The Second Sunday in Lent.
The
Collect.
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LMIGHTY God,
who seest that we have no power of ourselves to help ourselves; Keep us both
outwardly in our bodies, and inwardly in our souls; that we may be defended
from all adversities which may happen to the body, and from all evil thoughts
which may assault and hurt the soul; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
And due to the rubric, the Collect for the Day is
followed by the Collect for Ash Wednesday, which is found on Page 124:
The first day of Lent, commonly called
Ash Wednesday.
Ash Wednesday.
The
Collect.
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LMIGHTY and
everlasting God, who hatest nothing that thou hast made, and dost forgive the
sins of all those who are penitent; Create and make in us new and contrite
hearts, that we, worthily lamenting our sins and acknowledging our wretchedness,
may obtain of thee, the God of all mercy, perfect remission and forgiveness;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
¶ This Collect is to be said every day in Lent, after the
Collect appointed for the day, until Palm Sunday.
One great acknowledgment that stands out in
today's Collect for the 2nd Sunday in Lent is this: Since our father
Adam partook of the ill-natured tree in the midst of the Garden, Man must still
find himself constantly relying upon that OTHER Tree in the midst of the Garden
at Eden which he rejected – the Tree of Life. Because of that rejection, we are
full of sin and incapable of helping ourselves. We even return to, stop and
listen to, and partake of the ill-fated fruit of the Tree of the Knowledge of
Good and Evil. It is only the Mercy and Grace offered by the Tree of Life that
keeps us from constantly appealing to the serpent of the other tree. This
Collect originates in the Gregorian Sacramentary. For a fuller study and brief
meditation on the Collects, I recommend The Collects of Thomas Cranmer, by C.
Frederick Barbee and Paul F.M. Zahl. (Erdmans, 1999)
21 Then Jesus went thence, and departed into the coasts of Tyre
and Sidon. 22 And, behold, a woman of Canaan came out of the same coasts,
and cried unto him, saying, Have mercy on me, O Lord, thou Son of David; my
daughter is grievously vexed with a devil. 23 But he answered her not a
word. And his disciples came and besought him, saying, Send her away; for she
crieth after us. 24 But he answered and said, I
am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel. 25 Then
came she and worshipped him, saying, Lord, help me. 26 But he answered and
said, It is not meet to take the children's
bread, and to cast it to dogs. 27 And she said, Truth, Lord:
yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters' table. 28 Then
Jesus answered and said unto her, O woman, great
is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt. And her daughter
was made whole from that very hour. (Matt 15:21-28)
Jesus has just been confronted by the scribes and Pharisees (blind leaders of
the blind) who have come to Him with a petty complaint involving hand-washing.
These men ruled their charges by red-tape and the jot and tittle of the law,
and not out of love. There is one cardinal principle is preaching that may be
the most neglected, not only by the former Pharisees, but the contemporary ones
as well. That principle is clearly elucidated in 1 Peter 5:2. Feed
the flock of God which is among you, taking the oversight thereof, not by
constraint, but willingly; not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind; 3. Neither
as being lords over God's heritage, but being ensamples to the flock. 4 And
when the chief Shepherd shall appear, ye shall receive a crown of glory that fadeth
not away. (1 Peter 5:2-4) So Jesus, wearied of the harassment from the
mean fellows, resorts to the far reaching coastline of Tyre and Sidon
(Phoenicia on the Mediterranean) for a time of peace and quiet. There is also a
certain woman in His thoughts that needs to see Him and is awaiting His arrival
there. This dear soul has no idea that the Son of David will travel to her
distant home, but the Son of David knows, and He comes.
The
beauty and comfort of God's providential care for us, even while we were yet
strangers, knows no limits on time and distance. Perhaps, ere you came to
Christ, you, too, were a great distance away among a people of Godless
character; yet, Christ was aware of your plight and His Holy Spirit, swift as a
Dove, came to you and answered your great need. He knew you LONG before you
knew Him – even while you were yet in your mother's womb where He MADE you!
Such a wonderful visit of Christ the great Healer and Physician was beyond the
realm of possibility in the imagination of the Syro-Phoenician woman. Yet,
there was something in her heart that made her believe that God would provide.
Already, she had more faith as a Gentile than the Jewish rulers had as the lost
sheep of Israel. The reassuring thing about faith in God is this: We need not
understand the ways and means of God's answering our prayers, but only to know
that He certainly WILL! The ear of faith, to, is very keen to hear every
whispered detail of the Way of the Lord's Coming whether it be on the road from
Galilee, or from Jerusalem. The direction is not so important, but the fact
that He will come after all. There is a parallel account of this event in the
Gospel of St Mark 7:24-30.
We
look in upon Jesus immediately after His confrontation over hand-washing with
the Pharisees: 21 Then Jesus went thence, and departed into the
coasts of Tyre and Sidon. Please do not argue that Christ knew not
whom He would meet at His destination for I will not believe it. Christ always
knew whom He would meet and whom He would heal in every case. He knew a woman
of Samaria would come to Jacob's Well at the noonday hour long before the woman
experienced her thirst. So He waited there while the disciples went for bread.
You may be the most incorrigible and egregious of sinners, judged so by infidel
and Christian alike, but Christ may have already established a point in time
when He will seek you out in a land far removed from the familiar people of
God. This woman may not be an egregious sinner. In fact, I believe that she is
a good and faithful mother to the treasure of her bosom, but she has not yet
met Christ – and that meeting will make all the difference in her life. Now He
is coming. The news is whispered about the villages and among travelers along
the dusty roads. His fame has even reached the coasts of Tyre and Sidon, and
the woman has heard with bated breath. HOPE is the dominant quality that
informs her germinating faith in a Figure see has yet to meet. The Gospel of St
Mark tells us that Jesus went into a house to rest near the coasts of Tyre and
Sidon, but "could not be hid." (7:24) No truer
statement can be uttered about Jesus – He cannot be hidden from the searching
eye, for all that seek Him shall fid Him. (Luke 11:9 et al) There is a
Syro-Phoenican woman that is seeking, and she shall find Him at all costs. This
is always the cause that brings us to Christ – NEED! Many need, but fail to
satisfy that need in coming to Him.
22 And,
behold, a woman of Canaan came out of the same coasts, and cried unto him,
saying, Have mercy on me, O Lord, thou Son of David. There are
three important points to be made in this one statement: 1) The woman did not
casually call out for help as if her need, or her expectation, was minor. She
CRIED out because her NEED, motivated by a mother's love for a dear little
girl, was GREAT! "my daughter is grievously vexed with a devil"
. 2) She named no great need in her cry – only a request for mercy. If she
has mercy from Christ, she has all else of her need. 3) She recognized Jesus as
the Messiah. That is the meaning of her expression "O Lord, thou Son of
David." She did not call Him `a' son of David, but the prophesied Son of
David. When we go to Christ in prayer, do we fully realize He is? This woman
KNEW before ever she met Christ. She knew out of NEED and FAITH. Perhaps
feeling herself so much so unworthy as the publican who came with the Pharisee
to the Temple that day and would not approach so near, she called from a
distance unto Christ. Actually, our first call to Christ is always from a
distance, for we call out of our bondage and need. It is just as the hymnist,
William Sleeper, has written in the hymn we sang today:
Out of my bondage, sorrow, and night,
Jesus, I come, Jesus, I come;
Into Thy freedom, gladness, and light,
Jesus, I come to Thee;
Out of my sickness, into Thy health,
Out of my want and into Thy wealth,
Out of my sin and into Thyself,
Jesus, I come to Thee.
23 But
he answered her not a word. Was Jesus being unkind to this
precious mother? Of course he was not! Jesus showed nothing but the deepest
compassion for others in need. Jesus does not answer for two reasons: 1) He
desires to allow the woman's faith to increase, by and by, through her persistence.
If we pray ceaselessly and, yet, have not gotten an answer, do we cease to call
upon the Lord? God would have us pray with persistence. As we pray continually,
our eyes are opened more and more to the Mind of God – our prayers thereby
become more and more in accord with His own Will to grant. Do you recall in our
previous studies how those who are closest to Christ often prevent those who
need Him most from coming? And his disciples came and besought him,
saying, Send her away; for she crieth after us. Do we value
our comfort and leisure so highly that we forbid others who have a great need
from coming to the source of that comfort we have? Are we too cozy in our
little buildings of stone walls and high spires? The salt that is not often
shaken will harden so that it cannot be dispensed from the shaker.
24 But
he answered and said, I am not sent but unto
the lost sheep of the house of Israel. Every Word of
Christ is with power yet this is one of those `BUTS' which deserve heeding.
This woman is from the Canaanite race of Gentiles that the Jews despise. Christ
is drawing out of a deep well, the refreshing waters of faith this woman has.
He does it not only for her own benefit, but for the benefit of his Jewish
disciples to learn of compassion. He is saying to the poor mother,
"Look, I know you have a need, but I am not sent to any other than the
lost sheep of Israel. If you become a child of the Promised Seed, you, too,
shall be in the fold of Israel." The statement of Jesus is looked upon
with particular interest by His disciples. Jesus is slowly drawing the woman
closer to Himself, and to His Love-Brimmed Heart. 25 Then came
she and worshipped him, saying, Lord, help me. Yes, we see that the
Love of Jesus does draw her nearer, don't we? She finally is not afraid to
worship the Savior of her soul. She asked for the deepest desire of her heart,
and that desire derives from a love that is inexpressible for her daughter.
Please note thoughtfully the kind and loving response of Jesus to the woman: 26 But
he answered and said, It is not meet to take
the children's bread, and to cast it to dogs. At first glimpse,
this may sound a bit harsh to such a loving mother, but it is laden with love.
The word Jesus uses here to describe her relationship to the children of God
(Israel) is not the term for the cursed and hated dog of the ghettos, but the
Greek word,
kunarion, pronounced `koo-nar'-ee-on',
meaning `puppy' or `pet-dog.' The puppy dog is a pet and is fed by the children
by secretly dropping crumbs of food down to them. Perhaps we, as children of
God, fail too often to drop these crumbs of the Bread of Life down to those who
are starving for love and nourishment. Jesus, from eternity past, has loved
this woman and her little daughter; but He needs to show her the manner in
which she must come to Him. 27 And she said, Truth, Lord: yet the
dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters' table. These
words were evoked by Christ for the benefit of those standing nearby. He
already knew these words were written in the red blood of love on the woman's
heart for her daughter. Had she not needed a healing for her daughter, she may
never have sought Christ out.
28 Then
Jesus answered and said unto her, O woman,
great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt.
What has Jesus told the woman? He has told her (in other words): "Woman,
you have known who I am. You have come seeking me out of a faith born of love.
You have persisted in your prayers, so much so, that YOUR will is precisely the
Will of God. It is by THAT latter Will that your faith has healed your
daughter. And her daughter was made whole from that very hour.
God is Light, and His Finger travels with Light Speed. There was no
lingering spirit-possession of the daughter – not at all. She was healed that
very hour (moment).
So
what valuable lessons have we learned from this most blessed mother of ancient
Phoenicia?
1.
Love
will call us into a higher place – even to a seeking after God.
2.
We must
seek the Lord diligently even in places that are perceived unlikely such as the
coasts of Tyre and Sidon.
3.
We must
call out in earnest to Christ not holding back.
4.
We must
clearly state our need in prayer.
5.
We must
be persistent in prayer even if we only hear silence at first from the Throne
of God.
6.
We must
not only petition, but listen for the Will of God to be
7.
We must
worship God even while we are pleading our cause as did the distraught mother.
8.
We must
give evidence of our Faith to both God and man.
Have
we exercised this example in prayer? Put it to the test. God is faithful always
to answer if our wills are consistent with His Own.
