Feb 24, 2013; 2nd
Sunday in Lent (Reminiscere); Texts: Psalm 121; Genesis 32:22-32; Romans 5:1-5; Matthew 15:21-28; Title: Faith that Fights; Rev. Tim Beck
Grace, mercy, and
peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ
The
second Sunday in Lent is called “Reminiscere.” We shall reminisce about the
history of Israel, for faith’s sake. God’s ways can only be understood by
faith. God promised Abraham that his Seed would bless all nations; and then God
told Abraham to sacrifice the only
son of the promise, Isaac. Who could reason that out? But Abraham believed and
so obeyed, and Isaac lived and was blest. Isaac believed too, though he favored
Esau, his son who didn’t believe. So Jacob, who believed the promise, who
wanted the promise, both bought and stole the birth right from his brother
Esau, Isaac conferring it to him on his death-bed. But when Esau planned to
murder him, Jacob fled. Then Jacob struggled 20 years under Laban, and had to
flee his father-in-law too. When Jacob is finally freed from Laban’s threats,
Esau is coming with 400 armed men. Jacob, believing the promise wrestles with
God, is blest for faith’s sake and renamed Israel.
So it is with faith. There’s always a
fight, one where victory depends upon God. For example, Israel’s sons became a
tribe and then a nation only to be enslaved away from the land of promise.
After 400 years of exile, in a faith-fight Moses led Israel to the Promised
Land, to Canaan and gave God’s command: kill every inhabitant there. Kill them
all. Was that God’s way to bless the nations?
It doesn’t make sense to reason. It doesn’t make sense apart from faith;
even if God warned the Canaanites not to abandon the faith they received from Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, but
they did. It doesn’t make sense even if the Canaanites went from bad to
repugnant during those 400 years after forefather Israel left the Promised
Land. Canaanite men fornicated with men, and women with women as a sacrifice of
praise before gods shaped like sexual-organs. Canaanite parents burnt their
babies to a crisp as a sacrifice. That’s where unbelief took them. (Today we’re
hardly offended at Canaanite ways: in California school-children are forced to
hear that modern versions of the same are perfectly normal behavior... and
there’s saline baths to cause abortions.)
But faith sees that God’s judgment
made sense, since the Canaanites required all who lived in the land to worship
their gods, to follow their ways. So God judged Canaan’s unbelief for the sake
of faith, so that Israel could believe in the promised Seed. God’s ways are not
our ways; they are hard to understand and they have to do with faith. God
destroyed the nations of Canaan to preserve faith in Israel; to have a people
set apart for the sake of all nations. God promised to keep faith in Israel,
and when most of Israel turned from faith, He let enemies destroy the nation
and preserved a believing remnant. God judges unbelief that there might be
faith; and he does this in ways only faith can see. Who reasoned that all the
trials Jacob endured were for the sake of faith? When Jacob heard Esau was
coming with a small army, when his faith wavered, what did His Lord do but
strengthen it in a fight? Keep that in mind this Lenten season. Not only are we
called to repent our evil ways, we are called to faith.
What are we called to repent? In part, all compromise
with the values of the world, the devil, and our flesh; with the things that
cut us off from the true God, things of unbelief. What are we called to
believe? That through Christ Jesus all our sins are forgiven, we are God’s holy
people. There is more to the holy History of God than judgment upon
unbelief. There is the promise, and the
promise proclaimed that stirs up and sustains faith. “The faith” is for our
faith. What is this “faith” that Scripture details? “The faith” means content.
Faith is not mere sincerity, but faith in particulars, the revealed doctrines
of Scripture. Yet faith in the faith is more than understanding and
assent. Faith is trust, dependence,
reliance and confidence in what is revealed.
As to the content of the faith, you were taught the Ten Commandments,
the Creed, the Lord’s Prayer, the Sacraments, in short the chief articles of
faith as taught in Luther’s Small Catechism. You know the Old Testament
histories. You know the life of Christ and of the Apostles. You can describe
the difference between the law and the gospel can’t you? That’s the content of
faith. And as for the nature of faith, of trust in God’s promises, you hunger
after the Word. You want to be here to hear God’s word and receive the
sacrament. Or, do you feel a bit guilty right now? Lent is a season of repentance to confess our
thick skulls and hard hearts, and receive forgiveness, life and salvation. God’s
ways can only be understood by faith, and faith not only understands, it
receives.
Let us reminisce about the history of
a Canaanite woman. Then
Jesus went away from there, and departed into the region of Tyre and Sidon. Tyre
and Sidon were by-words for paganism; it was Canaanite heartland. Good Israelites didn’t go there, but Jesus
went there, for faith’s sake. And behold, a Canaanite woman came out of
those borders, and cried unto him, saying, have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of
David: my daughter is badly demonized. What’s amazing is this woman
left the center of pagan-country to find Jesus. She’s a Canaanite, yet she knew
faith’s content. She heard about this man who cast out demons and healed the
sick. And she had heard about the
promise made to Abraham. She knew about the Son of David who would come to
save. She knew the faith. And she had
faith in the faith. She cried out for mercy confessing the faith revealed to
Israel, “O Lord, Son of David!” Unlike Israel’s religious elite this Canaanite
woman cried out to Jesus as Lord and as Son of David. She is like Jacob. She
wrestles with God. And for her sake the Son of God appeared in the flesh as to
Jacob, to be her opponent…for faith’s sake. What does Jesus do? He answered her not a word.
When Jesus did not answer the woman a word… his
disciples approached him and besought him, saying, Send her away; for she cries
after us. The Canaanite keeps
shouting, Lord, Son of David, have mercy on me! She makes a scene because she
has a terrible need and knows Jesus can help. She shouts, but the disciples say
scram. Did they think Jesus ignored her because Canaanites have no part in the
kingdom of God? Look what God told Moses to do to the Canaanites! And it’s true
she didn’t deserve to be in the kingdom, for who deserves that? Or did the disciples mean “give her what she
wants to get rid of her.” Like a child who shouts at her parents “give me a hot
dog” over and over until she gets it. After she got it, my 3 year old niece
said, “If you gave it right away I wouldn’t have to shout!” However, Jesus does not give in. He is
silent, but not because he only gives in if we shout enough.
Jesus tested that Canaanite woman.
But he answered and said, I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of
Israel. The phrase is emphatic. This is absolutely the way it is, although
Jesus gives a clue for faith to this woman so desperate for help. Jesus said He
came for the lost sheep of Israel. He
came for those who have no faith, the
unbelievers in Israel. He came to the faithless not to destroy, but to save. What
does this tell the desperate Canaanite who knows about the coming Son of David?
Does she reminisce that Abraham is to be a blessing to all nations? Does she
remember why God’s wrath was poured out on Canaanites, for the sake of Israel’s
faith? Does she think of Jacob and his wrestling? Does she know how God’s wrath
was poured on unbelieving Israel to preserve a remnant with faith? Does she see
that only through faith is Israel a blessing to the nations? Consider what’s
going on between Jesus, the woman, and the disciples. When Jesus answered not
and spoke of Israel’s unbelief the Canaanite woman was driven to cling to the
promise given Abraham all the more. Driven to the promise that Abraham’s Seed
would bless all peoples: Then she came and worshiped him, saying, Lord, help
me.
That’s
like us, isn’t it? Sunday mornings we don’t come to do something for God, but
arrive with empty hands or even in desperation praying “Lord have mercy, you’ve
promised me this.” Hearing the promises
of God, needing the answers of God,
we say, “Lord, me too!” This faith is dependence and hope in
the promise. This faith is sufficient because God works to create and sustain
such faith… that we believe the promise in order to receive what is promised. This
faith formed by testing, and like
Peter’s, walks on water; and like Peter’s, cries out while sinking in the waves
until Jesus drags us back into the boat, for the sake of faith. Jesus
was full of mercy when he answered and said, It is not good to take the
children’s bread and to cast it to dogs. These
words are not as cruel as they sound in English. There were two common words
for “dog” in Jesus’ day. One referred to half-wild packs that roamed the city;
dogs hated and feared by children especially. The Israelites called Canaanites
by that name, “you scavenger-dog.” But Jesus used the word that means the
child’s pet. Children loved these dogs. And children are messy eaters. They are
sure to drop something for the dog. Jesus gave this word to win the battle for
faith. He says “You’re invited into the household even if the Word of God comes
from the Jews.” Jesus told the woman how to answer. Understanding the promise,
she believed and said, Yes Lord,
yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters’ table. Then Jesus
answered and said unto her, O woman, great is your faith: be it unto you even
as you desire. And her daughter was
healed from that very hour. Do you see? Faith in the promise will be
tested, yet by testing the promise will strengthen faith. By testing, this
woman learned prayer, “please Lord, your promises for me too!” And Jesus met
her need. He fulfilled the promise of the Messiah. And, Jesus stirred the disciples to faith by
her example, provoking them to believe, they who would suffer so much for the faith
after Jesus’ ascension.
Reminisce on this if God doesn’t give
you that hot dog fast enough. Keep asking, but not because He needs to be
convinced; rather for your sake, for faith’s sake. And you, clinging to the
promise, will learn four things through wrestling with God: 1) That we might
rejoice when our Lord brings us to the cry, “Lord, help me!” 2) That we take comfort knowing faith does
not depend on your will, but His grace. 3) That the Saviour will mercifully
answer your cry. 4) That the Lord Jesus will use your faith-struggles to
provoke others to believe. God’s ways can only be understood by faith, and
faith not only understands, it receives.
The peace of God which passes all understanding keep your heart and
mind in Christ Jesus.
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