Dogs. Has anyone ever called you a dog? Think of the connotations. In today’s world, if a man is called a “dog”
it often means that they treat women badly.
If a woman is called a “dog” it means that she is ugly. In Middle Eastern countries, to be called a “dog”
is one of the biggest insults imaginable.
In some translations of today’s gospel, translators have changed the
word “dog” into “puppy” or “little dog” to somehow smooth over the words Jesus
used. Don’t do that. Let the name stick. There is a reason Jesus called this woman a
dog and it’s important that you know it.
Because, in God’s eyes, you are also a dog.
God
chose a particular group of people to be set apart in this world. He called them by name and blessed them to be
a blessing to the people around them.
They were called to be a light to the nations and a city on a hill to
glorify God’s name through their actions.
God’s chosen people are the Jews, often called the Israelites in the
Bible. You, however, are not a Jew. You are not a member of God’s chosen people.
In
God’s eyes, there are only two kinds of people.
Those chosen and those who are not.
Jews and Gentiles. God’s children
and the dogs. We are the dogs. We are God’s good creation, but we are not in
God’s family by birthright.
It’s
imperative that you know this because, as a dog, you need to know your
place. What is and is not expected of
you. The Jews can talk about their
pedigree, their birthright—Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. “The gifts and call of God to the Jews is
irrevocable” Saint Paul says in Romans, “Because of the patriarchs” because of
who their ancestors were. Just like some
of you here get special treatment in town because of your last name or who your
grandpa is or was. Jews get special
treatment in God’s eyes. You do
not. You are a dog. Ruff!
As a dog, you must come before God is a different way—through the doggie
gate you might say.
The
woman in the gospel lesson knows this and so she fought for her rights as only
a dog can. Jesus said, “First, let the
children eat all they want,” He told
her, “For it is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to the
dogs.” “Lord,” she replied, “even the
dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs.” Some of you have dogs and you understand what
this is talking about very personally.
If your dog hopped up onto the table at dinnertime, you’d yell at them
and kick-em out of the room. But when
meat falls onto the floor what do we often say, “Leave it for the dog.” We eat what’s on the table, the dogs eat what’s
on the floor.
As
dogs, we get the leftovers, the trash, the stuff the chosen children of God
threw away. That is all we have a right
to. If we enter the house, it must be
through this doggie doorway. But oh what
crumbs we have been left! When Jesus was
betrayed, handed over and crucified, abandoned and left for dead outside the
city gates on Golgotha, the trash heap of the town, God’s kingdom was left for
the dogs . . . the dogs, like you and me.
Ironically,
God’s Messiah was foretold to bring salvation to the Gentiles, but who could
have imagined that it would be in this way.
Isaiah prophesied that the one called to bring back those of Israel
would become a light to the Gentiles, that God’s salvation would reach as far
as the ends of the Earth. When Jesus was
thrown out by the children of God, the chosen ones, it became a great day to be
a dog! Ruff! When Jesus was crucified on the trash heap of
Jerusalem, he became food for the dogs.
The Jews were meant to be a light for the nations, a city on a hill,
Jesus instead became that light. The
crumbs the children left behind and discarded has become our daily bread.
As
a dog, your only hope to enter into God’s presence is by the doggie-gate. Jesus said, “I am the gate.” By faith in Jesus Christ alone, you are given
access to the kingdom of God. Not by
good deeds or by birthright—by faith alone could you be called a child of God
even though you are a dog.
Some
of you have dogs. They are pets , they
you treat them as children. You dress
them up to keep them warm. Perhaps they
sleep in the same bed as you. You talk
to them often and pay enormous expenses to keep them happy and healthy. Other people might look at you funny for
treating your pet in this way, but your dog means a lot to you. They are like a child in many ways. However, there are limitations even for the
most beloved of pets. You do not write
them into the will, for example. You do
not leave your money to the family dog.
They don’t get a seat at the dinner table at Easter dinner. And there are times that, if those pets
forget who they truly are, there are consequences. Even for the most beloved of pets.
Just think of the
movie, Lady and the Tramp, Lady was as loved of a dog as there ever was , that
is, until a baby came along. Then, even
though she was still loved, the baby was a part of the family in a different
way. And, when push came to shove, Lady
was sent out to the dog house while the baby stayed safely inside the
house. Make no doubt about it, even the
most beloved dog is still a dog.
We are dogs in
God’s kingdom—don’t ever forget it. We
live off the crumbs the children have left us.
We come to God by faith alone in Jesus.
We can’t point to our faithful parents and hope for any special
treatment from God. We can’t look to our
denominational background and hope for help there. Our race or the country that we live in
doesn’t matter a darn bit in God’s eyes.
We are the dogs and the doggie gate into God’s kingdom is Jesus. Nothing more and nothing less. Without Jesus, we have no hope, we are only
dogs. We must put our hope in Jesus and
in Jesus alone. But what a gift this
Jesus is for us dogs. But Jesus Christ
as our Savior and Lord, the kingdom of heaven has gone to the dogs. When you put your faith in the forgiveness of
sins through Jesus Christ, it’s a dog’s day in heaven. Ruff!
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