Go to Jesus!
The Gospel of Matthew
Matthew 15:21-28
Sermon by Rick Crandall
(Prepared August 10, 2022; Revised May 12, 2023))
MESSAGE:
*One of the great hymns from the 1700s calls us to Jesus Christ with these words:
"Come, ye sinners, poor and needy, Weak and wounded, sick and sore;
Jesus ready stands to save you, Full of pity, love, and power."
*And the chorus says:
"I will arise and go to Jesus; He will embrace me in His arms;
In the arms of my dear Savior, O there are ten thousand charms." (1)
*The mother in today's Scripture lived out the truth of those words. We don't even know her name. But she is a hero of our faith, and she teaches all of us to go to Jesus.
1. FIRST: GO TO JESUS WHEN YOU ARE DESPERATE.
*That's what this mom did in vs. 22: "And behold, a woman of Canaan came from that region and cried out to Him, saying, 'Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David! My daughter is severely demon-possessed.'''
*Talk about desperate situation! This mother's young daughter was demon possessed, severely tormented by a demon. And that is so far removed from our everyday life that it's hard for us to relate. But desperate times will come to us too. Many of us here today have already been through desperate times.
*Why do the desperate times come? -- Sometimes it's because of our weakness. We like to think that we are strong, especially when we are young. But just like the situation in this story, there will be times when nothing seems to work. We've done all we can, but it's not enough. And we realize that there is nothing we can do on our own to make it better.
*Family couldn't help this woman. Friends couldn't help her either. The priests in her false religion couldn't help her, and she couldn't help herself. But thank God, Jesus came her way! And in her weakness, she went to the Lord for strength. Let your weakness drive you to Jesus!
*But sometimes our desperation comes from our sinfulness. Demon possession is an extreme example. But demon possession doesn't just happen. This mother was a Canaanite. Her pagan, satanic religion was a wicked fertility cult that also practiced child sacrifice. Larry Norman said it was even possible that this mother had been a temple prostitute, and that her child had come from that lifestyle. (2)
*We don't know the details. But we do know that sin had taken a terrible toll on this mother and her precious daughter. And somehow, some way, our sin will also take a toll on us. As Christian author Kay Arthur said, "If you tolerate sin in your life, that sin will not only take you farther than you wanted to go, it will keep you longer than you wanted to stay, and it will cost you more than you thought you'd pay..." (3)
*Kay was absolutely right about that, so when you get desperate, it may be your own fault. But don't let that keep you from coming to Jesus Christ!
*Sometimes our desperation is our own fault, but it can also come from our love. That's what we see here: a mother's love for her child, and it's a beautiful thing.
*Margaret Cobb remembers when her 13-year-old daughter, Amy, was having extra trouble growing-up. Amy was adopted from South Korea, and they had no idea who her birth mother might be. That really bothered Amy for a while.
*Then one day, Amy got braces on her teeth. As the day wore on, they really began to hurt. By bedtime she was miserable. Mom gave her some pain medicine, and invited Amy to snuggle with her for a while. Soon, Amy got more comfortable, and drowsy. That's when she said, "Mom, I know who my real mom is. -- It's the one who takes away the hurting." (4)
*That's what this mother was desperately trying to do: Stop the hurting. And in her desperation she did the best thing we can do! She went to Jesus.
2. GO TO JESUS WHEN YOU ARE DESPERATE. AND GO TO JESUS WITH GREAT DETERMINATION.
*Go to Jesus with the kind of unshakable determination we see in this Canaanite mother. She faced at least seven discouragements in this story. And I won't count them all out for you, but of course, the first discouragement was the demon possession of her daughter. How horrible that would be!
*Then she had to physically find Jesus. She had to go to just the right place at just the right time. And it was a sure blessing of God's grace that she ever came face to face with Jesus. Thank God, Church, we know that His Holy Spirit is here with us right now and all the time!
*Another hindrance was the fact that this Canaanite mother was a woman. Women were looked on as property in that day. Most "proper" Jewish men wouldn't even speak to her.
*Then in vs. 23 Jesus gave her the silent treatment, or as vs. 23 says, "He answered her not a word." In the end we can see that our gracious Lord was proving her faith, but she didn't know that.
*Plus, in vs. 23 "His disciples came and urged Him, saying, 'Send her away, for she cries out after us.'" The original word for "cries out" here is a totally different word from her "crying out" in vs. 22. There, she was desperately crying out to Jesus for help.
*But in vs. 23, the disciples used an insulting word. In their minds this heartbroken woman sounded like a squawking, noisy bird. The Lord's disciples wanted nothing to do with this mother, and it wasn't just because they were tired or too busy. Most Jews of that day hated the Canaanites. They thought people like her were the scum of the earth. And she had to overcome that discouragement.
*Then in vs. 24, Jesus answered and said, "I was not sent except to the lost sheep of the house of Israel." Here, Jesus simply stated the fact that in God's perfect plan, the Lord was sent first to the Jewish people. But we know that after His crucifixion and resurrection, Jesus told His followers to spread the Gospel all over the world. We also know that in a minute or two, the Lord would fully heal her broken heart by healing her beloved daughter. And in this verse, Jesus simply gave this mother another opportunity to express her faith in Him. But she didn't know that yet.
*The same kind of thing happened in vs. 26, when Jesus basically called her a dog. There Jesus answered and said, "It is not good to take the children's bread and throw it to the little dogs.'' Around my house calling someone a dog would usually be a compliment. But not back then. Dogs in the Middle East were despised animals, scavengers, and garbage eaters. They were considered to be almost as bad as pigs.
*Did Jesus want her to quit praying? Did He want her to stop crying out to Him? Obviously, the answer is no. The Lord was stretching her and giving her more opportunities to express her faith. He surely wanted her to keep crying out to Him with unshakable determination. And that's the way God wants us to pray!
*In Luke 11:1, one of the disciples asked Jesus, "Lord, teach us to pray." Part of the Lord's response was to tell them this parable:
5. "Which of you shall have a friend, and go to him at midnight and say to him, 'Friend, lend me three loaves;
6. for a friend of mine has come to me on his journey, and I have nothing to set before him';
7. and he will answer from within and say, 'Do not trouble me; the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot rise and give to you'?
8. I say to you, though he will not rise and give to him because he is his friend, yet because of his persistence he will rise and give him as many as he needs.
9. And I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.
10. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened."
*This mother faced 7 great discouragements, but she never gave up! She went to Jesus with unshakable determination, and that's what God wants us to do! Don't you let anybody, or anything stop you from crying out to Jesus!
3. GO TO JESUS WITH GREAT DETERMINATION. AND GO TO JESUS WITH HUMBLE DEVOTION.
*This Canaanite mother gives us a picture of humble devotion. She never rose up in pride or anger, even when the Lord seemed to ignore her, even when the disciples openly rejected her, or even when the Lord basically called her a dog.
*In vs. 25, she came to Jesus and worshiped Him, humbly pleading, "Lord, help me!" She worshiped the Lord. And she worshiped the Lord, because she had a heart full of worship.
*All real worship starts in the heart. And the original word pictures for worship help us see this more clearly. In the Old Testament, the main word for worship is a picture of us bowing down before the Lord. And that's good. We humbly bow down to give God the reverence and honor He so richly deserves!
*But the most common New Testament word for worship is the word we see here in vs. 25. And this word has a totally different word picture, because this word means "to kiss," like an affectionate dog licking his master's hand.
*Who do you kiss? Parents kiss their children. Husbands kiss their wives. We kiss the people we're closest to. We kiss the people we love. And that's the point of God using this word for worship. After all, in Mark 12:29-30, Jesus tells us that the greatest commandment is: "Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength."
*God wants us to have hearts full of love for Him, and all real worship comes from love and adoration for God. We should love God because He loves us infinitely more than anyone else ever could. God the Father proved that forever when He sent His only begotten Son to die on the cross for our sins. God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit is worthy of our love! He is worthy of our worship!
*This Canaanite mother worshiped Jesus. But notice that there was some pain in her worship. In vs. 25, she worshiped Him, saying, 'Lord, help me!'" In other words: "Lord, I'm really hurting, but I worship You, because I believe in Your compassionate power" You see, we don't have to feel great to worship the Lord. We can worship Him even when we are in pain.
*There was pain in her worship. But there was also praise. And we know this because she called Him Lord. Jesus Christ is Lord! He is the King of all kings! He is the Lord of all lords! And this mother rightly thought Jesus was worthy of her worship. That makes sense, because this happened in the third year of our Savior's ministry, and He had already worked countless, amazing miracles.
*Surely she must have heard some of the stories. Jesus had turned water into wine. He had already cast out many demons. He had healed the blind. He had healed the deaf, and those who could not speak. Jesus had healed leprosy and restored paralyzed people to health. He had fed 5,000 men with 5 loaves and 2 fish. Jesus had even raised the dead!
*No doubt she had also heard of the Lord's compassion, how He came to seek and save the lost, how He loved sinners and the outcasts of society, like Matthew the hated tax collector for the Romans, and the Samaritan woman at the well who had been married five times. This Canaanite mother must have heard how Jesus called them to a new life with Him. And she believed! So she worshiped the Lord.
*John 1:29 tells us that Jesus Christ is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. Our crucified and risen Savior is worthy of our worship, and He will be forever!
*In Revelation 5:11-13, the Apostle John gave us this testimony about worshiping the Lord in Heaven:
11. Then I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne, the living creatures, and the elders; and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands,
12. saying with a loud voice: "Worthy is the Lamb who was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom, and strength and honor and glory and blessing!''
13. And every creature which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, I heard saying: "Blessing and honor and glory and power be to Him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, forever and ever!''"
*Jesus Christ is worthy of our worship!
4. SO, GO TO THE LORD WITH HUMBLE DEVOTION. AND GO TO JESUS WITH DEEP FAITH.
*Go to Jesus, trusting in His power and compassion with all your heart. Please listen to the Scripture again in vs. 26-28. There, Jesus:
26. . . answered and said, "It is not good to take the children's bread and throw it to the little dogs.''
27. And she said, "True, Lord, yet even the little dogs eat the crumbs which fall from their masters' table.''
28. Then Jesus answered and said to her, "O woman, great is your faith! Let it be to you as you desire.'' And her daughter was healed from that very hour.
*I like this woman's attitude! Even in the face of great discouragement, she was still looking for an open door. She was still looking at the possibilities. She still believed that she could find God's blessing.
*I like her attitude. But much more important, the Lord Jesus liked her attitude! And what a promotion! Verse 28 tells us that in just a few seconds she went from being called a dog to a being called a woman of great faith.
*"Great is your faith!" Wouldn't you like to hear the Lord say that to you? Then keep going to Jesus. And remember that our faith should be much greater than hers, because of the cross! This woman didn't know about the cross. But we do! Jesus Christ died on the cross to take the punishment for all of our sins. And three days later, He rose again from the dead to give eternal life to all who will trust in Him.
*We can have great faith in Jesus Christ, because He is a great Savior! That's why in Romans 8:31-34 Paul could ask:
31. What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?
32. He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?
33. Who shall bring a charge against God's elect? It is God who justifies.
34. Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us.
*Keep going to Jesus Christ in faith, and you will see demonstrations of His power. Sometimes the Lord will even give healing miracles for us. Pastor Guy Caley gave this testimony:
"In 1953 in Grimes Iowa, Violet Cross was getting sicker by the day. Finally, her eldest son Frank insisted she go to the doctor. Eventually they ended up at the large teaching hospital in Iowa City. The diagnosis was devastating. Though Violet had never smoked she was dying of lung cancer. One lung was already gone. The other was rapidly being devoured by the malignancy.
*The doctors sent her home offering no real hope. Six months of pain would ultimately lead to her death. That Sunday, Violet went down to kneel at the altar at the tiny church pastored by her son-in-law, Clarence. There she begged God for one thing. Her two youngest daughters, Kay and Linda were still in high school. 'Please God,' she prayed, 'Let me see my girls finish high school.'
*Her husband Eddie bought Violet the engagement ring that he didn't have the money to buy her 30 years earlier. He expected that to be one of his final acts of love toward her. But Violet started feeling better. Kay graduated from high school, and her mom was back on the farm doing chores again.
*Then Linda graduated from high school. Both girls married. Grandchildren were born. In fact, 18 grandchildren were there to help celebrate Violet and Eddie's 50th wedding anniversary."
*Guy closed his story with these words: "In 1976 Violet came to live at my house after Eddie passed away. And when I was 12 years old, 38 years after the doctors had given her 6 months to live, Grandma Cross's two healthy lungs breathed their last." (5)
CONCLUSION:
*Hallelujah! All good things are possible with God! So, keep going to Jesus! If you are lost or lonely, guilty, sick, scared, worried, or desperate, go to Jesus Christ! In the best of times, in the worst of times, everyone, keep going to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!
*We can do that right now as we bow our heads for prayer.
(1) Sources:
-SermonCentral sermon "The Year Hope Died" - Rodney Buchanan - Isaiah 6:1-13
-COME, YE SINNERS, POOR AND NEEDY - Words: Joseph Hart, Hymns Composed on Various Subjects, 1759, alt.; refrain anonymous - Music: Restoration, from The Southern Harmony and Musical Companion, by William Walker - New York: Hastings House, 1835 - Alternate tune: Beach Spring, from Sacred Harp, by Benjamin F. White, 1844
(2) Sources:
-EXPLORING THE GOSPEL OF MATTHEW by John Phillips, Kregal Publications, Grand Rapids - "The Needy Heathen Mother - How Jesus Praised Her" - Matthew 15:21-28 - Downloaded to "Bible Study 6" from Olive Tree Bible Software, Inc.
-Adapted from EXPLORING ROMANS by John Phillips, Kregal Publications, Grand Rapids - "The Influence on Man of His Own Graven Images" - Romans 1:22-25 - Downloaded to "Bible Study 6" from Olive Tree Bible Software, Inc.
-INTERNATIONAL STANDARD BIBLE ENCYCLOPEDIA - James Orr, M.A., D.D., General Editor - Published in 1915, 1939; public domain - Topic: Asherah - Downloaded to e-Sword by Rick Meyers - Copyright 2021
-INTERNATIONAL STANDARD BIBLE ENCYCLOPEDIA - James Orr, M.A., D.D., General Editor - Published in 1915, 1939; public domain - Topic: Molech; Moloch - Downloaded to e-Sword by Rick Meyers - Copyright 2021
-SermonCentral sermon "Faith from a Faithful Mother" by Larry Norman - Matthew 15:21-28
(3) SermonCentral illustration contributed by: Joel Vicente
(4) Margaret H. Cobb in ILLUSTRATIONS UNLIMITED by James S. Hewett - Wheaton: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc, 1988 - p. 379 - Source: Bible Illustrator for windows - Topic: Motherhood - Subtopic: Cares of - Index: 4073 - Date: 7/1996.1240 - Title: "The Mothering Experience"
(5) SermonCentral illustration contributed by Guy Caley
