In the book of James we find the words, “The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.” (James 5:16)  Throughout the Bible we see many examples which back up that assertion.  Moses cried to God, and the Red Sea parted.  Hannah prayed, and the Lord gave her a son.  King Hezekiah prayed, and God gave him 15 extra years to live.  Elijah prayed, and a drought came to an end.  Jesus prayed, and dead people came back to life, crowds were fed with little or no food, and people with fatal diseases were healed.  “The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.”            So why don’t people make use of this powerful tool more often?  Why do people go through anguish and turmoil, trying everything they can think of before settling on prayer as a last resort?  Perhaps it’s the survival instinct that we have which says that I have to take care of myself.  Or maybe it’s a lack of experience.  Those who never try it never realize how powerful it is.  Or it may be a lack of confidence in the power of prayer.

            Our Lord today wants to show us just how powerful the prayers of a righteous man are.  By doing so he will invite us to

“Be a Bold Believer”

I.  Confidently Confessing Christ

II.  Persistent in the Privilege of Prayer

A number of recent events had prompted Jesus to seek some time alone.  His cousin and faithful friend, John the Baptist, had been beheaded by King Herod.  The Pharisees were pushing to have Jesus put away.  And the people were pressing to make Jesus their earthly king.  Setting out from Capernaum, Jesus and his disciples went north-west to an area known as Phonecia.  There Mark says that Jesus “…entered a house and did not want anyone to know it.” (7:24)  But word soon got out that the Galilean miracle worker was in town, and the crowds began to come to Jesus once again.  Matthew writes, “Leaving that place, Jesus withdrew to the region of Tyre and Sidon.  A Canaanite woman from that vicinity came to him, crying out, ‘Lord, Son of David, have mercy on me!  My daughter is suffering terribly from demon-possession.’”

I doubt that this was the only request Jesus received while in Phonecia.  And yet, it is recorded for us because it stands out above the others for several reasons.  First of all, it stands out because of the person who brought it.  She is referred to as “…A Canaanite woman from that vicinity…”  That is not so unusual, considering that Jesus was in a town full of Canaanites.  But what makes it unusual is how this particular Canaanite woman came to Jesus.  She addressed him as “…Lord, Son of David.”  Although not a member of God’s chosen people, the Israelites, the woman had heard about the promised Messiah, and truly believed that Jesus was the Messiah.  Jeremiah had prophesied that the Messiah would come from the family of David, writing in 23:5, “’The days are coming,’ declares the Lord, ‘when I will raise up to David a righteous Branch, a King who will reign wisely and do what is just and right in the land.”  By her reference to Jesus as the “…Son of David…” this woman was confidently confessing that Jesus was the true Messiah and only Savior of the world.

It is equally important to note that this woman did not come to Jesus looking for help for herself.  She came looking to Jesus for help for her daughter, who was suffering from demon-possession.  How refreshing her prayer must have been in the context of the many selfish prayers Jesus had been hearing recently!

If we were asked to list people from the Bible that we considered to be role models for our own lives, I don’t think many of us would initially list this Canaanite woman.  More likely we would rattle off the names of David, Paul, Peter, or some of the other more well-known characters presented in God’s Word.  And yet, the confession of faith that this woman made about her Savior could not have been better made by anybody.  It didn’t matter to her that she was a Gentile, someone who didn’t have a long family history of Christianity.  It didn’t matter to her that she lived among a people who openly worshipped idols instead of the “Son of David.”  This woman had heard the gospel that proclaimed Jesus as the Savior of all nations, and she recognized that that meant Jesus was her Savior too.  Based on her knowledge of those facts, she came confidently confessing Christ as her Savior and seeking his help with her problem.

What a perfect example for us and all people to follow!  Sadly, though, it is an example that too many people overlook or ignore.  Jesus is the true “Son of David,” the almighty Son of God who came from David’s family to “…take away the sins of the world.” (John 1:29)  He is a Savior that we can all boldly confess as our own and approach with confidence.  And yet, for a variety of reasons, we don’t come confidently to our Savior, and, as a result, we suffer more than we would have to.

A story is told about a native Indian who straggled into a western settlement begging for food.  He was near the point of starvation and desperately in need of a meal.  One of the men he came to noticed a pouch around his neck and asked the man what it contained.  He said that it was just a piece of paper, a charm he had received when he was just a boy.  He opened the pouch and gave it to the man to read.  The paper proved to be a regular discharge from the Federal Army which entitled the man to a pension for life.  It was signed by the Commander-in-Chief, George Washington.

Here was a man who had at his fingertips a promissory note that would have given him everything he needed for the rest of his life.  Yet he was wandering around, homeless, hungry, and helpless, begging for food to keep from starving.  If he had only realized what that piece of paper meant to him, his life would have been completely different.

How many people in our world today are wandering around spiritually homeless, hungry, and hopeless because they don’t recognize the rights they have through faith in Jesus Christ?  The credit card of faith that we have been given by our Lord has no credit limit, is accepted in all situations, and is backed up by the treasures and storerooms of heaven itself.  Those who believe the promises that the Lord has made to them can come confidently confessing Jesus as their Lord and can rely on him to meet all of their needs.  Matthew would later write, “If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.”  (Matt. 21:22)  The writer to the Hebrews adds, “…he rewards those who earnestly seek him.”  (Heb. 11:6b)  And in his first epistle, John writes, “This is the confidence we have in approaching God:  that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us.”  (I Jn. 5:14)

I’m sure you’ve heard the excuse that is often given as to why some people don’t come confidently to Christ in prayer.  “I tried prayer once,” they will say, “but it didn’t work.”  Matthew continues in our text to show us that as the Canaanite woman shows us in our text, we need to

II.  Be Persistent in the Privilege of Prayer

When the request came to Jesus, Matthew tells us, “Jesus did not answer a word.  So his disciples came to him and urged him, ‘Send her away, for she keeps crying out after us.’”  To the disciples, this woman was nothing more than a pest.  They may have been embarrassed by the woman, or they may have just wanted to preserve Jesus’ privacy.  Whatever it was, the disciples just wanted Jesus to get rid of her.

It seemed at first that Jesus agreed with them.  Our text says, “He answered, ‘I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel.’”  Since this woman was a Gentile, she knew that she was not a part of the chosen nation of Israel.  She understood what Jesus had said.  He had been sent to the Jews, born “King of the Jews.”

But this woman’s faith told her that Jesus wasn’t only the Savior of Israel.  Perhaps she remembered God’s words to Abraham in which God said “…through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed.” (Gen. 22:18)  Compelled by her daughter’s need and her strong faith, the Canaanite woman persisted in prayer.  “The woman came and knelt before him.  ‘Lord, help me!’ she said.”  Now Jesus wanted to see just how strong her faith was, and, in the process, strengthen the faith of his own disciples.  “He replied, ‘It is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to their dogs.’”  Jesus, whom John calls the “Bread of Life,” had been sent to the Jews.  To take what belonged to them and give it to someone else would have been wrong.

But the woman understood the picture Jesus was using.  She didn’t want to take Jesus away from the Jews and his work of saving them.  But that shouldn’t stop her from receiving some of the “crumbs,” the blessings that Jesus could give without depriving the “children” of Israel.  She said, “’Yes, Lord,’ she said, ‘but even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their master’s table.’”  Finally the Canaanite woman’s persistent faith was rewarded.  Jesus replied to her, “’Woman, you have great faith!  Your request is granted.’  And her daughter was healed from that very hour.”

This woman reminds us of Jacob, who wrestled with God at the stream of Jabbok.  Refusing to quit even when his hip was dislocated by the Lord, Jacob said to God, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.” (Gen. 32:26)  On that day, the Lord answered Jacob’s prayer saying, “…you have wrestled with God and with men and have overcome.”

Everyone who comes to the Lord in faith is promised to be blessed by him.  As his dear children, we will not be turned away by our heavenly Father.  We will not be overlooked, mistreated, forgotten, or neglected.  When we boldly come to our Lord with confident persistence, the Lord will answer our prayers.  The Canaanite woman believed that promise from God and her daughter was healed.  When we believe God’s promise, then our prayers will be answered.

As many of you know, I came here about 2 ½ years ago, not really knowing what lay ahead.  There were many nights when I prayed that God would show me what he had planned.  As the days went by, I knew that God had heard my prayers, and I knew that he would show me, in his own way and in his own time, what he had planned.  Today that plan is becoming quite clear.  I thank God for listening to me, for blessing me with a new family and a new ministry opportunity in Gainesville, and for the chance to spend these last 2 ½ years with all of you, and with my brother, Deb, and Thomas.  I will miss Messiah and its members, but I know you are in good hands, and I know that you will continue to be blessed because of your faithfulness to the Lord, his word and his work.

God wants you to Be a Bold Believer.  He wants you to come to him confidently and pray to him persistently.  Follow the example of the Canaanite woman and God will bless you always.  Amen.