Great Faith in the Love of a Mother--Matthew 15:21-28 (Mother's Day Sermon)

            On this Mother’s Day, I would like to look with you at the story of one of the greatest women of faith in the whole Bible. Now, each of you probably has your own idea about which woman I may be thinking of. Some of you are likely thinking, “We’re about to look at the book of Ruth!” That’s a good guess, but that’s not where were headed today. Now that you’ve heard that, you’re probably thinking, “Oh – we’re going to study the story of Esther.” Another good guess, but wrong again.

            I would tell you the name of the woman whose story we’re going to read today, but the truth is the Bible doesn’t tell us her name! In fact, she was a woman who was not even supposed to be alive. Let’s find out about her, shall we? Turn with me to Matthew 15:21-28.

            This passage is in the Gospels, so of course it is recording an incident from the life of Christ. Verse 21 begins by telling us, “And Jesus went away from there and withdrew to the district of Tyre and Sidon.” Before we continue, let me explain a bit about why Jesus was headed to that area.

            The district of Tyre and Sidon was north of Israel and was actually a different country. If you think of Israel as the United States, it would be as if Jesus had traveled into Canada at this point. The Gospel of Mark makes it a bit more clear that Jesus had crossed the border at this point in time seeking some rest and relaxation for himself and the 12 disciples. They had been engaged in ministry continuously for some time, and they were beginning to wear out.

            Here’s what Mark 6:30-33 says about that stretch of time: “The apostles returned to Jesus and told him all that they had done and taught. And he said to them, ‘Come away by yourselves to a desolate place and rest a while.’ For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat. And they went away in the boat to a desolate place by themselves. Now many saw them going and recognized them, and they ran there on foot from all the towns and got there ahead of them.”

            So they were trying to get a bit of rest, but it was proving to be impossible to get away from the crowds. The same thing happened again just a few verses later in Mark 6:53-55: “When they had crossed over, they came to land at Gennesaret and moored to the shore. And when they got out of the boat, the people immediately recognized him and ran about the whole region and began to bring the sick people on their beds to wherever they heard he was.”

            After all this, Jesus decided that they truly needed to get away from it all, so the beginning of this same story in Mark 7:24 says this: “And from there he arose and went away to the region of Tyre and Sidon. And he entered a house and did not want anyone to know, yet he could not be hidden.” It’s important for us to realize, then, that Jesus had not come into this area to do ministry, either through teaching or healing. Remember that detail, because it will help us understand what is to follow in this story.

            Back in Matthew 15 now, verse 22 begins with, “And behold.” Don’t rush over that like it some throwaway word! It’s like Matthew is saying, “You’re not going to believe what happened next!” And what did happen next? “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.’”

            Two facts in this verse make this whole situation highly ironic. The first is the fact that this woman was a Canaanite. The Canaanites were ancient enemies of the people of Israel. They were the people who lived in the land of Palestine during the time of Joshua and the Conquest, the people whom the children of Israel were supposed to wipe out completely through battle. Now please understand that when God gave that command, he was not being mean-spirited or bloodthirsty or prejudicial. That command was a judicial act on the part of God, who is the rightful judge over all the earth. He was passing a judgment on the Canaanites because they were exceedingly wicked people. Yet the Israelites did not fully obey that command, and so the Canaanites continued to live in various parts of the Promised Land, which allowed this woman to be alive at that time and in that place in order to cry out to Jesus.

            The second fact is that this woman called Jesus the Son of David. If you do a search for that phrase in the Gospel of Matthew, you’ll discover that the religious leaders were outraged when anyone suggested that Jesus was the Son of David because that title connected him to all of the prophecies about the Messiah from the Old Testament. To call Jesus the Son of David was at least the beginning of faith in him, and in the Gospel of Matthew that affirmation was only made by the unlikeliest of people, such as blind beggars on the side of the road and this Canaanite woman.

            But Jesus responds to her in a way that seems a bit surprising [READ v. 23]. Now the sense seems to be that the disciples were saying, “Lord, just give her what she wants and get her out of here! It’s embarrassing having this woman carrying on like this!” What tremendous compassion from the disciples! A lot of concern for the woman, right? Their request basically amounted to, “Lord, use your power to get this nuisance away from us!”

            But Jesus reminded them of something in verse 24 when he answered them, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” That statement might sound a bit cruel or even bigoted to us, but we need to see it from a different perspective. Jesus had not been sent into the world to heal every person on earth at that time who was sick or demon-possessed. Please do remember that, because if that had been Jesus’ mission, then unfortunately we would have to say that he failed, because he never made it any further out of Israel than this.

            His first purpose in coming to earth was to offer to the Jewish people the kingdom that had been promised to them in the Old Testament. That’s why his earliest recorded sermons said, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!” It was not his highest mission to heal everyone he encountered, but to offer salvation first of all to the Jews, then the through them to the rest of the world.

            Also, with this response, I have to think that Jesus was setting the disciples up to see something they really needed to see – an example of great faith. Jesus told them several times in the Gospel of Matthew that they had “little faith,” so they needed to see great faith in action. Undoubtedly then, part of Jesus’ intention in verse 24 was to set up what came next.

            Let’s see what did happen next [READ vv. 25-26]. That statement almost sounds a bit rude, doesn’t it? But since it comes from the lips of Jesus, we have to conclude that he did not mean to be rude or prejudicial or hateful.

            I think Jesus was perhaps making that statement as kind of a proverb or a cliché, just like we sometimes say things that wouldn’t be very kind if you took them literally. For example, imagine that you were about to leave your house to run an errand and your spouse said, “Could you run this by so-and-so’s house?” You might possibly say something like, “Sure! If I’m going to go into town, I might as well kill two birds with one stone.”

            Now, you’re not really comparing that other person to a bird, and you’re certainly not talking about killing them! You’re simply using a proverb or a cliché, and I think that may have been the attitude with which Jesus made this statement. The statement itself was really a reminder that the woman did not have a right to ask this question. That didn’t necessarily make the question entirely inappropriate, but she could not lay any particular claim upon Jesus and expect him to oblige her request. In other words, Jesus was stating that she was not entitled to receive a blessing like this, not even in the way that the Jewish people could have made a case for receiving God’s blessings based on his promises to them.

            The woman’s reply revealed her trust in Jesus because she made it clear that she was not coming to him with an entitlement mindset at all [READ v. 27]. Notice how she agreed with what Jesus had said before she humbly made her request again. If I could paraphrase her statement, I think I would say this: “You’re right, Lord! You are not obligated to do this for me, and I can’t claim any right to receive this blessing, but I just know that with you, there are plenty of blessings to go around!”

            In other words, she was asking Jesus to help her not out of any obligation, but out of his mercy and grace. That’s an illustration of saving faith right there! When we ask God to forgive us of our sins, we are not asking for that because we feel we’re entitled to it. Rather, we are appealing to God on the basis of his mercy and grace, which is precisely what this woman was doing here.

            Jesus saw that clearly of course, so he complemented her and granted her request [READ v. 28]. This woman was a great example of faith because she appealed to Jesus on the basis of mercy and grace, not from any attitude of entitlement or obligation. That’s what set this woman apart from about everyone else in the Gospel of Matthew. The Jewish people had come to feel entitled to God’s blessings despite the fact that they were failing to obey him in many ways. But this woman understood the attitude that God delights to honor – an attitude of simple trust in him, through which we simply cast ourselves upon his mercy and grace.

            Finally today, notice how this woman exemplifies so many of the qualities that we appreciate about our mothers. She was persistent in seeking help for her child. She was not going to give up until her child’s needs were met! She was also very humble, and how many times have we seen great humility from our own mothers! They have frequently embraced thankless tasks simply out of their love for us. And many of us have seen in our own mothers examples of great faith in God. Make sure to thank your mothers for these things, and may we all learn from the great example of faith that we have seen in this Canaanite woman.

What if there were no women in the Bible?--Mother's Day Sermon

Some people over the years have felt that the Bible is derogatory toward women—that it pictures women as being inferior to men and thus some kind of second-class citizens. But in reality, women play an absolutely crucial role at every stage of the biblical story. In fact, I would argue that because of the Bible, Christians hold women in higher esteem than any other religion in the world. Today, I would like you to consider the question, “What if there were no women in the Bible?” How would the story of Scripture be different if the contributions of women were removed from it? We’re going to consider a number of different women one by one to highlight their contributions to the story of Scripture. 1. Eve We might as well start at the beginning with Eve. Eve had an obvious and absolutely crucial role in the story of Scripture—without her, there would be no human race! That is precisely why God said that it was not good for Adam to be alone. The only time in the creation week that God said something was not good was when Adam was still alone. God could not give His final “seal of approval” to creation until He created woman. Think about that—what higher compliment could possibly be given to women? Adam by himself was not enough for God’s plan to be carried out; without Eve, the plan could not have moved forward. After Adam and Eve, the story of Scripture quickly comes into focus upon the children of Israel. On numerous occasions, that nation—and thus the family of Jesus—were saved from tragedy by the brave actions of women 2. Hebrew midwives (Exodus 1) When the children of Israel were slaves in Egypt, Pharaoh commanded all male Hebrew babies to be killed. But the Hebrew midwives refused to carry out this command and thus saved their people from possible extinction 3. Pharaoh’s daughter (Exodus 2) This brave woman found the infant Moses in a basket floating in the Nile. Pharaoh’s own daughter disobeyed her father’s command and spared his life, thus saving that man whom God would later use to free His people from their slavery in Egypt and to give us the first five books of the Bible. 4. Rahab (Joshua 2) As the Jews were preparing to carry out God’s command to conquer the Promised Land, they sent spies into Jericho, the first city that had to be taken. Rahab hid the spies from the city leaders and let them know that the whole city was overcome with fear, because they had heard what God had done for the children of Israel. Without her, the spies may have been captured, and the people may not have had the courage to lay siege to Jericho. 5. Deborah (Judges 4) Deborah was a prophetess and a judge, meaning that God spoke through her to the people, and she settled disputes among the nation. During her time, the Israelites were in danger of being enslaved by the Canaanites. The men who led the army were too afraid to go into battle, so Deborah went with them to give them confidence, and the enemies of Israel were defeated. 6. Ruth (Book of Ruth) Ruth was not even Jewish by birth, but she embraced the God of Israel and became a direct ancestor of the Lord Jesus Christ. Without her, we would be without a beautiful picture of redemption and salvation, and the line of King David and the Lord Jesus would not exist. 7. Hannah (1 Samuel 1-2) Hannah was the mother of Samuel, the first prophet that God raised up after a long silence during the time of the judges. He essentially functioned as another Moses just before the people demanded a king for themselves. Without Hannah and her willingness to dedicate Samuel to God’s service, the children of Israel would have been without their main leader during his lifetime. 8. Esther (Book of Esther) Esther became the Queen of Persia through God’s providence, and she used her influence with the king to save the children of Israel from being annihilated by their enemies. Thus, the nation—the family of Jesus—was once again saved from extinction by a woman. 9. King Lemuel’s Mother (Proverbs 31) Many people don’t realize that the description of the excellent wife in Proverbs 31 was a poem of sorts from a mother to her son, which was undoubtedly meant to teach him about the kind of wife he should desire. This motherly advice has helped so many young men over the years. Without it, men would be even a little more clueless as we seek a wife for ourselves! 10. Solomon’s wife (The Song of Solomon) Since marriage is such an important relationship, it only makes sense that God would give us an entire book about it. Through the interaction of Solomon and his wife, we learn so much about romance and the realities of true love. 11. Mary (Luke 1) Mary obviously played a crucial role in the story of Scripture. Without her, we would not have the Savior, our Lord Jesus Christ! Mary is probably the most revered woman in the world today. Now I must say that some of the attention that Mary receives goes too far, particularly within the Catholic Church, but Mary was correct when she said in Luke 1:48-49, “from now on all generations will call me blessed; for he who is mighty has done great things for me, and holy is his name.” Mary herself puts our focus on the proper person—God, the Mighty One—but we can highly respect Mary for her willingness to suffer potential shame and misunderstanding in order to obey God. 12. Jesus’ female disciples (Luke 8:1-3; Luke 24) Many people don’t realize that in addition to the twelve apostles, Jesus also had a group of female followers who traveled with Him during His ministry. According to Luke 8:3, these women “provided for them out of their means.” This is the only reference we have to any of Jesus’ disciples providing for the group’s needs. Undoubtedly Jesus received hospitality as He traveled, but without these women, His ministry may not have been financed. And let’s not forget that some of these same women were the first ones to discover that Jesus’ tomb was empty! 13. Phoebe (Romans 16:1-2) According to Romans 16, this woman was the messenger who carried the letter to the Romans from Paul to its destination in Rome. Without her, we may not have this important letter that has sparked so many revivals throughout the history of the church. 14. Lois and Eunice (2 Timothy 1:5) These women were the grandmother and mother of Timothy, whom we read about in the book of Acts and in the two letters that were written to him by the apostle Paul. We don’t know much at all about Timothy’s grandfather or father, but we know that these two godly women passed a genuine faith in God down through the generations of their family, and their faithfulness has touched the entire world. Without them, there would be no Timothy, and we would be missing two books of the Bible that are so important for our understanding of how we are supposed to act in the church today. Their example should be an encouragement for all mothers. Little did they know as they told little Timmy the stories of the Old Testament, that one day their faithfulness would impact the whole world. And so it is with you, mothers—you have no idea how God may use the smallest of sacrifices that you make in raising your children. So be faithful in your calling as mothers, and let all of us honor our mothers for all that they mean in our lives.

Honoring Our Mothers and Wives--Mother's Day 2011

A little boy once forgot his lines in a Sunday School presentation. His mother was in the front row to prompt him. She gestured and formed the words silently with her lips, but it did not help. Her son’s memory was blank. Finally, she leaned forward and whispered the cue, “I am the light of the world.” The child beamed and with great feeling and in a loud clear voice said, “My mother is the light of the world!”1

Our mothers may not be the light of the world, but undoubtedly they are the light of our lives. They deserve our thanks and our gratitude every day, but it is also very appropriate for us to celebrate a day like Mother’s Day, where we set aside some time to give them special recognition.

This morning we are going to look at a few verses that encourage us to honor our mothers—and not just our mothers, but our wives as well. We’ve been studying the book of Proverbs for several months now, and at the end of Proverbs we find a poem that praises the “virtuous woman” or the “excellent wife.” Why don’t you turn with me to Proverbs 31?

We find this poem in vv. 10–31. We’re not going to look at this entire poem today; we’re just going to focus on the last four verses that describe how this woman’s children and husband respond to her. If the majority of this poem teaches women to live, then these verses teach children and husbands how to honor their mothers and wives. Let’s read these verses [READ 31:28–31].

Let’s take a look at the behavior of the family in these verses. First, look at the children. Verse 28 says that they “rise up and call her blessed.” You can think of someone standing up to give a toast at a banquet or a party. That’s the idea here—the idea of making a declaration of kind words about another person. The end of the verse says that they call her “blessed,” which means that she is worthy of this praise that they give her.

So we can see that this action from the children even goes beyond the casual compliments that we HOPEFULLY give to our mothers on a regular basis. This behavior is more formal, more solemn, and I think we can say that it is even more public. At the very least, these compliments are spoken to a larger audience than just our mothers. Many of the things for which our mothers deserve praise are unknown to other people because they happen in the privacy of the home. Thus, I think it is very appropriate for us to praise our mothers to other people so that their godly deeds do not go unrecognized.

Next, the poem mentions the husband, and he, too, is praising his wife. He really shows us how to do it, men! He says, “Many women have done excellently, but you surpass them all.” That’s good stuff right there!

I think it may be very significant that the Bible records what the husband says to praise his wife. Men, it is very important for us to continually offer verbal praise and affirmation to our wives. This is a need for them that we don’t always understand because of our differences.

There is a book that was published about five years ago that I would encourage all men to read. It is called “For Men Only.” The book was based on a nationwide survey of over 3,000 women, and it was written to help men understand their wives more clearly so that we can love them more perfectly.

In this book, the authors write about the deep need that woman have to receive verbal affirmation from their husbands. In one chapter, they write about feelings of insecurity that women deal with. In their survey, they found that 70% of all women said that they occasionally or often wonder how their husband feels about them. But this might be the most surprising statistic for us, men—only 20% of women said that these thoughts only come up during a period of difficulty in the marriage. Do you understand what that means? Even if things are going fine by all accounts, your wife might still be feeling insecure about your love for her! This is not the way that we think, is it men? We tend to think that everything is fine unless we see our wives walking out the door with luggage! But women don’t feel that way, so they need to hear that you love them, and they need to hear it often. Among women who were younger than 45, 91% said that they occasionally or often feel insecure about their husband’s love. If that’s the case, then we should tell them often that we love them.

Our wives also need to hear that we think they’re beautiful. According to the survey, 60% of all women said that they have a deep need to know that their husband thinks they’re beautiful. Among women younger than 45, that percentage rose to 77%. But here’s the best part, men—when asked how they feel after their husband tells them they’re beautiful, 89% of all women said it makes their day. Only 8% said, “It’s nice, but I don’t care that much,” and only 3% said, “It makes no difference to me.” This means that even if your wife doesn’t feel like she needs to hear this from you, most likely it will make her day if you just tell her! So the husband in this poem sets a great example for us by verbally praising his wife. He tells her how he feels about her, and we should do the same.

Verse 30 is a great verse for every young man to keep in mind as he thinks about a potential spouse. The greatest trait a woman can have is the fear of the Lord. Charm is nice, but it may deceitful. Charm may be the only thing a woman possesses, and if that’s the case, she will not make a great wife. Beauty is great, but it will fade over time. Thus, both charm and beauty pale in comparison to the beautiful spirit that is manifested when a woman fears the Lord, and a woman with this kind of spirit deserves to be praised.

Verse 31 then continues on that theme. It says first of all, “give her of the fruit of her hands.” The concept of “fruit” speaks of what the woman has produced with her hard work. In this poem, the wife has brought prosperity to her home through her hard work, and this verse would tell us that she should be allowed to enjoy some of the benefits that her work has created. It would be unfair and unjust to deprive the wife of such blessings. Various lines in this poem describe other people enjoying what the wife’s work has provided, and she should be allowed to enjoy it as well.

Finally, the poem concludes by saying, “let her works praise her in the gates.” In Old Testament times, many cities had a wall built around them, and the area where the gate was located became the place where public matters were dealt with. Business affairs and legal matters were dealt with there. In Montezuma, USA, we would talk about Main Street; that’s where much of our business is conducted and where people bump into each other. So in the New Montezuma Translation of the Bible, we might say, “let her have a good reputation over on Main Street—among the people who gather for coffee at Eva’s, or the people you bump into in the post office. A virtuous wife deserves a good reputation in public.

Do you know what this means, men? It means that we need to be careful with the things that we say about our wives to others. When the All-Boys Club is in session, its easy to air our dirty laundry a bit, isn’t it? We might joke about our wives or tell stories about some of their short-comings. But—let her works praise her in the gates! Let her enjoy a good reputation among others. A virtuous wife and mother is like an angel from God, so don’t clip her wings with careless words!

Women have such an important role in our world, and that goes for mothers in particular. I want to close by reading a poem that beautifully describes the impact that mothers have on our world. It is called “The Hand that Rocks the Cradle.”

Blessings on the hand of women!
Angels guard its strength and grace,
In the palace [or the cottage],
Oh, no matter where the place;
Would that never storms assailed it,
Rainbows ever gently curled;
For the hand that rocks the cradle
Is the hand that rules the world.

Infancy's the tender fountain,
Power may with beauty flow,
Mother's first to guide the streamlets,
From them souls unresting grow--
Grow on for the good or evil,
Sunshine streamed or evil hurled;
For the hand that rocks the cradle
Is the hand that rules the world.

Woman, how divine your mission
Here upon our [native] sod!
Keep, oh, keep the young heart open
Always to the breath of God!
All true trophies of the ages
Are from [mother’s] love impearled;
For the hand that rocks the cradle
Is the hand that rules the world.

Blessings on the hand of women!
Fathers, sons, and daughters cry,
And the sacred song is mingled
With the worship in the sky--
Mingles where no tempest darkens,
Rainbows evermore are hurled;
For the hand that rocks the cradle
Is the hand that rules the world.2

1 Bits and Pieces, August, 1989
From http://bible.org/illustration/my-mother-light-world Accessed May 4, 2011

2 Poem by William Ross Wallace. Brackets represent my own updates to the language.