The Faith of a Mother Who Lost Her Child

This Mother's Day sermon, preached on Sunday May 9, 2021, is drawn from Matthew 15:21-28 — the story of a Canaanite woman, a Gentile idol worshiper, who sought out Jesus because her daughter was severely tormented by a demon. Despite knowing she had no claim to God's covenant people, she addressed Jesus as the "Son of David" — a messianic title — demonstrating her recognition of who He was and her resolve to trust Him as the only one who could save her child.

Jesus deliberately placed three obstacles before her to test her faith: He remained silent and did not answer; He declared He was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel; and He compared giving bread to the children to throwing it to dogs. Each time, rather than giving up, the mother pressed in closer and more urgently. Her response to the final challenge — "Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters' table" — showed profound humility. This earned her the commendation from Jesus: "O woman, great is your faith!" Her daughter was healed that very hour.

The sermon also draws a sobering lesson: when parents worship idols, their children bear the consequences — as Ezekiel 18:2 illustrates with the proverb about parents eating sour grapes and children's teeth being set on edge. Christian parents are called to be living examples of faithful worship and service to God, so that their children grow up in a God-fearing environment.

Two vivid illustrations of sacrificial maternal love are shared: the Vietnamese literary story "Anh phải sống" (He Must Live) in which a mother silently releases her grip and drowns so her husband can swim to shore for their children's sake; and the true 1988 account of Patsy Lawson of San Bernardino, California, who held her two-year-old son's head above water in a submerged, overturned car for eight and a half hours until she died frozen in that position of love — and her son survived. These stories are connected to the ultimate sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross — God giving His own Son for sinners who were utterly unworthy.

The sermon concludes with a call to reflection: like the Canaanite woman, all Gentile believers receive the crumbs of the Gospel that fell from Israel's table. Pride — like that of the Pharisees who refused the Gospel because they were children of Abraham — destroys faith, while humility like the Canaanite mother's receives the fullness of God's grace. Every parent is challenged to live genuine faith, to entrust their children to God, and to persist in intercessory prayer on behalf of those they love.