 All right, let's open our Bibles to Matthew chapter 15. We're gonna be looking today at verses 21 through 28 as we continue our series through the gospel of Matthew. And as we approach this particular portion of scripture, I'll give you some background and some information as we go through this study, but I would like to focus my attention on the request that this woman is going to make. You'll see it in a moment. And it's a simple prayer request, really. She simply says, Lord, please help me. Actually, she says, Lord, help me. And what we're gonna be seeing is how that the Lord hears our cry and you're gonna see this in the case of this woman that when you put together the various scriptures refers to her as a syrophoenician woman, a woman of Canaan. And we'll look at that in a moment and in some detail. But let's begin reading together in Matthew 15. We'll look at verses 21 through 28 as we continue through the gospel of Matthew and we'll see how the Lord is gonna deliver a gentile woman's daughter of demon possession. Beginning at verse 21, Jesus went out there and departed to the region of Tyre and Sidon. And behold, a woman of Canaan came from that region and cried out to him saying, have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David. My daughter is severely demon-possessed. But he answered her not a word. And his disciples came and urged him saying, send her away for she cries out after us. But he answered and said, I was not sent except to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. Then she came and worshiped him saying, Lord, help me. But he answered and said, it is not good to take the children's bread and throw it to the little dogs. And she said, true Lord, yet even the little dogs eat from the crumbs which fall from their master's table. Then Jesus answered and said to her, a woman, great is your faith. Let it be to you as you desire. And her daughter was healed from that very hour. Now we know that as we've been going through the gospel of Matthew that Jesus has been ministering in northern Israel. Northern Israel is called the Galilee. And so Jesus has been up in the north in the Galilee where the Sea of Galilee is. And he now is going to be leaving that particular area around the Sea of Galilee and he's going further north. He's gonna go into an area that is referred to here in verse 21 as the region of Tyre and Sidon. Now as we've been going through Matthew, we've seen that opposition has been growing against the Lord Jesus Christ. When we were looking in chapter 14, we noted that chapter 14 records how John the Baptist had been beheaded. And so that gives to us a clear indication of rejection, rejection that is developing towards the Lord Jesus Christ. But in spite of that, we've also noted that Jesus continued ministering to those who were in need. He had a mission to perform and he was determined to complete that mission. Now that's something that he makes abundantly clear to those who would hear. In John's gospel, for example, in chapter four, verse 34, Jesus said, my food is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work. In Luke chapter 12, verse 50, he said, I have a baptism to be baptized with and how distressed I am till it is accomplished. And so Jesus knew that though there was opposition, he still had things to accomplish. He also knew that he had been sent by the Father to complete the work that God had sent him to do, to finish his work. So it's interesting how that, even though opposition is now beginning to mount, Jesus begins to perform even greater works. Again, when we were in Matthew chapter 14, that chapter recorded the feeding of the 5,000 and that gave to us insight into how God meets the needs of Israel. And in the same chapter, we saw that Jesus walked on water, which also indicates to us that not only does he meet the needs of Israel, but he is also Lord of creation. So not only did he continue performing miracles, but he also continued confronting the error of the teachers of his day. When we got to the first verses of chapter 15, we saw that Jesus challenged the teachings of the scribes and the Pharisees. They were the religious experts during his day. And we saw how he had begun to confront them. You see, their traditions had been elevated to the status of interpreting scripture. And Jesus pointed out that they were wrong. Jesus pointed out that appearance had replaced the authentic love for God and for people. And so they were teaching as doctrines the commandments of men and in doing so, we're undermining the beauty and the power of God's word. So in this portion, Jesus travels from his ministry base in Galilee and he goes north. When it says to us again in verse 21 that he was in the region of Tyre and Sidon, that's about 30 to 50 miles north of where he had been. And there he's gonna meet a Canaanite woman. When you read your Bible, you'll see that Tyre and Sidon are tied together quite often. You see Tyre and Sidon spoken of in the Old Testament as well as in the New Testament. They were ancient cities. They were cities to the north of Israel. They're in what is today modern Lebanon. If you were looking at a map, you'd see that Tyre was 12 miles north of the border between Israel and Lebanon and that Sidon is 20 miles north of Tyre. And so they're up in the region there to the north of Israel. When you see that Jesus, it states here in verse 21 that he went out from there and he departs to the region. There has to be a reason why he's leaving at that point. Let me give you a few reasons as I develop a context and develop a foundation to look at this particular event because there has to be reasons that he goes up north. One of the reasons would be that the Pharisees desired to execute him because he had been healing on the Sabbath. We saw that in Matthew 12, 14, where it said the Pharisees went out, held a council against him, how they might destroy him. We also know that there's a possibility that Herod might attempt to arrest him because in Luke 23, verse eight, we read when Herod saw Jesus, he was exceeding glad, for he was desirous to see him a long season because he had heard many things of him and he hoped he had to have seen some miracle done by him. So one, we know that the Pharisees desired to execute him. Two, we know that Herod might attempt to arrest him. Three, we know that he had recently been pressured by the crowds to be crowned as king. John 6.15 says when Jesus therefore perceived that they would come and take him by force to make him a king, he departed again into a mountain himself alone. And also, he had initially intended to rest, to spend time alone with the disciples because Mark had told us in chapter six, verse 31, that he said to them, come aside by yourselves to a deserted place, rest a while, for there were many coming and going and they did not even have time to eat. So there were various reasons that Jesus would depart from that region, go 30 to 50 miles up North on the coast in the general coastal area of Lebanon, but there's a fifth reason that's not so obvious. The fifth reason is what I'd like to concentrate on this morning. The fifth reason would be simple, he had an appointment. He had an appointment with a woman from that region. Now, that might not seem too interesting at this point, but we need to understand that what Jesus is doing was unheard of at that time. What we're gonna look at is a conversation, a conversation between Jesus and a woman, but we need to remember that during the first century, Jewish women only had rights in the home and those rights were limited. A Jewish woman did not need to attend synagogue. They were not allowed to play a significant role in synagogue because of their menstrual cycle and weren't even counted as members of a synagogue. Women during the time of Christ, well, their testimony was not considered in legal courts because their word was suspect. They could not be disciples of any great rabbi and were prohibited from ever traveling with one. So during that time, Jesus would have been considered radical, extremely radical because he showed great love and great concern for women. When you look in your scriptures, you'll see that one of the first miracles that we have recorded that he performed was the healing of Peter's mother-in-law. But we also see that he healed a woman with an issue of blood, that he healed and delivered a woman with the spirit of infirmity. We saw that he raised Jairus' daughter from the dead. Jesus had a great love for the women of his day. Women played a major role in his ministry. They loved him, followed him and supported him. In Luke chapter eight, verses two and three, those verses refer to some women he had healed and from whom he had cast out evil spirits. Among them were Mary Magdalene from whom he had cast out seven demons. Joanna, the wife of Cousa, Herod's business manager. Susanna and many others who were contributing from their own resources to support Jesus and his disciples. So Jesus had a great love for women, ministered to them and had conversations with them. When you look in your Bible, you'll see that there are various times that he ministers to them, converses with them and to me, there are some ladies in the New Testament that stand out exceptionally, have actually been used by the Lord as instrumental in my development of understanding of the love that God has for people. You see, in the New Testament, the Lord used stories of three women in particular to minister to me. One of those stories is a woman who was caught in the act of adultery. And we know that story very well. It was found in John's gospel chapter eight, how that Jesus was teaching and the religious leaders brought a woman, cast a woman at the feet of Christ and interrupted his teaching and went so far as to say that the law says that such women should be stoned because she was caught in the very act of adultery. And when you read that story and you see that tension that had developed and this woman there in shame there before Christ and then read his response when he writes on the ground and then looks at those who were making the accusation and says the one without sin that'll be the first to cast a stone at her. You learn something about the ministry of Christ. You learn something about the compassion of Christ. You learn to see that he is filled with love, with grace, as well as forgiveness. You see the story of the woman who washed the feet of Jesus Christ with her tears. And you learn that according to his own words, the one who has been forgiven much is the one who's gonna love much. And so that taught me about the gratitude a sinner can have towards the Lord Jesus Christ and the love that actually explodes from your heart when you've come to understand how many sins have been forgiven and how deeply he has loved you. And then there's another woman that we have, we just simply call her the woman at the well. And this is a woman who's there at the well. It's called the well of Psyker. It's there in the region of Samaria and Jesus's disciples had gone off to find something to eat. Well, Jesus sat by this well and the woman comes with a water pot in order to draw water. And the Bible tells us that she does so at noon. And so that gives us insight immediately to the fact that this woman is an outcast because none of the women would come to draw water at noon because that's when it's the hottest. The women during that day were the ones who drew the water and they would come either early in the morning when it was cool or they would come later in the afternoon because it was cool. And that's where the women would actually socialize as they were there with their pots, getting the water and all drawing the water and filling up their water pots. As they were doing that, they would socialize. And so we have immediately an indication that this woman is an outcast. And this woman comes to that well at noon because none of the other women will be there. And yet there is somebody there and his name is Jesus. And when she comes to that well, we see Jesus initiating a conversation with her and says to her, woman, give me something to drink. And she looks at him and she says, the well is deep, you have nothing to draw from. And she begins to have a conversation with them. And she asks him the question. She says to him, how is it that you being a Jew are asking water from me, a woman of Samaria? And then John has to add for us Gentile readers for the Jews have no dealings with Samaritans. And so as the Lord is speaking to her, he says, if you would know who it is who's speaking to you and what I have to offer, you'd say, give me living water and I would give it to you. And so as they have their conversation, she begins to see that he's offering her something she doesn't have. And she says to him, give me this water. And he says, well, go and get your husband. She says, I have no husband. In this you have spoken truly for you've had five and the one that you're with right now is not your husband. And she looks at him, sir, I perceive that you're a prophet. And they have this long conversation. And as you see that long conversation, ultimately she leaves her water pot behind and she goes off to call the men of the village and say, come in here a man who's told me everything I've ever done, could this be Messiah? And in that we have Jesus's great promise that he would give her living water. And so as I've read how Jesus ministers to women, how he ministers to the woman caught in adultery, how he ministers to the woman who was a sinner, how he ministered to the woman who had six men in her life, interestingly enough, the number six in scripture is called numerics, biblical numerics. There are actually, numbers can indicate certain things and the number six in scripture very often is associated with humanity. On the sixth day, God created human beings and number six is related to humanity. The number seven is related to perfection. So it's interesting how that this woman who had six men came to the perfect man. She wanted a relationship with the perfect man. She went through six until she found the seven and Jesus was standing there as the perfect man, the one that she had been looking for all alone, all alone. And so what we have here is a picture of the grace and goodness of God. And as I've read through my Bible and as I've studied the scripture, I've seen how Jesus really showed this tremendous love to women in a time when women didn't have much value. And what is also interesting about the woman at the well is when you read John chapter four, it says that Jesus left Judea departed again to Galilee but John went on to say but he needed to go through Samaria. And so what I see with the Syrophoenician woman is something similar to what I see with the woman at the well of Samaria, which is he had an appointment that Jesus was gonna go up north to meet the woman of the Canaanite woman up in the north in a similar way that he went and ministered to a woman in Samaria. And what we have here is a conversation with a woman of Canaan. Now Mark tells us in his gospel in chapter seven verse 24, from there he arose and went to the region of Tyran Sidon and he entered a house and wanted no one to know it but he could not be hidden. You see by now, this fact that crowds would show up to hear him was very common. Wherever he was, multitudes would gather to be healed by him or to be taught by him. Mark 634 tells us that Jesus when he came out saw a great multitude and was moved with compassion for them because they were like sheep not having a shepherd so he began to teach them many things. And so Jesus when a crowd would arise would teach as well as minister healing to them and that's what he's saying here when it says he departed to the region of Tyran Sidon and then in verse 22 says, behold, which is a word of surprise notice this, behold a woman of Canaan came from that region and cried out to him saying, have mercy on me oh Lord son of David, my daughter is severely demon possessed. Demon possessed by itself sounds bad doesn't it? Severely demon possessed must be something entirely different. So this woman of Canaan comes and she cries out to him. It's interesting to note that though he's being pursued and rejected in Israel, the Gentiles are seeking him. Isaiah 65 verse one in the Old Testament says this, God speaking, I revealed myself to those who did not ask for me. I was found by those who did not seek me to a nation that did not call on my name. I said, here am I, here am I. So she becomes a type of those who come to Jesus from the whole world. You see the message of the gospel is not a message that was intended by God to remain in Israel. At the heart of the movement that God has with Christianity is that it's supposed to leave from where it is birthed and spread throughout the entire world because God so loved the world that he wants to save humanity. He wants to save all who would believe. We see that in Acts chapter one where Jesus said, you shall receive power. After that, the Holy Spirit has come upon you. You shall be witnesses to me in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and unto the uttermost parts of the earth. And so we're to go throughout the whole world preaching the gospel, teach them to observe all things that Christ has said, baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit. And he said, and though I'll be with you always, even into the end of the age. So the gospel of Jesus Christ is not supposed to be just staying in Israel in Jerusalem. It's intended by God to go to Samaria and throughout the entire world. And so that's what Paul would be speaking of in Romans nine verses 25 and 26. When Paul writes, he says also in Hosea, I will call them my people who are not my people and her beloved who was not beloved. And it shall come to pass in the place where it was said to them, you are not my people. There they shall be called sons of the living God. And so this is a picture of that because Jesus is leaving the region there that he's in going north into modern Lebanon into a region referred to as Tyre and Sidon, 30 to 50 miles up north, and he's gonna minister to a woman. So in this story, we see that Jesus came to save all who would come to him in faith. Those whom he had come to reach rejected him, but those who were open to him were saved by him. That's what John tells us in John 1 and 11 where it says he came to his own. His own didn't receive him, but as many as received him, to them he gave the right to become children of God to those who believe in his name. He came to his own, his own nation and his own people. They rejected him, but he also took this message to the world. He spoke to the woman at the well who was not Jewish, she was Samaritan. He took it up north to a woman of Canaan who lived in Tyre and Sidon and he brought that message to her. So this is her opportunity. You see the fame of Jesus spread from Israel and had entered into the region that she lived in. Had Jesus not made the journey to her town, she most likely would never have seen him and received from here him. Think about it this way. She lived in an area that she more than likely would never leave. She lived in an area that they didn't travel the way we do today. It's an amazing thing. I mean, even in the last 100 years, here in the nation in the United States, I mean, within 100 years or so, we had the Wright brothers who perfected flight to the point that we're at today where we've had people who travel into outer space. I mean, it's just an amazing thing when you think about it. It's an amazing thing. Sometimes Marie and I, when we do ministry trips or when I'm on a ministry trip, it blows me away because I'll say, I was in Los Angeles this morning and here I am in Jerusalem in the same basic day. How unbelievable. In a time when people, there was a time when people would get on a ship and take months to travel across an ocean, months to do that. They didn't even realize that they could be jet lagged because they didn't experience it. Or when we had a time here in the United States where you were going West, young men, and all that men as you left from New York and went to Chicago, because you didn't go all the way to the West Coast. It's just an amazing thing. We are so used to it today. We don't even understand how amazing it really is that you can actually get on a phone and you can speak to somebody, a phone that you have in your pocket that you ought to turn off, a phone that you have in your pocket and you can dial somebody on the other side of the world. Think about it. I mean, a younger person, that's amazing. That really is, that's amazing that you can dial somebody on the other side of the world and you make your phone call and then what? You tap your foot saying, how come it's taking so long? Ah, there's a signal going to a satellite going 20,000 miles away in your upset because it took five seconds. I mean, think about that for a minute. It's amazing what has happened in our generation. You don't even need to put a stamp on a letter anymore. You just send it email. It's just an amazing thing that a lot of people don't understand and so it's hard to understand. This woman was not gonna leave where she lived. This is where she was gonna live and this is where she was gonna die. She wasn't gonna go 50 miles down south or more to see Jesus Christ but she had heard about him. She knew that he had the capacity to do that what she needed. She simply couldn't go to him. So what does he do? He comes to her. And that's what he did with you by the way. Your sin made a separation between you and your God. So what does God do? God takes upon himself human flesh, dwells amongst us. We can behold this glory. The glory of the only begotten Son of God filled with grace and truth. He incarnated and he came to us because we couldn't go to him. Our sin made a separation and this woman is separated by miles but not by desire. And Jesus is leaving where he is, ministering to go to a place that there's a need and he still does that. And whatever need you might have today, he knows it. And he can meet that need. You're not alone. Understand that. You're not alone. He has an abandoned you. He knows where you're at. And he meets you. He loves you. And this woman is a symbol of all of those disenfranchised who weren't part of the promises but part of the heart of God. And he leaves the area that he is and he moves north to where she is in order that he might minister to her. This is her opportunity. She's gonna receive what her heart has been crying for. What has her heart been crying for? For deliverance for her child. Because her child is severely demon possessed. And so with humility and with courage, she respectfully comes to Jesus and begins to beg for mercy and begin for help. And there she is crying out. She's crying out for him to hear her. Have mercy on me, oh Lord, son of David. My daughter is severely demon possessed. And so there's Jesus. There's the woman. She's crying out loudly enough for him to hear over any conversations that are taking place. Through any conversations that are causing that kind of noise that could drown out somebody's cry. She's not whispering. She's raising her voice. And she's crying out with earnestness, with passion. And she's speaking to him and asking for help. Not only does he hear what she's crying out for, but those around him are hearing the same thing. So as she's crying out, verse 23 says he answered her not a word. It could almost seem that in the midst of her passion, in the midst of her crying out, that Jesus is ignoring her. It could seem that he doesn't even care as she's crying out. Now she's coming, she says to him, Lord, son of David. So that gives me insight that those are messianic titles. That could indicate that she'd come to believe that he is actually Messiah. But her daughter is severely demonized. Undoubtedly this mother has received great pain, even shame by the things that her daughter's doing. And this mother's like any other mother. She's broken hearted by what her daughter deals with. But she still loves her. Some daughters in this room will understand when I say that we children, daughters and sons, but we children can break our parents' heart. Some of you understand that because some of you include in myself, I broke my parents' heart by the things that I did, the way that I acted. Some of us parents have children that have broken our hearts. Well, this mama had a daughter. And this daughter was severely demonized. There's no doubt that this mama had wept many tears for this little girl. And there's no doubt that she was hopeless and didn't know if there would ever be a time when she'd be free from the pain that she lived in. Not only with this little girl or this young woman, whatever she may have been, not only did this daughter embarrass this mother, but undoubtedly this daughter broke her mother's heart. And though this girl is demon-possessed, after all, she's still her daughter. And she's a loving mother and it would have broken her heart. Now, she came to be requesting Christ to deliver, to deliver my daughter from the power of this demon. And all she can really do as we look at this passage is cry out for mercy. That reminds me of Psalm 116, verse five, where it simply says, Gracious is the Lord and righteous, yes, our God is merciful. And so as she comes and cries out, notice verse 23, he answered her not a word. So at first he appears to be ignoring her, not listening to her broken hearted cry. It would even seem that he's not interested in her condition. And sometimes it could seem that heaven is brass and the words that we're speaking to God just fall to the ground unheard. It can seem sometimes when we're praying that God isn't listening to what we have to say, it could seem that his ear is deaf to us. And it seems that way here, he answered her not a word. I wonder how many of you have prayed and have had that kind of experience? He answered not. God help me, he answered not. Is it heaven's brass? He answers not. God, give me some help. He answers not. And that's what's taking place here. This reminds me of when the disciples were struggling in the midst of a storm. And he seemed to be indifferent. Mark told us in chapter six verse 48 that he saw them straining at rowing for the wind was against them. And about the fourth wash of the night he came to them walking on the sea and would have passed them by. And sometimes we think that God is gonna simply pass us by or he doesn't hear what we're saying. So as this is taking place, notice verse 23, his disciples came and urged them saying, send her away. She cries out after us. I don't, I'm tired of this man. Listen, we're tired, Lord. You know, we took this long walk up here, your ministry, and I'm good with that. But this woman is a pain. Would you please send her away? It seems that that's something the disciples did more than once. They have a tendency of doing that. Remember when Jesus was about to feed the 5,000? They said send them away. Well, they're doing it again. They didn't learn the first time. But I'm very grateful that some lessons God will teach us over a lifetime. And once again, it seems like they're just indifferent to the need. They respond carnally. They're insensitive. They don't wanna be bothered, especially by this Gentile woman. Well, he doesn't need to get rid of the woman. He needs to get rid of their attitude. They're misreading the silence of the Lord. So first he answers them, notice verse 24. He said, I was not sent except to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. Now he had already sent them out on ministry. He had already said, don't go by the way of the Gentiles or anywhere where the Gentiles. I want you to go and minister to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. So he reiterates that. And he's making it clear that as he responds to the disciples that they need to understand his primary mission. His primary mission was to reach the lost sheep of the house of Israel. Even in the New Testament in Romans 116, Paul says, I'm not ashamed of the gospel of Christ. It's a power of God and to salvation to everyone that believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. You see, even after Pentecost occurred, Pentecost occurring in Jerusalem, from there the people began to branch out and minister until it reached the world. But whenever Paul would go into a town, he'd first go to a synagogue, preach the gospel to them because the gospel came to the Jew first but also to the Greek. And so Jesus says that to them and he says it clearly. I wasn't sent except to the lost sheep of the house of Israel, reiterating his primary mission. But it goes on. In verse 25, she came and worshiped him saying, Lord, help me. So what she does is she falls at his feet. The word worship is a Greek word, it's proskoneo. And it's used in a variety of ways. It could be a simple showing of reverence or respect. But proskoneo speaks about falling on your face before somebody and it's a recognition of humility. In this particular case, it would seem not only was she showing great reverence to a rabbi, but she's actually worshiping the God incarnate, the son of David, the Messiah, and she's worshiping him. She's giving him honor and she's recognizing him as the one who could help her. Now, there's no doubt that this woman heard Jesus as remarked to the disciples. But how did she react? And that's an important thing to look at. How she reacted was what we would say are three simple words. Three simple words, Lord, help me. Psalm 71-12, oh God, do not be far from me. Oh God, make haste to help me. Psalm 109-26, help me, oh Lord, my God, save me according to your mercy. Somebody once said this, the best style of prayer is that which cannot be called anything else but a cry. When you read the book of Jonah and Jonah has attempted to flee from the Lord and flee his calling to go and preach to the evil city of Nineveh and climbed on a ship on its way to Tarshish on its way to ancient Spain and God put it into a great fish to connect with Jonah when he was thrown overboard. You know the story of Jonah and the great fish and he swallowed up and while he was in the belly of this great fish according to Jonah chapter two verse two it says that Jonah prayed, in my distress I called to the Lord and he answered me from the depths of the grave I called for help. You listen to my cry. Do you think that he wanted to get out of that belly? I wonder how many of us are finding ourselves in a difficult, tight, hot situation where we need God's help and that's where this woman was and she refused to be turned away. You know she realized that the gods of the people around her were powerless to help. So her love for her daughter and her belief that Jesus could heal her gave her strength to hold on and to continue asking. Sometimes the most powerful prayers that you utter are not the long prayers, the lengthy prayers, they're the simple prayers. There's just a simple cry, God help me, God help me and that's what she's doing here but notice the answer, verse 26, he answered and said it is not good to take the children's bread and throw it to the little dogs. She said, true Lord, yet even the little dogs eat the crumbs which fall from their master's table. When you look in the word dogs and it's interesting and you do your Bible studies and you wanna see what's he referring to? There are a couple of words that are used to that are translated by the single word dog. One of the words in the Greek that is translated dog is really not speaking of what you would today call a dog in the same sense of a dog that you have as a pet. It was a wild dog, it was a dog in the neighborhood that actually ran in packs with other wild dogs and they would go and they would scavenge things, they would go into the trash and they would tear things up and all and they were vicious and dangerous and there's a word that is used to describe those dogs and there's a second word that's in reference to your pet that you have in the house. It's a house dog, it's a puppy and the word that Jesus is using right now is a dog that speaks concerning the house dog, the little dog that would stay in the home and that's how he's speaking to her at this point. Now that doesn't make it any better. I mean, at the same time you say you call me a dog and it's not the way people speak today, hey dog, no he's not saying that at all. What he's saying is he's saying it isn't right to take the children's bread. I have been sent to the house of Israel, it isn't right to take what is for them and to give it to those who are not part of that house. So he's explaining to her in those kinds of terms. You see, during that day the people knew that the Jews would look at the Gentiles as being dogs and the Jews considered themselves to be privileged. So when Jesus makes this statement to her he actually is provoking her and he's getting a response from her. Now that's gonna give her an opportunity to expose her heart. Is her heart filled with pride? Is her heart filled with selfishness? Is she sincere and is she humble and is she able to receive? Can she take what seems to be indifference and can she take what seems to be an insult and actually allow that to be bypassed in order to go to the heart of what the matter is? Is she a humble person? In ministry I have discovered something, let me give you a practical application of this. And that is in ministry I've discovered that there are times when I've been ministering to somebody over the years who've come up and they have a situation that they need to have dealt with and they're asking for prayer. And so perhaps they'll come up and say, you know, we're trying to have a baby and we haven't been able to have one. Could you pray that God will help us to have a baby and then as I'm conversing with them I might say, well, how long have you been married? You're just part of the conversation and they'll say, oh, we're not married. Oh, you're not married. No, but we want a baby. And at that point I have to actually address the fact that they're living together before we even talk about having babies because they're living improperly and I have to share that with them. And then sometimes they may get really mad and you're so judgmental, you're so harsh and our vows are made to God, not to man. And I hear all of that and I smile at them and I'm remembering the woman of Samaria where Jesus spoke and said, the one you have right now is not your husband and this you have spoken truly because living together inside of God is not being married. And so as we speak about that, you have to bring correction and when you bring correction, they get upset. Look, we just want a baby, we don't want to get married. And what's in their heart will come out. If there's humility, then we have something we can work with. If there's no humility, then there's nothing I can do to be of help because you have to deal with the first thing. In the case here with this woman, she is saying, it's true. It's true, but even the dogs eat the crumbs from under the master's table. That's humility. And when she shows the humility to Christ when he speaks to her in a way that could have caused her to get angry, she shows where her heart really is. She shows that she has humility and her need is greater than her pride. She didn't have the time. She didn't have the energy. She didn't have the luxury of pride. She was simply saying, listen, I'm at the end of my rope and I need help. And she knew that a crumb of God's power is enough. That's all I need. I need your help. And as the Lord is speaking to her, notice his response. In verse 28, Jesus answered and said to her, oh woman, great is your faith, let it be to you as you desire. And her daughter was healed from that very hour. He commended her faith and he answered her prayer. Someone once wrote, the Lord of glory surrendered to the faith of a woman. What do we have here? Let me give to you some things in a conclusion, some things about prayer. What do we learn about faith and what do we learn about prayer in this story? Well first, we approach the one who can meet the need. I was listening to the news where they had this group of people who are chanting to the universe. They were just speaking to the universe. There are those who will pray to a cosmic power. We do not go to the universe and we do not go to some other or some cosmic power. We know who we go to. We go to the Lord of the universe, the maker of heaven and earth. We go to our father. In Jeremiah chapter 33, verse three, it says, call unto me and I will answer thee and show thee great and mighty things which thou know as not. God says, call unto me. In Jeremiah 32, verse 27, it says, behold, I am the Lord, the God of all flesh. Is there anything too hard for me? And the answer is no. Can you imagine, has God ever called you up and said, can I borrow $5? Is there anything too hard for him? No, does he ever call you up and ask for advice? Listen, I got some problem with China and I need some help. He doesn't do that, does he? Who has first been his counselor? Whom has he asked for wisdom from? And so one, I need to know who I'm speaking to. I'm speaking to the creator of the universe and that's what she's doing when she walks up and speaks to him and calls him what she calls him. Lord, son of David, I know who you are. So one, you need to know who you're speaking to. And two, we come with a persistence, a sincere persistence. She kept crying out after him. The word cried when it said she cried to him is a word in the Greek that speaks of repeated action. She didn't come and just say it once. She continually was crying out. So we don't have an apathetic, half-hearted approach to God. We come with an earnest passion. It says in James 5.16, the effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much. Someone who said, prayers not felt by us are seldom heard by God. There are times, and I know I'm speaking to a group of people who have done this, there are times when you'll fall in your face before the Lord and you don't have any more than three words. God help me, God help me. Have you ever prayed like that? I have, I'm sure many of you have. God, I don't even know what to say. I don't even know how to pray. I don't even know how to put the words together that speak concerning the brokenness of my heart and the need of my moment. All I can say is God help me. Have you ever done that? Have you ever been there where your child is messed up, where your mama's sick, where your dad needs help, when a brother is hurting or a sister is lost or a friend is broken? Have you ever been there? And you don't know what to say. There have been many times when I've said, God, I don't know the words to put together. I don't know the need. You know everything. You know everything. You know the situation. You know what's going on. You know what led to this and you know where it's going. I don't. All I can ask for is God help. Lord, help me. Sometimes those are the three most powerful words you can speak. Lord, help me. I don't know what to do. I don't know where to go. I don't have the answer. All I need at this moment is to know that you hear me. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much. A third thing we see is this woman was undeserving as we are, but we can fall upon his mercy towards us. And she realized that when she asked for mercy, that it truly was undeserved because he owed her nothing. She wasn't part of the promises of Israel. She was an outcast. She was from up north, a Syrophoenician woman, a Gentile, not part of the promises of Israel. And Jesus said, I have come for the lost sheep of the house of Israel. She knew she had nothing to ask of him that she qualified for and yet she came anyway because she was asking for mercy, which is something she didn't deserve. Some 86 verse six, hear my prayer, O Lord, listen to my cry for mercy. And fourth, though persistent and fervent, she was also patient. He answered her not a word, but she continued asking of him. Listen, our prayers are not always answered immediately because sometimes in the time from the asking to the receiving, there's a refining where God refines our faith. We need to be very careful that we don't misjudge God's silence and interpret it as indifference. Some 40 verse ones as I waited patiently for the Lord and he inclined to me and he heard my cry. Some prayers are not even answered in your lifetime. Are you willing to accept that? It's true. I have heard the testimonies of the pastor whose child was lost and that pastor prayed and prayed for this lost child. And the child did not wanna come to faith in Christ. The child continued in the life that they were living and the pastor dies. And at the funeral, the child who was so rebellious gets saved. And that father, that mama even, because mamas do the same thing, it doesn't have to be a pastor, but what I've read is the pastors. But it happens in people's lives where the Lord saves them even at the funeral and the prayer was answered just not in my lifetime. Don't give up. Don't stop praying. Hold fast. And if it's only three words, pray those three words. Lord help me. Lord help me. I don't know what to do. I know who to go to and I will wait patiently on you, Lord. And that's what she did. She waited even as Jesus seemed to be indifferent, even challenging her, she held fast to him and even humbly responded. And even the little dogs eat the meat, eat the food from the children's table. All I need is a crumb and that's all I'm asking for. And finally, we need to spend time in the word of God discovering what he is like and to trust him to care for us. Philippians 419 says, my God shall supply all your need according to his riches and glory by Christ Jesus. First John 514 says this is the confidence that we have in him that if we ask anything, according to his will, he hears us. Confidence, he hears us as we pray according to his will. We get in the word, we discover his will and we pray according to his will. There's a story of Dallas Seminary and it says that shortly after Dallas Seminary was founded in 1924, it was nearing bankruptcy. All the creditors were going to foreclose at noon on a certain day. That morning, the founders of the school met in the president's office to pray that God would provide. In the prayer meeting was Dr. Ironside. When it was his turn to pray, he prayed in this manner. Lord, we know that the cattle on a thousand hills are yours. Please sell some of them and send us the money. While they were praying, a Texas cattle rancher came into the business office and said, I just sold two carloads of cattle in Fort Worth. I've been trying to make a business deal go through and it won't work. And I feel that God is compelling me to give this money to the seminary. I don't know if you need it or not, but here's the check. A secretary took the check and knowing something of the financial seriousness of the hour went to the door of the prayer meeting and knocked. When she finally got a response, Dr. Louis Schaefer took the check out of her hand and it was for the exact amount of the debt. When he looked at the signature, he recognized the name of the cattle rancher. Turning to Dr. Ironside, he said, Harry, God sold the cattle. Hold fast, trust the Lord. My father worked from the time he was a young boy. My dad grew up in Norwalk. His dad bought a small farm. My dad used to work with his brothers and sisters in harvesting there on the farm as well as doing a migrant kind of thing where they would go and harvest other people's crops and other people's land. So my dad began working at a very early age and my dad worked from the time he was a young boy all through his life. My dad served in the military. He served in the Navy when he got out of the Navy. My dad got a job driving a truck. He drove a truck for a small organization called Davey's Warehouse. When I was born, I thought when I heard that dad, he worked at Davey's Warehouse. I thought they had named the warehouse after me. And so when I was growing up, my dad would take me, he used to call me his Swamper, and I would go with my dad and I would sit next to him during the summer on occasion as he went on his route. And so all of my life, from the time I was a little boy until I was a young adult, my dad worked for this organization all of my life. I went into the military myself at the age of 20. I got out of the Army and at the age of 23, I was living at home when my dad came home. And my dad was in a quiet mood. And so my mom and I began to speak, and my mom told me that a company called Weber's Trucking had just bought out Davey's Warehouse. And for the first time in my dad's adult life, he had no job. My dad had worked for this organization for over 20 years. All of my life, and before I was born, my father drove for Davey's Warehouse. But Davey sold out to Weber's, and now my dad has no job. It's a Friday, and for the first time in my father's life, he doesn't have a job to go to on Monday, two days away. And my mom said, your dad is so down, David. You see, when I grew up, my father's name meant everything to him. My dad made sure to pay the family bills before he would put food on our table. I grew up with a father whose name meant everything who said to me, take care of your name because your name is all that you are. That was my dad. And so my dad was very big on making sure payments were made. And there were many times when I grew up, because my mom was very ill, that my dad would take his paycheck and pay medical bills, and we would end up eating leftovers for three or four days in a row, simply because he couldn't afford to purchase anything for us to eat, but we ate leftovers, and it was okay because it was made by my mom. It was food that we ate, and we never grew up thinking that we're being held back from anything, but that was my dad's integrity. My dad worked when he was sick. My dad would get up in the morning, he'd go to work, even when he was sick. I saw my dad many times get up, he'd leave the house at six in the morning. Many times I'd get up, my dad would have a fever. He'd go to work on his vacation. He would be called by Davies, and they'd say, Frank, we need someone to come in today. Someone is ill. My dad on his vacation would go to work. That's how I grew up, watching a man who worked like that. He taught me a work ethic, and now my dad has no place to go. He's been let go on a Friday for the first time he doesn't have anywhere to go on Monday, and my dad is depressed and sorrowful of heart. I'm 23 years old, and I see my dad in the den. I still remember walking up to my dad and saying to my dad this, I said, my God shall supply all your need, dad. We need to trust the Lord in this. Now, who am I to say that? I'm somebody who hated work. My dad is a man who loved to work. My dad looks at me like you're wet behind the ears. You don't know what you're talking about. All of my life from the time I've been a little boy until my dad was 47 at that time, until my 47th year, I have been working for over 30 some years, and you haven't held a job more than six months, and you're telling me that my God shall supply, and my father, I still remember my dad looking at me when I said, dad, I don't understand what you're going through, but I do know this. I may not know what you're going through, but I know the God who can help you through it. I know the God who can help you through it, dad. And I took my dad by the hand, and I held my father saying, my dad was not a warm man at all. My dad was very to himself, but I reached down and I took him by the hands, and I said, we're taking this to the Lord. What nerve for a 23-year-old, what do I know? But I held his hand and I said, in Jesus' name, father, I know that you will supply all our need according to your riches in Christ. I know that you're able to do that, and I'm going to trust you, Lord, on behalf of my father and my dad. I still remember, after the prayer, my dad just looking at me and walking away, and on Monday he went to work for Weber's. Two days later, my dad was off for two days. It was like a regular weekend, and they called him on Monday. They said, Frank, we're hiring you to work for Weber's, and your two brothers who also were let go, they're coming to work for us also. My God shall supply. My God shall supply. And by the way, my God is your God. Your God shall supply. Don't forget that, because I know, be on the shadow of a doubt, that the enemy is whispering in your ear and saying he does it for others, but he won't do it for you. That's a lie from Satan. That's a lie from the devil. My God shall supply your need too. Don't forget that because he loves you, and all you need to do is say, Lord, help me. And God says, my ear is open to your cry. You gave your heart to Christ. You belong to me. I will not allow this to take you down. I will supply your need. God is a good and gracious and merciful God, and it doesn't matter how severe that situation is, nothing, it doesn't matter how deep it is, God is deeper still. Don't forget that. He will work in you. Take it to the Lord. Take it to the Lord. Trust him. Our God shall supply.