Sermon for Sunday, June 7th, 2026 at First Presbyterian Church at Unionville, NY (BPC)
Old Testament Reading:
[Psalm 4:1-8 ESV] 1 To the choirmaster: with stringed instruments. A Psalm of David. Answer me when I call, O God of my righteousness! You have given me relief when I was in distress. Be gracious to me and hear my prayer! 2 O men, how long shall my honor be turned into shame? How long will you love vain words and seek after lies? Selah 3 But know that the LORD has set apart the godly for himself; the LORD hears when I call to him. 4 Be angry, and do not sin; ponder in your own hearts on your beds, and be silent. Selah 5 Offer right sacrifices, and put your trust in the LORD. 6 There are many who say, “Who will show us some good? Lift up the light of your face upon us, O LORD!” 7 You have put more joy in my heart than they have when their grain and wine abound. 8 In peace I will both lie down and sleep; for you alone, O LORD, make me dwell in safety.
New Testament Reading:
[Hebrews 12:1-2 ESV] 1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, 2 looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.
Gospel Reading:
[Mark 7:24-30 ESV] 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.
Sermon Text:
[Matthew 15:21-28 ESV] 21 And Jesus went away from there and withdrew to the district of Tyre and Sidon. 22 And behold, a Canaanite woman from that region came out and was crying, “Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David; my daughter is severely oppressed by a demon.” 23 But he did not answer her a word. And his disciples came and begged him, saying, “Send her away, for she is crying out after us.” 24 He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” 25 But she came and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, help me.” 26 And he answered, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.” 27 She said, “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.” 28 Then Jesus answered her, “O woman, great is your faith! Let it be done for you as you desire.” And her daughter was healed instantly.
Introduction
None of you here, except for my wife, had the pleasure of meeting Henry Pawsworth Bigfellow. That was my Bernese Mt. Dog who was everywhere with me for his short 9 years of life. Well, Henry, I always said, had a favorite bible verse. “Even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ tables.” And he ate everything. More than just crumbs. When I wasn’t there, he once at a whole loaf of bread, and another time a pound of ground beef off the counter. But he was happy to eat the crumbs as well.
Well, we come now to the story of the Canaanite woman, and her great faith. That is what I’ve titled the sermon this morning – “Great Faith.” This woman, who even compares herself with “unclean” dogs is a great example of faith; of great faith. Indeed, Jesus himself declares “O woman, great is your faith!”
We’ll look today at why Jesus says that. Why is her faith so great?
Not the disciples, not the religious leaders, not any among Israel. But this Canaanite women.
Why is her faith so great?
And we’ll look at the text in three points:
I. Dependence on God is Great Faith
II. Small Faith is Great Faith
III. Continuous Faith is Great Faith
I. Dependence on God is Great Faith
Dependence on God is great faith.
Faith is not something we create in ourselves; it is a gift of God, and it is the reaction we have to knowing the faithful and trustworthy. I often say “Faith in not created by the one who has faith, but by the one in WHOM we have faith.” We depend on God because he has shown himself to be dependable.
In our passage we have a woman with great faith who is dependent on God.
Here she is called a Canaanite woman. In Mark’s version she is called Syrophoenician. There is overlap in those terms. Canaanite is the more broad description, but Syrophoenician tells us the more precise local of where she is from.
And though she is not a Jew, she has faith.
There is a great contrast between the works of the Pharisees in the last chapter and the faith of the Canaanite woman in this chapter.
The contrast is, for one, that they are Jews while she is a Gentile. That is, why I think she equates herself with an unclean “dog.”
But the contrast is more about their “ways about themselves.” The Pharisees rely on self, the Canaanite woman relies and depends on God.
But we have to note something about this dependence on God that we see here. And something we see in our own lives as well: people do not naturally depend on God. God has to work that faith in us. And, as Paul tells us in Romans, faith comes by hearing the word of God. Yet, there is something else. So often, there is a precursor to faith; a set of circumstances that lead us to depend on God. And those circumstances are God working in our lives such that we understand our utter dependence on him. And we so love our independence in this world; we proclaim it. But we must recognize our dependence on God in all things. You didn’t create yourself. You didn’t grow the crops. You didn’t provide the air you breath. In all things you depend on God. Now, sadly, it often takes much tragedy and difficulty in life before we do seek the Lord. Some people might not have a care in the world; they party and drink and don’t think for a second about the Lord. But our health issues remind us to look to the Lord. Our bodies decline; maybe our minds do as well. And, the way it often works in the life of a Christian, is that it takes MANY, REPEATED instances of failure before we say “Lord, I give my life to you.” “I depend on you.”
And when that happens, that is great faith; dependence on God.
Now the Canaanite woman had a great trial. Her daughter was possessed by a demon. And SHE COULD DO NOTHING ABOUT IT. Perhaps she had tried. Perhaps she reached out to the Canaanite Gods, but her daughter was still possessed.
So desperate then was she came to see Jesus. Perhaps she had heard of his other miracles and now finally gets to talk with him, now that he has come to her hometown. In Mark’s version we learn that Jesus was even staying in a house, not wanting to be seen. But the woman finds him.
Then there is another trial for her.
First, Jesus did not answer her cries.
Then, the disciples begged Jesus to send her away.
Then, Jesus himself says he has come for the lost sheep of Israel. His job – his primary job – is to call for the repentance of the people of God, which up to that time was primarily those in the nation of Israel.
All her attempts now failing, she falls on her knees and cries out to Jesus, “Lord, help me.”
Here again, like we see in a previous sermon, we have a person worshipping Jesus. And he doesn’t turn her away.
Jesus knows what is going on. And I think he sets her up for the greatest response of faith. Jesus repeats the same idea that he has come to call for the repentance of Israel. This time he says, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.”
And then we have her response. This a rare case where it is a person other than Jesus who says the brilliant thing.
27 She said, “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.”
Now, Jesus had been telling parables to many others, and they never understood them unless he gave an explanation. But now, this woman understands him, right away. She even continues along the same line of thought, pointing out another truth.
28 Then Jesus answered her, “O woman, great is your faith!
Her faith is great because it is dependent on the Lord, knowing there is no one else to go to. Nowhere else to go. He alone has the power to heal.
Dependence on God is great faith.
We see that dependence so much in the Psalms.
[Psalm 121:1-8 ESV] 1 A Song of Ascents. I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come? 2 My help comes from the LORD, who made heaven and earth. 3 He will not let your foot be moved; he who keeps you will not slumber. 4 Behold, he who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep. 5 The LORD is your keeper; the LORD is your shade on your right hand. 6 The sun shall not strike you by day, nor the moon by night. 7 The LORD will keep you from all evil; he will keep your life. 8 The LORD will keep your going out and your coming in from this time forth and forevermore.
That is dependence on God. A great faith.
Then we have:
II. Small Faith is Great Faith
Small faith is great faith.
Of course, sometimes Jesus criticizes his disciples in saying “Oh, ye of little faith” meaning that they should have greater faith. But this doesn’t derail the point: small faith is great faith. For if it is a small but pure faith – like the faith of a child – then the Scriptures speak very highly of “small faith.” We can all wish to have that type of small faith.
How small? CRUMBS!
Crumbs are all we need.
We need only a tiny amount of faith, and a tiny about of blessing from God, because even crumbs from our master’s table are greater than all the food we can possibly eat in this world, for in this world we eat and soon become hungry again. But the bread of life, Jesus Christ, fills our hearts forever. Just crumbs! Lord, give me crumbs!
And all who cry out “Lord, give me crumbs” are to know that He will hear your prayer, he does hear your prayer. No one can say “Jesus is Lord” except by the holy spirit.
So if you are calling out to Christ for faith, you already have faith!
[REPEAT: If you are calling out to Christ for faith, you already have faith!”]
It might be small. You might not know much of the Bible. You may not be yet walking all in the ways of the Lord. But faith as small as a mustard seed grows into great salvation. And the faith of a Child is praised. And faith can move mountains.
Small faith is great faith. Be encouraged. Trust in the Lord. The seeds of faith in you – even small faith – is real faith in a real savior.
Notably it is a woman, a foreign woman, who is the faithful of this story. Not the Pharisees or the scribes and even any of the “children of Israel.” We learn that God’s people come from all nations, and that even we may come to the Lord, trusting him with great faith in his great promises.
So, Dependence on God is great faith. And small faith is great faith. Then continuous faith is great faith.
III. Continuous Faith is Great Faith
First Jesus was silent.
Then it was almost that he said “no.”
Then, she was referred to as a dog.
But in humility she had a continuous faith.
We ought to also recognize “I am a dog.” I am unclean. Unworthy of the things of God.
But God if you give me just the crumbs, that will suffice.
We are beggars not for lottery winnings but for our daily bread.
And we are beggars for salvation.
We cannot work.
We cannot earn enough to buy heaven.
But it is given to us.
And the faith that is given along with God’s grace is a continuous faith.
Yes, we struggle. We have our ups and downs in faith.
But faith continues.
And in our highest and lowest moments we reach out to the Lord in faith.
Just the crumbs.
Not a seat at the table.
Her request is the crumbs.
A continuous faith.
A persevering faith.
Application 1: In times of testing, hold on to God’s promises.
That is the continuous faith. A faith not just in good times, but in bad times as well.
A faith that is not dependent on you, but on Christ in whom we have faith.
If faith were about us; about our ability to believe, it was wane. As RC Sproul said “If you could lose your faith, you would.”
But instead GOD HIMSELF gives us the gift of faith, continuous through the Holy Spirit working in us. And in all times we can look the ROCK of salvation in Jesus Christ. We have our ups and downs, but in Christ all the promises of God are Yes and Amen.
So we are to hold on to THOSE promises.
And doing so, we have faith.
Faith is not some impossible endeavor, it is merely to trust in the promises of God.
You don’t need a PhD in the Bible; you simple need to know that Jesus saves sinners and calls us to believe in that promise that HE has earned for you eternal life.
Application 2: Don’t be ungrateful for the crumbs.
What are the crumbs?
Well, really nothing of the Lord is crumbs. It is all great.
And we can see those blessings everyday in those “little things;” things that might look like crumbs.
Fellowship with other believers. A little thing? Or a great gift from God.
Our daily bread. A little thing? Or evidence of God’s provision for us.
These are crumbs that God gives us.
-A moment of peace that comes over us.
-A timely financial gift.
-A seemingly random act of kindness.
Small things, that have much weight.
But, the crumbs, ultimately, symbolize a small portion of God’s abundant grace.
But His grace is infinite! So all we need is a tiny crumb, and it forgives ALL our sins.
Let us thank the Lord for “crumbs” because in doing so we thank Him for great things indeed.