Introduction:
When our Lord dealt with a Syrophoenician woman in a way that might have seemed offensive, but magnified the genuineness of her faith, and demonstrated the beauty of her humility, and proved the willingness of the Son of David to meet her needs — He makes a distinction between the covenant people of God (Israel) and the nations.
By the will of God, the Son of David must first be presented to Israel. The King of the Jews must first be presented to the Jews. The signs that He performs are designed for the people prepared for the signs.
It would be easy to misunderstand the significance of that.
Does that indicate that the Son of God came into the world caring about the people of Israel but not really caring about the rest of the world?
In some sense it is true to say that God loved Israel uniquely. In a national sense, with respect to national promises, and a national purpose, with respect to the benefits and blessings that the nation knew — Israel was uniquely loved.
ESV Deuteronomy 10:12 "And now, Israel, what does the LORD your God require of you, but to fear the LORD your God, to walk in all his ways, to love him, to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, 13 and to keep the commandments and statutes of the LORD, which I am commanding you today for your good? 14 Behold, to the LORD your God belong heaven and the heaven of heavens, the earth with all that is in it. 15 Yet the LORD set his heart in love on your fathers and chose their offspring after them, you above all peoples, as you are this day.
ESV Romans 3:1 Then what advantage has the Jew? Or what is the value of circumcision? 2 Much in every way. To begin with, the Jews were entrusted with the oracles of God.
ESV Romans 9:1 I am speaking the truth in Christ-- I am not lying; my conscience bears me witness in the Holy Spirit-- 2 that I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart. 3 For I could wish that I myself were accursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers, my kinsmen according to the flesh. 4 They are Israelites, and to them belong the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the worship, and the promises. 5 To them belong the patriarchs, and from their race, according to the flesh, is the Christ, who is God over all, blessed forever. Amen.
In that sense, Israel was uniquely loved. BUT IN THE SENSE OF GOD’S PLAN TO SAVE INDIVIDUALS, TO FORGIVE SINS, TO BRING INTO BEING A NEW HUMANITY, A REDEEMED FAMILY, God’s plan has ALWAYS embraced the whole world.
This is a very important question to be clear on.
DOES GOD ORDAINING AN ORDER FOR THE MINISTRY OF THE MESSIAH INDICATE THE RESTRICTION OF THE SCOPE OF HIS MINISTRY?
The Holy Spirit of God, through Matthew, makes unmistakable that such a conclusion would be wrong.
Because God begins in one place, or with one people, or because He has unique elements of what He is doing that center on a particular people, does not indicate that that is all that He is concerned about, or that that is where His work ends.
The verses we come to this morning demonstrate the love of God for the world.
NAS John 3:16 "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life.
GOD HAS A LOVE FOR THE WHOLE WORLD.
HOW DID CHRIST DEMONSTRATE THIS?
HOW DID THE HOLY SPIRIT MAKE THIS CLEAR?
He makes this clear by showing us that Jesus does for Gentiles exactly what He has done for Jews.
The Holy Spirit wants us to see that Jesus came not just for Israel, but for the nations.
I want to give you two main points today, and then some applications.
• BEHOLD THE MERCY OF CHRIST FOR THE HEALING OF GENTILES (vs.29-31)
And to recognize this, the first thing we must do is pay attention to where Jesus has traveled.
• THE REGION (vs.29)
Jesus leaves Tyre, passes through Sidon, travels around the northern end of the sea of Galilee, and makes his way into a new region, to the southeast of the sea of the lake.
ESV Mark 7:31 Then he returned from the region of Tyre and went through Sidon to the Sea of Galilee, in the region of the Decapolis.
The Decapolis — referred to that way because of 10 cities that belonged to the region. It was a predominantly gentile area. Just as Tyre and Sidon were gentile cities, so the Decapolis was a gentile region.
