"Persistence"
Sermon Presented August 14, 2005
Matthew 15:21-28
Four years ago, Del Garcia knew that her new Mazda sport utility vehicle was a lemon. It was in the repair shop as frequently as it was in her garage. When the dealership wouldn't replace it under the consumer protection law, she hired an attorney.
Garcia's case went to the circuit court, the state Court of Appeals, the state Supreme Court, back to circuit court, back to the Court of Appeals and back to circuit court again before the Mazda finally went back to the dealership where Del had purchased it. After the ordeal was over, she said: "I hope what has happened will give others the incentive to stick with it." (Journal Sentinel Tuesday, August 9, 2005) It took persistence for her to win!
Tuesday I read an editorial in the Journal Sentinel eulogizing John H. Johnson, the founding publisher of Ebony and Jet magazines. Johnson, who died last Monday, was one of America's most influential black leaders and a winner of the Presidential Medal of Freedom. As a young man, he realized that the black community was famished for their own publications. After convincing his mother to hock her furniture for $500, he launched a business that grew to annual revenues of about $500 million. His vision and tenacity proved that "long shots do come in."
The unnamed Gentile woman in our text has something in common with Garcia and Johnson! She's tenacious! When she sees Jesus traveling through the territory of Tyre and Sidon, she starts yelling at him and she won't shut up! Listen to her story found in Matthew 15:21-28.
Why did Matthew tell this story? I would have been embarrassed to tell it because it doesn't speak well of Jesus! The Gospel according to Matthew - the Good News of Jesus Christ contains a story that shows Jesus in a negative light and an unnamed woman in a positive light. Matthew may have told it to convince his Jewish audience to reach out to non-Jews, but he doesn't say that, so we will have to wonder.
In this story, Jesus and his disciples leave Galilee to travel into Gentile territory where Jesus encounters a mother who is so desperate to see her daughter healed, that she boldly confronts him. She runs after him shouting: "Have mercy on me, Lord, Son of David; my daughter is tormented by a demon." And what is Jesus' response? The Jesus we believe was always compassionate and caring blew her off. But the woman persists!
When the disciples urge Jesus to send her away because she annoys them, Jesus announces that he was sent only to the Jews. "Sorry, woman, you're out of luck! You are the wrong race!" Jesus had previously told his disciples to share the good news only with the lost sheep of the house of Israel, and he also stated that his mission was to the Jews. He's being consistent with his mission as he understands it.
Desperate, this mother kneels before him and pleads for help. She's at the end of her rope - as any parent who has had a seriously ill child can attest. Many families don't survive such an ordeal intact. Jesus' reply disappoints me terribly! I hate this part of the story! I can't believe he said: "It's not fair to take food from the children and throw it to the dogs." Now if I had been that mother, I would have thrown out an angry retort and left in tears, with my child in the same condition as before. But her child was healed because she wasn't like me!
As a word of explanation, in those days, the term "dogs" was typically applied to non-Jews. And when Jesus calls her people "dogs", she accepts this nomenclature and responds accordingly: "Then treat me as well as you treat a dog. Even dogs get the crumbs the children drop." With this reply, Jesus heals her daughter.
I've thought a lot about this text and I still have trouble with it. However, there are two major thoughts I want you to consider: 1. the value of persistence, and 2. the fact that this woman was instrumental in Jesus' formation. You probably agree with the first point and question the second. We will look at both.
First, there's the persistence of the woman. There are few things of value that don't require persistence. Last week I listened to Jeff Shaara's book, The Glorious Cause on CD, reminding me of the persistence of the disadvantaged American forces in the Revolutionary War under George Washington. I thought of J. K. Rowling, the single mom who quit her job to write because she believed in her character of Harry Potter and is now a billionaire. Then there was Vince Lombardi, a man who persisted and became one of the premier names in football even though an "expert" claimed he possessed minimal football knowledge and lacked motivation. Richard Hooker worked on a book for 7 years and then was rejected by 21 publishers before someone believed in him and Mash was published. Persistence with physical therapy following surgery brings renewed strength and motion to the repaired body part. Persistent efforts by those who care about education, affordable housing, environmental issues, and helping the poor eventually make a difference. Restoring the vitality of a marriage takes persistence.
We know this, but we often give up when we don't see immediate results from our efforts. When we believe in something - a future goal for us individually, our business or our church - we need to persevere toward that goal - even in the face of seemingly impossible obstacles. Without persistence, we can't achieve success. The Canaanite woman is a great role model!
My next thought is one you may want to challenge. That's okay! I want you to think about it. This Gentile woman was instrumental in Jesus' formation. Just as Jesus taught others, he also learned from them, and I believe this unnamed woman taught him something that he needed to learn. Through her quick thinking and wit, she caused him to reconsider his refusal to grant healing to her child. She reminded him that both children and dogs could eat of the food from the table, and that both Jews and Gentiles deserve God's favor.
Most people today think of Jesus exclusively in divine terms. We forget that he was also human. At times he was tired, angry, hungry, sad, and ravaged with pain. Luke 2:52 says: "Jesus increased in wisdom and years and in divine and human favor." You can't increase in wisdom if you have ALL wisdom. You can't increase in favor with God if you already have perfect union.
Even though Jesus taught others, he also learned from them. Some people ministered to Jesus by providing food and lodging, but this woman became his teacher before he healed her daughter. She helped him cross boundaries to minister to those the Jews considered to be outside of God's fold.
Jesus understood that he was sent exclusively to the children of Israel, and he was saving his miracles and teaching for the Israelites. It wasn't until after the resurrection that the spread of the good news was generally understood to extend beyond the Jewish race. But this non-Jewish woman dogged Jesus early in his ministry, and refraining from anger, persisted until her daughter was healed.
We believe that God loves all people and that we should too, but in practice, we leave universal love to God and try to concentrate on the groups to which we belong, our family, church, business associates, friends and neighbors. And sometimes those we come in contact with most frequently are the hardest to love. But God also calls us to cross boundaries and act in a loving manner toward people who are outside of our circle.
Jesus inferred that it was the great faith of the Canaanite woman that brought about her daughter's healing. But I believe that her faith and her persistence helped open Jesus' eyes to the universal scope of the gospel. The field was much broader at that time than even Jesus envisioned. The field included Gentiles.
If Jesus had the wisdom to learn from this woman, so should we. I believe that we can learn something from each person we meet. (Granted, I will never teach Lawrence anything about history or Wilanna anything about music but there may be something else I can teach them. They teach me lots - as to the rest of you.) Jesus was sent first to the Jews and then to the rest of the world. The Canaanite woman represents us! I pray we will be as persistent as she when it comes to making a difference! I pray we will be able to look beyond the boundaries that we place around ourselves - individually and as a church - so that we can grow as Christ wants us to grow.
