JESUS went thence, and departed into the coasts of Tyre and Sidon. And, behold, a woman of Canaan came out of the same coasts, and cried unto him, saying, Have mercy on me, O Lord, thou son of David; my daughter is grievously vexed with a devil. But he answered her not a word. And his disciples came and besought him, saying, Send her away; for she crieth after us. But he answered and said, I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel. Then came she and worshipped him, saying, Lord, help me. But he answered and said, It is not meet to take the children's bread, and to cast it to dogs. And she said, Truth, Lord: yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters' table. Then Jesus answered and said unto her, O woman, great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt. And her daughter was made whole from that very hour.
Sermon
for 2nd Sunday in Lent
"The Master’s Table"
~Let us pray~
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In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost;
May the words of my mouth, and the meditation of all our hearts be always acceptable unto Thee, O’ Lord our God, our Strength, and our Redeemer.
~Amen~
let’s start our talk this Sunday morning with the meaning of the dogs and the Children’s bread.
How many of you have ever had a dog?
My wife and I have two!
Mogwa, a brindle pit bull dog, and Black Jack, a toy Black Pomeranian.
One 65 pounds, the other 6 pounds.
Amazingly they are best buddies, they chase each other and play tug of war with an old sock together, they lick and kiss each others face, and they stay side by side in all situations.
We would all do well to learn from the lessons that dogs can teach us.
Dogs are loyal to the death, their love is unconditional, they hold no grudges.
But dogs especially love to do three things.
They love to play.
They love to sleep.
They love to eat.
Of these things, the most “sacred” to a dog, is the “holy” food that comes directly from his master’s table.
Dogs instinctively sense when a scrap or morsel slips off the table towards the floor.
The Pharisees, and many of the Jews frequently referred to the Gentiles as dogs.
They felt that those outside of the covenant were “less” than they and not worthy of being near them, let alone eating at the same table.
The Jews were separate from other races and cultures, as was commanded them by God’s laws, but they fomented that separation more often because they felt themselves superior -- they were God’s Chosen People, and anyone else was simply a cur to be spat upon, avoided and ignored.
In today’s Gospel, Jesus states that He is only “sent to the lost sheep of the house of Israel”.
And He uses an illustration which makes mention of the fact that it is inappropriate for masters to feed their dogs the food designated for their children.
He did this in order to try to deter the Canaanite woman from her objective of seeking healing for her daughter from Him.
But we know Jesus never turns those away who come to Him openly and honestly, seeking strength, healing and forgiveness.
No, He knew the faith of this woman would stand as a testament to all of the incredible love of God.
Now let’s look at what Jesus said and at what He did.
When begged by the woman to heal her daughter, he listened to her cries.
The disciples wanted Him to dismiss her, but He allowed her to remain.
Then she worshipped Him!
Now the Canaanites had a Pantheon of Gods!
A god for this and a god for that!
She threw all those gods out the window and came to Jesus!
What a powerful faith she must have had!
She truly believed that Jesus would provide for her, that He could and would make her daughter whole.
But, He told her “it is not meet to take the children’s bread and cast it to the dogs.”
Christ is the bread of life, sent to the Children of Israel, the Chosen People of God.
The dogs or Gentiles were not part of the covenant; therefore, they were not meet to receive the gift of the children’s bread.
Although it seemed as though the woman had been pushed aside by the Lord’s response, God revealed Himself to the woman through Jesus’ own words.
She heard Him use the Greek word for dogs (kunaria, GSN2952) meaning “lap dogs” or “little dogs.”
She quickly answered our Savior by reminding Him that even the “lap dogs” are allowed to eat of the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.
She believed in the Christ, and yet was a Gentile!
She trusted in His Almighty power and love.
She knew that He would set her daughter free.
Jesus knew she would respond this way.
But He wanted to make sure that she said what she did because He wanted her to reveal something
about Him that had not yet been openly revealed.
He had her open up the truth about the relationship of the Gentiles to the Jews and to the New Covenant!
And the truth that Jesus wanted revealed is this!
(PAY ATTENTION NOW)
We know that this bread is Christ, who embodies the grace of God.
God’s grace is infinite. Since God’s grace is boundless, any crumbs falling from that grace would be just as immeasurable, just as infinite.
The Israelites were given a gift of grace in Christ Jesus.
When the crumbs of that gift were fallen from the table, the Gentiles were allowed to eat of them because the grace provided by God through Christ to the Gentiles is infinite just as it is to the Jews!
Even more significant in this dialogue is Christ’s redefinition of the lost sheep of the House of Israel.
Previously, the house of Israel was thought of only as those descendants of Abraham who had come to be known as the Jews.
When the Babylonians took the Israelites captive, they became dispersed throughout the world, and were scattered, becoming the “lost sheep of the house of Israel.”
But if Jesus was only sent to the hereditary Jews, how could the Gentiles take part?
Jesus allowed the woman to see that God was opening up the house of Israel and declaring all those who would turn and follow Him, to also be His lost sheep, welcoming them into His fold!
Today we are gathered to worship the Lord through the reading of His Word, and in celebration of the Holy Eucharist.
We join together to honor God for His merciful self-sacrifice on the cross at Calvary.
We worship the Lord by coming together and eating of the Manna of Heaven -- that bread reserved for His Children, the lost sheep of the house of Israel,
We Gentiles who are blessed to receive the gracious gift of eternal life through Christ Jesus -- joining with the saints who have gone before, seeking His face, trusting in His omnipotent love, and eating from the immeasurable portions from His Hand, at the Master’s Table!
In this season of Lent, I want you to remember that even the crumbs from the Masters table are sufficient unto thee.
God said to St. Paul, “My grace is sufficient for thee”. (2nd Cor. 12:9)
Even the tiniest speck of God’s own good Grace is immeasurable!
It is infinite!
It is limitless!
It is the food of life!
Life abundant!
Life everlasting!
We are most blessed to receive it every day!
~Let us pray~
And now, unto God the Father, and God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost be ascribed as is most Justly and Rightly Due, All Might, Majesty, Power, and Dominion, Both Now and Forever More.
~Amen~
