August 20, 2023 Text: Matthew 15:21-28
Dear Friends in Christ,
Prayerfully we all have fond memories of the church we grew up in. I was blessed by Pilgrim Lutheran in Decatur. One of the features of my home congregation was the wooden kneelers below our pews. We knelt at prayer time, we knelt after Holy Communion, and we knelt with the lights down low at the end of the service. Our Pastors had no kneelers. I can still picture our Senior Pastor, Pastor Beiderweden, known as Pastor B, kneeling on the stone steps that led up to our altar, bringing the microphone from the altar down to that level and leading the congregation in the Prayer of the Church. Impressive. Impactful. God Blessed.
Today in our text we have a woman with a demon-possessed child who comes to the Lord. She needs help. She takes a position of mercy on her knees. What can we learn by observing . . .
“KNEELING FOR HELP”
Our text begins, “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.’” (vs. 21-22)
Tyre, Sidon, and a Canaanite woman all signal that Jesus is in pagan lands, and these places have the connotation of everything dangerous to those of Israel. Jesus is definitely in foreign territory. In v. 22, the woman’s call to Jesus as Lord and from the royal line of David borders on worship. When she names the enemy as demonic possession, she pits Jesus against Satan in a preview of the cross and resurrection.
Look at what happens next . . . “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.” (vs. 23-26)
You are a little disturbed by this, aren’t you? Jesus is out of character. Dare we say mean and uncaring. The disciples are no better. They just want to get rid of her. At this point how many of you would walk away? Not this lady. She takes a position that makes a difference, she kneels before Jesus. Then she says words that make an impression, “Lord, help me.”
Ever been in this position before your Lord? Have you ever intoned the words, “Lord, help me.” When was that? What caused your knees to hit the ground? A sick child, a marriage going bad, a financial downfall you saw no way out of, the stress level of your job.
Jesus’ answer has always been puzzling to us. Taking children’s bread and throwing it to the dogs. What does he mean here? The dogs are house dogs. Near enough to the table for scraps. Dogs were lowly and contemptible, and thus the boundary between Jew and Gentile is maintained. If we were standing there, we would be the dogs. It’s a begging moment. Don’t we cry to Jesus, “Do something. Do anything. Just don’t leave me in this dark moment.”
The close of our text, “She said, ‘Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ 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.” (vs. 27-28)
The Lord is testing her faith. It brings about kneeling for help. This test shows an unshakeable faith. It is not “You have good faith.” It’s “Great is your faith.” She is an example for the disciples who had the privilege to travel with Jesus but often missed the point. She becomes an example to us who travel with Jesus in His Word – but often miss the point.
William Thomas Kelvin, known as Lord Kelvin – the man who devised the absolute temperature scale – made this observation: “When you are face to face with a difficulty, you are up against a discovery.” A good point to reflect on, don’t you think?
It is true that the Lord does allow bad things to enter our lives. He uses them to test, to chasten, to remind us of what this world is and to prepare us for eternal life. Christ said, “My kingdom is not of this world.” If His kingdom is not of this world, then neither is yours nor mine nor anyone else who holds on to Christ.
The Christ whose blood covers our sin – the Christ who overcame death and hell for us – does not set out to torment us in life. In these moments His Word draws us to real life – forgiveness and heaven. Jesus isn’t loving us less when we struggle and suffer. He always loves us. The struggles and sufferings are the things He uses to give shape and substance to our faith and prepare us for eternity.
Kneeling for help. We will take the position for Holy Communion. We humbly ask for His blessings, though we do not deserve them. A wafer in the mouth, wine touching the tongue, Jesus’ body and blood present. These are not leftover scraps. It is forgiveness unto life everlasting. What a blessing. For the Canaanite woman and her daughter and for us . . . when kneeling for help.
Amen.