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12^th Sunday after Pentecost (Proper 15) – August 20^th, 2023 Trinity Ev. Lutheran Church, Block, Kansas Rev. Joshua Woelmer Text: Matthew 15:21–28 “Daring to Ask” Theme: Faith persists through the slowness of God to grasp even the crumbs of His mercy, which still bring great goodness. Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father, and our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen. One of the most well-known Christian writers in the last 100 years is a man known as C.S. Lewis. He is famous for writing the Chronicles of Narnia, Mere Christianity, The Screwtape Letters, and much more. What you may not know is that he spent many years as an unbeliever. He was raised a nominal Christian but lost his faith in his youth. His mother was very ill, and he thought that if he prayed really hard for her to get better, then God would give him what he asked for. You probably know where I’m going with this. His mother died. He decided that since God didn’t answer his prayers and grant him a miracle, then he must not exist. We might scoff at such an idea, thinking that it is an overreaction. But I don’t think we should scoff. I think it’s more prevalent than we might think. Maybe you yourself have felt similar feelings or had similar thoughts. Maybe there are great things that you have asked God for but have not received. Perhaps you have felt depressed or lonely, and it just doesn’t seem like God is answering you. Maybe there are times when God doesn’t seem near to you. Why does he sometimes ignore us? If you have not personally had these thoughts, then maybe your friends or family have confided these things. You may not have known what to say. It can feel awkward responding to doubts or questions that you’ve never had. Sometimes looking at all of this play out for us in a story or narrative can help us unpack things in our own lives. This is exactly what we get in our Gospel reading for today. You could also read the book of Job. It’s a bit longer, but it deals with similar questions of why God seems silent in the face of suffering. Jesus traveled many places in Galilee, Samaria, and Judea. There were a few bordering areas that he went to as well, and here is one: the district of Tyre and Sidon, two cities that are on the Mediterranean coast. He’s not in friendly, Jewish territory. But, a woman approaches him. Even before we get to her words, we should note that this is a bold thing to do. First, she’s a Canaanite, one of the peoples whom the Jews conquered as they entered the Promised Land. She probably grew up a pagan, worshiping idols. She didn’t grow up in a parochial school, hearing about the coming Messiah as a good little Jewish girl. No—she’s an outsider. Second, she’s a woman. Women in this day did not approach men they did not know. But she does—not for her own sake, but for that of her daughter. Here is her plea: “Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David; my daughter is severely oppressed by a demon” (22). These words are packed! First, she’s asking for mercy. We prayed these words this morning in the Kyrie: “Lord, have mercy; Christ, have mercy; Lord, have mercy.” She calls him her Lord. He’s Jewish. She’s Canaanite, but she’s calling him Lord? Strange. Then she calls him “Son of David”! No self-respecting Canaanite cares about David, king of the Israelites. But she doesn’t care. She believes that Jesus come for her too. Then she says that her daughter is oppressed by a demon—sure a pitiful case! She knows that Jesus is her only hope, and she’s willing to acknowledge him as who he is in order to get mercy. But Jesus ignores her. “He did not answer her a word” (23). Why? Isn’t this what Jesus does? He has mercy on people and heals them or their loved ones? It’s almost automatic. Not now though. Jesus is testing her faith. There’s no question about this. He is testing her to see how she will respond. She persists so much that his disciples ask him to send her away. But Jesus doesn’t even acknowledge her. He responds to his disciples, and probably loud enough that she can hear. This is pretty insulting, even in our day today. Imagine someone doing that to you. You’d call it childish for someone to literally give you the cold shoulder. He says, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel” (24). Now, this is partly true. Jesus came to fulfill the Jewish prophecies. But his words imply that he did not come for her. Coming back around to us, we might feel similar things as well, that Jesus is only for certain people. We get these thoughts when we feel unworthy because of what we’ve done. Jesus is for people who have their lives together. Jesus is only for true Christians. I’m not good enough to be in church. Again, these are thoughts people have. I have heard them. The woman’s response is simple: “Lord, help me” (25). Jesus gives her a second insult though: “It is not right to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs” (26). He’s calling her a dog. We use dog-related insults even today. It’s not a good thing to call anybody. But his point is that she’s not a child at the table. She’s not a Jew. She doesn’t deserve the bread on the table. But here is where her faith really shines. She takes this image that Jesus has provided and turns it on its head: “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table” (27). A dog is in the house, even by the dining table. If a kid drops food, the dog snaps it up. She claims that dog as her image. It’s as if she says, “I’ll take whatever I can get—even the scraps are something!” The scraps of God’s food are great. I thought about this some as it relates to mathematics. I’m not a mathematician, but follow me with this. A scrap of a year is one day. 1/365, or 0.27% It’s like a CEO father granting one day to his son—it’s the scraps of his time, and everyone knows it. The scraps of a $10 million fortune is something like $10,000, or 0.1%. But $10,00 is still a good amount of money. What are the scraps of eternity? The answer is eternity. In math, diving infinity by any number is still infinity. Infinity divided by two is infinity. Infinity divided by 10 billion is still infinity. God’s power is so great that even a little bit of it can do anything. This woman knows this—that Jesus has the power of God. He has done many miracles. He calls her a dog after ignoring her—so? Even the dogs eat scraps—give me those. She doesn’t need the fullness of glory, only enough to heal her daughter. She embraces her unworthiness and God’s bountiful grace. So do we. What did we confess this morning? “Most merciful God, we confess that we are by nature sinful and unclean. We have sinned against You in thought, word, and deed, by what we have done and by what we have not done…” By saying these words, we acknowledge our worst thoughts about ourselves. We are like this woman, calling ourselves dogs who deserve nothing but scraps. But—we ask for those scraps, for a bit of God’s grace: “For the sake of Your Son, Jesus Christ, have mercy on us. Forgive us, renew us, and lead us, so that we may delight in Your will and walk in Your ways to the glory of Your holy name.” This pleases God. We hear Jesus’s response: “O woman, great is your faith! Be it done for you as you desire” (28). This is not expected by human reason. She sees greatness in even the small things of God and is rewarded for it. What should we do? Look to where God promises to be, even if they look like scraps. The Bible is the Word of God. Every word of it is true for you, and God uses it to create and sustain your faith. To many people, it’s just another book. It sits unused on coffee tables, collecting dust. But in it is a treasure. The Lord’s Supper does not look like a full meal—it’s not a Thanksgiving dinner that we offer here. But it brings with it the Body and Blood of Christ. What look like scraps give you eternity. Has Jesus promised you great, mountain top experiences? No, not really. But has he promised to be with you every day of your life, giving you His grace along the way? Yes. We can and ought to acknowledge our feelings of inadequacies, depression, sin, and all of that—in ourselves and others. We should keep praying to God when it seems like he’s not listening to us or answering our prayers. God knows what you’re going through. He hasn’t forgotten you or left you alone. He might test you for a time, but he does so to drive you further to prayer and to a recognition of how he serves you with his grace. Even a tidbit, a scrap, of that grace will sustain us to eternity, which can never be divided. And, to end my story about C.S. Lewis, this is what he too realized. He came to faith and became one of the greatest Christian writers of our modern time. God did not forsake him but worked through his friends and the Word of God to convert him. Now may the peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Amen. Return to Top \| Return to Sermons \| Home \| Email Church Office

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12^th Sunday after Pentecost (Proper 15) – August 20^th, 2023

Trinity Ev. Lutheran Church, Block, Kansas

Rev. Joshua Woelmer

Text: Matthew 15:21–28

“Daring to Ask”

Theme: Faith persists through the slowness of God to grasp even the crumbs of His mercy, which still bring great goodness.

Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father, and our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.

One of the most well-known Christian writers in the last 100 years is a man known as C.S. Lewis. He is famous for writing the Chronicles of Narnia, Mere Christianity, The Screwtape Letters, and much more. What you may not know is that he spent many years as an unbeliever. He was raised a nominal Christian but lost his faith in his youth. His mother was very ill, and he thought that if he prayed really hard for her to get better, then God would give him what he asked for. You probably know where I’m going with this. His mother died. He decided that since God didn’t answer his prayers and grant him a miracle, then he must not exist.

We might scoff at such an idea, thinking that it is an overreaction. But I don’t think we should scoff. I think it’s more prevalent than we might think. Maybe you yourself have felt similar feelings or had similar thoughts. Maybe there are great things that you have asked God for but have not received. Perhaps you have felt depressed or lonely, and it just doesn’t seem like God is answering you. Maybe there are times when God doesn’t seem near to you. Why does he sometimes ignore us?

If you have not personally had these thoughts, then maybe your friends or family have confided these things. You may not have known what to say. It can feel awkward responding to doubts or questions that you’ve never had. Sometimes looking at all of this play out for us in a story or narrative can help us unpack things in our own lives.

This is exactly what we get in our Gospel reading for today. You could also read the book of Job. It’s a bit longer, but it deals with similar questions of why God seems silent in the face of suffering.

Jesus traveled many places in Galilee, Samaria, and Judea. There were a few bordering areas that he went to as well, and here is one: the district of Tyre and Sidon, two cities that are on the Mediterranean coast. He’s not in friendly, Jewish territory. But, a woman approaches him. Even before we get to her words, we should note that this is a bold thing to do.

First, she’s a Canaanite, one of the peoples whom the Jews conquered as they entered the Promised Land. She probably grew up a pagan, worshiping idols. She didn’t grow up in a parochial school, hearing about the coming Messiah as a good little Jewish girl. No—she’s an outsider.

Second, she’s a woman. Women in this day did not approach men they did not know. But she does—not for her own sake, but for that of her daughter. Here is her plea: “Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David; my daughter is severely oppressed by a demon” (22). These words are packed! First, she’s asking for mercy. We prayed these words this morning in the Kyrie: “Lord, have mercy; Christ, have mercy; Lord, have mercy.” She calls him her Lord. He’s Jewish. She’s Canaanite, but she’s calling him Lord? Strange.

Then she calls him “Son of David”! No self-respecting Canaanite cares about David, king of the Israelites. But she doesn’t care. She believes that Jesus come for her too. Then she says that her daughter is oppressed by a demon—sure a pitiful case! She knows that Jesus is her only hope, and she’s willing to acknowledge him as who he is in order to get mercy.

But Jesus ignores her. “He did not answer her a word” (23). Why? Isn’t this what Jesus does? He has mercy on people and heals them or their loved ones? It’s almost automatic. Not now though.

Jesus is testing her faith. There’s no question about this. He is testing her to see how she will respond. She persists so much that his disciples ask him to send her away. But Jesus doesn’t even acknowledge her. He responds to his disciples, and probably loud enough that she can hear. This is pretty insulting, even in our day today. Imagine someone doing that to you. You’d call it childish for someone to literally give you the cold shoulder.

He says, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel” (24). Now, this is partly true. Jesus came to fulfill the Jewish prophecies. But his words imply that he did not come for her.

Coming back around to us, we might feel similar things as well, that Jesus is only for certain people. We get these thoughts when we feel unworthy because of what we’ve done. Jesus is for people who have their lives together. Jesus is only for true Christians. I’m not good enough to be in church. Again, these are thoughts people have. I have heard them.

The woman’s response is simple: “Lord, help me” (25). Jesus gives her a second insult though: “It is not right to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs” (26). He’s calling her a dog. We use dog-related insults even today. It’s not a good thing to call anybody. But his point is that she’s not a child at the table. She’s not a Jew. She doesn’t deserve the bread on the table.

But here is where her faith really shines. She takes this image that Jesus has provided and turns it on its head: “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table” (27). A dog is in the house, even by the dining table. If a kid drops food, the dog snaps it up. She claims that dog as her image. It’s as if she says, “I’ll take whatever I can get—even the scraps are something!” The scraps of God’s food are great.

I thought about this some as it relates to mathematics. I’m not a mathematician, but follow me with this. A scrap of a year is one day. 1/365, or 0.27% It’s like a CEO father granting one day to his son—it’s the scraps of his time, and everyone knows it. The scraps of a $10 million fortune is something like $10,000, or 0.1%. But $10,00 is still a good amount of money. What are the scraps of eternity? The answer is eternity. In math, diving infinity by any number is still infinity. Infinity divided by two is infinity. Infinity divided by 10 billion is still infinity. God’s power is so great that even a little bit of it can do anything.

This woman knows this—that Jesus has the power of God. He has done many miracles. He calls her a dog after ignoring her—so? Even the dogs eat scraps—give me those. She doesn’t need the fullness of glory, only enough to heal her daughter.

She embraces her unworthiness and God’s bountiful grace. So do we. What did we confess this morning? “Most merciful God, we confess that we are by nature sinful and unclean. We have sinned against You in thought, word, and deed, by what we have done and by what we have not done…” By saying these words, we acknowledge our worst thoughts about ourselves. We are like this woman, calling ourselves dogs who deserve nothing but scraps.

But—we ask for those scraps, for a bit of God’s grace: “For the sake of Your Son, Jesus Christ, have mercy on us. Forgive us, renew us, and lead us, so that we may delight in Your will and walk in Your ways to the glory of Your holy name.”

This pleases God. We hear Jesus’s response: “O woman, great is your faith! Be it done for you as you desire” (28). This is not expected by human reason. She sees greatness in even the small things of God and is rewarded for it.

What should we do? Look to where God promises to be, even if they look like scraps. The Bible is the Word of God. Every word of it is true for you, and God uses it to create and sustain your faith. To many people, it’s just another book. It sits unused on coffee tables, collecting dust. But in it is a treasure.

The Lord’s Supper does not look like a full meal—it’s not a Thanksgiving dinner that we offer here. But it brings with it the Body and Blood of Christ. What look like scraps give you eternity. Has Jesus promised you great, mountain top experiences? No, not really. But has he promised to be with you every day of your life, giving you His grace along the way? Yes.

We can and ought to acknowledge our feelings of inadequacies, depression, sin, and all of that—in ourselves and others. We should keep praying to God when it seems like he’s not listening to us or answering our prayers. God knows what you’re going through. He hasn’t forgotten you or left you alone. He might test you for a time, but he does so to drive you further to prayer and to a recognition of how he serves you with his grace. Even a tidbit, a scrap, of that grace will sustain us to eternity, which can never be divided.

And, to end my story about C.S. Lewis, this is what he too realized. He came to faith and became one of the greatest Christian writers of our modern time. God did not forsake him but worked through his friends and the Word of God to convert him.

Now may the peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Amen.

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