Great Faith Pleases The Lord, No Matter Who You Are! (Matthew 15:21-28) - A Sermon By Elise Beatrice

Great Faith Pleases The Lord, No Matter Who You Are!

A Sermon By Elise Beatrice - 21 December 2024

Transcript

Mathew 15:21-28,

“21 Then Jesus left Galilee and went north to the region of Tyre and Sidon. 22 A Gentile woman who lived there came to Him, pleading, “Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David! For my daughter is possessed by a demon that torments her severely.”

23 But Jesus gave her no reply, not even a word. Then, His disciples urged Him to send her away. “Tell her to go away,” they said. “She is bothering us with all her begging.” 24 Then Jesus told the woman, “I was sent only to help God’s lost sheep—the people of Israel.”

25 But she came and worshiped Him, pleading again, “Lord, help me!” 26 Jesus responded, “It isn’t right to take food from the children and throw it to the dogs.” 27 She replied, “That’s true, Lord, but even dogs are allowed to eat the scraps that fall beneath their masters’ table.”

28 “Dear woman,” Jesus said to her, “your faith is great. Your request is granted.” And her daughter was instantly healed.”

SERMON

This is a beautiful thing happening here. Of course, if people do not understand this passage, they will think that the Lord was rejecting this woman. But the Lord Jesus knew exactly what would happen. She was not an Israelite, yet she had faith. She had heard the words of God, the teachings of the Lord Jesus, and she believed them somehow to be able to come to Him herself, to understand that she could take her problem to the Lord Jesus.

An evil spirit is not going to help people to go to the Lord; only the Spirit of the Lord helps people to see where the Lord is. So, she came and pleaded because she believed the Lord Jesus was bigger than the problem of the possession she was having with her daughter.

When Jesus gave her no reply, He was not ignoring the woman, but He wanted those present to see an example of great faith. The Lord had already seen her heart and had already known what she was going to say. But the Lord was not to keep this beautiful thing to Himself. He had to let her speak, and He had to respond as anybody would to a conversation, to let this woman express her faith as a great example to those who were present and also to us today.

So, if the Lord had given her a reply straight away, it would have stopped her from responding the way she did, which was pleasing to the Lord.

We are humans; we don’t always understand the Lord’s mind. No one present knew what was going on in the Lord’s mind. But the disciples, being humans, reacted as some humans in that situation would.

“Tell her to go away; she is bothering us with all her begging.”

But her begging was not disturbing the Lord; He wanted her to speak. It was a test. The Lord wanted everyone present to see. Yes, all the begging she had already given with no reply did not bother her. So, she directed to the Lord Himself, “Lord, help me!” Nobody is going to say, “Lord, Help me!” unless they trust 'that Lord' will help them. She was dealing with her daughter being possessed by a demon. This is a matter that is bigger than any human. People, even today, do not understand, and when they’re dealing with the issue of demon possession, it is always a frightening situation for any human, even those who are faithful to the Lord; it is still a difficult task to deal with. And if it is a frightening task for those who serve the Lord, let alone for those who don’t know the Lord yet. But she believed that if this Lord Jesus could do this thing, this beautiful wonder He had already done before that day, then her problem was nothing to Him, and she was right to think that way.

Jesus responded, “It isn’t right to take food from the children and throw it to the dogs.”

The Lord is not calling her ‘dogs’ here. He is not referring to her as a barking dog. But it is only a natural fact that in our home, we cannot take the food from the children and throw it at the dogs; first, you feed the children, and if there are leftovers, then you give them to the dogs. There is also this ‘dog’ here, which also symbolises anybody who does not listen to God, who does not serve God. He is speaking like this for us to hear. Because, also in the Book of Revelation, the ‘dogs’ will be left outside the Gate of the New Jerusalem. No sinful one will enter the Gate of the New Jerusalem.

So, when the Lord is saying the word ‘dogs’ here, that applies to those who practice sins. None of those people will enter the Gate of the New Jerusalem, the Holy City of God, the Bride of Christ.

If while we’re feeding our children, some food falls on the floor like it happens in our kitchen all the time; we cannot stop a dog from running and picking it up. The dog has a right to pick up the scraps that fall from the table. And so, this woman, in a humble manner, came here because she trusted that, ‘Okay, though I’m not a Jew, I have faith in this Lord, and I believe He can deliver my daughter from this demon possession.’ She also had wisdom to understand that what her daughter was suffering from was a demon possession. Not many people even today admit that demons have polluted this earth, and many people are possessed, and their bodies have become the house of demons. People want to refuse this truth; many live in denial. But at that time, even that woman had understood her daughter was possessed by a demon. The truth was clear to her.

When people believe in the truth of the Lord, they are already inviting God, who is the Way, the Truth and the Life.

The Lord went to Tyre and Sidon to preach the Gospel for whoever hears. He says, “Let those who have ears hear; let those who have eyes see.” And that woman happened to have ears, so she heard. She listened and understood. She had seen before her the Messiah. And she also understood that she was entitled to go to Him. And she let no one, not even the Apostles of Christ, stop her. Her faith got her through, and that’s what the Lord wanted to express in this situation, to say to people, ‘Look, among my people, Israelites, there are not many with such great faith as this gentile woman. So, I am not just here for my own people; I am here for everyone who trusts in Me. This gentile woman trusted in Me. She came to me believing that I would deliver her daughter from that demon possession.’

So, that’s what the Lord wants us to understand from this situation.

The Lord already knew her faith, but that test of faith was not for the Lord; it was for us all to see an example of great faith and to understand that the Lord did not come just for the Israelites.

For the Lord Jesus is clothed in righteousness. And the Lord was impressed by the faith of this gentile woman. And He said, “Dear woman, your faith is great. Your request is granted.” And her daughter was healed instantly.

The Lord said, “Ask, and it shall be given to you.” The woman had asked with great faith, and that pleased the Lord, and He heard her plea and delivered her daughter from that demon who possessed her. So that is what the Lord is teaching us from this passage.

Lord, I love You, and I thank You so much for You are the giver of faith. You see everything, and You have a way of looking into people’s hearts. You know exactly who is seeking the truth and who accepts that truth. And when You see that they are hungry for that truth, You feed them with the truth, You give them that truth more and more, and You remove the veil from their eyes so that they can see. The enemy, the devil, has put a veil in many people’s eyes, and they can come face to face with the truth, but they can’t tell it is the truth. But this gentile woman had seen that truth and wanted it more and more. And now that You healed her daughter, I bet she went to her home and abandoned her other beliefs and embraced only the belief in You. But she first believed in You in order to see Your wonders.

You were the Master, Lord, and still are now. And she was coming to eat the scraps that fell from Your table. But You did not let her eat the scraps; You gave her a plate to sit with You and eat as one of Your friends, and that was amazing of You, Lord, what You did for her.

Thank You so much, Lord Jesus. Thank You for Your grace and Your Mercy, Your Love and Your peace. Thank You for blessing Your people everywhere and those who seek You. In Your Holy Name, Lord Jesus, I pray.

Amen.