I love this quote from the 14th-century Christian Julian of Norwich.  Speaking of a deep trust in God’s goodness, she wrote, “All shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well.”

Let us hear this good news about Jesus from our story in Mark 7 today, and hold onto it relentlessly together, dear church family.  “He has done all things well!”  Jesus has done all things well.  Jesus does all things well.  Jesus will do all things well.

Let us hold onto this as we continue to consider the question “What does it mean to follow the crucified and risen Jesus of Nazareth?”  He has done everything well.  Let us hold onto this, particularly when things get difficult.  We’re looking again at two stories this morning, and the first one is difficult.  It’s been said that it seems like Jesus is being a little mean here!  There is no easy answer, although it is good to remember that Jesus’ encounter with the Syrophoenician woman is at heart not an encounter between a Jewish man and a Gentile woman but an encounter between God and humanity.  Our walk with Jesus can be a struggle (God changed Jacob’s name to Israel which literally means “he struggles with God); particularly when things vex or perplex us.  When we wonder “Why?” 

Our “Why?” questions about God might go unanswered.  The question for us is “Are we ok with that?”  Are we ok with a story in which Jesus seems to give a rather mean answer?   “Let the children be fed first, for it is not fair to take the children’s food and throw it to the dogs.” Commentators have looked at this first story and talked about the twinkle that must have been in Jesus’ eye, or the gentle way in which he must have said these things, or the fact that he’s using the diminutive of dog (so it’s more like puppy) if this makes it easier to take. 

What is going on here?

In the middle of struggle, are we prepared to trust?  In the middle of struggle, are we going to trust that Jesus does all things well?  In these Eastertide weeks, we’re going back to Galilee to meet him.  To watch Jesus and to listen to Jesus.  Let’s come before God in prayer as we look at the stories that are before us today.

I’m talking about going back to Galilee, though in our first story, we’re actually in Tyre, where Jesus meets this unnamed Greek/Syrophoenician woman.  Jesus heads northwest into Gentile territory.  Tyre and Sidon.  Two towns on the Mediterranean coast in what is modern-day Lebanon. Jesus is crossing boundaries figuratively and literally.  We don’t know why he went.  It may be that he wanted to rest in a place where he would not be as well known.  Yet he could not escape notice.

“…but a woman whose little daughter had an unclean spirit immediately heard about him, and she came and bowed down at his feet.”  The woman’s daughter was in the grip of something that was beyond her control.  In Mark’s gospel, Jesus’ followers are at times not to be taken as examples of faith – slow to understand, quick to criticize, quick to judge, as we are.  Here, though, we have a woman who is an example of faith.  One of the little people, as she’s been called.  Thank God for the so-called little people who have been around us and are around us now as examples of great faith.  She holds a position of relentless dependence on Jesus.  “Lord help us to be relentlessly dependent on you.” May this be our prayer.  She doesn’t make any presumptions. She doesn’t make any claim on Jesus.  Matthew records her plea as this – “Lord help me.”  Surely this is one of the most simple and most profound prayers there are. She is persistent.  She throws herself at Jesus’ feet in a gesture of both repentance and sorrow.  She doesn’t presume that she has to do something or promise something to get the help that she needs.  She doesn’t presume that she has to say the right words in the proper order. She simply comes to the one who does all things well.

Who gives her an answer that might be considered unexpected at best, insulting at worst.  “Let the children be fed first, for it is not fair to take the children’s food and throw it to the dogs.”  Jesus is speaking in a kind of parable here of salvation history, or of how God was accomplishing the saving/delivering/healing/restoring of all things.  This was being done through the nation of Israel (as had been promised to Abraham) in the person of Jesus, who would save and redeem and show mercy and forgive and give light and guide feet in the way of peace.  It is a matter of chronology and not exclusivity.  As Paul puts it in Rom 1:16, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel; it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who has faith, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.”  Chronology is not a matter of exclusivity, and neither is it a matter of priority.  Even in God’s first delivering event – the Exodus, the delivering of God’s people from subjugation in Egypt – we read “The Israelites journeyed from Rameses to Succoth, about six hundred thousand men on foot, besides children. A mixed crowd also went up with them, and livestock in great numbers, both flocks and herds.” (Ex 12:37-38)  Outsiders were even then taking part in God’s delivering action (animals too).

I must pause here and say something about God’s saving work (delivering, renewing, restoring, life-giving work).  Would anything about God’s delivering work offend us?  This is a difficult encounter, and the question for us is, is there anything about God’s delivering work for us that would be too much for us?  Are there people or groups of people who we would judge to be undeserving of God’s grace (of God’s unmerited favour and goodness)?  There’s a scene in Exodus 33 where God is going to pass before Moses.  Moses asks to see God’s glory.  God tells Moses he’ll pass by him, but first God will place Moses in a cleft in a rock and cover Moses with his hand so that Moses will be able to take it.  God’s care and grace!  Listen to what God says, in Ex 33:19 “I will make my goodness pass before you, and will proclaim before you the name ‘The Lord’: and I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy.”  Are we ok with that?  Are we ok with trusting the goodness of the one who does all things well?

Getting back to the animals now, we have this difficulty of Jesus comparing this Syrophoenician woman to a dog.  We may react to this in different ways, as I said earlier.  Dogs were not thought of as members of the family in those days.  There were no Pet Smarts or pictures with Santa.  Was this remark out of character for Jesus?  Who am I to say what is out of character for Jesus?  Who are any of us to say what is out of character for God, who is gracious to whom He will be gracious and who will show mercy on whom He will show mercy?

We may react in different ways to this scene.  It’s important to remember, as I said earlier, that this is at heart an encounter between humanity and God. Look at how this faithful woman reacts.  She does not walk away in a huff and swear never to speak to this man again.  She does not reject him for his answer.  Gentiles were known to have dogs in their households, and perhaps Jesus’ use of the “puppy” form of dog here reminds this woman of a pet and a household scene, which reminds us all of a deep truth about God.  “Sir, even the dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs.”  Jesus hadn’t said, after all, that the dogs wouldn’t ever be fed, just not first.  This woman brings nothing of herself to this encounter with Jesus except her need for him and her trust in his goodness.  Someone has put it like this, “Even when rebuffed, she didn’t sulk or storm off, declaring God uncaring and cruel. Moreover, she showed no sense of entitlement, no expectation that Jesus should heal her daughter. On the contrary, she appealed for mercy. And owing her nothing, Jesus extended grace.”  She persisted.  She showed relentless faith.  Trusting that even crumbs of grace would be enough.

We may find ourselves in a situation that is beyond us.  We may find ourselves in such a situation soon.  We may have people in our circles of love and care who find themselves in such a situation.  How do we live in such a situation?  To whom do we go for help?  Even in the face of unexpected answers from God or difficulty in seeing God’s goodness in the face of difficulty.  Living in the expectation of a promise of goodness, knowing that even crumbs will sustain.  Holding onto the belief that no matter the outcome, God is good.  Having faith.  Trusting.  Believing that Jesus is who he says he is and will do what he says he will do.  Trusting that God’s will for us is nothing but goodness.  Trusting in relentless dependence on him. Relentless dependence from this faithful woman who doesn’t ask for a sign or an explanation from Jesus when he says her daughter has been freed, but simply goes home and finds the child lying in bed and the demon gone.

Jesus returns from Tyre by way of Sidon and ends up in the region of the Decapolis – another Gentile region on the east side of the Sea of Galilee.  Here we have another story of God’s promise fulfilled.  I like to tell children about God’s faithfulness with this explanation.  When God makes a promise, he keeps it.  Even when we are waiting for the fulfillment of a future promise, God’s goodness is with us.  Do you know God’s goodness?  Can you hear it?  Can you speak of it? Jesus will help.  “He even makes the deaf to hear and the mute to speak.”  Listen to these lines from Isaiah 35, promising the return of the exiled to Zion.  The promise of deliverance is here in the person of Jesus.  “Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf unstopped; then the lame shall leap like a deer, and the tongue of the speechless sing for joy.” (Is 35:5-6a)

“They brought to him a deaf man who had an impediment in his speech, and they begged him to lay his hand on him.”  We don’t know who these people are, but Martin Luther had this to say about them (and to us) –  “They do not need this work themselves, nor do they look to themselves, but to the poor man, and think how they may help him; they seek no reward but act independently and freely. Thus, you should by right do likewise; if not, you are no Christians.”  There you go.

Jesus takes the man away from the crowd and, in private, puts his fingers into his ears.  Note Jesus’ care here.  Jesus’ bedside manner.  The man can’t hear, and Jesus is showing him what he is about to do, which is to enable the man to hear. Jesus spits and touches the man’s tongue to show that he is about to enable the man to speak.  Jesus sighs or groans, and we can’t hear this without thinking of all creation groaning, longing for renewal.  Jesus groans along with it here.   The renewal of all things is coming, and the renewal of all things has begun, and Jesus says “Ephphatha,” which means be opened and immediately his ears were opened, his tongue released, and he spoke plainly.  May this be our prayer.  Lord, open our ears, help us to tell plainly of you.  Signs of God’s love and renewal are breaking in all around us, often in the so-called little people.  They were astounded beyond measure, saying, “He has done everything well…”  New life is among us.  The goodness of God is among us.  Goodness, that astounds and astonishes if we have ears to hear, eyes to see, hearts to understand, tongues to tell and sing.  May God give us such ears, eyes, hearts and tongues.

May God give us thankful hearts as we come to his table today.  We’re not talking about only getting crumbs when we come to the Lord’s Table.  We’re talking about super-abundant grace.  God speaks in Psalm 81 about his people listening to his voice.  God says, “I would feed you with the finest of wheat.”  Everyone is welcome to the table through trust in Jesus, who has done all things well, who does all things well, and who will do all things well.  Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift of grace.

Amen