Reading, Sermon and Prayers for 5 September 2021

READING: Mark 7:24-37

Jesus left that place and went to the vicinity of Tyre. He entered a house and did not want anyone to know it; yet he could not keep his presence secret. In fact, as soon as she heard about him, a woman whose little daughter was possessed by an impure spirit came and fell at his feet. The woman was a Greek, born in Syrian Phoenicia. She begged Jesus to drive the demon out of her daughter. “First let the children eat all they want,” he told her, “for it is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to the dogs.” “Lord,” she replied, “even the dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs.” Then he told her, “For such a reply, you may go; the demon has left your daughter.” She went home and found her child lying on the bed, and the demon gone.

Then Jesus left the vicinity of Tyre and went through Sidon, down to the Sea of Galilee and into the region of the Decapolis. There some people brought to him a man who was deaf and could hardly talk, and they begged Jesus to place his hand on him. After he took him aside, away from the crowd, Jesus put his fingers into the man’s ears. Then he spit and touched the man’s tongue. He looked up to heaven and with a deep sigh said to him, “Ephphatha!” (which means “Be opened!”). At this, the man’s ears were opened, his tongue was loosened and he began to speak plainly. Jesus commanded them not to tell anyone. But the more he did so, the more they kept talking about it. People were overwhelmed with amazement. “He has done everything well,” they said. “He even makes the deaf hear and the mute speak.”

SERMON

In the gospel story we have heard, we find two stories of compassion. We find Jesus venturing into non-Jewish territory, and while there meeting two non-Jewish people or better known has gentiles. In these two encounters we can find some principles that also apply to us as we follow Jesus to the outer limits of our comfort zone.

Jesus encounter with a gentile woman is among the most difficult to understand because Jesus appears to be so mean to the woman. So let’s set the scene a little. Jesus travels to a city named Tyre, which was a gentile city and represented the most extreme kind of paganism that a Jewish person of Jesus’ day could expect to encounter.

Once there a woman comes to him with a request. This isn’t the first time someone has come to Jesus with a special request. But out of all the people who do this, this woman has a lot going against her. First she’s a woman, and many of the Jewish men of Jesus’ day wouldn’t even speak to a woman unless it was their wife or their mother. Not only is she also a gentile woman, but she also begs Jesus to deliver her daughter from a demonic spirit.

But what surprises us even more is Jesus’ response to the woman. He uses a parable to explain his reluctance to heal her daughter. He says, “First let the children eat all they want because it’s not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to the dogs.” The “children” in this parable refers to the people of Israel, and the “bread” refers to Jesus’ ministry. The “dogs” then refer to gentile people. What Jesus is saying is that he should finish his ministry in Israel before he branches out to non-Jewish peoples. Jesus is affirming the priority of the people of Israel in his mission, that his main focus has been the people of Israel, and it’s only after he leaves the earth and his church starts expanding that the doors will open to non-Jewish people like this woman.

What also disturbs us here is that Jesus likens this non-Jewish woman to a dog. In the ancient world, dogs weren’t usually the cute, cuddly pets we think of, but in Jewish thought, dogs were associated with being wild scavengers. For a Jew to call a non-Jewish person a “dog” was common enough. It was a term of derision, of contempt, which is why we find it difficult to imagine the word coming from the lips of Jesus. But the woman’s response to Jesus, is to accept her role in the parable. Her response is clever, as she seizes on the imagery of the parable to make her case. She says that even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from the children’s table. Some have thought that this woman’s quick wit changed Jesus’ mind. But I think there’s a better explanation for Jesus’ response to her. I think Jesus says the bit about the children and dogs with a twinkle in his eye, because he knows this woman is coming with more faith than anyone who’s come to him so far in the city.

Jesus’s second act of compassion was the encounter with again a non-Jew. The man is deaf and he has some sort of speech impediment that makes him “barely able to talk.” The crowd begs Jesus to place his hands on the man, to bring him healing. Coming in contact with such a man would make most of the Jewish people shrink back, because touching a non-Jewish person would cause them to be impure for a period of time.

But Jesus doesn’t recoil. Instead he showed compassion and takes the man away from the crowd. Jesus puts his fingers in the man’s ears, perhaps letting him know that he’s going to restore his hearing. He uses his spittle to let the man know he’s going to restore the man’s speech. Then he looks up to heaven and speaks, “Be opened” in Aramaic. And the man can hear and speak clearly. It’s a miracle and another example of where we find the principle of compassion that when we follow Jesus, he wants us to show to those in need around us.

Jesus went out of his way to meet the needs of the woman and the deaf person but how often do we go out of our way to avoid seeing the needs of others. We may change the channel when we see pictures of horrible poverty or suffering in other nations. We may try and explain away suffering and poverty, trying to figure out ways to workout how people can find themselves in their situation. But God doesn’t call us to give explanations, he calls us to show and give compassion. I want to finish with a story. As you hear the story, ask God to show you how you can show God’s love and compassion in the world around you.

There was a taxi driver who for twenty years drove a cab for a living. He regularly drove the night shift and met people whose lives amazed him, made him laugh and weep. But none touched him more than a woman whom he picked up one night. He was called to a small house in a quiet part of town. When he arrived, the building was in darkness apart from a single light in a ground floor window. The cabbie walked to the door and knocked.

“Just a minute”, answered a frail, elderly voice. The cabbie could hear something being dragged across the floor. After a long pause, the door opened. A small woman in her 80s stood before me. She was wearing a print dress and a pillbox hat with a veil pinned on it, like somebody out of a 1940s movie.

By her side was a small suitcase. The apartment looked as if no one had lived in it for years. All the furniture was covered with sheets. There were no clocks on the walls, no knickknacks display. In the corner was a cardboard box filled with photos and glassware. “Would you carry my bag out to the car?” she said. The cabbie took the suitcase to the cab, then returned to assist the woman. She took his arm and they walked slowly toward the cab. She kept thanking him for his kindness. “It’s nothing”, he told her. “I just try to treat my passengers the way I would want my mother treated”. “Oh, you’re such a good boy”, she said.

When in the cab, she gave him an address, then asked, “Could you drive through town?” “It’s not the shortest way,” he answered quickly. “Oh, I don’t mind,” she said. “I’m in no hurry. I’m on my way to a hospice”. He looked in the rear view mirror. Her eyes were glistening. “I don’t have any family left,” she continued. “The doctor says I don’t have very long.”

The cabbie quietly reached over and shut off the meter. “What route would you like me to take?” he asked. For the next two hours, they drove through the town. She showed him the building where she had once worked; the neighbourhood where she and her late husband had lived when they were newlyweds. Sometimes she’d ask the cabbie to slow down in front of a particular building or corner and would sit staring into the darkness, saying nothing. As the first hint of sun was breaking, she suddenly said, “I’m tired. Let’s go now.” They drove in silence to the address she had given him. It was a low building, like a small convalescent home. Two carers came out to the cab as soon as it pulled up. They were attentive and intent, watching her every move.

The cabbie opened the boot and took the small suitcase to the door. The woman was already seated in a wheelchair. “How much do I owe you?” she asked, reaching into her purse. “Nothing,” the cabbie said, “You have to make a living,” she answered. “There are other passengers,” he replied. Almost without thinking, he bent and gave her a hug. She held onto him tightly. “You gave an old woman a little moment of joy,” she said. “Thank you.” he squeezed her hand, then walked back to his cab.

Behind him, a door shut. It was the sound of the closing of a life. He drove home aimlessly, lost in thought. For the rest of that day, he could hardly talk. What if that woman had got a driver who would not listen to her or someone who was impatient at the end his shift?

What kind of compassion do we show one another? How do you make people feel? People may not remember exactly what you did, or what you said, but they will always remember how you made them feel.

Compassion means allowing our hearts to be open, taking the risk of being hurt, or being disappointed. Compassion means allowing ourselves to feel the plight of others, placing ourselves in their shoes. Compassion is dangerous, because if you open your heart, you will get hurt. You’ll be wounded. You’ll be disappointed. You will run the risk of being taken advantage of. If being a Christian is being a follower of Jesus, then you can expect that Jesus will lead you to the kinds of places where he went. You’ll find yourself facing needs that call for compassion.

And you may not have the power to heal like Jesus heals, but you do have the ability to open your heart, to partner the rest of the Christian community to meet the needs of others.

Let us pray to God that our ears may be opened and our hearts mended so our faith may lead to deeds of love and compassion each and every day. Let us pray that our faith and our deeds be as one. Amen.

PRAYERS

Let us pray to the Father through the Son in whom he has been revealed. Cleanse the Church from al malice and dissension. Grant to your people the unity of purpose that will spread peace to others. Give to those you have called to your service grace to be ministers of the bread of life.