Ouch. Even today, people reading these words are offended. How could Jesus call this woman a dog? 

Some have said Jesus was insulting the woman and even have the gall to suggest that Jesus is wrong to do so. Others have tried to soften the terminology. They recognize that this isn’t the common Greek word for a hound. It’s a smaller dog. So, they suggest, Jesus is talking about a puppy or a house pet. We like the sound of that better. But it just doesn’t fit the time. If a Jew were talking about a dog, it was more likely to be a Gentile than a gentle pet. They were not dog lovers like the Egyptians. Dogs were for herding or protection; they weren’t a part of the family. Dog was not a compliment. 

What Jesus says here might make sense to us if we adapt the animal. It is not good to take the kid’s lunch and toss it to the pigeons.

This is true. But this does not mean the pigeons starve. God provides for all his creatures. God is merciful to all those who cry out to him. 

That is the promise this Canaanite woman clung to. Jesus is my Lord and my Lord is full of mercy. So she humbly and persistently insisted that the master’s table has more than enough for the children and the animals. Israel had rejected the Bread of Life. They had tossed Jesus aside. That’s why he was in Tyre and Sidon. And she was happy to have whatever crumbs of mercy her master had for her. 

We need to cling to this promise throughout our lives, but especially on our bad days. Because on our bad days, when nothing is going right, when we are suffering terribly, we have two wildly different thoughts. 

The first is: I don’t deserve this! Why is God treating me so poorly?

The second is: I’m getting what I deserve. I’ve got to fix myself before God is going to give me anything good. 

Both of these reactions presume the kingdom of God runs on merit, rather than mercy. We are assuming that God loves us because we are lovely or lovable. God loves us because he is love. We are healed, redeemed, and saved because our Lord has plenty of mercy to spare.       

God sent his Son into this world for the chief purpose of showing mercy. Our salvation Rom. 9:16 does not depend on human desire or effort, but on God’s great mercy. Ps. 86:15 The Lord our God is compassionate and gracious. He is slow to anger. Abounding in love and faithfulness. God has not loved us Titus 3:5 because of the righteous things we have done, or promise to do in the future, but because of his great mercy. Your mealtime prayer is rich in spiritual food. Ps. 107:1 O give thanks to the Lord, for he is good. His mercy endures forever. 

God has shown Rom. 11:32 mercy to us all. Rom. 3:23 All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. Eph. 2:4 But God, who is rich in mercy, sent his Son to fulfill God’s glorious promises. Jesus lived as we have not. Jesus suffered terribly and died as we should have. He endured what he did not deserve so that we could be gifted what we did not earn. God has done great & merciful things. 

That is what this woman clung to. She may have known of God’s great power to save his people from slavery in Egypt. She may have known how God blessed his people with a humble warrior king like David or powerful prophets like Elijah. She likely knew that it was only by God’s mercy that his people had returned from exile to Babylon. This woman knew God had done great and merciful things for Israel and he has plenty of mercy for all his people. Even me. 

That is what faith clings to. Jesus lived for me. Jesus died for me. Jesus rose for me. Jesus has mercy for me. Even on the bad days. Jesus supplies all my needs, even with the crumbs from his table. 

When we gather around the altar and receive bread and wine, the portions are meager. It’s not a loaf of bread. It’s not a bottle of wine. It’s not what any of us would call meal portions. 

But look at what God does through it! The incredible and immense mercy of this meal is so satisfying. Jesus gives us his true body. Jesus gives us his precious blood. In, with, and under these humble elements, God gifts a divine measure of mercy. He forgives sins. He strengthens us to live a life that strives to imitate him. He blesses us with peace that passes all understanding. He gives us hope of life eternal with him in heaven. All that through a quarter of a gram of bread and a half ounce of wine. The ingredients aren’t special, but what God does with them, through the power of his Word is divine. Give thanks to the Lord. His mercy overflows. 

And we need that mercy for our bad days. We need to know God’s mercy when nothing is going according to our plans, when everything that can go wrong—at least to our limited minds—has gone wrong. We need to know and trust God’s mercy when we are not where we want to be—physically, emotionally, financially, and even spiritually. God is full of mercy. They are new every morning. His mercy forgives us. His mercy sustains us. His mercy strengthens us. 

We need God’s mercy when everyone else is crabby, because James 2:13 mercy triumphs over judgment. We need to trust that mercy when we meet others who are having bad days. We need to know God’s mercy personally when we encounter people who are discouraged because things are not going their way, or they are not where they want to be. We need to speak of God’s mercy when people are troubled by God’s silence or because God isn’t acting quickly enough. Who are troubled because God’s Word says things they find insulting or offensive. Speak of God’s overflowing mercy, so that they too may give thanks to the Lord. Amen.