THE WOMEN OF GREAT FAITH (Mat 15:21-28 NAU) Jesus went away from there, and withdrew into the district of Tyre and Sidon. 22 And a Canaanite woman from that region came out and began to cry out, saying, "Have mercy on me, Lord, Son of David; my daughter is cruelly demon-possessed." 23 But He did not answer her a word. And His disciples came and implored Him, saying, "Send her away, because she keeps shouting at us." 24 But He answered and said, "I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel." 25 But she came and began to bow down before Him, saying, "Lord, help me!" 26 And He answered and said, "It is not good to take the children's bread and throw it to the dogs." 27 But she said, "Yes, Lord; but even the dogs feed on the crumbs which fall from their masters' table." 28 Then Jesus said to her, "O woman, your faith is great; it shall be done for you as you wish." And her daughter was healed at once. INTRODUCTION It is so fitting that Moms have their own day because most of the important things that we learned in life we learned from our Mothers. President George Washington said, “My greatest teacher I ever had was my mother.” President Abraham Lincoln said, “All that I am or ever hoped to be I owe to my mother.” President Barak Obama said, “My mother was the one constant in my life. When I think about my Mom raising me alone when she was 20, and working and paying the bills, and, you know, trying to pursue your own dreams, I think is a feat that is unmatched.” Think about the things that our mothers have taught us. It was our mothers who taught us about anticipation when they said, “You just wait until your father gets home.” It was our mothers who taught us about logic when they said, “Because I said so, that’s why.” Our mothers taught us about foresight and planning ahead when they said, “Make sure you wear clean underwear in case you get into an accident.” Our mothers taught us how to become an adult when they said, “If you don’t eat your vegetables, you will never grow up.” They taught us about genetics. “You are just like your father.” They taught us about irony. “Keep laughing and I will give you something to cry about.” Our mothers taught us about the science of oz-moh-sis, osmosis. “Shut up your mouth and eat your supper.” They taught us about stamina. “You will sit there until your collar green is finished.” They taught us about weather. “Did a tornado just sweep through your room here?” They taught us about the circle of life. “I brought you into this world and I can take you out.” Our mothers taught us about prayer. “You better pray that stain comes out of the carpet.” Most importantly, our mothers taught us about justice. “One day you are going to have kids and I hope they turn out just like you.” Speak of praying mothers; here before us in Matthew 15 we have just that. A mother who persisted in prayer and would not be deterred. Do you have a praying mother? If so, you should thank God because that indeed is a great privilege. Are you a praying mother? Thank God for you. Here is the story of a woman who knew how to pray. She would not take no for an answer. Why? She had a daughter that she loved. She loved this daughter more than life itself. Somehow this beloved daughter had come under the power of the devil. More specifically her daughter was demon possessed and the mother did not know what to do. She was not a Jew. She was a Syro-Phoenician, which means she was a Gentile and basically a worshiper of pagan deities. She had been hearing about this Jewish Messiah known as Jesus. She made a determination that she would have a personal audience with Him and she was going to bring her daughter to the Lord. There’s nothing like the determination of a mother when their child is in need. She believed that He was going to touch her and heal her. She sought Him out. She would not be discouraged. She would not be deterred. She would not be stopped. She was the mother who would not give up. Let’s review the story again starting at verse 21. (Mat 15:21-28 NAU) Jesus went away from there, and withdrew into the district of Tyre and Sidon. 22 And a Canaanite woman from that region came out and began to cry out, saying, "Have mercy on me, Lord, Son of David; my daughter is cruelly demon-possessed." 23 But He did not answer her a word. And His disciples came and implored Him, saying, "Send her away, because she keeps shouting at us." 24 But He answered and said, "I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel." 25 But she came and began to bow down before Him, saying, "Lord, help me!" 26 And He answered and said, "It is not good to take the children's bread and throw it to the dogs." 27 But she said, "Yes, Lord; but even the dogs feed on the crumbs which fall from their masters' table." 28 Then Jesus said to her, "O woman, your faith is great; it shall be done for you as you wish." And her daughter was healed at once. What a powerful story this is. It’s helpful to understand a little bit about culture and language to see what the meaning of the story is. Back in those days in their languages; there are different words that we will discover that will help us to see what was happening. When we initially read this story, we could easily conclude that Jesus was brushing her off. He wasn’t giving her the time of day. He was preoccupied or not interested in her needs because she was a non-Jew. That is not true at all. The fact of the matter is that Jesus, being God, saw in her heart and knew that she had Great Faith. And there is something else going on. Jesus was going to commend her and set her apart as an example to His disciples and anybody else who wanted to see of what A Great Faith can really accomplish. It’s amazing who GOD will choose to demonstrate, A Great Faith. Most people think if GOD going to choose someone to demonstrate A Great Faith; they have come from “The Inside.” By that I mean, a religious leader, a priest, a prophet, a pastor, a deacon. But, GOD says; “Whosoever come let them come.” He’ll use people that we consider to be “On The Outside” of the religious establishment, like he did with Rehab, Ruth or Mary Magdalene. So, Let’s consider who this woman was. We are told in verse 22 tells us she was a woman of Canaan. She was a non-Jew. She was a Gentile. A Syro-Phoenician according to Mark’s gospel. Being a member of that particular race and coming from this particular region meant most likely that she worshiped the false goddess Ashtar that was the goddess of fertility among other false gods. But she had become disillusioned with these gods. There was nothing they could do for her daughter. She had been hearing about Jesus so she determined that she was going to go to him. Why? Her daughter was possessed by demons. It is interesting because she says, “My daughter is severely demon possessed.” What this meant specifically we don’t know because we are not told. In other instances when we read of people being demon possessed in the New Testament they would often have self-destructive tendencies, be suicidal or things of that nature. ILLUSTRATION Remember the story of the two men who were possessed and living in that graveyard that our Lord delivered. They would scream and howl and behave in a bizarre manner. Maybe this was happening with her daughter. Whatever the case, it was frightening. She had probably tired everything she knew how to try and nothing had worked. I think you can safely say that her pagan worship probably contributed to her daughter’s problem. Around their home they probably had these little idols and gods set up to the various deities. The mother probably prayed to those gods. Now she is seeing the futility of it. Her daughter has reaped the consequences of it. It is a reminder to us that we have to be so careful about the way that we live because little eyes are watching and little ears are listening not to just what we say but they are noticing what we do. It has been said, “It is easier to build a child than repair an adult.” How important an example is in our own homes? I think sometimes as Christians we think we need to be a good example when we are at church, work, or out and about. But when we get home we can let our hair down and be ourselves. You need to be a Christian in the home. You need to be a testimony to your children. Or those that you have influence over. No doubt these pagan deities influenced this young girl. She became a young lady that was under the control of Satan himself. This woman comes to Jesus. Here is an interesting little twist in the story. We read that Jesus is visiting Tyre and Sidon. This is the only occasion when He left His own country. That is fascinating to think about because our Lord spent most of His time either in Jerusalem or in the region of Galilee. Yet He goes to this area of Tyre and Sidon. This seemed to be really bad timing as far as the disciples were concerned because the excitement about the life and ministry of Jesus was building. ILLUSTRATION He had just performed His most well received miracle—the feeding of the 5,000. There was talk of making Him the king if He wanted to be or not. The disciples were thrilled with this momentum that was building. The Lord says, “I am going to leave town and go to another country?” Why? There was a demon possessed young girl who needed His help. There was a mother who needed an answer to prayer. Jesus always took time for individuals. ILLUSTRATION Remember our Lord told us about the shepherd who had 100 sheep and one went astray. We read it does HE say, “Oh well, win a few and lose a few, I still have 99 sheep.” No. We read, “HE left the 99 and went after that stray lamb and found it and brought it back wrapped around his neck rejoicing.” It was a picture that God gives us of how He sees lost humanity. He then concluded by saying, “There is joy in heaven over one sinner that comes to repentance.” One sinner. What does it take to get us excited? Maybe we have an invitation at church and if it is ten or under, we will go. “That’s pretty good.” For 50 we will really applaud. If it is a hundred we will maybe give a standing ovation. In heaven they break out in applause when one person comes to faith. If heaven breaks out in rejoicing over one sinner coming to faith, how much more should we on earth? Here is Jesus going out of His way because He wanted to spend some time with this Syro-Phoenician woman. Finally they come together. She says in verse 22, (Mat 15:22 NAU) "Have mercy on me, Lord, Son of David; my daughter is cruelly demon-possessed." Look at His response in verse 23. (Mat 15:23 NAU) But He did not answer her a word. ILLUSTRATION Have you ever gone up to someone and asked them a question and had them completely ignore you? Have you ever been to the DMV (Department of Motor Vehicle)? I went there not too long ago to renew my driver’s license. It’s insane the way they treat you there. You and they move to another group and you wait again. But, what are your options? You can’t go somewhere else. You want a driver’s license you better get in line, shut up and do what they tell you. This is the way that it is. Here is this woman. She comes to Jesus. There is passion on her voice. “Lord, have mercy on me. My daughter is severely demon possessed.” HE just looks away like she isn’t even there. The disciples interpreted that to mean that He didn’t want to talk to her. Does this shut the woman up? No. She becomes more persistent. She won’t stop. We read that the disciples wanted her to go away. She was creating a scene, but they wanted Jesus to dismiss her. That’s what makes me laugh. They didn’t deal with it. They wanted HIM to deal with it. ILLUSTRATION “Peter, go over and get rid of this woman.” Peter says; “I’m not messing with her.” James and John, you are the sons of thunder. You go deal with it. “We aren’t doing it.” “Jesus would you please get rid of this woman? She won’t stop.” Jesus was allowing this because He knew that she wouldn’t stop. HE knew she would be persistent. HE was going to allow her to be set there as a model of faith not only for all praying mothers but for everyone to look at and say, “This is how you are going to see your prayers answered when everyone appears to be against you.” When people around you can care less about your problems. When it appear all hope is gone and you don’t know what to do!!! GOD answer in the affirmative. Don’t miss this. It started off by HIM not even responding to her. To HIM saying, “Whatever you want I will give it to you.” Whatever this woman did was important and stands as an example to us on how to pray effectively. The fact of the matter was that He was only testing her faith. A faith that has not been tested; is a faith that cannot be trusted. ILLUSTRATION Many ladies use timers when cooking so that they know when a dish is done. When the timer runs out, it says, “Bing!” Although the time indicates that the cooking time is over, a good cook will take a fork or a knife and stick it in the middle of the food to make sure that it is ready. That is a test. The timer goes off when a dish should be ready but the knife or fork makes sure that the job is done. Sometimes things can look done on the outside but still be rare on the inside. Many Christians look done on the outside. They are all dressed up at church, carrying their Bibles, and talking using the lingo, but God doesn’t just look at the outside. He has His own tests to make sure that we are done all the way through. God’s got us on a timer, but when we should be done, HE doesn’t stop there. He tests the inside too to make sure that we are done and ready to present for His glory. Jesus was testing this mother to see if what appeared ready on the “Outside” was ready on the “Inside.” ILLUSTRATION We just had a women pilot from American Airlines that navigated a commercial airliner to safely on ground after an engine had went out. She was calm during the entire time. Some wondered how could this be. First it was mention that she was an F-18 Fighter pilot. Once I heard that I knew she had the skills. If you can fight a F-18 Fighter jet you surely can navigate a passenger plane. But that’s not all. When American Airlines trains their pilots they first seek to prove them by use of a simulator. The simulator is designed to present the pilot with a variety of potential problems so that they will be able to handle any emergency in the future. First the pilot is tested with simple challenges, which eventually build up to catastrophic situations. The pilots are given more difficult problems only after they have mastered the previous ones. The result is that when the pilots have completed their courses, they are prepared to handle any problem that comes their way. This is similar to God’s method of working with us. God teaches us how to handle the problems of life, but never gives us more than we can handle. He teaches us through each situation, so that we can be fully prepared and mature people, ready to handle any challenge in life that might come our way. A faith that has not been tested; is a faith that cannot be trusted. So, Jesus was not turning her away. In reality; HE was drawing her in. HE was putting up barriers NOT to keep her away but rather to draw her closer because He knew she had the genuine persistent faith required to do so. ILLUSTRATION We have a similar situation in the story of the rich young ruler but with very different results. This materialistic young man came to Jesus and said, “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” Jesus said, “You know the commandments. Do not commit adultery. Do not murder. Do not steal. Do not lie. Honor your father and mother.” This young man said brashly, “All of these I kept since I have been a boy.” It would have made complete sense if we then read, “And Jesus smote him because he was a liar.” There is no way that he had kept all of those commandments. No one ever has. But the Bible says, “Jesus looked at him and loved him.” Jesus said, “One thing you lack. Go sell everything that you have, give the money to the poor and you will have treasure in heaven and come and follow me.” The Bible concludes that story by saying, “That young man went away sorrowful because he was a man of great wealth.” A faith that has not been tested; is a faith that cannot be trusted. In this case it looked as though the Lord were putting a barrier but if this man really wanted to know Jesus, He would have risen to the occasion. He would have said, “No problem. Anything else?” But because he was not a true seeker, he turned away. In contrast, this woman when the barrier is put up for her, it is not a barrier at all. In fact, it becomes something of a bridge. ILLUSTRATION It reminds me of a story I read about a little ant that was carrying a very large piece of straw a very long distance. He was really bowing beneath the weight of it. To make matters worse, he comes to what looks like the Grand Canyon. He thought, “I have this huge piece of straw I can barely carry and now I have to cross over this. What am I going to do?” Suddenly it dawned on that ant that his Burden Could Become A Bridge to help him through his problem. He took the straw, pushed it across the crack, walked over the top of it, picked it up and carried it on. And that’s what happen to, this women; with Jesus; HER BURDEN BECAME HER BRIDGE. Many times; the things that look like the worst-case scenario may be the hand of God in our lives. Yes, it is a sad thing that this daughter was demon possessed, but it brought this woman to Jesus. It got her praying. When things are going well, often we don’t feel the great need to pray? ILLUSTRATION What did Americans do after the attack against the World Trade Center? Were the bars packed more than at any other time in American history? Not that I read of. Did everyone flock to the movie theaters? No. Did they go to amusement parks? You could hardly find people in amusement parks. They were in church and they were praying. That’s good. The bad thing is they didn’t stay in church. Once the crisis was perceived to be gone, they went back to their old ways again. People knew this was a time to pray. We’re in trouble. We had better call on God. Sometimes God will allow tragedy in your life to get your attention. It was C. S. Lewis who said, and I very loosely paraphrase, God whispers to us in our pleasure but He shouts to us in our pain. Pain is God’s megaphone to rouse us. Sometimes we don’t hear Him whispering when things are going well, when the skies are blue and the birds are singing. But when crisis hits, “I think I just heard the Lord.” It brought her to Jesus in prayer. I think for all practical purposes it brought her to salvation. This Syro-Phoenician woman, this pagan, this Gentile, this non-Jew said, “Have mercy on me Lord.” She called Him Lord. It was a complete submission to His power and asks Him to intervene in her life. Look at the response that Jesus gives in verse 26. (Mat 15:26 NAU) "It is not good to take the children's bread and throw it to the dogs." An understanding of language helps here a little bit. There are two words that were often used for dogs back in these days. One was to describe a wild pack of dogs that would go feed on dead carcasses, chase people and bite people. That is not the word that Jesus used. The second word was family pet or little puppy. If we were to retranslate this, it could go something along the lines of, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and give it to the little puppies or the family pet?” Granted, it is still a dog, but it is not as bad as it sounds when you read it here. You understand this. Maybe in your home you have a dog. You give him little treats. We had a dog named “Dobbie” when I was growing up. My philosophy is that every dog has a biblical mandate from God from God Himself that if the food hits the floor it belongs to the dog. This is my way of getting out of cleaning up things that I drop. He is very thorough. If I drop the shell of egg, he will eat the shell. He will eat everything. There was affection here. I think that this woman picked up on what Jesus was saying. The disciples didn’t. They thought that He was turning her away. She could see the twinkle in His eye. Maybe the slight smile on His face. “It is not right to take the children’s food and give it to the dogs.” “That’s true, Lord, but even the little puppies get the food that falls from the master’s table.” I think HE smiled. “You Go Girl. That’s Right. I knew you would.” He knew that she would understand what was happening here. He knew that she would rise to the occasion. He knew that she would understand the value of prayer. Basically she was saying, “Lord, even a tiny leftover of your power would be enough to heal my beloved daughter.” This reminds us that we need to keep praying and not give up. Look at what Jesus says to her in verse 28. (Mat 15:28 NAU) "O woman, your faith is great; it shall be done for you as you wish." And her daughter was healed at once. I think the disciples’ mouths must have dropped to the floor at this point. They think Jesus is trying to get rid of her and He turns around her and say, “I will give you whatever you want.” Why did He do this? Why this sudden turnaround? 1. Her persistence, tenacity and commitment. When the door was shut in her face, she just knocked at it. When Christ calls her dog, she picks up what He has said like a little dog would pick up his master’s stick and bring it back to his feet. She had such faith that she would not go home without it. Her philosophy was, “I’m not leaving until my daughter is healed.” ILLUSTRATION It reminds of Jacob. He wrestled with God. Jacob was a stubborn fellow. When this wrestling match began he actually thought that he could win. He fought with all of his might. Of course he soon realized that is always a losing proposition to take on God. That wrestling match changed. Toward the end he was hanging on for dear life. He went form cunning to clinging, from resisting to resting. What started out as a wrestling match with God trying to stop God turned into Jacob hanging on for dear life. He said, “I will not let you go until you bless me.” Now He was on to something. The Lord said, “That’s good. That prayer request I will honor.” He blessed him. That is the kind of persistence we need. If you don’t succeed at first you keep praying, keep seeking, keep knocking, and keep asking. This woman was acting as an intercessor. An intercessor is someone who stands in the gap and will not give up who is bringing the needs of a person or a situation before God with persistence and commitment. ILLUSTRATION Moses stands as a powerful example of how an intercessor ought to pray. In Exodus 32 he was coming before the Lord for the people of Israel who had sinned once again. Here is what he prayed. “O God these people have committed a great sin. They have made for themselves gods of gold. Please now Lord, forgive their sin, but if not, blot me out of the book which you have written.” Think about it for a moment. He was saying, “Lord, if it would help, I would be willing to exchange my hope of forgiveness for a pardon that would be given to them. Let me state it another way. Moses was saying, “Lord, if necessary I will go to hell that they might go to heaven.” Thankfully that is not necessary. It shows his heart. In the original language when he ways, “Please now Lord, forgive their sin,” in the Hebrew there is an implied pause. That pause is pregnant with significance. He said, “Lord, forgive their sin (pause, pause, pause), but if not blot my name out of your book.” In other words, “Lord, this is a heavy thing I am about to say, but I care so deeply I want to put it to you this way.” That is the heart of an intercessor. That is the kind of prayer that God is going to answer. That is the kind of prayer that this woman was praying. That is the kind of prayer that we ought to be praying as well. You have a son or daughter who has gone astray, don’t to a quick, “Lord, bring them back to you” prayer. Pray with persistence. Pray with tenacity. Pray with dedication. Be an intercessor like Moses was and like the Syro-Phoenician woman was. You have a friend or family member that has not come to faith. Don’t give up praying for them. Keep praying. Don’t give up. Stay with it. They can escape your presence but they cannot escape your prayers. It was Sidlow Baxter who said, “Men may spurn our appeals. They may neglect our message. They may oppose our arguments and despise our persons, but they are helpless against our prayers.” I have said to people, “I am going to pray for you.” “Don’t pray for me.” “I am going to pray for you.” You can’t stop me from praying for you. I have actually had people say, “I don’t want your prayers.” I am going to pray. Even they as a nonbeliever understand there is power in prayer. If they understand it, why don’t we? Why don’t we take advantage of this opportunity more often? Don’t let the devil whisper into your ear, “It is too late for them. They are too set in their ways. They will never come around. “He is the father of lies. Don’t listen to what he has to say. God wants to save that person. You want them to be saved. Keep at it until you see change in their lives. 1. Her persistence, tenacity and commitment. 2. She got her will in alignment with the will of Jesus. There are times when as mothers and grandmothers you don’t know how to pray for your child. ILLUSTRATION If you had been Joseph’s mother you no doubt would have prayed that God would keep him safe not knowing what hardship would be in the pathway of this young man in the years ahead. I don’t think you would have prayed, “Lord, let my son Joseph be hated by his brothers. Have him be sold as a common slave. Let him go through a time of suffering. Let him be falsely accused of rape and be thrown into a prison and almost lose all hope.” No mother would pray that. You would pray, “Lord, watch out for him.” You would pray motherly, loving and nurturing prayers. But God had a plan for Joseph’s life. In that plan, as difficult as it was at times, it turned out to be a glorious thing and the salvation of millions of people. Had you been Mary, the mother of Jesus, you would have prayed, “Lord, anything but crucifixion.” Sometimes we forget a mother’s heart standing at the foot of the cross on the day she saw her son die. Yes, HE was the Savior of the world. Yes, HE was the Messiah of Israel. But, yet HE was Jesus, the boy that she gave birth to. Those hands that now had nails in them were once tiny little hands that she guided. That little brow that she once kissed now had a crown of thorns wrapped on it. She saw the blood spilling from HIS body. HE didn’t forget His mother when He hung on the cross. HE Look at John and said, “Son, behold your mother.” Then looking at His mom, “Woman, behold your son.” In other words, “John, take care of her now for me.” HE cared for her. She cared for HIM. It was through His death that salvation to the world came. What is my point? Pray for the protection of your children. Pray that God will keep His hand on them. Pray always, “Lord, your will be done.” Maybe your child is going through a time of hardship. They are going through a learning curve right now. It breaks your heart because mom wants to step in and fix it. You want to make everything better for them. But there are lessons they need to learn. You need to put them into the hands of God so they can grow up and be responsible. One day they will be a mom or dad themselves. You need to pray, “Thy kingdom come. They will be done.” The key to the Syro-Phoenician woman’s prayer being answered is she got her will in alignment with the will of God. True praying is not overcoming God’s reluctance. It is laying a hold of His willingness. Martin Luther said, “By our praying we are instructing ourselves more than Him.” 1 John 3:22 says, (1Jo 3:22 NIV) Receive from Him anything we ask, because we keep his commands and do what pleases Him. If we give a listening ear to God’s commands to you, HE will give a listening ear to your prayers. Here is what it comes down to. Act on what God has already told you to act on. Do what you know you need to do. Live in obedience before Him. Seek to align your will with the will of God. That is exactly what this woman did. He said, “It’s not right to take the children’s food and give it to the dogs.” “That’s true, but even the little puppies get the crumbs that fall from the master’s table.” She didn’t contradict Him. “That’s true. Good point on that Lord. You are right on that. But what about this.” She of course was speaking the truth. Her will was aligned with His will. What appeared to be a barrier was actually a Bridge to Blessing. Don’t give up. The love of a mother is hard to match. It is hard to understand. This is shown in a true story that I read that took place in 1988 not far from where we are right now. ILLUSTRATION It was in the San Bernardino Mountains. It was 6:00 in the morning on Wednesday that James Lawson of Running Springs left home to apply for a job. About an hour later his 36-year-old wife left for her 5th grade teaching job down the mountain to come to Riverside accompanied by her two children; 5-year-old Susan and 2-year-old Gerald to be dropped off at the babysitters. She never made it there. A tragic accident took place. Eight and a half hours later her husband found his wife and daughter dead in their wrecked car upside down in a cold mountain stream. His two-year-old son Gerald son was barely alive in the 48-degree water. In that death the character of a mother was revealed in a powerful way. When the father scrambled down the hill to see what was going on because he heard cries and thought it was his wife. Instead he found her locked in death holding her little boy’s head just above the water in the submerged car. For eight and a half hours Patsy Lawson had held her beloved toddler afloat and had finally died, her body almost frozen in death in that position of self-giving love holding her boy up to breathe. That is a mother’s love for you. She died so her toddler could live. That is the kind of commitment we need in prayer. I am not giving up. I am going to keep at it. I am going to keep praying. You had better watch out if you have a mother praying for you. You don’t stand a chance. This is also a beautiful picture of God’s love for us. HE died in order that we might live. He gave up everything that we might be forgiven. Why did Jesus hang on the cross and go through all of that suffering? There was no other way to settle the sin issue because every man and every woman has sinned against God. Jesus knew the only way for that score to be settled, for that price to be paid, was for Him to die in our place. Why Jesus? This comes back to the big sticking point for a lot of people about Christianity. They say, “I can’t handle this idea that you Christians say that Jesus is the only road to God.” If all roads lead to God, then the death of Jesus was a pathetic waste. Why would Jesus have to suffer and die if all roads led to God? The reason HE went through that is because GOD is perfect and man is sinful. Therefore, someone had to bridge the gap. Therefore Jesus, who was God in human form, lived a perfect life. HE did what no man was ever able to do. HE indeed kept all of the commandments. HE is the only man whoever walked the earth that actually kept every one of the commandments and never sinned in any way, shape or form. Living the perfect life HE died the ultimate death to Bridge The Gap and satisfy the righteous demands of GOD. That is why the death of Jesus and the death of Jesus only satisfies GOD. That is why Jesus is the only way to GOD. Is that Jesus who died on the cross and rose again from the dead three days later living in your heart and life? Have you asked Him to be your Savior? This Syro-Phoenician believed. Crisis got her to come to her senses. Tragedy drove her to Jesus. So, what? It’s good. She went. She said, “Lord, have mercy on me.” Have you said, “Lord, have mercy on me?” Have you said, “ God, I’m sorry for my sins?” If not, would you like to? Would you like to be forgiven of every sin you have ever committed and know with confidence that if you were to die you would go to heaven? If so, I would like to give you that opportunity. Page 25 of 25