(this sermon has some thoughts and points from various sermons that have been published on various media sights).
TITLE: GET OUT OF YOUR FEELINGS
SCRIPTURE: ST. MATTHEW 15:21-28
This past week FBC was honored to host the 121st Annual Session of the Oklahoma Missionary Baptist State Convention. I want to thank all those that worked tirelessly not only during the convention but the weeks leading up to the event over the course of the year. I don’t want to start naming and thanking those that worked less I forget someone. Let me say thank you FBC we set the bar high for years to come.
I must admit it was not an easy process pulling together all the details leading to this successful Convention. I must admit there were times I was aggravated along the way and had to catch myself to ensure I did not take my eyes off of Christ and Him glorified versus how I felt along the way. Sometimes we Christians are not the nicest bunch to work with. I had to catch myself as well as motivate others along the way and they too had to motivate me every now and then.
As I prepare messages the Lord has given me to bless this Church and help us in our Spiritual Development, the Lord sends me a message that is more for me than for the congregation. This morning will be one of those messages, more for me although I am sure it will help you as well.
Would you agree with me that people live by their feelings more than anything else much of the time? I believe this is true because if you listen, you’ll hear people talk about how they feel more than just about anything else.
• I wonder sometimes if we are serving the god of our feelings more than the God of the Bible
Emotional people make big mistakes when they base decisions on how they feel rather than obeying God and what they know is the right thing to do. We have to learn how to live beyond our feelings and do what’s right even when we feel we have been wronged.
Oftentimes I am asked “How I feel about something going on in the Church or District, or even State Convention.” My response is usually misunderstood or misinterpreted. Some say Pastor Lawson does not listen or just wants to do what he wants to do. I believe some feel that way because they are after an emotional response from me, usually that is what the questioner is after.
• I try my best to not allow my emotions to influence our direction
• I decided a long time ago to follow God’s will for my life and not let my feelings dictate what I do or how I respond
• I have learned to let what the Bible says dictate my decisions
• I have set my mind to be a Blessing
• I have set my mind to walk in Love
• I have set my mind to make right choices that honor God and keep me in His will for my life
Think about it - How often do you say -- “I FEEL LIKE…” OR “I DON’T FEEL LIKE…” and then do what you feel?
• Do your feelings dictate how you treat people?
• Do your feelings dictate what you say?
• Do your feelings dictate how you run your life?
You may be thinking, Well, I can’t help how I feel! I agree. Let me be honest and transparent with you this morning. I can’t help how I feel at times and I’m not going to pretend I’m so holy I don’t feel anything.
• Emotions won’t go away
• We must learn how to manage our emotions and not let our emotions manage us
We spend too much time as Christians caught up in our feelings. I have learned whenever you get caught up in your Feelings, it makes life unplesant and all of a sudden everything around you that you used to enjoy you don’t enjoy any longer because you are caught up in your feelings.
• Our feelings want us to hold on to them tightly
• Our feelings want us to have a serious relationship between our feelings and our attitude
Stopped by to tell you this morning Children of God – GET OUT OF YOUR FEELINGS. We miss out on many of God’s Blessings because we cannot see past our Emotions and our Feelings. We all know that person we encounter, perhaps a family member that is overly sensitive about everything.
• Sensitivity is a wonderful thing as long as it is not misdirected
• We should be sensitive to the Physical and Spiritual needs of others
• We should be sensitive to our Personal Needs
• It is a wonderful thing to see Christians sensitive to their problems
There are many members of the Body of Christ that are too prone to sensitivity.
• Many have quit the church because someone hurt their feelings
• There are others who still attend, but they are no longer active in the Lord's work because someone hurt their feelings
Our feelings are like red lights on the dashboard of life. When we began to become sensitive with JEALOUSY - HURT FEELINGS - A FEELING OF REJECTION these are red lights lighting up telling us we don’t have our lives properly focused. Let us look at the narrative of the Canaanite Woman found in our text.
• Let us take the test that the Lord put her through and see how she reacted
• Let us think about how we would have reacted
• Would we have been all Caught Up in our Feelings?
Today's Gospel lesson is not easy. It's the story of a mother whose child is "TORMENTED BY A DEMON" and who asks Jesus for help—and Jesus says, "NO." That is surprising and not the kind of response that we expect from Jesus— but I believe the Holy Spirit inspired the Gospel Writer -Matthew to include this for a reason, so we need to see what it might have to say to us.
Jesus goes to the region of TYRE AND SIDON, NORTH OF GALILEE—the farthest north that Jesus ever travels—if you were a Jew and your destination was Tyre and Sidon, these cities would be code for "Paganland."
• When Jesus goes to Tyre and Sidon He is no longer in Jewish territory
• There aren't many or any synagogues in Tyre and Sidon
When this mother comes to ask help for her daughter, Matthew tells us she was a Canaanite Woman. The Canaanites had been enemies of the Israelites. The fact she was a Canaanite woman would be a real turnoff to the first readers of this Gospel.
• How could a Canaanite expect anything from Jesus?
• Her people had fought and killed Israelites
• She worshiped the wrong god or perhaps no god at all
• If you kneel before pagan idols on the Sabbath, don't ask Jesus for help now!
A Canaanitish woman cried: "HAVE MERCY ON ME, O LORD, THOU SON OF DAVID; MY DAUGHTER IS GRIEVOUSLY VEXED WITH A DEVIL." The next verse says, "BUT HE ANSWERED HER NOT A WORD.”
• Does this not seem cruel?
• Was this not a time, if there was ever such a time, for someone's feelings to get hurt?
• Was this not a good time for her to have turned away and said, "Well, if that is the way you act, I will never ask you for anything else?"
• Was this not a good time to GET ALL IN YOUR FEELINGS?
• Jesus simply Dismissed Her!
He who had gone about the cities of Israel helping the oppressed -- He who had always been so quick to respond to the appeals of the needy, did not even answer this poor soul. And He could be silent with emphasis! “Not a Word” did she receive in response to her cries of distress.
• His conduct was an open rebuff
• He evidently did not mean to show kindness or even courtesy to this woman
• His disciples may have understood His action, for the woman was a Gentile
• Nevertheless, interceding for her, they “BESOUGHT HIM, SAYING, SEND HER AWAY, FOR SHE CRIETH AFTER US”
What would most of us do if we should ask the preacher a question and receive no reply? Would not our feelings be hurt? The chances are we would quit the church. Many would feel they would be justified in doing so. But would they?
This woman did not let the silence of Christ turn her away. Was she a woman without feelings? No, but she was a woman that needed something, and she knew that Christ was the only one that could supply that need. The life of her child was in danger and she thought more of her daughter than she did of her own feelings.
• How many of us would pass this first test that Jesus put this woman through?
The Silence of Christ was only her first test. Most would not have passed the first test; and, very few would have passed this next test. When Christ did not answer, his disciples took a shot at her feelings next. If the silence of Jesus were not enough, now the Disciples Chime in as they become aggravated with her cries for Help. They said, "SEND HER AWAY; FOR SHE CRIETH AFTER US." In essence they were saying this woman is getting on our last nerves.
• Surely this would have been enough to send her away with wounded feelings
• Anybody ever been there?
• Had your Feelings not only Hurt but Wounded?
• But, did she leave?
• No, her need was too great to let Christ's disciples stand in her way
• She would not let them rob her of blessings needed
All too often we have had our feelings wounded and allowed our Feelings to dictate our behavior. We allow our wounded feelings to cause us to walk away from our needed blessing. Who are you allowing to stand in your way this morning?
• Lord, I need better health – Who is standing in your way?
• Lord, I need a good report – Who is standing in your way?
• Lord, I need a blessing over my family – Who is standing in your way?
• Lord, I need a better paying job or a promotion – Who is standing in your way?
• GET OUT OF YOUR FEELINGS
• Your feelings may be blocking your next blessing
Suppose you came to someone in the church and made a request and was ignored. Would you stay or leave? If you, like this woman, knew your needs and why you came, you would remain in spite of what they said. If you turned your back because your feelings were hurt, would you not be the one to lose? Of course, God would not be pleased with the actions of any that would try to turn you away, but their actions would not justify your quitting, your walking away.
• Must be careful about what other people say and how it affects us
• I would be a nervous wreck if I concerned myself with what other people say
• I understand my purpose so I don’t allow my emotions to get the best of me
We sing that song – WHILE I’M ON MY MISSION LORD, WON’T YOU GUIDE ME – first time someone says something we don’t like, we get all in our feelings.
• Go from the front of the Church - to the back
• Go from the Choir - to the back of the Church
• Go from Sunday School - to No School
• Go from Church Leader – to Church Critic
• Go from the Pulpit – to the Casino
• GET OUT OF YOUR FEELINGS and back to work for the Lord
• Get back to Crying Out to God
This woman came shouting at Jesus, in fact screaming at Jesus. The noise got on the disciples' nerves. They told Jesus, "SEND HER AWAY FOR SHE CRIES AFTER US". We can understand that, can't we! We hate it when people shout at us. We say –
• "Calm down—please talk to me in a civil tone"
• Please, "Don't shout!"
• Use Your Inside Voice
But the disciples failed to notice what this woman was saying.
• Yes, she is shouting!
• Yes, she is annoying!
• But listen to her words -- She says, "Have mercy on me, Lord, you son of David!"
• In the original language it is Kyrie, Eleison -- Lord, have mercy
I don’t think we caught it in this text.
• This Canaanite woman isn't praying that Jesus will forgive her sins
• She is praying that Jesus will heal her daughter
• But the way she says it is interesting -- "Have mercy on me, Lord, you son of David! My daughter is severely demonized!"
• You would think that she would say, "Have mercy on my daughter"
• But she says, "Have mercy on ME!"
This mother as any parent realizes, when our children or child suffers, we suffer with them as well, especially when there is nothing we can do to help them. At this point you would expect Jesus to put the disciples in their place as they try to run her off. But Jesus says nothing. Nothing! Matthew says, "But he answered her not a word.” And then the disciples say, "Run her off, Jesus. We can't stand her screaming!" We expect Jesus to put the disciples in their place and to help this woman. Instead, he tells the disciples, "I WASN'T SENT TO ANYONE BUT THE LOST SHEEP OF THE HOUSE OF ISRAEL”—this means - "I WAS SENT ONLY TO HELP THE JEWS." How disappointing!
And then the woman kneels as in worship before Jesus and pleads, "Lord, help me.” Now come the words that shock us— words that we cannot imagine Jesus saying words that no preacher wants to explain. Jesus says, "IT IS NOT APPROPRIATE TO TAKE THE CHILDREN'S BREAD AND THROW IT TO THE DOGS.”
• Oh, no, Jesus, please don't say that!
• Please wipe out those words!
• Start over again!
• I am sure You can do better!
• Please, Jesus!
• But the words stand!
• There they are right there in the Bible
"IT IS NOT APPROPRIATE TO TAKE THE CHILDREN'S BREAD AND THROW IT TO THE DOGS." Jesus not only refuses to help this tormented woman and her tormented daughter, but he also insults them by comparing them to dogs.
• It's almost more than we can bear
• If this truly represents who Jesus is, we might have to re-evaluate our faith
• How can we worship someone who would look at this woman on her knees and say, "It is not appropriate to take the children's bread and throw it to the dogs"?
How many of us could worship under such circumstances? We would get all in our feelings - "mad enough to bite rusty nails" and refuse to stay much less worship.
• We do it all the time
• Get mad and walk out of Morning Worship
• Think we are walking out on the Preacher not realizing we are walking out on God
• Refuse to let the Preachers serve us Communion because we are mad
• Lord said do this in Remembrance of Him not the Preacher or the Church
But should we give up? This woman was just insulted by Jesus. Is it more important that we obey the Gospel and serve the Lord in the church, or run home with our feelings hurt? Our success or failures in passing a test such as these are indicative of our real desire to do what is right.
• Is your soul more important than your feelings?
Not many of us would have carried the conversation far enough to hear this statement.
• But, what would we have done?
• What would you do if someone should call you a dog?
• Most of us would think this would be enough to justify our getting to heaven without ever passing by the church again
When Jesus says, "It is not appropriate to take the children's bread and throw it to the dogs," this Canaanite woman gets a gleam in her eye. She says, "YES, LORD, BUT EVEN THE DOGS EAT THE CRUMBS WHICH FALL FROM THEIR MASTERS' TABLE.”
• And she has him!
• She has bested him in an argument
• If Jesus were playing the “Dozens” He just lost
• The only time it ever happens!
• And I think that Jesus was delighted to be bested
Just notice how he responds. "WOMAN, GREAT IS YOUR FAITH! BE IT DONE TO YOU EVEN AS YOU DESIRE.” Don't you hear the joy in those words the exuberance! "Woman, great is your faith! Be it done to you even as you desire."
• Jesus loves it!
• Now he can help this woman – because she did not get all caught up in her feelings
Matthew tells us, "AND HER DAUGHTER WAS HEALED FROM THAT HOUR!”
• Right away!
• Immediately!
--I also think Jesus was perhaps looking for an opening, an opportunity to reconcile his responsibility to the Jews and his love for this Gentile woman
--I believe He was looking for an opportunity to answer this woman’s request to Kyrie, Eleison!
--To show her mercy!
--Jesus showed this woman mercy that day and teaches us how to do it by setting the example!
--But we can’t allow our feelings to get the best of us
--GET OUT OF YOUR FEELINGS
--Jesus could have got caught up in His feelings on a place called Calvary
--CLOSE
