Pastoral Letter 165

Dear Members of St. Andrew’s Uniting Church, Friends and Adherents,

Grace and Peace to you all.

I hope you are all doing well.

Now we are in the sixth Sunday after Easter, and we will celebrate Ascension and Pentecost in the next two weeks. Pentecost is the day when the Church was established by the coming of the Spirit and the power of God, to represent and to be the body of Christ and we, the members, in this world until He comes back. So, let’s look forward to that day with great hope and anticipation.

Today is Mother’s Day, a day when we celebrate and honour our mothers, who have done so much for us, since the day we were born. They have loved us, cared for us and are always ready to the best they can for their families and in particular their children. So, we pay our respects and say Happy Mother’s Day, may God bless you abundantly and wish all the best for each and every mother. Dear Mums, enjoy the day tomorrow surrounded by your families and your loved ones. Last Sunday,7 May 2023 at 12:00noon after church service and Morning Tea, we had our Mother’s Day Fellowship Lunch, which has been our tradition for the last several years. We sat at the tables, enjoyed the delicious lunch, spent some time together. We gave to all mums and ladies some goodies showing our love and appreciate, we expressed our gratitude to them by saying thank you for all they have done and continue to do. The lucky mother of 2023 is Ivy Lee, and two mothers, Joan Bridges and Nicky Thorpe received each a gift of a beautiful plane donated by Penny Goodley, for having the most children, grandchildren, great grandchildren. We had a great time together.

Last Sunday, 7 May 2023, early morning a devastating fire ravaged the Armenian Evangelical Church of Ainjar, Lebanon, causing substantial material damage. The fire began in the church’s heaters, damaging equipment, incinerating church records in the pastor’s office, and causing severe smoke damage throughout the structure. The floor tiles have to be replaced and new office equipment will be needed. A lot has to be done to restore the church, so the congregation can resume worship and community service in the church building. Please pray for the congregation and if you can help them financially. The AMAA is raising funds to assist them.

If you will not be able to be with us tomorrow morning Worship Service, please light a candle and join us following the attached Order of Service.

Be safe and well, continue to pray, remembering those who need care, support and love. Please let me know if you or anyone else has prayer points.

Here are some prayer points for this week:

1. Pray for the mothers, seeking God’s blessing and wishing them a long and a healthy life.
2. Pray for the people of Ukraine, Armenia and Artsakh.
3. Pray for the Ainjar Church as they endeavour to restore their church building.
4. Pray for the poor, the sick, the vulnerable, the struggling and the stressed.
5. Pray for those who are unwell and struggling with different kinds of medical issues.
6. Pray for those who are facing natural disasters causing death, loss and pain.
7. Pray for world peace and ask for God’s blessings.
8. Pray for those who have lost dear ones, seeking the comfort of the Spirit.

Please let me know if you or anyone else has prayer points.

Best Regards,

Krikor

MESSAGE

A Bold Woman

Matthew 15:22-28

In our text today we see Jesus withdrew to the district of Tyre and Sidon. This district is just north of the territory of Galilee. Jesus has gone there with His disciples, not to minister but to take a retreat from ministry. Mark tells us in his gospel that Jesus did not want anyone to know where He was. But it was difficult to escape notice.

“A Canaanite woman from that vicinity came to him, crying out, “Lord, Son of David, have mercy on me! My daughter is suffering terribly from demon-possession.”

So again, we have an interaction between Jesus and a woman. It is not the same scandal as before with the Samaritan woman. This woman knew Jesus as a healer and came to Him for that purpose. Note the humble way in which she approached Him.

First, she cried out for mercy. The term for cry denotes great emotion such as wailing. She did not demand her rights. She did not insist that Jesus ought to help. She appealed, not to justice, but to mercy.

She also addressed Him with great respect. She called Him “Lord,” not an unusual way to address someone of a higher position. It is the second title that caught attention – “Son of David.”

Matthew’s gospel opens with these words: “A record of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham” (1:1). The title appeared a number of times, some with people asking the same thing as this woman – for the Lord, Son of David, to have mercy. According to the religious authorities it was the title for the Messiah. Jesus asked them: “What do you think about the Christ? Whose son, is he?” They said to him, “The son of David” (22:42).

How then did this non-Jew hear of the title, and what possessed her to use it? Likely she heard of it as the news got around about Jesus’ miraculous powers. That is why she came in the first place. Jesus is a famous person. Though Jesus was outside of His native land, still word spread in this Gentile district borders Galilee. So, perhaps the woman was merely used the term that she had heard associated with Jesus. Some addressed Him as Rabbi.

This mother then presented her need – “my daughter is suffering terribly from demon-possession.” Her daughter’s suffering was terrible. We can imagine how awful it would be to see our children in such anguish. What then Jesus did? With the father Jairus, He immediately went to his home and along the way encouraged him to have faith.

But here He did not answer her a word. He ignored her. And it gets worse.

His disciples came, begged Him, and said, “Send her away, for she is crying out after us.”

Supposed to be kind-hearted disciples said in another words: “Get rid of her; now she’s coming after us!” It brings to mind the time they rebuked parents for bringing their children to Jesus to be blessed. They would certainly had the same attitude here, for this was a woman outside of the covenant. She was a pagan, an idolater. The nerve of her for even showing up. And Jesus, finally, seemed to share the same attitude, when He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the of Israel.”

It seems that Jesus answered the disciples in verse 24. He may be spoke to the woman or even to both. We are not sure to whom He was looked at. He affirmed His mission as the Son of David, the Messiah. His mission was to the house of Israel. He had come to save the lost covenant people of Israel. As noted, before, He had not come into the Gentile district as part of His mission; rather, as a respite from His mission.

But she came and knelt before Him, saying, “Lord, help me.”

The woman is not repelled. She drew closer and kneeled. “Lord, help me.” She did not argue; she knew her position, that she was outside the house of Israel and that the only appeal to make to this Jewish Man of God was to His compassion.

And He answered, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.”

Let’s get this image clear. A mother, filled with anguish for her suffering daughter, kneeled at Jesus’ feet, appealed to Jesus’ mercy. This was the same Jesus who once had said, “Come to me, all who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart…” (Matthew 11:28-9). He not only refused her request, but He insulted her and her daughter.

There have been attempts to soften Jesus’ response. The term used here is for dog is that of a small pet. It is a term of flattery. But we don’t find this term anywhere else in the Scriptures. And when humans are referred to as dogs it is always as an insult. Another suggestion is that Jesus had a humorous chat with the mother. If we could see their faces, we would see if they were smiling at each other. Some say that Jesus really spoke to His disciples, so that they would overhear. The episode was really a lesson for them. He was using the woman to teach them about faith and His ministry. One commentator suggests that Jesus was showing her great honour to test her faith.

It’s best to let the statement stand without attempting to soften it to appreciate this mother with her response.

She said, “Yes, Lord, but even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.”

What an amazing woman – her boldness, her quick intelligence. She had been ignored; she had been turned down; she had been insulted. She was a Canaanite woman among Jewish men who were hostile to her; a pagan before a holy man whose response is cold. And she lashed back a remark that stuns even Jesus.

Then Jesus answered her, “Woman, you have great faith! Your request is granted.” And her daughter was healed instantly.

Finally, the healing we expected. Jesus made it clear that He acts in response to her bold faith. It was not her plea for mercy nor even the humble respect she demonstrated that compelled Him to act. It was her courage to argue with Him, even, if we dare say, to out-argue Him.

He commended the greatness of her faith, and so it was. Most of us would have given up. She persisted even while Jesus did not follow through on what was expected. She had followed the right formula – be humble and appeal to mercy. No result. She tried again. Still no result; in fact, only insulting refusal. And yet she believed in Him; she believed He had the power to save her daughter and that He would if she persisted. Truly what faith to keep her intelligences about her. Truly what great faith to believe when all evidence wss against her.

What we learn from the woman’s faith.

a. The simplicity of her faith

This Canaanite woman could not have been too well versed in Jewish history and theology to fully understand who Jesus was. She would have some knowledge, but what would be most important is the report of a miracle-worker, a man of God who cared about the poor and who healed the sick and drove out demons. She heard the title Son of David and probably knew that it was tied up in the hopes of a Jewish Messiah. Here was someone who would save her daughter. To that belief she attached her hope and would not let go.

Sometimes too much knowledge can interfere with faith. To be sure, we should strive to understand as much as we can. But knowledge – what we think is knowledge – can feed our doubts as well as our faith. The very fact that our faith is a matter of faith means that there will always be matters that we cannot fully explain and certainly cannot prove. This is God’s design, the very means by which He tests our commitment to Him.

We would do well to have this woman’s simple faith.

b. The persistency of her faith

We would do well to have her persistent faith. This woman was fearless. She was discouraged three times, each discouragement being stronger. She would not give up. Jesus once told a parable about such a woman. Luke records it in 18:1-8:

The Son of Man certainly found such faith in this Gentile woman who did not belong to Israel. She didn’t give up.

Some might reply that all of this about the woman’s faith was well and good, but that she was motivated not by faith but by desperation for her daughter. We can sympathize with that view, but it does not quite play out. Faith, not desperation, kept her focused. If all she had was desperation to drive her, her manner would have changed to anger. She would have raged at the disciples and even at Jesus after their rejection and especially after the insult. She was able to keep her intelligence about her because she believed He could, and would, grant her request. We would do well to have the same confidence of faith and so the same persistence in our prayers to our Lord.

c. The boldness of her faith

And then we must acknowledge the boldness, even the courage, of her faith. She argued with Jesus and achieved! Like Abraham she reasoned with the Lord.

Remember the story of Abraham reasoning with God on behalf of Sodom? The Lord told him that he plans to destroy Sodom if it proves to be as wicked as the reports are made out to be. Abraham knew that this does not bode well for the city and is particularly concerned for his nephew Lot who lived there. So, he reasoned with God. Hewent on to cut down that number. How about 45? 40? 30? 20? All the way to 10. And the Lord agrees. We know that not even ten righteous persons were found but Lot was saved because God did remember the intercession of Abraham.

What we take from Abraham, but even more from this woman, is that, far from being displeased by our prayer requests, the Lord will be pleased that we come to Him. He is pleased that we would have such faith that we come to Him boldly even ready to argue our case. Only one with faith to believe in God and to believe that God listens would bother to do so.

That was Jesus’ point in His reply to the woman, “Woman, you have great faith!” This woman really believed in Him! Note that He went on to say, “Your request is granted.” He granted her request for her sake, for her faith. May we have such faith.

There are two times in the gospel in which Jesus was blown away with the faith shown in him. This one and that of the centurion. In both cases the believer was a Gentile, someone outside of the covenant people. They were individuals who didn’t belong to the house of Israel, people who were not children of Abraham. They demonstrated what the Apostle Paul would later pronounce clearly:

Know then that it is those of faith who are the sons of Abraham. And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, because of the preached gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, “All nations will be blessed through you. So those who have faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith (Galatians 3:8-9).

It matters not our heritage nor our race nor anything in our background to be counted a son or daughter of Abraham. All that matters is our faith in Jesus Christ. That faith does not have to be sophisticated, merely the simple belief that here is the Son of David, the Messiah, sent by God to save us from our sin. Hold on to him. Be persistent in following Him and turning to Him alone for our help and our salvation. Be bold, confident that in Jesus Christ we may boldly come before the throne of God like this mother knowing that we will be welcomed.

Amen!