Hearing the Metaphors of God as a Child and a Friend

The Children's Crumbs

(Mark 7:24-30, Preaching: Pastor Stephen Magee, February 24, 2019)

[24] And from there he arose and went away to the region of Tyre and Sidon. And he entered a house and did not want anyone to know, yet he could not be hidden. [25] But immediately a woman whose little daughter had an unclean spirit heard of him and came and fell down at his feet. [26] Now the woman was a Gentile, a Syrophoenician by birth. And she begged him to cast the demon out of her daughter. [27] And he said to her, “Let the children be fed first, for it is not right to take the children's bread and throw it to the dogs.” [28] But she answered him, “Yes, Lord; yet even the dogs under the table eat the children's crumbs.” [29] And he said to her, “For this statement you may go your way; the demon has left your daughter.” [30] And she went home and found the child lying in bed and the demon gone.

God's plan: Angels, Demons, Human image-bearers, Jews, and Gentiles

In reading the book of Acts and the opening chapters of Romans, Paul's ministry strategy is very clear: Whenever possible, go first to the Jews, then to the Greeks. Where did Paul and others get the idea that they were supposed to go to the Jews first, and only then bring the gospel to the Gentiles? (Genesis 12:3, Exodus 4:22, Isaiah, Hosea) How did Jesus prepare his disciples for the eventual mission to non-Jews? (Centurion, Here) Why would we care about any of this, since it is so distant from our time and place?

The story before us this morning is simultaneously fascinating and jarring. It fits within a much larger book of the Almighty, and is one of several experiences of Jesus that give us the hint of the nearness of a turning point that will become very evident in the rest of the New Testament. It is also part of a larger drama involving God and celestial beings who are either on his side or not, but who are always under his sovereign authority.

To begin with, to get the most out of this passage we have to believe that there is a God above all who is not fooled by our efforts to seem holier than we are. As John 2:25 testifies, Jesus “needed no one to bear witness about man, for he himself knew what was in man.” God is real, and so are angels. The Bible tells us that “unclean spirits” are actually rebellious angels, also known as demons. As 2 Peter 2:4 teaches, “God did not spare angels when they sinned, but cast them into hell and committed them to chains of gloomy darkness to be kept until the judgment.” Yet even Satan, the prince of demons by God's permission is allowed to go “to and fro on the earth,” (Job 1:7, 2:2) and to harass some of the Lord's most commendable servants. In all of these mysterious operations of evil, the Lord is working out his own good and holy purposes. (Romans 5)

Oh to know and tell God's story! Long ago, God promised to save his chosen people through one image-bearer who would crush the head of the serpent (Genesis 3:14-15). The Lord had also revealed that his children would include not only the Jews, but also people from all the family groups on the face of the earth. In short, when the days drew near to shift from the time of preparation to the era of worldwide mission, there would indeed be Jews who were outwardly holy, but inwardly empty. There would also be, shockingly to some, Gentiles who seemed too dirty to eat with, who would yet enjoy the children's crumbs from the floor like dogs, and would receive signs of heavenly favor.

A Syrophoenician woman and her little daughter, just one chapter

Which brings us to a fantastic little real life parable. Jesus of Nazareth, the Son of God, had just left a group of Jews who were very upset about ceremonial hand washing. They were super observant Pharisees and yet Jesus plainly declared, quoting Isaiah, that they were hypocrites. Outwardly they seemed to do everything just so, but inwardly they were far from God, and were not really his chosen people. He traveled north to a Gentile area, Tyre and Sidon, and he entered a house there with no intention of drawing a crowd. He “did not want anyone to know where he was.” This secrecy was not to be. At this stage in his ministry, Jesus was even known in non-Jewish territories surrounding Israel. (3:7-8) Those desperately in need of help would do anything to find him.

Such was the case with the Gentile mother who is here referred to as “Syrophoenician by birth.” Her little daughter “had an unclean spirit,” one of those fallen angels, troubling her. The mother had heard of Jesus, and she came to him and “fell down at his feet.” She was in great need, and “she begged him to cast the demon out of her daughter. Not only did he seem unwilling to help, he spoke in a way that seems surprisingly insulting to our ears. With a knowledge of the larger story, we can understand that he was only affirming an established Old Testament truth, that the Messiah was coming first to the “children” of Israel. Only later would the apostles be told to make disciples of all nations. As of that precise moment, the theological facts were precisely what Jesus said: “Let the children be fed first, for it is not right to take the children's bread and throw it to the dogs.” Jesus was using a metaphor as he often did when he spoke in parables. The children were the Jews. The dogs were the rest of the world. Not flattering.

Amazingly, the needy woman accepted the metaphor and extended the story in a way that was startlingly revealing: “Yes, Lord; yet even the dogs under the table eat the children's crumbs.” Jesus was very pleased with the sensitive way she had listened to his words. This woman had faith! Outwardly she was a Gentile. Inwardly she was a true Jew—a real daughter of Abraham. “For this statement you may go your way; the demon has left your daughter.” She went home and saw the good news with her own eyes.

Learning metaphors from the Son of God and entering into his good book

Through this fascinating account of deliverance from demonic possession, we are drawn into a most engaging episode where Jesus begins to bring other people groups into his larger story of salvation. (Genesis 9:26-27, 10, 11, Acts 2, 15) We need to know the Lord's book from beginning to end according to the way he has written it. We want to hear his truth exactly as he has decided to share it with us. That's what friends do. They enjoy one another's favorite metaphors. When we commit to knowing the Bible, we show respect to God as the best of all story tellers. Read it as a child. Read it as a friend.

The Syrophoenician woman had a better message than the Pharisees who questioned Jesus about hand washing. 1. She knew that Jesus was Lord, and that he had the authority to overturn evil. 2. She understood and accepted God's story, that the miraculous signs of heavenly blessing were coming first to the Jews and then to the Gentiles. 3. She was willing to receive salvation with shocking humility, knowing that even a crumb of the children's bread, if truly given to her by Jesus, would be enough to overturn the malicious purposes of the prince of darkness. She was a child and a friend.

Can we be like this woman? We can hear the simple message of Jesus and even bring the metaphors of Scripture to our time and place. We can love Jesus' story. And live it.

Old Testament Reading—Psalm 97 – Let the many coastlands be glad!

New Testament Reading—James 1:22-25 – Hearing the story, loving the story, living the story