We know that the devil, the world, and our sinful flesh are against us, tempting us to turn from the Lord's Word and give in to sin. But what if our problem is with the Lord? What if God is the problem? This Canaanite woman's daughter was possessed by a demon; the devil had control; his evil attacked her daughter and her family. But when she cried out to the Lord, then what? He ignored her! He didn't even answer her! She kept at Him, stalking him, I guess because finally the disciples got annoyed and told Jesus to get rid of her! Can you imagine? Here is the one man who can help this woman's daughter and He's blowing her off like she doesn't exist. Then, as if that's not frustrating or insulting enough, He talks right over her and tells His disciples, “I was not sent except to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” Talking like she's not even there. And then she falls down to beg Him to help her and He calls here a dog! A DOG! Now I'm pretty sure calling a woman a dog back then is just about as bad as it is today. Just try calling your mother or wife or girlfriend a dog and see what happens! We thought this woman's big problem was that he daughter was demon possessed. It seems like that's small potatoes compared to the treatment she's actually getting from the Lord! And haven't you gotten the same treatment from Him too? You pray and pray and nothing happens. No answer. The Lord ignores you. You see someone else get the result you wished you had and you wonder if God is YOUR God or not! So what about it? What about when the Lord Himself is the One who is our problem?
“Yes, Lord, but even the dogs get the crumbs that fall from the table.” Wait! What? Did that lady just admit to being a dog like Jesus called her? In our day and age, the woman could file libel or harassment charges; perhaps a slap or a nasty post on Facebook! But she agrees! Admits she must be a dog. Not worthy of Jesus. Not worthy of the Jewish Messiah. Not deserving of anything. No claim on Him at all. Except one. She's got one thing that will force His hand. That will compel Him to help. That will make Him save her daughter. What is that one thing? His WORD! When Jesus calls her a dog and she agrees, she's got Him! “OK, Lord, I'm a dog. Fine. But even dogs get crumbs and just crumbs from you will be enough to overthrow Satan's kingdom and save my daughter!” Well there's no getting out of that. Jesus is back against the wall, in the corner. He's trapped by His own words! Notice that this woman has claimed nothing about herself. The only reason she has for Jesus to help her is...Jesus! Because she's a dog but He's the Master and His crumbs will be enough. And so He does what He does: He saves her daughter. With a word, He casts out that demon and rescues this woman and her daughter from the tyranny of the Devil. And says to her: “Great is your faith.” NOT because she's so persistent. This story isn't about the woman; it's about Jesus giving the woman something to trap Him with: His Word. And she grabs a hold of it and does exactly that. And so Jesus does what He does, and is the kind of Savior He came to be.
That's because Jesus came to be the kind of Savior who rescues us from the devil. He rescues from sin and death. That's the kind of Savior He came to be and He can't be any other kind of Savior than that one. From before the foundation of the world, the Lamb has been slain. From the earliest promises the Lord made to Adam and Eve throughout the Old Testament and the promises and pictures of the coming Savior. From His birth of the virgin to His baptism and temptation, to His casting out demons. From His arrest and mocking trial, His scourging and crucifixion and death. From His resurrection and ascension and His future return in glory: From all these things we know: Christ is the one who saves. He is our God and Lord and Savior and Master from whose table even the crumbs save us. Jesus was not born with one purpose but then got sidetracked and ended up at the cross. The cross was always His destination, always the Father's plan. Remember that when it seems as if God isn't listening, that Jesus is always Jesus, always the Savior, always the Lamb who is slain for our salvation.
So what about it? What about when you pray and pray and the beg the Lord for something. To be healed or for someone you know to get better? For overcoming a temptation and sin that you keep sliding back into? For health and protection and the disaster strikes? What do you do as a Christian when it seems that the biggest problem you have in your life isn't the devil or the world or your sinful nature but the Lord Himself not doing anything about them?The answer is that you continue to take Christ's promises and rub them in His ear. That you repent of trying to negotiate with the Lord based on anything in you and go at Him full force based on HIS Word and HIS promises! You've already got some strong promises to cling to: He's the Savior who died on the cross and rose again. “Lord, you gave your life for us! Don't let this person perish! Don't let the devil win here!” He's the Lord who has washed and named you in Holy Baptism. “Lord, don't let go of your servant whom you washed and claimed as your own by water and the Word!” He's the Lord who has absolved your sins! “Lord, don't treat me as my sins deserve! Don't ignore my prayers because of my sins!” He's the Lord who gives not crumbs but His very Body and Blood from His table. “Lord, you have given me Yourself! Hear my prayer and be the Savior that you are!” And never stop taking those promises to His ears and praying, “Lord, save me. Save this person. Help and sustain us. Because you said so! So Lord, end this sickness; Lord deliver me from temptation and sin. Lord, give me your Holy Spirit so that in Christ I overcome every evil of body and soul!”
And know this: The Lord can't be any other Savior than He is. So when will He answer? It may be a long time in coming. It may not be until after death, on the Last Day when we are once and for all delivered from death and sickness and sorrow. Know that when it seems the Lord is ignoring you, or even telling you He's not for you, He's just teaching you to trust in Him all the more. He's teaching you to deny yourself and anything in yourself that you think is worthy of His attention and to have all of your faith and trust solely and completely in Him. Like Jacob, grab a hold of Him and don't let go until He blesses you! So while it may SEEM as if the Lord is against you, it can't be so. All that He does is to work out all good for you in Christ. He can only ever be the Savior that He is. The Savior who saves you. Hold Him to that, dear Christians, for He delights, as with this woman, to be trapped by His own Word and promises. For that Word and those promises declare He will not leave you to your enemies but rescue you from them all. In the Name of Jesus. Amen.
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