TD Jakes - Faith That Crosses The Line
In Matthew 15, a Canaanite woman from Tyre and Sidon crosses cultural, religious, and social barriers to pursue Jesus for her daughter's healing, humbly accepting even "crumbs" from the children's bread, demonstrating that great faith overcomes obstacles and receives the miracle.
He is on his way out—he is walking away—and one woman, who was in the midst of all of this idolatry and this chaos, makes the decision to go after Jesus. Now, you have to understand—you think the miracle is in the healing of the daughter, but the miracle starts in the fact that this woman had to cross so many lines to come to Jesus.
She had to travel such a distance to come to Jesus. The distance was not just geographical distance—it was also theological distance. She comes from a polytheistic society that has not even heard of Jehovah, and here this woman comes, across all of her theological upbringing.
She, being a Canaanite woman having lived in a Phoenician city—she is alienated from the Commonwealth of Israel. She is not raised in the traditions of the Hebrews; she is not taught in Judaism; she is not exposed to the Torah.
Crossing Lines to Reach Jesus
I do not know—I do not know—I do not know—I do not know how she heard about Jesus, but while He was knocking on the door in Tyre and Sidon, she must have gotten a whiff of His glory and a whiff of His grace. The Bible said, "Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good," and she must have gotten a little taste of something.
A taste of Jesus was stronger than a bellyful of her idol gods. A taste of Jesus was stronger than all the traditions that wrapped around her. One taste of Jesus was strong enough to make her leave her sick, deranged daughter at home and travel for miles to a stranger.
And she is a Gentile woman, and she is a polytheistic woman, and she is a woman of ill repute as it relates to understanding the sanctity of God—and yet she traveled to where He was.
Most of the time we see Jesus—He is coming to us—but some of the greatest miracles in the Bible occur when we come to Him. Think about the woman at the well—Jesus was not headed in her direction, but she came where He was.
And I want to say to you tonight—that are watching online, and you that are studying with me—come a little closer. That God is not promising that He is always going to knock on your door. That in order to get the kind of breakthrough that you need, you may have to move to get it; you may have to travel to get it; you may have to walk to get it; you may have to be alone to get it; you may have to walk away from trouble to get it.
The woman looks a little irresponsible because her daughter is grievously vexed with the devil, and as far as we know, she left her home alone—but she knew if she got to Jesus, it would be worth it.
And sometimes you have to look a little irresponsible to get what you are out to get from God—but she traveled the distance just to get to Jesus.
Faith Requires Action
Oh, I do not know who I am talking to, but I am talking to somebody—that sometimes you have to put some work in it. Sometimes you have to travel to get it; sometimes you have to go out of your way to get it; sometimes you have to cross the line to get it.
Step over your traditions; step over what you heard; step over what you have been taught—because faith will cross a line. Now, do not ask God for faith if you are not going to move.
Faith will make a man with a withered hand stretch forth his hand. Faith will make a woman with an issue of blood crawl across the floor. Faith will make a woman who has been with five men—and now she is sleeping with somebody—drop her water pots and say, "Come see a man."
Faith is radical—it is an action word; it is not a noun; it is a verb. If you have faith, you have to move. If you have religion, you can sit still—but if you have faith, you have to move because faith is a verb. It requires action; it requires movement; it requires that you do something.
"Take up your bed and walk." "Give me your two fish and five loaves of bread." "Go borrow some vessels." Faith requires that you take action.
I wish I was talking to somebody tonight that was radical enough to take action and make up in your mind, "If I have to go out of my way, I am going out of my way. If I have to be ridiculed, if I have to be gossiped about—if my neighbors are talking about me because I love my daughter at home—I know what I am doing because I sensed something in this Jesus, and I cannot let it get away until I have had a personal experience with Him."
He brushed by my neighborhood, but I am not satisfied to get close to Him and not have an encounter with Him—and I am going where He is, even though the law says that I should not come near Him.
Overcoming Rejection and Silence
So, not only did she step over her religion—she stepped over His—because according to the Torah, she should not have had any dealings with Jesus, being a Jew. The Samaritan woman teaches you that: "Your people and my people have no dealings."
Even the Torah said that she was exempt from being a part of the Commonwealth of Israel. And when she comes to where Jesus is, He told her, "I have no dealings with you—I have no dealings with you—go on back."
See, if you are easily discouraged, you will never get what you want from God—because anybody else would have taken Jesus's word for it and left and said, "Well, He insulted me—I am not going." He said, "I am not sent but to the lost sheep of the house of Israel."
In other words, you are exempt from being eligible to receive what you ask Me for. It is not that I am exempt from being able—I am able, but you are not eligible. That is what Jesus was saying: "I am not sent but to the lost sheep of the house of Israel."
And then she calls Him Lord—she called Him Lord, but He had not been to her. But the fact that she called Him Lord stands up in the face of all the traditions of her background.
The fact that she called Him Lord meant that she had a revelation that He was more than a good man—that He was more than a prophet—that He was Adonai. She called Him Lord, and when she said, "Lord," that is acknowledging who He is. When she said, "Help me," that is acknowledging who she is.
She has put Him in His proper perspective: I know You have got the power, and I know I have got the problem. See, some people have trouble admitting that God has the power—and then there is another group of people that have trouble admitting that they have a problem.
But this woman was neither—she was not too arrogant to admit that she needed some help. You have to be humble enough to say, "Help me," and you have to be discerning enough to call Him Lord.
She knew who He was, and she knew who she was—in front of all of these spectators who did not even want her around. For the Bible says that the disciples said, "She crieth after us... Send her away."
She never said anything to them—these minions that surrounded Jesus were just in the way. They were just in the way of what God was about to do.
Do Not Stand in the Way
And most of the people that surround the man of God are just in the way—there is so much protocol and routine and ritual, they are just in the way. And little men always like to exercise big power so they can feel important.
The reality is they did not have anything to do with it. The reality is she did not walk that far to see them. The reality is—even if she did come to see them—they probably could not help her.
But she said, "She crieth after us"—because when you hang around power, it is elusive enough to make you think that it is yours when it is not. It is like standing beside somebody who can sing can make you think you can sing when you cannot.
See, she was never crying after them—she was crying after Him. "Lord, help me"—that does not have anything to do with your disciples, your trustee board, your board of elders, your deacon board—none of that.
That has nothing to do with any of them—they were just minions surrounding Jesus, standing in the way of a miracle. Oh, let me stop a minute and pray.
Lord, do not let me ever stand in the way of somebody's miracle. Do not let my arrogance stand in the way of Your divine purpose. Do not let my need to be acknowledged stand in the way of somebody getting a breakthrough.
Somebody has got a sick little girl that needs a breakthrough—and do not let my pride become so puffed up that I can easily send away what I could not heal anyway.
It is easy to send away what you cannot work with anyway. "Send her away," they said—"She crieth after us"—but she crossed over top of all of that. Everything they threw at her, she crossed over top of that.
"I am not sent but to the lost sheep of the house of Israel"—and she crossed over that. What are you willing to cross over to get what you want from the Lord?
We live in a world today that people are so easily discouraged—that if the miracle is not convenient, they do not come. If the parking is not convenient, they do not come. If somebody sits in their seat at church, they do not come. If they do not like the rules, they do not come. If they have to wear masks, they do not come. If they have to stand in line, they do not come.
These are the same people who stand in line for hours for a ticket to a football game but will not stand in line 15 minutes to get a healing.
This woman had traveled all the way up the coast with her sick daughter at home to see a Jesus who told her no. At first, He answered her not a word.
Enduring God's Silence
I do not know what is worse—the rejection or the silence. Have you ever had to live with God's silence when you are in a crisis and the only One who can fix it says nothing?
I know you heard me. I used to say something to my children when they would act like they were deaf—I would tell them, "I know you heard me." Finally, they would say, "Yes, sir." They were trying to act like they did not hear me, you know?
Have you ever gone through a time that it seemed like God did not hear you? He does hear you—He said, "My ear is not heavy that I cannot hear, and My arm is not short that I cannot save. Just because I did not say anything does not mean that I did not hear you."
I was driving up to North Dallas the other day—and I do not live up in North Dallas—I can get confused sometimes going up. And I was on the right road, but I was not sure—and I got mad at my GPS system because it was saying nothing at all, and I had to keep on driving in the silence.
I wanted some reassurance—I wanted her to say, "You are on the right road—you are getting close to your destination." I wanted her to tell me that I was on the right track, but she said nothing at all.
She did not speak again until it was time to make a turn. Sometimes God does not say anything until it is time to make a turn—and you have to keep on walking by faith in the silence of God.
I do not know who I am talking to tonight—but if God is not saying anything, keep on driving. If God is not saying anything, keep on walking. If God is not saying anything, keep on preaching. If God is not saying anything, keep on building. If God is not saying anything, keep on teaching. If God is not saying anything, keep on reaching.
If God is not saying anything, keep on doing what you were doing before—because when you get to the turn, He will tell you, "In 3 more miles, you will make a right-hand turn." Do not mistake His silence for not caring.
In essence, Jesus was trying to tell her, "My hands are tied." He says, "I tried not to answer you, but you crossed over the line—and then I explained to you that 'I have not come but to the lost sheep of the house of Israel,' but you crossed over the line."
"What kind of faith is this you have got, woman, that you keep crossing over the line?"
You see, we serve a radical Jesus, and He respects the radical people—and this was a radical woman. She was not even a spiritual woman; she was not even a holy woman; she was not even a godly woman—but by God, she was a radical woman.
I know she was radical because she kept stepping over the line—and you must understand that faith will always cross the line. It will cross the line.
The Children's Bread and the Crumbs
I know I am not a part of the lost sheep of Israel, but I am going to cross that line. I know You are not speaking to me, but I am not going nowhere—I am going to cross that line.
And finally, He broke it down real blunt. Have you ever had people—you tried to tell them to go home—as my old folks would say, "Go on, now"? You tried to tell them to go, but they will not go away.
Finally, He spoke to her real plain, and He said, "It is not meet"—it is not proper for Me—"to give the children's bread to the dogs." My God, He called the desperate mama a dog.
"It is not meet to give the children's bread." Let me stop a minute and talk about the children's bread.
The children's bread takes me all the way back to the wilderness when God sent manna down from heaven. The children's bread reminds me that God will feed me no matter where I am at.
The children's bread reminds me that I might be hungry right now, but God is baking up something that has got my name on it. The children's bread lets me know that just because I am His child, there is bread for my problem.
The children's bread reminds me that what God has for me is for me. And Jesus said, "It is not that I do not have some bread, but it is reserved."
Have you ever gone in a restaurant and you walked up to a table and there was a little sign that said, "Reserved," on it? I want to tell somebody that is watching me right now that God has a blessing that is reserved for you.
It has got your name on it—it is reserved for you—it is the children's bread. Healing is the children's bread; deliverance is the children's bread; power is the children's bread; favor is the children's bread; hope is the children's bread.
Oh, do you hear what I am saying? Are you a child of the King? Oh, I love those old songs—"I am a child of the King." It comes with rights and comes with privileges—comes with bread—comes with bread.
Like barbecued ribs at a hole in the wall, it comes with bread. Like hot bologna in a cast-iron skillet, it comes with bread.
The salvation that we have comes with bread—and Jesus calls it the children's bread. He said, "It is not meet to give the children's bread to the dogs."
She did not say she was hungry; she did not say she wanted something to eat—but Jesus calls healing bread. Oh, my God—do you hear what I am saying? Jesus calls healing bread.
"Have some bread?" "Our Father which art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day"—that is what I am looking for—"Give us this day our daily bread." Have some bread?
Are you going through something and you need a healing—and God calls it bread? You need a financial breakthrough—and God calls it bread. You need a word of direction—and God calls it bread. Would you have some bread?
Have you ever sat down at the table and the bread was on the table but it was not near you—and you had to say to somebody, "Pass the bread"?
Yeah—yeah—yeah—when I see you getting blessed, it makes me want to say, "Pass the bread"—because I know if He is God enough to give you bread, He is God enough to give me bread.
And I am not going to hate on you because you got some bread—because it is on my table too; I just need you to pass the bread.
God calls healing "the children's bread"—that is why you have to be careful who you hang around, because you cannot be hanging around a table full of folk that have no bread.
I do not care how rich they are; I do not care how influential they are—just because they have got money does not mean they have got bread.
You have got to surround yourself with people that have what you need—because what you need when you need it is bread. What you need when you need it is bread.
Settling for Crumbs in Faith
Whatever it is you have been praying about is bread—and the Lord wants you to know, "I have got the bread. The question is: are you eligible for the bread?"
And the law stood up in His face and said, "No—this woman is not eligible for the bread." She is coming from the coast of Tyre and Sidon where You have left and turned Your back—but she chased You.
Is there anybody out there prepared to chase God? Is there anybody out there prepared to go where He is—to get out of your way and say, "I will not let You go till You bless my soul. I do not care if it takes all night—I am going to stand right here till You do something for me."
I am going to stand right here till You restore my joy. I am going to stand right here till You restore my peace. I am going to stand right here till You give me my house back. I am going to stand right here till You give me my daughter back. I am going to stand right here till I get my business back.
I feel a spirit of restoration in this place tonight—I said I feel the spirit of restoration tonight. Whatever trouble is going on in your house, get ready for it to be restored tonight.
Whatever has been on your heart, get ready for God to restore it tonight. Whatever has been on your mind, get ready for God to restore it tonight.
I smell bread in the room tonight. My God—somebody pass me some butter because I smell bread in the house tonight.
Whatever the devil has been starving you from—starving you from love and starving you from peace and starving you from favor—whatever he has been starving you from—my God has got the bread tonight.
My God has got the bread tonight if you can step over your traditions, over your religion, over your region, over your territory, over His silence—and yes, over His objections.
This woman said, "Yes, Lord—I am a dog." She understood that the dog term meant not something that walks on all fours but without a covenant.
"I have no covenant with You—You do not have to do this for me," she said. "But even the dogs can eat the crumbs that fall from their master's table."
Look at this woman. She said, "I have got so much faith in You that I did not come all this way to get the bread—I will settle for a crumb because I know whatever is in the crumb is in the bread."
If there is milk in the bread, there is milk in the crumb. If there is flour in the bread, there is flour in the crumb. If there is butter in the bread, there is butter in the crumb.
If there is healing in the bread, there is healing in the crumb. If there is deliverance in the bread, there is deliverance in the crumb. If there is hope in the bread, there is hope in the crumb.
Whatever is in the bread is in the crumb. Go ahead and give Your children the bread—just let me sit in Your lap.
The Bible called them lapdogs—and lapdogs would climb up in the laps of their master and just stay there with their mouth open.
I wonder—is your mouth open tonight? Lapdogs would lay in the lap of the master with a mouth open, waiting for the crumbs that fell from the master's table.
She said, "I might be a heathen, and I might be a Phoenician—I might be a Canaanite woman; I might have come from an idolatrous background—but I know how to open my mouth."
Do you know how to open your mouth? Most people do not know how to open their mouth to receive what God has for them.
They know how to shout about it; they know how to talk about it—but they do not know how to open up and receive.
She said, "I may not know anything else, but I know how to open my mouth—and the next crumb that falls, I have got it."