Proper 15 (A) A Faithful “Dog”
Proper 15 (A)A Faithful “Dog”
I title the sermon, “A Faithful ‘Dog,’” subtitled: “An Irresistible Prayer Mode.”
Let’s set the scene: Jesus and His disciples in an attempt to get away from the crowds and from the ever-conniving, ever-dangerous Pharisees, have crossed the border into gentile country. Their hope is that not many law-abiding Jews would likely follow. Remember, if you even brushed up against a “garbage” gentile, you were required by law to go through a ritualistic cleansing. Most Jews would not want to risk being contaminated.
Jesus and His Apostles were no sooner out of reach from the Jews, when one of the local “foreign” women recognizes Jesus, and from a distance, shouts her plight.
“Sir, Son of David, have pity on me. My daughter is grievously afflicted by a demon.” We might have put it like this: My daughter is gravely ill, and suffering. I believe a great man like yourself can help her.
Three years ago, in a sermon on this text I accused this woman of having a lot of Chutzpah! Now, I am more inclined to believe that her courage to approach a Jewish Rabbi was motivated by a mother’s love. Forget the protocol…. my daughter is sick and she needs help!
Jesus doesn’t respond, but He must have been looking at her. What was she thinking? “Here is a great man with a reputation as a healer, and I can use him?” Or, was she thinking, “Here is the divine presence of God on our street?”
At St. George’s Church back in Minnesota, we had a Sunday night healing service. Some wonderful things happened at that service, and it grew to be quite popular. Sixty or seventy people would show up. One thing that I observed was that for some, the service was treated like a magic show. It was as though people came inside… double-parked…. With the engine running…hoping to get “zapped” into wholeness and health, and then be on their way. Never mind getting to know what else the Lord might have on His mind.
I wonder if that’s what Jesus was thinking as He looked at this “foreign” woman’s pleading eyes. I know I can help her daughter, but where do we go from here? God’s divine presence in human form has crossed a border…but for how long, and to what extent?
Meanwhile, the Apostles had a different read on this woman’s rude and unorthodox interruption. They wanted Jesus to get rid of her. Why should this “outsider” be permitted to steal their time from their master? Wasn’t their privacy the reason they had crossed the border in the first place?
After years of doing what ministers do, I came to the conclusion that my job was dealing with interruptions. You’re sitting at your desk, trying to compose your thoughts, and a head pops in the door and says, “Oh, I’m glad I caught you when you weren’t busy…. have you got a minute?”
You say, “Sure,” and then discover that you are into a major can-of-worms that will take major time to untangle…. maybe!
Still, you can see by the expression on their face that…. now is the time. They may not find the same courage to face their situation another day. What I discovered in ministry is that pain and compassion don’t punch a time clock. When your children cry in the middle of the night, you don’t put in earplugs.
Just now on my computer screen saver this message appeared: The reason computers can do more work than people is because they don’t have to stop to answer the phone.
When I was the Rector of St. Paul’s, I was always looking for ways to faithfully minister to the parishioners and fairly keep my family commitments. One question I have for God (when I get to heaven) is, “Why do people die so that their funeral falls on my day off?”
Jesus and his “family” had made a special trip to get away, and they were counting on some special time together and now…. here was this woman! What would Jesus do? Well, no doubt to the consternation of His Apostles, He didn’t brush her off. He showed her compassion.
I remember reading, The One Minute Manager. One chapter dealt with getting uninvited people out of your office. There were suggestions like:
- “Meet them half-way to the door and guide them back out into the hallway.”
- “Instruct your secretary to interrupt.”
As I read on, I felt my stomach knotting up. I thought…. this is not for me, nor do I think that it’s ministry.
I still ask myself how do you deal with all the needy people in the world, and still be faithful to your own list of personal commitments. You may remember my telling you that seven of the thirteen clergy that I have worked with on staff are divorced. How do you deal with the fact that there is just so much time in a day?
Maybe Jesus was wondering that same thing? He wanted time with His Apostles…He knew His time was short. And now, here is this woman screaming for His attention. And there are His disciples with arms folded…tapping their feet…and rolling their eyes.
Jesus turns to the woman and (I’m thinking with a smile on His face), He says, “You know, I’ve got all these Jews to deal with… and I really shouldn’t be spending my time feeding the ‘dogs.’” (the Greek word is a softer word for dog…more like…. a puppy.)
The woman sees her opening and dives for it. “Yes Lord, but even the puppies get some scraps! Do you have a scrap of time for my sick child and this frantic, foreign, believing puppy?”
I think Jesus found himself looking into that woman’s face like we would look into the irresistible brown eyes of an ever-hopeful, ever-expectant puppy. Yes, she had chutzpah, but her love for her child was even more compelling. Yes, she was an annoying interruption, but so real in her cheerful faith. She was a single woman in the face of thirteen men on a mission, but her quick-witted persistence stopped them in their tracks.
This woman brought to Christ a gallant and audacious love, a growing faith, an indomitable persistence springing from an unconquerable hope, a cheerfulness which could not be dismissed.
After meeting this woman, I have concluded that my prayer time needs an attitude adjustment. I will strive to be more; loving – faithful – persistent – hopeful – and cheerful.
Jesus turns to the woman and says, “Yes, you can have a scrap of my ministry…. Your daughter is healed.”
Resources for further study:
| Track 1 | or | Track 2 |
| Genesis 45:1-15 Psalm 133 Romans 11:1-2a, 29-32 Matthew 15: (10-20), 21-28 | Isaiah 56:1,6-8 Psalm 67 Romans 11:1-2a, 29-32 Matthew 15: (10-20), 21-28 |
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