and complete dependence upon
the Lord for help in time of need, both in hearing and speaking. I will direct your prayerful
attention to Matthew 15, verse 25. Matthew 15, the 25th verse. Then came she, that's the woman
of Canaan, and worshipped him. saying, Lord, help me. Then came she and worshipped
him, saying, Lord, help me. And it's a well-known word, friends. And I do hope with the Lord's
help, we might be able to speak a little of the background here
And then really, I see three parts of this. Firstly, she came. Secondly, she worshipped. And
thirdly, she prayed. May the Lord help us to consider
these various aspects. But a background. Friend, she's
a woman of Canaan. She's not one of the Jews. You
know, Jesus had been much plagued by the Pharisees earlier in this
chapter and Matthew describes really the fact that they were
trying to pick apart some of the traditions and the ways and
the commandments of God and being quite picky about these things. And Yet, you see, he was very
clear in speaking even to the multitude. He speaks to the multitude
in verse 11 and says, it's not that which goeth into the mouth
defileth a man, but that which cometh out of the mouth defileth
a man. And then the disciples came and
said, actually, the Pharisees were offended after they heard
this saying. But you see, he was very clear,
they are the blind leaders of the blind. May we never be left
friends to be pharisaical. You know, there can be a fine
line, and we need the Lord to be clear to us in these things,
because we do desire, of course, to walk uprightly. But this is
the background, and very much I feel that, you see, It drove
Jesus away here in Galilee, but it drove him further towards
the coast of Tyre and Sidon. In verse 21, he went thence and
departed. You know, friends, he departed
and this woman of Canaan was to come to him. Now, as you know,
the Jews had little to do with the Canaanites. And it goes back
and we could spend much time on it. And we can't for the purpose
of the time we have tonight. But the Canaan, the land of Canaan,
of course, that's where the Israelites settled. And as they settled
there, there were many enemies and giants in the land. And they
were given that authority of God to destroy them. But of course they did not do
that entirely. And yet here this woman comes,
one of these Canaanites. And I believe she was the first
one out of Canaan to come to Jesus that we read of in the
scriptures. And it's beautiful to think of
this friends, she came. Who drew her? What was the work
that went on that brought her to Jesus? Friends, oh, the drawing
power of God, that this woman should come. And so as she came
out of the same coast, Tyre and Sidon, and she cried unto him. Yes, she came and she cried. And you see, she immediately
put her case before him. And yet we read this, but he
answered her not a word. So by way of background friends,
before we come to our text, we need to understand a little of
the way that this lady had come. She'd come in need. She'd come
because she had the daughter that was grievously vexed. She
came because she'd heard of Jesus, that he could help. She had faith given her to believe
that he could heal her daughter. She had faith given her that
he was able to do these things and she pressed on to come to
see Jesus. We don't know how far she journeyed
because Jesus departed into the coasts and we don't know how
far from those coasts but we know this, she came pleading
for mercy and she came with her particular issue before him and
he answered her not a word. But she pressed on. Now, I don't
know where you are. It may be that you are praying
in a particular matter, and this is where you are. You haven't
got as far as our text. You're in the part before that
we're talking about, and you've got to this. He answered her,
not a word. He answered him, not a word.
Your prayers seem to be unanswered. Poor soul, what a trying pathway
it is. I believe each of the dear Lord's
children know what it is to walk in a way similar to this dear
lady. And we're not coming yet to her
prayer, but we're coming to her initial requests before him.
And he answered her not a word. Your poor prayers. It's as if
they're not going beyond the ceiling of the room that you're
in. You know, one of the dear friends
said that to me today. My prayers don't seem to be going
anywhere. And friends, that's how it seems
to be sometimes. And you know, the enemy will
tell us how inarticulate we are in them. And the enemy will tell
us that they will never be answered. And our own thoughts and our
lack of faith and our unbelief will also tell us those things. Friends, I started to quote in
prayer and it didn't come any further to me at that time, that
beautiful hymn, Be Gone Unbelief. My saviour is near, well he was
near for her and for my relief will surely appear. But at this
stage, and it may be that's where you are poor soul, and we would
trace it out, this is the pathway, and it may be that's where you
are. At this stage he answered her not a word, but by prayer
let me wrestle and he will perform with Christ in the vessel, I
smile at the storm says the hymn writer. For such an one, if you
are burdened about this particular matter in prayer that you're
carrying, and you feel he has answered you not a word, friends,
I can only say this, pray on, plead on, because she did not
give up. Persistence, really, in faith
was given unto her. And you see what was worse, we
immediately read after this as we cover this background to our
verse, and his disciples came and besought him saying, send
her away, for she crieth after us. Send her away. Yes. Opposition to the Lord's
work even from his own disciples. Friends, what a solemn thing.
His own disciples would send one away who was a child of God. Doesn't it come close in the
things of religion? Friends, I hope that we're each
his disciples here tonight, followers of the Lord. Would we send another
away? What a searching thing it is
for us. You know, friends, we need to be careful. We need to
be careful that we that we don't damage the tender grapes. Take
us the foxes, the little foxes that spoil the grapes. That we encourage the young in
the things of God and the little ones. Well, friends, so considering
the background, let us move on. And so they said, send her away
for she crieth after us. Now I think here that they must
have moved on and she's crying out after them. She's following
them, you see. And then he answers again. It
says this, but he answered and said, I'm not sent, but unto
the lost sheep of the house of Israel. Now, how would she have
felt now? Here she is a Canaanite. She's
not of the house of Israel. She's not an Israelite. You might
have thought she'd think, well that excludes me, I cannot be
amongst them. And friends, there's another
feeling of a child of God at times. With the pathway I have,
the things I go through, the troubles I've got, the lack of
answers to prayer, the way I feel at times, I cannot be amongst
the Lord's people. That's how it is, isn't it? Yes. Well, that's how it is. But I
tell you, friends, she still pressed on. She still pressed
on because this is when we come to our text. Then came she. Friends, what a backlof. It wasn't
encouraging for her, was it? In some ways. There was everything
to oppose her coming, and so it is to a sinner coming in that
sense. I know we are drawn, I hope friends,
we're drawn in the love, the cords of a man, the man Christ
Jesus. But what I'm trying to say is
this, opposition and opposition is there. And opposition to our
prayers, we feel it. But you see then, despite it
all, she came and she worshipped him, saying, Lord, help me. So let us come then firstly to
the fact that she came, the draw in power, came out of the coast,
came to see this Jesus of whose fame she'd heard. So you enter
into the courts of God As I do, friends, and we do it regularly,
do we come to see Jesus? Do we come like the Greeks of
old at the time of worshipping, that they came so we would see
Jesus? Friends, to really enter into
God's courts with that prayer that we sang in our opening hymn,
that we would not be empty sent away. You see, it's coming with a real
desire. It's coming with that burden
that's within, that burden of sin, that burden, that load of
guilt, that load that's upon us, coming. But she came and she worshipped
him. She worshipped him. Now, friends,
this worship, what is worship? We Desire to worship as we gather
together in worship. There's a lovely hymn that's
been on my mind. And that's 920. When to worship,
saints assemble, let the song to Jesus flow. And he forsook
his ancient glory, groaned and bled for worms below. Ransomed
mortals joined to swear the sacred song. You see, that's what we
do when we assemble, to sing to Jesus those songs of thanksgiving,
praise and honor, and confession indeed as well. But worship,
what is worship? When we worship something, we
show our adoration for it, we show our reverence for it, And
friends, I think we show our regard for it, but we come in
a reverential way. Now, I want to be careful here,
friends, because we can worship. And I say to the young people,
I want to be very clear, we can worship things that are not worshiping
a God. She came and worshiped him, but
worship, we can worship the things in this life, those ideas. And
let me think, friends, I believe, as I considered this, it felt
to me that there's three types of worship. Firstly, ideal worship, I-D-E-A-L,
which is what this lady did as blessed, and that's what we desire,
that we come seeking one who would bless us, who would favour
us, who alone can do those things that we desire including the
salvation of our soul and hear and answer those prayers that
we've offered up, that ideal worship to prostrate ourselves
before him. We do not read what position
she was in, whether she did literally prostrate herself, we don't know
that but she would have shown respect and she would have shown
reverence because that's worship friends and I know I've taken
those words as a dictionary meaning of it but friends they are literally
we show reverence to God in our worship as we worship him in
prayer individually or in those different places that's ideal
worship but young friends I want to be very clear we can be idle
worshippers that's I D L E In other words, we worship with
the lips only and not with the heart. And we can do that in
prayer. One says, I often say my prayers,
but do I ever pray? And do I offer to the Lord? And
do the wishes of my heart go with the words I say? I may as
well kneel down and offer and worship gods of stone is offered
to the living God, a prayer of words alone. And it is in worship,
when it's lip only worship friends, we need to have it in the heart,
don't we? Establish there the desires given
of God. That's a heart religion friends.
So all may we kept from being idle, ideally, worshippers of
God. And then there is another similar
word, I-D-O-L, idol worshippers. And friends, how careful we need
to be. You know, I see it in these days
with the young friends and not just the young friends, we all
can, you know, these mobile phone devices that can do so many things,
how we can idolise them. I see it also in various things
in life. We might have an interest in
politics, we might have an interest in sport, but these things can
become an idol. And we can worship them without
us realising that we're worshipping them because we adore them. We
almost pay reverence to them and we follow the dictionary
guidelines therefore of worship, but we're not worshipping God
and we're putting them before God. This woman came to him and
she put Jesus first. Friends, what type of worshiper
are you? You know, friends, we can only
be one of those three types, can't we? Well, I believe the
child of God will know what it is in their experience at times
to be all three types. I've certainly sat in God's house
and we've sung the hymns and we've gone along with things
and it's been the lip service only. Ah, but friends, to be
an ideal worshipper, one that's established of God in those true
desires, looking unto him like this dear woman. Well, she came
and she came and she worshipped him. She worshipped him. And you know, her worship was
an act of prayer, her worship It was because she came to him
with these simple three words. And worshipping friends can therefore
be undertaken, can't it? Anywhere where we can pray, in
the car, in the kitchen or at home, friends. And so it is that
the Lord will squeeze this prayer out of us. You know, there was
a man who was a deacon, raised up to be a deacon, attended and
called Waters Gower. He died in 1888, I think. And you know, he knew nothing
about religion. This is what we desire to see
these days. He did not attend the house of
God. He got into his 50s, I believe,
and was a farmer, a fairly comfortable farmer. And one Sunday afternoon,
he's walking in the field and you know, there was a voice,
go worship, go worship. Sounded twice to him. He went
back home and sat down in front of his wife. He said, we cannot
carry on the way we're going. Things have to change. Well,
it wasn't long after that that somebody led him to Mr. Vindon's
chapel there at Boar's Isle, as it was intended in those days. And you know, friends, he was
much blessed. And yet the Lord showed him his
sinnership even before he went there. But you see that desire
to worship God. Yes, then came she and worshipped
him with these beautiful three words. Friends, I don't know
how many times a poor child of God is gonna pray these three
words in their life, but I believe they're the sustenance of a child
of God. I believe it's a prayer. You
know, it so struck me today, there were two prayers I believe
the Lord will have all these children to pray. One of them
is, God be merciful to me, a sinner, because we will feel it, you
know, and our sinnership will make us cry to him for help.
because we know that we cannot help ourself. As a hymn writer
says, no help in self I find. And Jet have sought it well and
we have sought it well. The native treasure of my mind
is sin, death, hell. And we love those things. And
we still love them friends, however far on in the way we might be. But you see, it's, It's this, isn't it? Lord, Lord,
help me. God, be merciful to me, a sinner,
and Lord, help me. Help me by watching over me. Help me by keeping me from sin. Help me by keeping me in the
narrow way. Lord, help me. When did you last
say this prayer from your heart, friends? I'll tell you when I did. Friends,
it was in the vestry here before the service. I don't believe
I've entered the pulpit once without these three words as
a prayer. How reliant we are, and I know a dear pastor here
will feel the same. May not pray the same way, but
there's that reliance, and our dear friend also in his responsibilities. You see, Lord help me. How can we do it? We cannot do
these things. We need his helping hand. And
we sang it, friends, that when most we need his helping hand,
this friend is always near. But there are those times when
we really feel to need it, to go on, to go on. We just can't
continue. You know, Mr. A.B. Taylor, was pastor at Manchester,
he followed Mr. Gadsby. And that man said how
he used to tremble when he first went to Manchester pulpit after
that great man. He said, I trembled to preach
there. We know those feelings. But you
see, friends, he said, I was helped and after a time they
asked him to be their pastor. And you know, friends, you know,
I found this in a way an encouragement for the child of God to ponder
this. And he said, I said no. And he
said, furthermore, I didn't pray about it. I didn't think it was
the place for me ever could be and I didn't have the ability
to carry on So he said, I continued to preach, but not only there
to help them out. But you see, after a time, this
is where the Lord will have us. Like he drew this woman, he drew
him out in prayer. He drew him to the Lord, help
me. He met Mr. Kershaw after a time. And Mr. Kershaw said to him, I hear the
friends are interested in you at Manchester. how is the Lord leading you?
He said, well, I haven't sought for guidance. Friends, this was
a servant of God and he hadn't prayed over the matter because
he was determined that it was not the right way. Doesn't it
speak of you and I sometimes? Doesn't it speak of the way we
are? But you know, the time came, if I can find the word, that
the Lord spoke to him. In fact, as he stood outside
that chapel, in Rochdale Road, I believe it's been sold now.
But you see, he stood outside there and he said this, not by
might nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the Lord of hosts.
And he felt this, the Lord would help him and that he might have
to venture. Friends, it was the start of
an exercise. And he said, then I started to
pray. And then I had to plead, Lord,
help me if this is the pathway. and it wasn't long after that
they invited him again and he had to then accept and it was
a Lord help me he said all the time and as he wrote this I think
he'd been there 36 years and he was enabled to do 38 years
but Lord help me. You see friends that prayer has
to be given is my point and Sometimes we have a prayerless state, even
those like that dear man raised up in the ministry some way on
in the way of faith, and yet still he couldn't pray over something
because he was determined not to. Don't we need to be taught
of the Lord, friend? Don't we need to be humbled?
Humble yourself therefore under the mighty hand of God, that
he may exalt you in due time, casting all your care upon him,
for he careth for you. So it makes us think, doesn't
it, that even this, you see, this gift of this prayer is given
of the Lord, but he will draw it out of you. He will draw it
out of you. Those desperate situations where
there will be a sudden need to pray and it will be a Lord help
me. Lord help me. No time perhaps
to pray anything else. and no time to lay anything further
before the Lord. We spoke to the friends a couple
of weeks ago about Nehemiah before the king when he said, and I
prayed, the king said, your countenance is sad and said, why is it? And he spoke about the Jews,
he spoke about Jerusalem that needed to be rebuilt, the walls,
but what was remarkable was we read that he didn't answer the
king immediately, he said, so I prayed. These lovely words,
so I prayed to the God of heaven. He didn't answer the king, he
prayed to the king of kings. And that sudden prayer, friends,
those situations the Lord brings us into. You know, if we can
take this away and look back over our life and think of those
times when there's been a Lord help me and the Lord has answered
it, he's given a little strength, he's given a little help, He's
given a little enabling to go on. Oh, may you look back in
your ponderings after this service, friends, and I hope you do ponder
after the services. You know, we don't just turn,
I feel this more and more, that we don't just turn up to chapel,
hear the word, go home, and that's it. Friends, but to prayerfully
analyze it, ponder it, as Mary did, keep all these, she kept
all these things and pondered them in her heart. There's gracious
teaching in that, you know. There really is, but by thoughts
of this, that you might go back and be able to say, Samuel took
a stone and set it between Mizpah and Shen, called the name of
it Ebenezer. Hitherto have the Lord helped
me. And why has he helped me? Because you've been able to pray,
Lord, help me. Help me, Lord, as the psalmist
says. These words are in Psalm 109 and nearly turned the other
way round. But you see, beautiful, isn't
it, that they're right through the word of God, where he says,
help me. Oh, Lord, my God. Oh, save me
according to thy mercy. Yes, we need that help. We need
help in our circumstantial matters, and we need help when the enemy
is shouting us down. We need help against ourselves,
friends, that we take the wrong steps and do the wrong things,
and we need help because we're lost fallen sinners. Yes, that
divine aid in his salvation, that gift that we will only seek
as prompted by him, from within. Yes. Lord, help me. What a word. What a word for
us to take home and ponder. And may it be like Paul, as well
as I talked about that reflection of things in time past, having
obtained help of God, I continue until this day. Well, poor soul,
if you can truly say that, Do you think that he'll leave you
then in that which stands before? Do you think that he won't go
before you? No, my friends. He that has helped
me hitherto will help me all my journey through. Give me daily
cause to raise new Ebenezers, new stones of help to his praise. You see, you're adding another
stone on that pile, but that pile's only there because of
the Lord helped me. Oh, it's a wonderful prayer.
You know, I don't know where we would be without this dear
woman and her answered prayer. But you see, actually, as we
read on, it wasn't immediately that she got the answer because he
answered again and said, it's not me to take the children's
bread and cast it to dogs, as we read in verse 26. And of course,
dogs were seen as as fairly, well a lot of them ran around
in those days and they weren't domesticated, so they were seen
as unpleasant animals. Apart from some of the Greeks
who I understand did have domestic dogs, but for the whole they
were not like dogs are perhaps as we see them today. But it's
not meat to take the children's bread and cast it to dogs. But
oh, truth Lord. Yet the dogs eat of the crumbs
which fall from the master's table. And it's then that Jesus
answers and said, O woman, greatest thy faith. She had to wait for
this answer, friends. As I said earlier, she had to
keep pushing on and pressing on. Oh, and I would say, may
you pray for importunity. That is persistence, that means
importunity in prayer is persistence. Yes. Which of you shall have
a friend go to him at midnight? Say unto him, friend, lend me
three loaves. Yes. And he will come and answer
and say, the door's shut. It's late. The children are in
bed. I cannot rise and give to you. Yes, I say to you, though
he will not rise because he is his friend, yet because of his
importunity, his persistence, he will rise and give as many
as he needeth, and I say unto you, ask, and it shall be given
you, and so on. You know that word. Oh, friends,
what a prayer, a prayer for importunity before God, persistence. She
was persistent. And friends, we need to be given
that persistence. You know, that persistence in
seeking, that every single jot and tittle of ours of sins speaking
against us will be cleansed, will be washed. Yes, every single
bit gone. Wash till we every wit are clean. Yes, Lord, help me. Well, friends, you see, it's
a beautiful prayer. It will never wear out. And I
believe this, friends, you know, we need it as we cross the Jordan. We need it in that last illness,
that last time that we'll have, whatever it is that will bring
us down, there will be a Lord help me. Help me as I come down. Help me as I have to bid adieu
to this world of sin. Help me as I cross that river
and help me with an abundant entrance into thy kingdom. Yes,
you know friends, oh the Psalmist knew it, there's so many references
and I don't know about you but We've had to live in them at
times. God is our refuge and strength,
a very present help in time of trouble. And in the same psalm,
when he speaks of this, I will help her, and that right early. And this, I will lift up mine
eyes unto the hills from whence cometh my help. You see, friends,
are your eyes up unto the hills? Lord, help me, help me in that
which is before me in this week ahead. Friends, I don't know,
the Lord knows. But if that's your prayer, I
verily believe he will. Help me to go on in those things
that are such a burden to me, I don't know how to take another
step. And oh, when I think of that, if I can find it in Deuteronomy
there, this, And he says, there is none like unto the God of
Jeshurun, who rideth upon the heaven in thy help, and in his
excellency on the sky, the eternal God is thy refuge. Yes, you'd
see this help in hand. I read, and I think I might've
mentioned her here before, but it doesn't matter. There was
an old saint at Gilead, Mary Davy. She lived to be 108. She
was a member there and she died in 1950, I believe, but she worked
in a, I think it was a cake shop and they did some bed and breakfast.
It doesn't matter the detail, friends, but there were times
when in working there, she found her work so impossible to continue. And she writes in 1911, I think
it is, so she would have been well in her 60s and continuing
in work to keep herself going financially. And she writes like
this, I got to the point where I couldn't go on. I just could
not go on in what I was doing. And she said, I just had to pray,
Lord help me. But you see, he did, he gave
her strength and she said, She said she'd got to take additional
responsibilities for six weeks as somebody was away. And perhaps
some of you have known these things, someone was away or not
well, and how the Lord spoke to her through her pastor's ministry. And that was this, just two words,
friends. And the words are in the setting,
speak to the children of Israel. But it was this, that they go
forward. In other words, continue. And
what strengthening it was for her to continue in that that
she had before her. But also these words, fear not
I am with thee, I'll be not dismayed. And it was definitely the third
line in this, No, the second line, I am thy God and will still
give thee aid. And she said, I felt day by day
a strengthening hand upon me. Have you ever felt that? Really felt the help of the Lord
Jesus, perhaps in some of those Herculean tasks that you've had
in front of you and you thought, I don't know how I'm going to
get through this. And you felt strength from above. Friends,
these things encourage us, don't they, through our never-dying
souls, that he has a love towards us, that he will go before us
in all things. I'll strengthen thee, help thee,
and cause thee to stand, upheld by my righteous, omnipotent hand. Oh, friends, these people that
have experimentally worked this out, and I hope you and I have
friends, but you see, Oh, how beautiful is the gospel here,
the drawing power of the Lord Jesus Christ. She only came because
of that. She only came because she heard
of him and was given faith to believe in him, to believe that
he could do far more, exceeding abundantly for her, above all
she could ask or even think, and how How, what a wonderful
end it is here in verse 28. Oh woman, great is thy faith,
be it unto thee even as thou wilt. And poor soul, as it comes into
me here, that prayer that you've not had answered to date, and
you know what it is, may you prove this. May you prove that
faith is given and be it unto thee even as thou wilt. And we read her daughter was
made whole from that very hour and her daughter was not with
her, was she? We don't read that she came with
the daughter, but she was made whole. And you know, perhaps
as a poor sinner here tonight and you feel you can never be
made whole, you've sinned away. any hope, any hope at all. You feel you're so vile and so
wretched and you've, well, you see, you feel you're in verse
19. Out of the heart proceed evil
thoughts, murders and adulteries and fornications and thefts and
false witness and blasphemies. That's me, that covers me and
I don't, and I feel they've defiled me. These are the things which
defile a man. Friends, you can come with this
prayer. You can come with a Lord help
me, because believe me, the vilest sinner out of hell that lives
to feel his need is welcome. to a throne of grace, the Saviour's
blood to plead. Welcome there. Oh yes, friends. Dear Rahab. Ah, there was a scarlet
cord in the corner for her. She wasn't someone we would necessarily
have an acquaintance with. Such were the nature of her sins. But friends, the vilest sinner. You're not too vile. You're not
too bad. And oh, as we will sing, thou
canst, O come, this heart of mine, thou canst victorious prove,
for everlasting strength is thine and everlasting love. Well, friends, we've got a few
things to contemplate. I hope you have. I feel this
poor sinner has. Oh, may the Lord help us each
to pray on in this way. And if we've never prayed this
prayer to start today, then came she and worshipped him. That's the thing, to worship
him, to worship no other. Then came she and worshipped
him, saying, Lord, help me. Amen.