Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Evening Sermon Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/ev/ev19961013.htm

MATTHEW: JESUS AS ISRAEL'S MESSIAH AND HIS MESSIANIC KINGDOM
Part X. Christ's Messianic Kingdom Postponed
I. Encouragement To See Discipling Advances In Seemingly Impossible Situations
(Matthew 15:1-20, 21-28)
  1. Introduction
    1. There are times when setbacks in discipling experiences can cause the believer to doubt that he is useful, or that others can or will ever respond to God's presented Word. It is enough to make one want to quit.
    2. However, such is not the case, for great spiritual strides can come in the most unsuspecting circumstances.
    3. To encourage His disciples in this concern, and to help us by way of application, Jesus demonstrated this truth in Matthew 15 as follows: (cf. G. Campbell Morgan, Matthew, p. 203)
  2. Encouragement To See Discipling Advances In Seemingly Impossible Situations, Mtt. 15:1-28.
    1. Just before Jesus left Israel for the coasts of Gentile Tyre and Sidon, His disciples witnessed a very discouraging resistance to Jesus' ministry by Israel's people, Mtt. 15:1-20.
      1. They saw the Pharisees from Israel's capital, Jerusalem criticize Jesus for letting His disciples eat food with not ceremonially washing their hands, Mtt. 15:1-2.
      2. Jesus in return had critiqued their tendencies to emphasize such human traditions above Scripture, and the Pharisees were deeply offended when Jesus added that the traditions were wrong, 15:10-12.
      3. When the disciples asked Jesus to explain his statement that the ceremonial washings did not defile a man like that which came out of a man, He critiqued their dullness, Mt. 15:10-11 with 15:16-20.
      4. Summary: All in all, Jesus had seen Israel's leaders resist His correct overlooking of their prized, human traditions, had seen them get hurt when He criticized their error, and even saw the disciples exhibit spiritual dullness in not understanding His criticism of these leaders! It was a bad day!!
    2. Yet, Jesus went from this place of great discouragement in the Promised Land to a place where one would least expect to find spiritual blessing, and to a party least assumed to be responsive to Him, 15:21-22a:
      1. Jesus left Palestine for Tyre and Sidon, places He already mentioned to be spiritually destitute, 11:21.
      2. In this spiritually destitute place, He was confronted by a Canaanite woman, a woman whose race should have been annihilated by Israel when Joshua invaded the land, cf. 15:22a with Dt. 7:1-2.
      3. This Canaanite woman had the worst possible spiritual crisis a human could have; her daughter was demon possessed, Mtt. 15:22b.
    3. Yet, in the midst of this experience of going from the spiritual bad-to-worse, Jesus exemplified for His disciples that God's grace and responsive hearts can show up in the worst of times!
      1. Jesus intentionally took the disciples out of the land for this encounter with this Canaanite woman as is demonstrated in His geographical movements:
        1. Jesus left Gennesaret by the Sea of Galilee to go to Tyre and Sidon, cf. Mtt. 14:34; 15:21. This is a trip from within Israel to a place outside of 50 miles one way, cf. The Macmillan Bible Atlas, p. 32.
        2. Right after this event, Jesus returned to Decapolis, a region of ten towns on the southeastern shore of the Sea of Galilee, a full 70 miles return trip from Tyre and Sidon, Ibid., p. 136.
      2. In this significant encounter between Jesus and this woman, we have a striking contrast to His immediately previous encounter with unbelieving Jews in Palestine:
        1. On the one hand, there are the religious Pharisees of Jerusalem who are supposed to treat God's Word with honor but who have elevated man's tradition to the equal of Scripture to overturn it, 15:1-9. On the other, you have a woman whose people should have been annihilated by Israel due to their apostasy, who ha s no influence or training equal to the Jerusalem Pharisees, Mtt. 15:22.
        2. On the one hand, you have the dull, pride-caused, offended rejection of Jesus by the Pharisees who should have known better, 15:1-2,10-12. On the other you have the perceptive, persistent, humble faith of a woman who wouldn't get hurt when Jesus at first stalled in healing her daughter, and who kept asking His help until Jesus complimented her great faith and healed her daughter, 15:22-28.
Lesson: Jesus manufactured this encounter with the Canaanite woman to show His disciples that great discipling strides can arise where we least expect them, and nothing can arise in people with whom we might most expect their response! Thus, we mu st serve God by faith and not be bothered about results!