INTRODUCTION
Some people seem to come to Jesus from the “right” backgrounds.
Grew up in church.
Know the songs.
Understand the language.
Fit neatly into the system.
Then there are others.
The ones who never quite know when to stand up or sit down.
The ones who aren’t sure if they belong.
The ones carrying stories with jagged edges.
The ones religion has whispered about… if it acknowledged them at all.
This final story in our Unexpected Jesus series is about a mother who never should have gotten close to Him—according to the rules.
Yet she came anyway.
Not because she was confident.
Not because she was welcomed.
Not because she had all the answers.
She came because desperation makes you bold.
She came because love for her hurting daughter outweighed fear of rejection.
She came because she believed Jesus could do something no one else could.
And though every barrier screamed, “Turn around”…
she refused.
Some of the greatest faith recorded in Scripture didn’t come from a religious leader.
It came from a persistent mom.
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>> READING THE TEXT
Mark 7:24–26 (summarized)
Jesus travels north into gentile territory—Tyre and Sidon. He wants privacy. A break from the crowds. A moment to breathe. But word travels faster than He can rest.
A woman finds Him.
Mark calls her “Syrophoenician”—a foreigner from outside the covenant community of Israel. In Matthew’s telling, she’s identified as Canaanite—a reminder of an ancient history full of hostility and mistrust.
Strike one.
Strike two.
She falls at His feet and begs:
“Lord, please… my daughter is tormented by a demon.
Will You help us?”
No proud posture.
No guarded distance.
Just raw need.
This is not a casual prayer.
This is a mother crying for her child.
Every parent knows this ache.
When your child suffers… nothing matters except finding help.
This woman found it in Jesus.
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>> THE AWKWARD, UNEXPECTED RESPONSE
Jesus replies with a statement that unsettles us if we don’t read it carefully:
“It is not right to take the children’s bread
and toss it to the dogs.”
At first glance… ouch.
Why would Jesus say that?
Let’s step closer.
In that culture, Jews commonly referred to Gentiles using a very harsh word for “dogs”—more like wild scavengers.
But Jesus uses a softer word—more like a household pet, beloved and inside the home.
Still… the disciples would have nodded in agreement:
“She’s not one of us. Send her away.”
Jesus speaks the line they believed…
out loud…
for everyone to hear.
He is exposing prejudice.
Surfacing the heart of the crowd.
Bringing into the open what people whispered internally.
And giving this woman a chance to show something they never expected:
remarkable faith.
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>> HER RESPONSE IS LEGENDARY
Without hesitation, she replies:
“Yes, Lord…
but even the dogs under the table
eat the children’s crumbs.”
Translation:
“I’m not arguing with You, Jesus.
I know I don’t fit the categories.
But I believe Your goodness is bigger than the boundaries people draw.”
This woman refuses to let cultural rejection define God’s compassion.
She is saying:
• “I know who I am.”
• “But I also know who You are.”
Faith isn’t pretending life has been fair.
Faith is believing God is still generous.
She wasn’t demanding a seat at the table.
She simply believed the scraps of Jesus’ grace could heal her daughter.
And she was right.
Jesus looks at her with delight:
“For that reply… you may go.
The demon has left your daughter.”
No delay.
No ceremony.
No conditions.
Just a miracle wrapped in a sentence.
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>> A MOTHER’S CONFIRMATION
She hurries home—
heart pounding, hope racing ahead of her feet.
She pushes open the door.
She looks into her daughter’s eyes.
Peace.
The darkness is gone.
Healing has arrived.
Joy breaks open in their home like dawn.
And it all began with a woman who refused to let barriers silence her faith.
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>> THE JESUS WE MEET HERE
We learn something profound about Jesus:
He delights in persistent faith.
When others say:
“Don’t bother God”…
Jesus says:
“Come closer.”
When others say:
“You don’t belong”…
Jesus says:
“There’s room at My table.”
When others say:
“Stay silent”…
Jesus says:
“Your voice matters to Me.”
The disciples would have sent her away.
Jesus draws her in.
Because God’s grace is not a closed system.
It is a rapidly expanding kingdom.
And the first to enter are often the ones we would never expect.
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>> WHO THIS WOMAN REPRESENTS
She stands in Scripture as a reminder for:
• The outsider
• The uninvited
• The overlooked
• The underqualified
• The ones with painful histories
• The ones who have heard “no” too many times
She proves:
Faith has nothing to do with where you started
and everything to do with where you run when life hurts.
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>> WHEN FAITH REFUSES TO GIVE UP
Let’s pause here and stay in this moment.
This woman’s faith was relentless.
Not arrogant.
Not entitled.
Just relentless.
She believed one crumb of Jesus’ love could change everything.
And Jesus said:
“You have no idea how much bread I have for you.”
Sometimes the greatest miracle is not the healing—
but the faith that got you to Jesus’ feet in the first place.
Some of you have been praying for a child…
for a spouse…
for a friend…
for breakthrough…
for health…
for freedom…
And heaven seems silent.
Do not stop.
Do not give up.
Do not assume silence means “no.”
Sometimes silence is the stage where faith grows its voice.
God listens to the prayers that others think are inconvenient.
You may feel like you’re asking for crumbs.
Jesus is preparing a feast.
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>> THE KINGDOM BREAKS OPEN
This moment in Tyre becomes a turning point in the ministry of Jesus.
Up to now, most of His miracles have happened among the people of Israel.
The chosen people.
The covenant family.
But here—in the home of a Gentile mother—
God’s promise widens.
The disciples’ understanding of who belongs gets stretched.
Israel’s Messiah is not only Israel’s Messiah.
God’s rescue plan is bigger than anyone imagined.
This is what makes the story so explosive:
A woman who wasn’t supposed to get in
got a miracle that changed the map of the kingdom.
She didn’t sneak in through the back door.
Jesus held the door open.
For her.
For us.
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>> GRACE IS NOT REGIONAL
Tyre and Sidon would have been the last places the disciples expected a revival.
Wrong geography.
Wrong ethnicity.
Wrong spiritual background.
But Jesus doesn’t sort people by acceptability quotas.
Grace does not come with a GPS boundary line.
It doesn’t require a dress code.
It isn’t language-specific.
It isn’t limited to the ones who grew up in Sabbath School.
If God’s love stops where our comfort stops…
it is not God’s love.
It is our limitation.
Jesus is not limited by our lines.
He is Lord over all lands.
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>> WHAT ABOUT WHEN JESUS SEEMS SILENT?
Matthew points out something Mark doesn’t:
Jesus didn’t answer her at first.
Silence.
That awful sound we hear when heaven doesn’t respond on our schedule.
Silence does not mean disinterest.
Silence means Jesus is drawing faith forward.
He is not ignoring her.
He is inviting her deeper.
We mistake silence for rejection.
God uses silence for formation.
When Jesus finally speaks,
He does not shut her down—
He draws her courage out.
Her reply reveals a faith that refuses to be defined by disappointment.
Sometimes the answer is on the other side of the silence.
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>> WHEN OTHERS TRY TO PUSH YOU AWAY
Matthew adds something else:
The disciples urged Jesus to send her away.
Their solution to an outsider with a need was:
“Make her disappear.”
I wish that was only a first-century problem.
Church people can be wonderful.
Church people can also be rough on those who don’t fit.
We can forget the grace that carried us in.
This woman models something courageous:
She does not let people who dislike her
keep her from the God who loves her.
If someone here has ever felt pushed aside—
not welcomed, not included, not seen—
hear this loud and clear:
People may fail you.
Jesus will not.
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>> FAITH THAT GREW IN HARSH SOIL
Her boldness did not come from being treated well.
It grew from heartache, marginalization, and a daughter she could not help.
Sometimes the deepest faith grows in the hardest places.
She did not quote Scripture.
She did not have a religious résumé.
She simply believed Jesus had more mercy than she had need.
He calls that great faith.
Not polished faith.
Not privileged faith.
Not professional faith.
Just real faith
that trusts Jesus more than fear.
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>> CRUMBS AND FEASTS
She asked for a crumb.
Jesus gave her a seat.
And then He passed the bread.
This woman came for a miracle for her daughter.
She left with a proclamation about the heart of God:
There is enough grace for everyone.
Especially the ones the world tries to exclude.
If all you feel worthy of today is crumbs…
you are the exact person Jesus invites to the feast.
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>> WHERE DO WE STAND IN THIS STORY?
Some of us feel like the Syrophoenician woman:
• We don’t feel spiritual enough
• We don’t feel worthy enough
• We don’t feel like God is for “people like us”
Let this story whisper to your heart:
You belong with Jesus.
Some of us feel like the disciples:
• We assume who God should bless
• We guard access to grace
• We forget how lost we once were
Let this story correct our hearts:
Grace expands or it is not grace at all.
Some of us feel like the daughter:
• We cannot fight for ourselves
• We need someone to intercede
• We need Jesus to come to our rescue
Let this story encourage you:
You are being prayed for and pursued by the God who heals.
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>> WHAT JESUS LOVES TO SEE IN US
Jesus celebrates bold faith.
Jesus honors persistent prayer.
Jesus draws near to the hurting.
Jesus listens when others roll their eyes.
Jesus builds His kingdom on the willingness of outsiders to risk coming close.
If you have ever felt like you were on the margins…
Jesus started walking in your direction long before you started walking in His.
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>> AN INVITATION FOR THE OUTSIDER IN ALL OF US
Before we close, I want to speak directly to the heart that says:
“Why would Jesus want anything to do with me?”
Because you asked.
Because you hope.
Because you came.
Because you’re seeking Him.
Because you love someone enough to ask for a miracle.
Because He made you.
Because He is good.
Because grace doesn’t check credentials.
Because faith isn’t measured by familiarity…
but by trust.
Do what this woman did:
Come to Jesus
even if you feel out of place.
Come to Jesus
even if others misunderstand.
Come to Jesus
even if you’re afraid the answer will be no.
Hear Him speak over your life today:
“Great is your faith.”
There is a seat for you at the table.
There is healing for you at home.
There is a God who crossed every border to reach you.
Let Him in.
Let Him love you.
Let Him respond to your cry.
Amen.
