If you'd open up your Bibles, please, to Matthew chapter 15.
Matthew 15, we are in verses 21 to 39 this morning.
! Let me pray for the reading and preaching of God's word.
Heavenly Father,
you are God and we are not.
You are the creator and we are your creatures.
So Lord, it is right for us to humble ourselves before you,
to be addressed by you in your word.
Give us ears to hear.
Father, help us to take hold of the truths of your word with faith.
Grant us the humility and the poverty of spirit that you seek from all of us.
As we're reminded through this passage of your wonderful grace and kindness toward us in Jesus Christ.
In Jesus' name, we pray. Amen.
If you are able, please stand for the reading of God's word.
Let's honor God together by standing together as I read from Matthew 15, verse 21 to 39.
And Jesus went away from there and withdrew to the district of Tyre and Sidon.
And behold, a Canaanite woman from that region came out and was crying,
Have mercy on me, O Lord, son of David.
My daughter is severely oppressed by a demon.
But he did not answer her a word.
And his disciples came and begged him, saying,
Send her away, for she is crying out after us.
He answered,
I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.
But she came and knelt before him, saying,
Lord, help me.
And he answered,
It is not right to take the children's bread and throw it to the dogs.
She said,
Yes, Lord.
Yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their master's table.
Then Jesus answered her,
O woman, great is your faith.
Be it done for you as you desire.
And her daughter was healed instantly.
Jesus went on from there and walked beside the Sea of Galilee.
And he went up on the mountain and sat down there.
And great crowds came to him, bringing with him the lame, the blind, the crippled, the mute, and many others.
And they put them at his feet, and he healed them.
So that the crowd wondered when they saw the mute speaking, the crippled healthy, the lame walking, and the blind seeing.
And they glorified the God of Israel.
Then Jesus called his disciples to him and said,
I have compassion on the crowd because they have been with me now three days and have nothing to eat.
And I am unwilling to send them away hungry lest they faint on the way.
And the disciples said to him,
Where are we to get enough bread in such a desolate place to feed so great a crowd?
And Jesus said to them,
How many loaves do you have?
They said,
Seven,
And a few small fish.
And directing the crowd to sit down on the ground,
he took the seven loaves and the fish.
And having given thanks,
he broke them and gave them to the disciples.
And the disciples gave them to the crowds.
And they all ate and were satisfied.
And they took up seven baskets full of the broken pieces left over.
Those who ate were 4,000 men, besides women and children.
And after sending away the crowds,
he got into the boat and went to the region of Magadan.
This is God's holy and authoritative word.
Please be seated.
The Jew-Gentile hostility is one of the oldest documented ethnic tensions and conflicts in world history.
Historian Robert S. Wistrich,
who was the foremost scholarly authority on anti-Semitism in the 20th century,
called anti-Semitism or hatred of Jews,
the longest hatred because of its deep historical roots and longevity.
This is partly due to Jewish exclusivity.
They claim unique chosen status as the people of God.
And for that reason,
they have sought to maintain a distinct identity apart from the rest of the world.
And Jews who strictly adhere to Old Testament law
often separate themselves from secular society as well.
This exclusive distinct identity creates a strong sense of internal cohesion,
which makes them stick together and help each other.
And that strong internal cohesion often means alienation from those who are outside of that group,
which could create mistrust and suspicion.
This in turn creates persecution and minority survival pressure,
which then reinforces that strong sense of internal cohesion.
And it goes on and on.
Statesmen throughout the ages have repeatedly tried to forge peace treaties
and make peace between Jews and Gentiles to no avail.
But our passage this morning teaches us that God himself has already provided the only solution that will work.
Only solution to this long hatred and lasting divide between Jews and Gentiles.
Because Jesus is the Jewish Messiah who brings salvation to the Gentiles.
We're going to look at first the breadcrumbs for the dogs in verses 21 to 28.
And then we'll look at bread for the Gentiles in verse 29 to 39.
We saw escalating tension between Jesus and the Pharisees and scribes,
the delegation that was sent from Jerusalem to investigate Jesus in the preceding passage.
And because of that escalating tension, Jesus now withdraws again from the Jewish crowds.
He withdraws from Jewish territory altogether this time.
And he goes to the district of Tyre and Sidon,
the two of the most prominent cities in the ancient Phoenician kingdom.
Tyre and Sidon were notorious pagan cities,
frequently denounced by the Old Testament prophets for being bitter enemies of God's people.
Tyre and Sidon was a Christian.
He says in Ezekiel 26, 2-3 that when Jerusalem, the capital of Israel, of Judah fell,
Tyre gloated over Jerusalem saying,
Aha, the gate of the peoples is broken.
It has swung open to me.
I shall be replenished now that she is laid waste.
And therefore the Lord God declared,
Behold, I am against you, O Tyre,
and will bring up many nations against you as the sea brings up its waves.
That gives you a glimpse of that conflict between Israel and Tyre.
1 Kings 16 records that King Ahab, an Israelite king,
did more to provoke the Lord to anger than any other king before him.
Why?
Because he erected an altar for Baal
in the house of Baal that he himself built in Israel.
And why in the world did he do that?
Because he took for his wife Jezebel,
the daughter of Ethbaal, king of the Sidonians,
and went and served Baal and worshipped him.
Baal was the chief god of the Syrophoenician kingdom,
of Tyre and Sidon.
And due to Jezebel, a Sidonian princess,
her influence, Baal worship was institutionalized in Israel,
and the prophets of the Lord were systematically slaughtered,
so that Israel almost lost its covenantal identity before God altogether.
Tyre and Sidon,
therefore became bywords of unbelief and idolatry.
The only other time that Tyre and Sidon are mentioned in the Gospel of Matthew
is in Matthew 11, 21-22,
where Jesus denounces the unbelieving cities of Israel
by comparing them to Tyre and Sidon,
saying,
Woe to you, Chorazin!
Woe to you, Bethsaida!
For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon,
they would have repented long ago and sat cloth and ashes.
But I tell you,
it will be more bearable on the day of judgment for Tyre and Sidon than for you.
That's how bad the unbelief of these Jewish cities were.
So bad that Tyre and Sidon compare favorably to them.
There were no cities in the ancient world so bad
that was worse than Tyre and Sidon that Jesus could compare them to.
So he compares them to Tyre and Sidon.
It's to this district of Tyre and Sidon that Jesus has now retired.
And what follows is hardly surprising.
It says in verse 22,
And behold, a Canaanite woman from that region came out.
Who else would you expect to come out of a region like that than a Canaanite?
Remember, by this point,
Canaan is a name that is no longer used by the people of that region.
That's why in the parallel passage of this,
found in Mark 7, 24-30,
Mark doesn't call her a Canaanite woman.
Instead, he calls her a Syrophoenician woman,
which is the term that was currently in use at the time.
However, Matthew chooses to retain this intentionally,
this anachronistic, theologically loaded,
Old Testament term, Canaanite,
because he's trying to drive home a point.
A Canaanite woman is the exact kind of woman
that Abraham and Isaac in Genesis
made their sons swear never to marry.
The Canaanites were, from Israeli perspective,
the squatters who occupied the promised land
flowing with milk and honey that God had promised to them.
The people that Israel warred against generation after generation.
The stubborn people that they were supposed to drive out from the land
but never fully succeeded in driving out.
The very people who survived among the Israelites
and led them into idolatry,
which then led to their exile from their promised land.
These are the inveterate enemies of the people of God.
So out comes a Canaanite woman from that region.
It's not surprising to meet her in Tyre and Sidon.
What is surprising, however, is this woman's profession of faith.
She cries out to Jesus in verse 22,
Have mercy on me, O Lord, son of David.
My daughter is severely oppressed by a demon.
She addresses Jesus first as the son of David,
which is a messianic title that Matthew accords to Jesus
all throughout the gospel,
saying that Jesus is God's promised anointed king,
the savior who is to come from the line of David.
Not only that, this woman addresses Jesus as Lord.
Lord is a word that can simply mean a polite sir,
referring to someone who is a social superior to you in this culture.
However, in the gospel of Matthew,
it's a much more theologically hefty term.
Because the first time Jesus applies that term Lord to himself
is in Matthew 7, 21,
when he declares himself to be the final judge
over all of humanity on the last day.
That's Lord.
And so, when she addresses Jesus as Lord,
Matthew wants us to see a deeper import to that address,
the implications of that acknowledgement.
This Canaanite woman acknowledges Jesus' authority and power.
That's why she's come to ask for help
with her daughter who is severely oppressed by a demon.
Literally, that means that's severely demonized.
Demonized means you've come under the influence of a demon.
And that influence can vary in strength.
And in worst cases, like you see in the gathering demoniacs
earlier in the Gospel of Matthew,
you can be controlled by a demon,
like a puppet is controlled by a puppeteer.
That's how bad it can be when you are demonized.
And in this case, by this woman's own admission,
her daughter is severely demonized.
So, who can help a person who is severely demonized?
Only a person who possesses special, divine, spiritual authority.
And this Canaanite woman recognizes that Jesus has that authority.
This is why she takes great social risk
to approach Jesus, a Jewish teacher.
Given typical Jewish attitudes during her days,
like I was mentioning earlier, toward Canaanites,
she could have expected to be reviled and rebuked
and driven away from Jesus' presence with verbal abuse.
But because her situation is so desperate,
this woman seeks out Jesus and calls out to him relentlessly,
have mercy on me, O Lord, son of David.
Jesus, however, completely ignores her.
It says in verse 23,
but he did not answer her a word.
Not a word.
A total silent treatment.
Jesus doesn't even acknowledge her presence.
I imagine he's not even looking at her.
But interestingly enough,
Jesus also doesn't rebuke her or silence her.
And this is how we know that Jesus is not trying to be rude.
He's simply playing hard to get
in order to test the genuineness of her faith and her humility.
Far from being discouraged by Jesus' silence,
this Canaanite woman seems encouraged by Jesus' silence
to keep crying out.
Well, silence is better than a no.
Maybe there's a chance.
Perhaps he's thinking.
Son of David, have mercy on me.
Lord, have mercy on me.
My daughter is severely demonized.
She's so persistent in crying out
that Jesus' disciples are annoyed and exasperated
to the point of begging Jesus themselves
to send her away.
Send her away is a translation of a word
that means to dismiss or even to divorce.
The disciples are not asking Jesus
to grant her her request.
They're asking Jesus to deny her and dismiss her.
Please, Jesus, say something to her.
Since she won't stop crying out otherwise,
send her away.
She's hounding us and we can't handle it anymore.
No.
This prompts Jesus' first words
to the Canaanite woman in verse 24.
I was sent only to the lost sheep
of the house of Israel.
When Jesus sent his 12 apostles out
on their preaching mission earlier in chapter 10,
he similarly instructed them,
go nowhere among the Gentiles
and enter no town of the Samaritans,
but go rather to the lost sheep
of the house of Israel.
This was the mission that he had given them.
Because until his,
after his death and resurrection,
the gospel goes forth first to the Jews
for salvation is from the Jews.
And then it goes from the Jews
to the Samaritans and to the Gentiles
and to the ends of the earth,
as we see in the Great Commission in Matthew 28.
So Jesus is being consistent here.
He appears to be listening to the disciples' request
to send her away.
woman,
go home.
I'm not going to help you.
I am a Jewish Messiah.
You are a Canaanite woman.
My responsibility is not to you.
But she is unrelenting.
English author Agatha Christie once wrote,
a mother's love for her child
is like nothing else in the world.
It knows no law,
no pity.
It dares all things
and crushes down remorselessly
all that stands in its path.
Jesus' rejection
only emboldens this Canaanite mom.
He just spoke to me.
He heard me.
He acknowledged me.
This is my chance.
And it says in verse 25,
she came and knelt before him saying,
Lord, help me.
She abases herself before Jesus by kneeling.
Kneeling is a position of reverence,
humility,
submission,
supplication.
It's a position that makes you lower and smaller,
the other person bigger and higher.
It's a defenseless,
surrendered position,
the exact opposite of an athletic ready stance
or a fighting stance.
When you're kneeling on the ground,
there's nothing you can do
to protect yourself
or defend yourself.
You're completely surrendered
at the mercy of someone else.
This woman is not a deal maker
approaching Jesus as equals,
trying to shake hands
and make a deal.
She has not come to negotiate
or bargain.
She has come to beg.
And beg.
She does.
As soon as Jesus says the first words,
this woman is kneeling in front of him
and begging,
Lord, help me.
And in Jewish custom,
you beg,
you kneel,
come down on your knees,
you prostrate yourself,
you touch your head to the floor.
You beg,
Lord, help me.
Son of David,
help me.
I will go even lower if I could.
Please,
you are the only hope for my daughter.
Help me.
But Jesus is not done
testing this woman's faith just yet.
He answers her in verse 26,
it is not right
to take the children's bread
and throw it to the dogs.
This is when all the bystanders go,
ooh.
Now he's done it.
He just said the D word.
He crossed the big,
big red line.
He just called this Canaanite woman
and her daughter,
dogs.
In contrast to the Jews
who are children.
How rude and insensitive
can he be,
right?
It's far worse
than you and I might imagine
because most dogs
that we see around here
in Cambridge
are nice,
pampered pets,
right?
Some Cambridge dog owners
call themselves
moms and dads.
Sorry if you're one of those people.
Stop it.
Yeah.
And they call themselves
moms and dads
and then they feed
their children
only 100%
human grade
whole foods
like salmon
with cucumber
and spinach salad.
Man,
that sounds like my dinner.
Or hard boiled eggs
with steamed rice.
I mean,
eggs are expensive nowadays.
I personally know someone
who buys her pet poodle
oodles of these
donut peaches.
You guys know what I'm talking about?
Those flat peaches?
That's the most expensive
variety of peach
you can buy at H Mart.
I guarantee you dogs
were not treated like that
in the ancient world.
Most dogs in those days
were not pets
but they were dirty scavengers,
low-life animals,
and even the house dogs
like the kind mentioned here
would only ever eat
the scraps
and the throwaway foods.
Not only that,
according to Leviticus 11.27,
animals that go on all fours
and walk on their paws
are considered
ritually unclean.
So while animals
with cloven hoofs
like sheep and goats
were considered clean
and fit for Jewish consumption,
dogs,
because they walk
on all fours
but don't have cloven hooves,
have paws instead,
were considered unclean.
And it's for that reason
specifically
that Jews of Jesus' day
sometimes refer to Gentiles
in a derogatory manner
as dogs.
Oh, look at those dogs.
It was their way
of saying that they're unclean,
unholy,
unchosen people.
It's almost like
an ethnic slur.
So with all that
cultural background in mind,
imagine yourself
in this Canaanite woman's shoes.
You've already abased yourself
and humbled yourself
to such a degree
you've come down
on your knees
to beg for help
from this Jewish teacher
and he calls you,
not just you,
but her daughter too,
dogs.
How would you respond to that?
Who do you think you are?
Who are you calling dogs?
Do you know how I make a living
in this world?
You know how hard I work
to take care of my daughter?
You arrogant,
chauvinistic,
racist.
You're holier than thou.
Keep your bread for yourself.
I'm out of here.
I think that's how
most people respond.
But this Canaanite woman
keeps surprising us.
She says in verse 27,
Yes.
Yes, Lord.
This is one of my favorite
characters in the Gospels.
Yes, Lord.
Yet even the dogs
eat the crumbs
that fall from their
master's table.
Yes, Lord.
You are the master.
They are the children.
Yes, Lord.
I'm just a dog.
A Gentile,
unclean dog.
You are right,
master.
But do not
even the dogs
get to eat the crumbs
that fall from
their master's table.
How much lower
can she go?
And so Jesus
commends her
in verse 28.
It's the moment
he's been waiting for.
Oh, woman,
great is your faith.
Let it be done
for you
as you desire.
The Canaanite woman's
great faith
leads to a great miracle
from Jesus.
It says her daughter
was healed instantly.
There are many
striking perils
between this account
of the healing
of this woman's
demonized daughter,
Canaanite woman's
demonized daughter,
and the healing
of the centurion,
the Gentile centurion's
servant early
in Matthew chapter 8.
They both deal
with Gentiles.
In both cases,
the one who comes
to beg and to plead
with Jesus
is not the one
who needs help.
They ask on behalf
of another.
And in both cases,
they are commended
for an extraordinary
faith that exceeds
the faith of their
Jewish peers.
And in both situations,
Jesus heals them
with a word
instantly,
remotely.
Not by going there
and laying hands on them,
which he does
in normal circumstances,
but from a distance.
He just says the word
and they are healed.
And these are the only
two examples of healing
that happens like that
in the entire
Gospel of Matthew.
Amazing miracle.
And how can it be
that only these two
Gentiles in the entire
Gospel are commended
for extraordinary faith?
This is the only person
in the entire Gospel
who is commended
for having great faith.
It's because
of that great faith
of seeing
that God is who
he really says he is.
And Jesus is who
he really says he is
that enables
this Canaanite woman
to humble herself
in this way
before God.
If you read this story
and you can't get over
how rude
and insensitive
Jesus
and ethnocentric
Jesus seems to be
then you don't quite
yet see God
in all of his glory
and sovereignty.
You don't yet see
his son
in all of his glory
and majesty.
Jesus said
that he came
as a shepherd
to the lost sheep
of the house of Israel.
If you go to Isaiah 40
it describes God
as a shepherd
who tends
to his flock
and who gathers
the lamb in his arms.
And this is the greatness
of the God
the shepherd
that Isaiah 40 described.
It says
that he has measured
the waters
in the hollow of his hand
and marked up the heavens
with the span
and enclosed the dust
of the earth
in a measure
and weighed the mountains
in scales.
Let's digress with me
for just a minute
and think about this.
Imagine this.
This is what God is like.
321 million cubic miles
of ocean water.
It says God measures it
in the hollow of his hand.
The observable heavenly skies
the space
93 billion light years
in diameter.
God marks it off
with the span of his hand.
All the immovable mountains
of the earth
the Andes
Himalayas
the Rocky Mountains
the Appalachian Mountains
God weighs them
on his scales.
It continues
Isaiah 40
the nations
are like a drop
from a bucket
and are accounted
as the dust
on the scales.
all the nations
are as nothing
before Him.
They are accounted
by Him
as less than nothing
and emptiness.
All the nations
of the earth
are like God says
drop from a bucket.
That's how small
they are.
If all the nations
are like that
then how small
is one
Canaanite
woman?
That's how puny
we are compared
to God.
God can choose
to do
whatever He wants
to whomever
He wants.
He is sovereign
He is the potter
and we are the clay.
And that's not
even considering
our sin
and rebellion
against Him.
God is our creator
but rather than
worshiping our creator
as we ought to
as creatures
we have worshipped
our fellow creatures
the created things.
in fact we have
fashioned for ourselves
with our own hands
and with our own
imaginations
so called God's
idols
for ourselves
that we worship.
God is our
just and wise
king
who has ruled
over us
with nothing
but kindness
and benevolence
but we have been
traitors to His kingdom.
We have sought
to overthrow Him
and usurp
His throne
for ourselves.
We have allied
ourselves with
the enemies of God
because we want
to be kings
and rulers
of our own lives.
God is our
heavenly Father
to whom we owe
our very existence.
He provides
for all our needs.
He makes the sun
rise and set.
He sends rain
in its season
but we are
disobedient
unfilial
ungrateful children
who have disowned
their own father.
God is our
betrothed
covenant partner
but we have been
like an unfaithful
bride,
a prostitute
that whores
after other lovers,
other gods.
All of our
righteous deeds
and good works
that we do
are woefully
inadequate
to make any
of that up
and yet
do we have
the bare faced
audacity
to feel
entitled
before God.
God
to approach
God
and make
demands.
Are we
really right
to think
oh poor
Canaanite woman
she hasn't done
anything wrong?
Absolutely not.
She deserves
far worse
than the treatment
that she receives.
We deserve
far worse
than the treatment
that she receives.
what we really
deserve
is condemnation
and damnation
eternal
separation
from God
and the
unquenchable
fires of
divine judgment
in hell.
That is
what every
single human
being in the
world deserves
apart from
Christ.
And that's
the amazing
thing about
this woman's
faith.
This
Canaanite
woman
gets that.
Understands
that.
She
knows
as a
Canaanite
woman
from Tyre
and Sidon
that she
has no
claim
upon the
ministry
of this
Jewish
Messiah.
Her
people have
opposed
Israel
have
oppressed
the people
of God.
She has
no rights
or entitlements
that she
can cling
to.
She knows
that.
She's
in no
position
to bargain
so she
does the
only sensible
thing that
a person
in her
position
can do
which is
to
collapse
onto her
knees
and beg.
And that's
the reality
not only
for a
Canaanite
woman
but for
all of
humanity.
I can
add here
that even
Jews
have no
sense
cannot have
any sense
of right
or entitlement
before God
at this
point.
Yes they
are the
covenant
people of
God
who have
received
the promises
of God
but they
have
forsaken
their covenant
with God
by their
idolatry.
That's why
they are now
a subjugated
and conquered
people here
at this time
under the
Romans.
They have
broken the
laws of
God.
How can
they possibly
expect God
to fulfill
his covenant
obligations
when they
have not
fulfilled
theirs?
all of
us are
debtors
and beggars
and when
we
recognize
this
precious
truth
we
stop
clapping
back at
God.
We
stop
talking
back
at
God.
We
lay our
hands on
our mouths
like Job
does and
we repent
in dust
and ashes.
the
recognition
of this
spiritual
reality
is what
Jesus
calls
in
Matthew
5
3
in
the
first
beatitude
the
poverty
of
spirit
and
poverty
of
spirit
is
essential
for
salvation.
I've
been
praying
for you
this
past
week
that
God
would
grant
you
abject
poverty
of
spirit
a
total
poverty
of
spirit
to
see
that
God
owes
us
nothing
and
that
we
owe
him
everything
to
know
that
God
holds
all
the
cards
we
hold
no
card
to
see
that
God
is
completely
in
the
right
and
we
are
completely
in
the
wrong
and
yet
and
yet
God
loves
us
undeserving
sinners
and
shows
us
mercy
in
Jesus
Christ
that's
the
blessing
of
poverty
of
spirit
is
it
makes
the
grace
and
mercy
of
God
sweet
and
when
you
have
that
poverty
of
spirit
you
cannot
grumble
long
in
life
you
overflow
!
with
gratitude
Praise!
And
that's
why
Jesus
commends
this
Canaanite
woman
as having
great
faith
of
course
Jesus
knew
all
along
that
this
is
what
he
was
headed
to
he
was
simply
testing
her
and
providing
her
an
opportunity
to
demonstrate
her
faith
so
that
all
those
who
come
after
her
like
us
might
follow
her
example
how
do
we
know
that
because
we've
seen
signs
all
along
throughout
Jesus
ministry
up to
this
point
that
his
ministry
and
his
blessings
will
eventually
encompass
all of
the
Gentiles
in
chapter
8
Jesus
already
ministered
to
some
Gentiles
the
Gentile
centurion
like
I
mentioned
earlier
the
gather
and
demoniac
so
it's
not
true
that
Jesus
never
ministered
to
the
Gentiles
also
we
saw
in
Jesus
genealogy
in
chapter
1
that
Matthew
intentionally
mentioned
four
women
Tamar
Rahab
Ruth
Bathsheba
all
of them
Canaanite
woman
pagan
woman
in
the
genealogy
of the
Jewish
Messiah
and
then
Jesus
was
visited
and
worshipped
by
Gentile
magi
in
chapter
2
and
decisively
in
the
immediately
preceding
passage
that I
preached
on
last
week
Jesus
abolished
the
clean
and
unclean
distinction
between
foods
clean
foods
and
unclean
food
he
abolished
that
distinction
and
in
doing
so
he
also
challenged
the
very
basis
for
the
Jewish
Gentile
distinction
clean
people
unclean
people
and
it
is
no
accident
that
right
after
he
is
teaching
in
his
declaration
that
there
is
no
such
thing
as
outside
external
things
that
make
people
unclean
that
he
goes
straight
to
the
district
of
Tyre
and
Sidon
to
minister
to
!
Jesus
knows
Jesus
knows
full
well
that
after
his
death
and
resurrection
that
he
will
call
all
Gentiles
to
himself
that
he
will
send
his
disciples
to go
and
make
disciples
of
all
nations
so
Jesus
is
acting
here
like
a
good
teacher
who
sometimes
plays
the role
of skeptic
and
challenges
the
assumptions
of
his
students
and
ask
probing
questions
not
to
tear
them
down
but
to
draw
out
from
them
deeper
insight
and
stronger
conclusions
just
as a
precious
diamond
can only
form
under
intense
1300
degrees
Celsius
heat
and
millions
of
pounds
of
force
per
square
foot
it's
the
intense
pressure
of
Jesus
testing
that
brings
out
this
precious
jewel
of
the
Canaanite
woman's
faith
if
you're
here
this
morning
and
you
are
not
yet
a
Christian
let
me
ask
you
do
you
feel
like
you
deserve
God's
love
do
you
feel
that
you
have
earned
the
right
to
heaven
if
when
Jesus
says
it
is
not
right
to
take
the
children's
bread
and
throw
it
to
the
dogs
your
response
is
I'm
not
a
dog
I'm
a
good
person
I
deserve
a
seat
at
that
table
then
you've
got it
all
wrong
you
cannot
be
saved
that
way
poverty
of
spirit
humility
which
comes
from
faith
acknowledging
that you
come
empty
handed
before
God
bringing
nothing
to the
table
is
a
requisite
condition
for
your
salvation
but
perhaps
some
others
of you
here
this
morning
feel
deeply
unworthy
already
you feel
keenly
your
guilt
and
shame
you feel
that God
could never
forgive you
for your
sin
or accept
someone
like you
if that's
you
think
again
say
like this
Canaanite
woman
yes
Lord
yes
Lord
it's
true
that's
me
yet
even
the
dogs
eat
the
crumbs
that
fall
from
their
master's
table
whether
you
were
an
idolatrous
Canaanite
who
seduced
and killed
the Jews
whether
you
were
a
Nazi
German
who
massacred
Jews
in
concentration
camps
or a
Hamas
militant
who
was
raped
and killed
Jews
or whether
you're
a
murderer
or an
adulterer
or a
liar
or a
cheater
whatever
you have
done
wherever
you have
come
from
if you
acknowledge
your own
sinfulness
your own
spiritual
poverty
before God
your own
moral
bankruptcy
before God
and you
come
trusting
in Jesus
who died
for the
sins
of his
people
that he
died
on the
cross
and was
raised
from the
dead
for
your
sake
then you
too
can come
to the
table
Jesus
said
earlier in
Matthew
7
6
do not
give
dogs
what is
holy
do not
throw your
pearls
to pigs
but he
throws
the children's
bread to
the dogs
here
why
because
he's
redefining
who the
dogs
are
this
woman's
faith
enabled
her to
see
her
spiritual
reality
and that
in turn
enabled
her to
humble
herself
before
Jesus
in such
a way
that
proves
that
she's
no
dog
she's
invited
to the
table
as the
daughter
of the
king
so if
you feel
that you
are a
gentile
dog
undeserving
sinner
come for
the crumbs
that fall
from the
table
and you'll
find that
they are
not crumbs
at all
you're
going to
receive
the full
loaves
of bread
at the
seat
of the
table of
God
within
his
family
that's
exactly
what we
see in
the second
half
of this
passage
but I
promise you
the second
half of
this
passage
I'll be
much
briefer
in
verses
29
to 31
we see
a summary
of Jesus
ministry
much like
what we
saw
earlier
in
chapter
14
34
to 36
and there
the summary
was preceded
by Jesus
miraculous
feeding
of the
5,000
here
the summary
is succeeded
by Jesus
miraculous
feeding
of the
4,000
so there's
clearly
some kind
of
structural
pattern
that
Matthew
is
building
here
there is
however
one key
difference
in chapter
14
summary
Jesus
was in
Jewish
territory
here in
chapter
15
Jesus
is still
on the
Gentile
side
of the
Sea
of
Galilee
because
he has
not yet
crossed
over
onto
the
other
side
the
parallel
account
in
Mark
7
31
explicitly
confirms
this
that
Jesus
is here
in
the
Decapolis
which
is a
Gentile
region
that
explains
the
somewhat
odd
conclusion
of the
crowd
in
verse
31
it
says
they
glorify
the
God
of
Israel
that's
an
interesting
way
to put
that
because
the
response
of the
Galilean
Jews
wasn't
described
in that
manner
if
Matthew
is
talking
about
Jews
here
it
would
have
been
much
more
natural
simply
to
say
oh
they
glorify
their
God
no
but it
says
here
they
glorify
the
God
of
Israel
because
they're
Gentiles
they're
glorifying
not
their
own
ancestral
gods
but
the
God
of
Israel
so
that
detail
totally
transforms
the
significance
of
these
few
verses
verse
30
says
and
great
crowds
came
to
him
bringing
with
them
the
lame
the
blind
the
crippled
the
mute
and
many
others
and
they
put
them
at
his
feet
and
healed
them
this
summary
list
of
ailments
here
the
lame
the
blind
the
crippled
the
mute
echoes
precisely
the
messianic
prophecy
of
Isaiah
35
5
to
6
that
Jesus
himself
cited
earlier
in
Matthew
11
5
to
reassure
John
the
Baptist
I
am
indeed
the
prophesied
Messiah
that
was
to
come
I
am
the
one
who
makes
the
lame
leap
like
a
deer
make
the
blind
see
make
the
mute
hear
make
the
crippled
walk
and
what's
amazing
the
unexpected
twist
of this
redemptive
story
is that
Matthew
takes
this
prophecy
about
a
Jewish
Messiah
what
he
does
for
his
people
the
Jews
and
then
applies
it
for
the
Gentiles
he's
come
for
them
too
that
trend
continues
into
the
next
paragraph
about
the
feeding
of
the
4000
in
verses
32
to
39
I
won't
get
into
the
details
because
this
story
is
almost
identical
to
the
feeding
of
the
5000
in
chapter
14
verse
13
to
21
that
I
preached
on
last
month
on
Sunday
December
14
so
if
you're
not
satisfied
with
my
treatment
of
this
passage
right
now
you
go
back
and
listen
to
that
one
okay
yeah
there
is
a
notable
difference
still
however
between
this
passage
and
again
it's
that
Jesus
is
in
Gentile
territory
he
doesn't
cross
over
into
the
Jewish
region
of
Magadan
until
verse
39
it says
and
the
two
words
used
for
baskets
the
one
in
chapter
14
and
the
one
in
chapter
15
are
two
different
words
the
one
used
in
chapter
14
is
the
type
of
basket
the
wicker
baskets
that
the
Jews
use
the
basket
mentioned
chapter
15
is a
different
kind
of
basket
and
later
in
Jesus
summary
of
his
feeding
miracles
in
chapter
16
Jesus
maintains
that
distinction
by using
two
different
words
for
basket
in
Matthew
16
verses
9
to
10
and
this
is
why
I
think
there
are
seven
baskets
here
full
of
broken
pieces
left
over
in
verse
37
what's
the
point
what's
the
difference
in
verse
you
know
in
chapter
14
verse
20
they
had
12
baskets
full
of
the
broken
pieces
left
over
12
seems
better
than
seven
right
I
mean
did
Jesus
his
second
miracle
was
just
not
quite
as
powerful
you know
not quite
as many
left over
is that
what's
going on
no I
don't
think
that's
it
at
all
the
numbers
are
symbolic
12
is
a
number
that
represents
Israel
the
12
sons
of
Jacob
the
12
tribes
of
Israel
so
it's
fitting
that
in
the
feeding
of
the
5,000
Jews
that
they
have
12
baskets
full
left
over
to
show
that
Jesus
the
Messiah
the
bread
of
life
sent
from
heaven
is
sufficient
to
provide
for
all
of
them
but
why
the
seven
leftover
baskets
this
time
because
seven
is
the
number
seven
days
the
number
seven
comes
to
symbolize
completeness
and
fullness
all
throughout
God's
written
word
this
is
why
in
Revelation
3
5
Jesus
is
described
as
the
one
who
has
the
seven
spirits
of
God
and
who
holds
the
seven
stars
in
his
right
hand
not
because
God
actually
has
more
than
one
spirit
but
he's
describing
the
fullness
of
God's
spirit
his
omnipresence
and his
immensity
and his
fullness
the
seven
stars
represent
Jesus'
perfect
complete
authority
over all
the heavenly
angels
and the
churches
that they
represent
so then
when there
are seven
baskets full
of the
broken
pieces of
bread
after feeding
the
4,000
Gentiles
plus
women
and
children
we're
supposed
to infer
from this
that Jesus
the Jewish
Messiah
is not
for the
Jews
only
he's
also
here
for
the
Gentiles
I saw
some of you
guys
taking
pictures
I'm
assuming
that the
the
chiasm
was already
projected
on the
screen
right
yeah
so
that's
a
it's
a helpful
way
to see
it
you see
Jesus
is
feeding
of the
5,000
Jews
with 12
baskets
left over
matching
Jesus
feeding
of the
4,000
Gentiles
with seven
baskets
left over
and then
they're
matched
by
testing
of
Peter's
faith
and
Jesus
comment
get this
that Peter
has little
faith
and then
Jesus
is testing
of the
Canaanites
woman's
faith
and telling
her that
she has
great
faith
and right
in the
middle
sandwiched
between
all of
that
Jesus
is
powerful
epoch
changing
declaration
it's
not
what
comes
from
the
outside
in
but
what
comes
from
the
inside
out
that
makes
people
unclean
this
is the
fulfillment
of Isaiah's
prophecy
in 49
6
that it
is
too
light
a
thing
that
you
should
be
my
servant
to
raise
up
the
tribes
of
Jacob
and
to
bring
back
the
preserved
of
Israel
I
will
make
you
as
a
light
for
the
nations
that
my
salvation
may
reach
to
the
end
of
the
earth
that's
what
Jesus
has
come
to
do
and
what
is
it
that
prevented
the
Jews
and
Gentiles
from
coming
together
in
past
ages
it's
the
law
it's
the
law
of
God
the
Torah
the
Jews
had
the
law
the
Gentiles
did
not
Gentiles
did
not
obey
the
law
and
therefore
they
were
cursed
Jesus
fulfills
the
law
by
satisfying
the
justice
of
God
by
dying
on
the
cross
for
our
sins
and
absorbing
that
curse
of
the
law
in
his
own
flesh
so
that
he
can
break
down
the
dividing
wall
of
hostility
between
Jews
and
Gentiles
that's
why
Jesus
says
after
his
feeding
miracle
in
a
parallel
account
in
John
6
after
the
feeding
the
5,000
Jesus
said
I
am
the
bread
of
life
whoever
comes
to
me
shall
not
hunger
and
whoever
believes
in
me
shall
never
thirst
I
mentioned
to you
last month
when I
preached
on that
passage
that the
sequence
of
verbs
that are
used
to
describe
Jesus
miracle
in
the
feeding
of
the
multitudes
exactly
mirrors
the
sequence
of
verbs
used
in
the
institution
of
the
Lord's
supper
he
took
the
bread
he
gave
thanks
he
broke
it
and
he
gave
it
it's
because
Jesus
is
the
bread
of
life
I'll
conclude
with
this
imagine
being
poor
and
starved
having
nothing
to
eat
I've
never
known
that
kind
of
hunger
and
I
hope
you
never
have
either
imagine
your
stomach
feeling
hollowed
out
you
feel
cold
because
your
body
has
no
food
to
burn
your
thoughts
start
to get
muddled
because
you have
no
energy
you
can't
make
simple
decisions
anymore
you
hate
that
you
have
so
little
self
control
over
your
body
because
all
you
can
think
of
is
food
you
hear
the
sound
of
everyone
eating
around
you
the
irreverent
chewing
of
people
around
you
who
have
never
known
hunger
the
quiet
hum
of a
refrigerator
that
you
can
never
open
you
look
longingly
!
at the
neat
and
abundant
rows
of food
displays
at the
grocery
store
like a
religious
sanctuary
that is
close
to
someone
like
you
smell
everything
around
you
the
savory
aroma
of
freshly
baked
bread
that
you
cannot
break
and
you
cannot
eat
friends
that
painful
poverty
and hunger
is the
spiritual
reality
of every
human
being
apart
from
Christ
and
there's
only
one
who
can
satisfy
hunger
and
it's
Jesus
Christ
he
has
come
because
he
is a
gracious
master
and
he
died
on the
cross
to
offer
himself
as
the
bread
of
life
he
was
broken
that
we
might
feed
that
we
might
eat
and
be
nourished
unto
eternal
life
that's
the
good
news
the
gospel
of
Jesus
Christ
have
you
tasted
and
seen
that
the
Lord
is
good
let's
pray
that we
all
do
heavenly
!
Father
Lord
we
are
poor
we
hunger
and thirst
for
righteousness
Father
thank you
for
sending
your
only
son
Jesus
Christ
to be
our
bread
of
life
thank you
that you
take
Gentile
dogs
and make
them
children
and heirs
fellow
heirs
with
Christ
and
thank you
for giving
us a
seat
at your
table
Lord
help us
always
to live
with this
with the
humility
that this
Canaanite
woman
demonstrated
for us
that you
might be
our all
in all
that you
might receive
all glory
honor
and praise
that even
the most
heinous
evildoers
may see
us
and say
well if
that's what
it takes
if they
can be
safe
then surely
I
can come
for the
crumbs
Lord use
us that
way as
messengers
and witnesses
of Jesus
Christ
in Jesus
name we
pray
amen