WEBVTT 00:00:04.360 --> 00:00:06.540 You're listening to the Christ Our Cornerstone 00:00:06.540 --> 00:00:09.359 podcast, a ministry of Christ Our Cornerstone 00:00:09.359 --> 00:00:12.080 Church in O 'Neill, Nebraska. I'm Pastor Logan 00:00:12.080 --> 00:00:14.160 Merrick, and it's our prayer that this message 00:00:14.160 --> 00:00:16.500 strengthens your faith and draws you closer to 00:00:16.500 --> 00:00:21.980 Christ. Let's dive in. Turn with me to Mark chapter 00:00:21.980 --> 00:00:26.480 seven. The title of my sermon this morning is 00:00:26.480 --> 00:00:31.559 From Dogs to Daughters, The Table of Grace. And 00:00:31.559 --> 00:00:34.960 no, I'm not making a statement about anyone's 00:00:34.960 --> 00:00:39.619 beauty. The passage we're going to unpack this 00:00:39.619 --> 00:00:42.079 morning is a pretty famous passage, and it's 00:00:42.079 --> 00:00:43.439 one as I'm going to talk about in just a few 00:00:43.439 --> 00:00:48.259 minutes. It's one that gets brought up in TikToks 00:00:48.259 --> 00:00:55.340 and Facebook reels quite often of typically progressive 00:00:55.340 --> 00:00:58.840 pastors love to use this to show that Jesus was 00:00:58.840 --> 00:01:02.219 not perfect, that he was sinful. They go to this 00:01:02.219 --> 00:01:04.400 passage. And so we're gonna look at why that 00:01:04.400 --> 00:01:08.159 is wrong and actually what the passage is teaching 00:01:08.159 --> 00:01:12.840 us. And something that's just really wonderful 00:01:12.840 --> 00:01:18.239 and beautiful to see that I discovered as I was 00:01:18.239 --> 00:01:20.620 preparing for this. And so I'm excited to share 00:01:20.620 --> 00:01:24.420 that with you. The big idea for my sermon this 00:01:24.420 --> 00:01:28.549 morning, if you wanna write this down. is Jesus' 00:01:28.790 --> 00:01:32.370 act of humility in identifying with the marginalized 00:01:32.370 --> 00:01:36.150 signifies that all can have a place at his table, 00:01:36.670 --> 00:01:39.750 transforming outsiders into beloved children 00:01:39.750 --> 00:01:46.469 of God. I'll give you a moment to write that 00:01:46.469 --> 00:01:49.230 down. If you don't have a Bible, we have some 00:01:49.230 --> 00:01:52.569 back there for you. Love for you to take one, 00:01:53.030 --> 00:01:56.420 see the text in front of you. We're gonna be 00:01:56.420 --> 00:01:58.420 a Mark chapter seven. We're gonna look at verses 00:01:58.420 --> 00:02:02.939 24 through 37. And as you turn there, I want 00:02:02.939 --> 00:02:04.739 you to think about something. You don't have 00:02:04.739 --> 00:02:08.120 to say it out loud, but I want you to think for 00:02:08.120 --> 00:02:13.259 just a moment about how you approach God. How 00:02:13.259 --> 00:02:23.090 do you personally approach God? Throughout scripture, 00:02:23.090 --> 00:02:27.990 we see God approached, yes? Can anyone think 00:02:27.990 --> 00:02:31.509 of examples of God being approached or his presence 00:02:31.509 --> 00:02:47.050 being approached? Okay, what about even before 00:02:47.050 --> 00:02:49.990 that? What about in the Old Testament? Yes, you're 00:02:49.990 --> 00:03:02.900 correct. Yeah, yeah, like come coming to him 00:03:02.900 --> 00:03:06.580 either either way how they approach Yes, I have 00:03:06.580 --> 00:03:09.099 that I have that in there all the Psalms David 00:03:09.099 --> 00:03:11.919 and they all have our different right in their 00:03:11.919 --> 00:03:16.379 emotional well -being somebody said Moses Somebody 00:03:16.379 --> 00:03:19.400 said yes Mount Sinai right and we see how my 00:03:19.400 --> 00:03:22.020 Mount Sinai The it says that the presence of 00:03:22.020 --> 00:03:24.319 God comes down to Mount Sinai and all of the 00:03:24.319 --> 00:03:27.379 people tremble and they send Moses up And they're 00:03:27.379 --> 00:03:30.280 like you go up and you just tell us what he has 00:03:30.280 --> 00:03:34.939 to say Right. There's another another one that 00:03:34.939 --> 00:03:38.979 came to my mind was Uzziah. You guys remember 00:03:38.979 --> 00:03:45.280 what Uzziah did? Yeah, he was he he was helping 00:03:45.280 --> 00:03:47.219 carry the Ark of the Covenant, which had the 00:03:47.219 --> 00:03:49.620 presence of God in it, and he thought it was 00:03:49.620 --> 00:03:51.979 going to fall and he reached out to study it 00:03:51.979 --> 00:03:55.740 and he died. And so you could be like, well. 00:03:56.780 --> 00:03:59.580 That seems kind of unfair. He was just trying 00:03:59.580 --> 00:04:03.900 to. help steady the presence or the arc of God. 00:04:04.800 --> 00:04:08.199 But what it shows us is that God's holiness is 00:04:08.199 --> 00:04:12.259 not something to be treated lightly, right? As 00:04:12.259 --> 00:04:14.020 it was already brought up, we talked about Mount 00:04:14.020 --> 00:04:17.480 Sinai, we talked about the Psalms. What about 00:04:17.480 --> 00:04:20.379 the prodigal son? We talked about the woman with 00:04:20.379 --> 00:04:22.060 the issue of love. What about the prodigal son? 00:04:23.699 --> 00:04:27.379 Right, he leaves his father, but when he comes 00:04:27.379 --> 00:04:30.480 home, He comes home with a lot of humility, right? 00:04:31.000 --> 00:04:34.540 And then he is greeted with a lot of love and 00:04:34.540 --> 00:04:39.680 grace, right? So all throughout scripture, we 00:04:39.680 --> 00:04:43.600 find this tension where God is holy beyond our 00:04:43.600 --> 00:04:46.279 comprehension, yet he invites sinners to draw 00:04:46.279 --> 00:04:51.319 near. So I asked the question again, how do you 00:04:51.319 --> 00:04:56.560 approach God yourself? And how should we approach 00:04:56.560 --> 00:05:00.220 God? Are they two different things? So should 00:05:00.220 --> 00:05:03.379 we approach him with fear? Should we approach 00:05:03.379 --> 00:05:09.420 him with confidence, with humility, with boldness? 00:05:10.740 --> 00:05:13.959 What do you think? Yes, all of those things, 00:05:14.319 --> 00:05:17.959 right? And so our passage today gives us one 00:05:17.959 --> 00:05:20.339 of the most surprising encounters in the Gospel 00:05:20.339 --> 00:05:24.600 of Mark. We're going to see a Gentile pagan woman, 00:05:25.420 --> 00:05:28.240 a complete outsider, to the people of God. She 00:05:28.240 --> 00:05:31.279 comes to Jesus desperate for help and she has 00:05:31.279 --> 00:05:35.800 no status, no religious credentials, no claim 00:05:35.800 --> 00:05:38.519 upon God's covenant promises. Yet she approaches 00:05:38.519 --> 00:05:41.819 Jesus with this mixture of humility and with 00:05:41.819 --> 00:05:45.879 boldness as a model for all of us. And throughout 00:05:45.879 --> 00:05:47.980 this encounter, Mark shows us something that's 00:05:47.980 --> 00:05:49.819 really beautiful about the kingdom of God. There's 00:05:49.819 --> 00:05:52.259 always a seat at the table for those who are 00:05:52.259 --> 00:05:55.319 in Christ. even before there was truly a seat. 00:05:55.360 --> 00:05:56.899 And we're going to look at that in just a minute. 00:05:57.980 --> 00:06:00.319 And so this morning, let's take a look at the 00:06:00.319 --> 00:06:03.259 passage. We're going to see how Jesus takes the 00:06:03.259 --> 00:06:05.480 outsiders and welcomes them into his family, 00:06:05.680 --> 00:06:09.060 transforming dogs into daughters and giving them 00:06:09.060 --> 00:06:11.939 a place at the table of grace. We're going to 00:06:11.939 --> 00:06:14.279 do this. We're going to also look at the deaf 00:06:14.279 --> 00:06:18.439 and mute man, because we see a very similar approach. 00:06:18.740 --> 00:06:22.649 And so. I'm going to unpack each story separately. 00:06:22.649 --> 00:06:27.709 So let's go ahead and go through verses 24 through 00:06:27.709 --> 00:06:33.269 30. The Seraphine woman. And from there, well, 00:06:33.750 --> 00:06:39.709 hello. There we go. And from there, he arose 00:06:39.709 --> 00:06:43.430 and went away to the region of Tyre and Sidon, 00:06:43.449 --> 00:06:46.470 and he entered a house and did not want anyone 00:06:46.470 --> 00:06:51.089 to know. Yet he could not be hidden. But immediately 00:06:51.089 --> 00:06:53.189 a woman whose little daughter had an unclean 00:06:53.189 --> 00:06:55.610 spirit heard of him and came and fell down at 00:06:55.610 --> 00:06:59.250 his feet. Now the woman was a Gentile, a Seraphanician 00:06:59.250 --> 00:07:02.569 by birth, and she begged him to cast out the 00:07:02.569 --> 00:07:06.050 demon of her daughter. And he said to her, let 00:07:06.050 --> 00:07:09.149 the children be fed first, for it is not right 00:07:09.149 --> 00:07:12.230 to take the children's bread and throw it to 00:07:12.230 --> 00:07:17.089 dogs. But she answered him, yes, Lord. Yet even 00:07:17.089 --> 00:07:20.230 the dogs under the table eat the children's crumbs. 00:07:21.189 --> 00:07:24.569 And he said to her, for this statement, you may 00:07:24.569 --> 00:07:27.089 go your way. The demon has left your daughter 00:07:27.089 --> 00:07:30.389 and she went home and found the child lying in 00:07:30.389 --> 00:07:34.269 bed and the demon gone. So if you're taking notes, 00:07:34.709 --> 00:07:37.490 my first point and I only have two this morning. 00:07:38.050 --> 00:07:44.350 My first point is bold faith finds grace. Bold 00:07:44.350 --> 00:07:51.490 faith finds grace. Now, as I told you, this passage 00:07:51.490 --> 00:07:56.670 is famous for being quoted as by progressive 00:07:56.670 --> 00:08:02.209 pastors who say that this shows that Jesus was 00:08:02.209 --> 00:08:06.310 a normal man and he did sin. What do you think 00:08:06.310 --> 00:08:11.550 the sin is that they're accusing him of? Racism, 00:08:11.990 --> 00:08:15.930 prejudice. And so is that what's happening here? 00:08:16.629 --> 00:08:23.019 Is Jesus Is he being racist? And they would also 00:08:23.019 --> 00:08:28.860 say that it took a woman from another culture 00:08:28.860 --> 00:08:36.779 to reveal Jesus' supposed biases and his prejudice, 00:08:37.259 --> 00:08:42.500 and this helps Jesus evolve theologically. That 00:08:42.500 --> 00:08:44.820 it was the woman who corrects... and then it 00:08:44.820 --> 00:08:47.799 broadens then from there Jesus broadens his mission 00:08:47.799 --> 00:08:52.559 to her. But is that what's really happening? 00:08:54.320 --> 00:09:00.480 No. I assure you it isn't Jesus who needs correction 00:09:00.480 --> 00:09:04.419 in this passage. This moment is recorded for 00:09:04.419 --> 00:09:06.919 your and I benefit and specifically the disciples 00:09:06.919 --> 00:09:09.480 and all the other readers who would come later. 00:09:10.559 --> 00:09:13.700 But first Notice where this takes place. It says 00:09:13.700 --> 00:09:17.480 it takes place while Jesus goes specifically 00:09:17.480 --> 00:09:22.919 to Tyre and Sidon. Tyre and Sidon are a port 00:09:22.919 --> 00:09:28.720 cities that are very pagan, very Gentile, and 00:09:28.720 --> 00:09:33.960 Jews would never go there. So begs the question, 00:09:34.019 --> 00:09:37.879 then why did Jesus go there? Well, Jesus had 00:09:37.879 --> 00:09:41.100 been ministering in Jewish cities. and he was 00:09:41.100 --> 00:09:45.080 exhausted. And at this point, he doesn't want 00:09:45.080 --> 00:09:49.139 to be, have crowds anymore. He's trying to just 00:09:49.139 --> 00:09:52.279 get rest because we see again, he is still fully 00:09:52.279 --> 00:09:55.559 a man while still being fully God. And so he 00:09:55.559 --> 00:09:58.720 goes there to rest and he's going to hide amongst 00:09:58.720 --> 00:10:02.980 the sinners. And this port city of Tyre and Sidon, 00:10:03.059 --> 00:10:07.179 it would have what you would think. even just 00:10:07.179 --> 00:10:10.539 a modern city like ours that has a lot of trade 00:10:10.539 --> 00:10:13.320 happening and a lot of people coming and going. 00:10:13.539 --> 00:10:18.559 So it would have all unrighteous things you can 00:10:18.559 --> 00:10:21.679 imagine, right? So prostitution was very prevalent. 00:10:22.419 --> 00:10:26.820 Pagan worship was very prevalent. There was stealing 00:10:26.820 --> 00:10:28.840 and just burglary, just a lot of things. And 00:10:28.840 --> 00:10:35.179 so Jesus is there specifically to get rest. And 00:10:35.179 --> 00:10:39.039 so he thinks he's gonna hide. I say he thinks, 00:10:39.340 --> 00:10:43.000 he knows all things, but his reputation is already 00:10:43.000 --> 00:10:47.840 spread to tire inside it. And this Sarah Phoenician 00:10:47.840 --> 00:10:51.600 woman hears that Jesus is nearby and she comes 00:10:51.600 --> 00:10:54.639 looking for him. Now, I want you to imagine this 00:10:54.639 --> 00:11:01.419 situation. Jesus is surrounded by other Jews 00:11:01.419 --> 00:11:04.500 who are there. the disciples specifically, and 00:11:04.500 --> 00:11:08.840 Jesus is a rabbi. He is known as a rabbi. And 00:11:08.840 --> 00:11:15.639 did women have a lot of rights? No, they did 00:11:15.639 --> 00:11:20.080 not. So she's a woman. She comes into a very 00:11:20.080 --> 00:11:24.820 male dominant house. And she's approaching someone 00:11:24.820 --> 00:11:27.000 of another religion, specifically a teacher. 00:11:28.059 --> 00:11:31.600 And she is not of the same religion, right? So 00:11:31.600 --> 00:11:34.279 that's that's smart. strike two, and then the 00:11:34.279 --> 00:11:36.519 other thing is it tells us that she was pagan, 00:11:36.519 --> 00:11:39.519 meaning she worshiped false deities. So there's 00:11:39.519 --> 00:11:48.120 strike three, and she's desperate. And so, any 00:11:48.120 --> 00:11:53.080 one of us would be a little intimidated to walk 00:11:53.080 --> 00:11:56.740 into that situation, yes? It's awkward already 00:11:56.740 --> 00:11:59.039 to just, I don't know, or maybe I'm just the 00:11:59.039 --> 00:12:00.720 only one that gets awkward, but whenever I walk 00:12:00.720 --> 00:12:04.820 into somewhere, I remember, When I was delivering 00:12:04.820 --> 00:12:10.299 for FedEx over the holidays, I had to deliver 00:12:10.299 --> 00:12:12.539 to this warehouse and I had no idea what door 00:12:12.539 --> 00:12:15.480 to walk through because there was four. So I'm 00:12:15.480 --> 00:12:18.080 like, well, I'm just going to choose the middle 00:12:18.080 --> 00:12:21.299 one. So I got this big box and I just walk in 00:12:21.299 --> 00:12:25.340 and when I walk in all these like, you know, 00:12:25.559 --> 00:12:28.100 older mechanic guys who work on tractors and 00:12:28.100 --> 00:12:31.039 stuff. And it was like a record scratching moment. 00:12:31.309 --> 00:12:33.970 where they all turn and they look at me and they're 00:12:33.970 --> 00:12:41.370 like, yeah. And I'm like, I'm looking for Susan. 00:12:42.330 --> 00:12:45.830 And they're like, just leave it there. We'll 00:12:45.830 --> 00:12:47.750 figure out where it goes. And I'm like, yeah, 00:12:47.750 --> 00:12:48.870 okay. And then you just kind of leave because 00:12:48.870 --> 00:12:52.210 you feel awkward, right? And so here's this woman 00:12:52.210 --> 00:12:54.730 who I'm sure feels somewhat awkward, but why 00:12:54.730 --> 00:12:58.909 does she go in? Why does she face that moment, 00:12:58.950 --> 00:13:06.159 that tension? Desperation for who? Our daughter. 00:13:08.519 --> 00:13:15.539 Moms, dads, grandma, grandpa, we will risk embarrassment. 00:13:15.799 --> 00:13:18.919 We will risk whatever we need to risk, including 00:13:18.919 --> 00:13:21.539 our own lives, if it means stepping in and saving 00:13:21.539 --> 00:13:25.360 a child or a grandchild, yes? When it comes to 00:13:25.360 --> 00:13:28.899 our kids or our grandkids, everything else goes 00:13:28.899 --> 00:13:32.259 to the wayside. There's a movie called John Q 00:13:32.259 --> 00:13:38.360 with Denzel Washington where he's a dad whose 00:13:38.360 --> 00:13:41.980 son desperately needs a heart transplant and 00:13:41.980 --> 00:13:44.419 the insurance company will not cover the cost 00:13:44.419 --> 00:13:48.879 of it. And so they will not put him on the transplant 00:13:48.879 --> 00:13:53.320 list. So what John Q does, he does with any normal, 00:13:53.639 --> 00:13:56.899 rational father would do. And he decides to show 00:13:56.899 --> 00:13:59.039 up to the emergency room and take them all hostage. 00:14:00.750 --> 00:14:05.110 Would I do that maybe I don't know I've never 00:14:05.110 --> 00:14:11.090 been in that situation But we can go that's pretty 00:14:11.090 --> 00:14:12.990 radical and crazy to do something like that, 00:14:12.990 --> 00:14:15.710 but at the same time We're willing to we just 00:14:15.710 --> 00:14:18.870 said we'd be willing to do whatever it takes 00:14:18.870 --> 00:14:25.789 To rescue our kid right and so that's this woman 00:14:25.789 --> 00:14:31.240 That's this mother She comes and she begs to 00:14:31.240 --> 00:14:34.059 help her daughter. And then we arrive at the 00:14:34.059 --> 00:14:35.720 most difficult part of the story where Jesus 00:14:35.720 --> 00:14:38.799 says, let the children be fed first, for it isn't 00:14:38.799 --> 00:14:41.740 right to take the children's bread and throw 00:14:41.740 --> 00:14:46.820 it to the dogs. Now be honest. You hear that. 00:14:48.220 --> 00:14:50.399 What immediately comes to your mind? Does it 00:14:50.399 --> 00:15:00.340 feel harsh? It is harsh. Now and you got to think 00:15:00.340 --> 00:15:01.799 about this too. Here's here's something else 00:15:01.799 --> 00:15:05.340 in our culture like literally our dog is Literally 00:15:05.340 --> 00:15:07.539 in our car right now because we can't leave her 00:15:07.539 --> 00:15:09.860 for seven hours and she freaks out around anybody 00:15:09.860 --> 00:15:13.620 So we she has to come ride along with us on Sundays 00:15:13.620 --> 00:15:16.379 Sundays are hard for her Monday. She takes a 00:15:16.379 --> 00:15:20.399 long break. I mean she sleeps a lot So in our 00:15:20.399 --> 00:15:24.340 culture we tend to be very dog pet friendly, 00:15:24.340 --> 00:15:29.740 right? Then they weren't Dogs were considered 00:15:29.740 --> 00:15:33.679 disgusting and unclean, and dogs would, they 00:15:33.679 --> 00:15:35.779 were just scavengers, right? So they were unwanted. 00:15:37.120 --> 00:15:41.940 So why does Jesus call her a dog? Does knowing 00:15:41.940 --> 00:15:49.399 that about the dogs, does that make this statement 00:15:49.399 --> 00:15:51.480 seem any easier to digest? No, it just makes 00:15:51.480 --> 00:15:56.059 it harder, right? But if we keep reading, and 00:15:56.059 --> 00:16:00.019 if you actually know, Jesus actually uses the 00:16:00.019 --> 00:16:05.700 diminutive form of dog when he says this. So 00:16:05.700 --> 00:16:09.299 the actual translation would be more like puppy. 00:16:10.360 --> 00:16:11.840 Calls her a puppy. Now, does that make it any 00:16:11.840 --> 00:16:14.539 easier? Does it make it more palatable? Jesus 00:16:14.539 --> 00:16:18.980 calling her a puppy? Nah, not really. It's like, 00:16:18.980 --> 00:16:25.899 oh, that's, I guess kind of sweeter. No, it doesn't. 00:16:25.960 --> 00:16:28.399 do anything for us. So then there has to be something 00:16:28.399 --> 00:16:31.620 more. What is Jesus saying? What is Jesus doing? 00:16:31.740 --> 00:16:34.460 And so here is the key part you need to write 00:16:34.460 --> 00:16:36.659 down. You need to write this part down. Jesus 00:16:36.659 --> 00:16:39.679 is speaking to her in a parable. That's important. 00:16:40.100 --> 00:16:44.740 No, sorry, Eli, I don't have... You can go ahead 00:16:44.740 --> 00:16:46.659 and write that down, guys. I'm getting there. 00:16:47.100 --> 00:16:50.039 Jesus is not insulting her. He's explaining God's 00:16:50.039 --> 00:16:51.759 redemptive order. And here's what I mean by that. 00:16:55.500 --> 00:17:03.340 the Jews called Gentiles dogs, right? That was 00:17:03.340 --> 00:17:06.759 their literal prejudice. And so they would call 00:17:06.759 --> 00:17:08.960 them dogs. They would treat them as such too. 00:17:09.759 --> 00:17:12.079 So what is Jesus doing? Well, if he's speaking 00:17:12.079 --> 00:17:14.299 in a parable, okay, he's speaking in a parable. 00:17:14.339 --> 00:17:16.480 So what am I saying here? What is he saying? 00:17:16.960 --> 00:17:21.640 Okay, well, Jesus is telling her, I have come 00:17:21.640 --> 00:17:32.880 to my kids. I've come for Israel first and then 00:17:32.880 --> 00:17:35.960 I will come to the others. And you can be like, 00:17:36.500 --> 00:17:41.519 okay, all right. So it's like, okay, so he's 00:17:41.519 --> 00:17:44.180 telling her because she's a mother, she understands 00:17:44.180 --> 00:17:47.119 the order of things. So he speaks to her in this 00:17:47.119 --> 00:17:49.559 order in a parable that says, hey, you know, 00:17:49.619 --> 00:17:53.200 as much as I do, that there is an order when 00:17:53.200 --> 00:17:55.710 people eat. and the children must eat first, 00:17:56.029 --> 00:17:58.910 then the dogs will eat whatever is left over. 00:18:00.069 --> 00:18:05.950 That's what Jesus is saying. So, how does the 00:18:05.950 --> 00:18:12.309 woman respond? What does she say? Yes, Lord, 00:18:13.690 --> 00:18:17.029 yet even the dogs under the table eat the children's 00:18:17.029 --> 00:18:21.390 crumbs. So suddenly we realize they're having 00:18:21.390 --> 00:18:27.130 a conversation in the same metaphor. So Jesus 00:18:27.130 --> 00:18:29.430 says, you know how a household works, right? 00:18:29.470 --> 00:18:31.130 The children eat first, like I said, then afterward 00:18:31.130 --> 00:18:33.569 the pets are fed. There is an order to things. 00:18:33.690 --> 00:18:36.710 And Matthew's account tells us further about 00:18:36.710 --> 00:18:39.750 that. When Jesus says, I was sent only to the 00:18:39.750 --> 00:18:41.750 lost sheep of the house of Israel. That's how 00:18:41.750 --> 00:18:44.789 I know that. It's not Pastor Logan reading into 00:18:44.789 --> 00:18:47.089 the text. I just got to bring it all in context 00:18:47.089 --> 00:18:50.809 from the other gospels. And so Jesus's earthly 00:18:50.809 --> 00:18:53.910 ministry was primarily focused on Israel. He 00:18:53.910 --> 00:18:56.809 came to fulfill the promises God had made through 00:18:56.809 --> 00:18:59.210 the law, through the prophets, through the kings 00:18:59.210 --> 00:19:03.069 and the temple. But the story doesn't end there, 00:19:03.089 --> 00:19:07.390 right? After his resurrection, he sends his disciples 00:19:07.390 --> 00:19:12.490 to who? All nations. And so that's where you 00:19:12.490 --> 00:19:15.630 can write this down. Jesus is not insulting her. 00:19:15.950 --> 00:19:19.670 He's explaining the redemptive order. Israel 00:19:19.670 --> 00:19:26.369 first, then the other nations. But I love how 00:19:26.369 --> 00:19:33.089 the woman responds. She says, yes Lord, right? 00:19:33.269 --> 00:19:37.990 I understand that. But even the puppies eat while 00:19:37.990 --> 00:19:41.170 the children are eating. They get the crumbs 00:19:41.170 --> 00:19:45.539 that fall from the table. Mercy, our dog, she 00:19:45.539 --> 00:19:48.019 knows exactly where to be under the table when 00:19:48.019 --> 00:19:53.759 we're eating. Me and Micah. We're the two messiest 00:19:53.759 --> 00:19:58.500 eaters. And so the dogs know where to be and 00:19:58.500 --> 00:20:03.480 so this is what her response is this. Yeah, but 00:20:03.480 --> 00:20:08.640 I need mine now. I understand it. But I need 00:20:08.640 --> 00:20:15.460 mine now. In other words, I know I don't belong 00:20:15.460 --> 00:20:18.940 to Israel. I know I have no claim on the covenant. 00:20:19.359 --> 00:20:22.880 I know I don't deserve a seat at this table, 00:20:22.880 --> 00:20:26.240 but I also know there is more than enough grace 00:20:26.240 --> 00:20:30.880 at the table for me. I've heard who you are. 00:20:33.039 --> 00:20:40.740 What an absolute monster of a response. She doesn't 00:20:40.740 --> 00:20:47.329 get offended. She doesn't demand rights She doesn't 00:20:47.329 --> 00:20:51.269 argue about worthiness She doesn't say anything. 00:20:51.269 --> 00:20:56.690 She doesn't even say I deserve this Instead she 00:20:56.690 --> 00:20:59.930 says give me what I don't deserve because of 00:20:59.930 --> 00:21:05.829 your goodness Church that is what faith looks 00:21:05.829 --> 00:21:12.089 like its humility and its boldness She approaches 00:21:12.089 --> 00:21:15.339 Jesus with empty hands and complete confidence 00:21:15.339 --> 00:21:22.059 that it's because of him that he would act. How 00:21:22.059 --> 00:21:25.299 does Jesus respond? What is his response? Does 00:21:25.299 --> 00:21:31.599 he say, sorry, nope? We read the text, what does 00:21:31.599 --> 00:21:35.700 he say? He heals the daughter, he loves her answer. 00:21:37.900 --> 00:21:39.680 Jesus essentially says, you're exactly right. 00:21:42.059 --> 00:21:46.180 Bible scholar James Edwards notes this, this 00:21:46.180 --> 00:21:49.740 woman appears to understand Jesus's mission better 00:21:49.740 --> 00:21:54.680 than the disciples and the rest of Israel. While 00:21:54.680 --> 00:21:57.400 the disciples repeatedly struggle to grasp who 00:21:57.400 --> 00:22:01.819 Jesus is, this pagan woman hears one parable 00:22:01.819 --> 00:22:06.599 and immediately she understands. We saw, we unpacked 00:22:06.599 --> 00:22:11.079 the feeding of the 5 ,000. And if you continue, 00:22:11.200 --> 00:22:13.480 We didn't do Jesus walking on water because I 00:22:13.480 --> 00:22:16.960 didn't feel like it. It really did much for where 00:22:16.960 --> 00:22:20.180 we're going. And so I should have actually included 00:22:20.180 --> 00:22:22.299 it in my sermon with the feeding of the five 00:22:22.299 --> 00:22:24.940 thousand. But it says at the end of the feeding 00:22:24.940 --> 00:22:27.000 of the five thousand, it says they still didn't 00:22:27.000 --> 00:22:29.019 understand who Jesus was and their hearts were 00:22:29.019 --> 00:22:38.930 hardened. So here's what's very ironic. The religious, 00:22:39.170 --> 00:22:42.170 the ones who Jesus came for, continue to miss 00:22:42.170 --> 00:22:49.589 the point. And yet this outsider gets it. Jesus 00:22:49.589 --> 00:22:51.789 speaks in parables all the time and no one understands 00:22:51.789 --> 00:22:54.250 and the disciples keep going, can you explain 00:22:54.250 --> 00:22:57.930 that one to us? Jesus speaks in a parable and 00:22:57.930 --> 00:23:03.950 this woman answers in it. Scholars believe that 00:23:03.950 --> 00:23:06.690 more than likely this woman becomes converted. 00:23:07.400 --> 00:23:10.339 and she would be the first person to respond 00:23:10.339 --> 00:23:18.359 to the gospel. Pretty incredible. So I want you 00:23:18.359 --> 00:23:20.019 to write this down. She becomes the first person 00:23:20.019 --> 00:23:22.859 in Mark's gospel to hear Jesus' parable, understand 00:23:22.859 --> 00:23:25.720 it, and respond appropriately. Why? Write this 00:23:25.720 --> 00:23:27.599 down. Because she understands something that 00:23:27.599 --> 00:23:30.819 disciples are still learning. There is enough 00:23:30.819 --> 00:23:34.279 grace at Christ's table for everyone who comes 00:23:34.279 --> 00:23:37.750 to him in faith. And that faith begins when we 00:23:37.750 --> 00:23:41.329 stop appealing to our goodness and start appealing 00:23:41.329 --> 00:23:43.990 to His. I'll give you a moment to write that 00:23:43.990 --> 00:24:02.130 down. I know that's a lot. If you're taking notes, 00:24:02.569 --> 00:24:04.839 we're gonna go to point number two. As we unpack 00:24:04.839 --> 00:24:09.740 the story of the deaf and mute man. So boundless 00:24:09.740 --> 00:24:16.140 compassion touches the outsider. Boundless compassion 00:24:16.140 --> 00:24:21.420 touches the outsider. If you are still writing, 00:24:21.460 --> 00:24:23.640 that's okay. I'm going to go ahead and begin 00:24:23.640 --> 00:24:30.440 to read this passage. Then he returned from the 00:24:30.440 --> 00:24:33.680 region of Tyre and went through Sidon. to the 00:24:33.680 --> 00:24:36.740 Sea of Galilee, in the region of the Decapolis. 00:24:37.720 --> 00:24:41.359 And they brought to him a man who was deaf and 00:24:41.359 --> 00:24:43.940 had a speech impediment, and they begged him 00:24:43.940 --> 00:24:49.079 to lay his hands on him. And taking him aside 00:24:49.079 --> 00:24:51.339 from the crowd privately, he put his fingers 00:24:51.339 --> 00:24:54.720 into his ears, and after spitting, touched his 00:24:54.720 --> 00:24:58.380 tongue. And looking up to heaven, he sighed and 00:24:58.380 --> 00:25:05.740 said to him, which means be opened. And his ears 00:25:05.740 --> 00:25:08.140 were opened and his tongue was released and he 00:25:08.140 --> 00:25:11.619 spoke plainly. And Jesus charged them to tell 00:25:11.619 --> 00:25:14.359 no one. But the more he charged them, the more 00:25:14.359 --> 00:25:17.740 zealously they proclaimed it. And they were astonished 00:25:17.740 --> 00:25:20.559 beyond measure saying, he has done all things 00:25:20.559 --> 00:25:23.960 well. He even makes the deaf hear and the mute 00:25:23.960 --> 00:25:30.940 speak. Hopefully. In our verse of the week, you 00:25:30.940 --> 00:25:36.240 are paying attention. So in the previous story 00:25:36.240 --> 00:25:38.500 that we just unpacked, right, the Sarah Phoenician 00:25:38.500 --> 00:25:43.059 woman, we see a mother who comes boldly to Jesus. 00:25:43.839 --> 00:25:46.799 She fights through every barrier imaginable because 00:25:46.799 --> 00:25:49.859 she believed there was grace enough for her and 00:25:49.859 --> 00:25:54.880 her daughter. Some of us have testimonies like 00:25:54.880 --> 00:25:59.750 that. Here's what I mean. Some of you guys, in 00:25:59.750 --> 00:26:05.509 this room, came to Jesus after essentially coming 00:26:05.509 --> 00:26:10.769 to the end of yourself. You got so far down the 00:26:10.769 --> 00:26:16.049 road, you hit a brick wall, saw that nothing 00:26:16.049 --> 00:26:19.829 can bring you joy or happiness, and you were 00:26:19.829 --> 00:26:23.630 just miserable, can't save yourself, and so you 00:26:23.630 --> 00:26:27.839 were like, hey, I was brought up in the church. 00:26:27.859 --> 00:26:32.099 I should probably go give that thing a try. Or 00:26:32.099 --> 00:26:35.900 someone invites you to church and you come to 00:26:35.900 --> 00:26:40.539 Christ. Don't hear what I'm not saying. I'm not 00:26:40.539 --> 00:26:42.460 saying that Jesus wasn't running after you. He's 00:26:42.460 --> 00:26:45.039 always been running after you. He's the one who 00:26:45.039 --> 00:26:51.660 initiates. You respond. But some of us are like 00:26:51.660 --> 00:26:56.259 the Syrophoenician woman. And then there's others 00:26:56.259 --> 00:27:03.500 of us, I would be in this category, where Jesus 00:27:03.500 --> 00:27:09.680 finds you or found you in a very unexpected time, 00:27:10.180 --> 00:27:16.000 in a very unexpected place, and you just respond. 00:27:16.579 --> 00:27:21.039 Whether a friend invites you to church or you're 00:27:21.039 --> 00:27:23.180 standing in line at the grocery store or whatever. 00:27:24.719 --> 00:27:27.259 but a conversation may catch your attention, 00:27:27.480 --> 00:27:30.720 a coworker shares their testimony. But in that 00:27:30.720 --> 00:27:33.180 moment, you have stumbled into a moment where 00:27:33.180 --> 00:27:36.819 Christ met you unexpectedly. And that's what 00:27:36.819 --> 00:27:38.359 happens here. That's what happened to me when 00:27:38.359 --> 00:27:40.440 I was six years old. I went to spend the night 00:27:40.440 --> 00:27:46.160 at a friend's house and it was on a Saturday 00:27:46.160 --> 00:27:48.359 night, Sunday morning, my parents said I could 00:27:48.359 --> 00:27:49.980 go to church with them. They had a church that 00:27:49.980 --> 00:27:55.420 met at an old Taco Bell. And here is six -year 00:27:55.420 --> 00:27:58.279 -old Logan Merrick. Though I've been brought 00:27:58.279 --> 00:28:01.460 to church with my family every Sunday since I'd 00:28:01.460 --> 00:28:06.279 been alive, unexpectedly, my ears are open to 00:28:06.279 --> 00:28:08.420 the gospel when the children's minister shares 00:28:08.420 --> 00:28:14.299 what Jesus has done for me. It just started with 00:28:14.299 --> 00:28:16.559 a friend's invitation to come over to his house 00:28:16.559 --> 00:28:21.599 and go to church the next morning. And so we 00:28:21.599 --> 00:28:24.730 see this deaf and mute man doesn't come to Jesus 00:28:24.730 --> 00:28:28.690 himself, his friends bring him, right? So let's, 00:28:28.690 --> 00:28:34.130 let's read. Oh, I already read. What am I doing? 00:28:35.670 --> 00:28:38.430 I was thinking that I had not, I had to pick 00:28:38.430 --> 00:28:40.750 Noah up at one in the morning. He worked the 00:28:40.750 --> 00:28:42.750 Savannah bananas game and I swear my brain has 00:28:42.750 --> 00:28:47.349 not turned on yet. And so we see that his friends 00:28:47.349 --> 00:28:48.990 bring him. And so this is a beautiful reminder 00:28:48.990 --> 00:28:51.529 that sometimes God uses ordinary people to carry 00:28:51.529 --> 00:28:53.990 others to Christ. when they cannot get there 00:28:53.990 --> 00:28:57.829 themselves. But Jesus does something really unusual. 00:28:57.910 --> 00:28:59.569 What do you think I mean by that? What does he 00:28:59.569 --> 00:29:09.589 do that's unusual? He puts his fingers in his 00:29:09.589 --> 00:29:14.829 ears. What else? He spits and then puts his spit 00:29:14.829 --> 00:29:19.660 on the man's tongue. If Pastor Logan did that 00:29:19.660 --> 00:29:21.960 to one of you guys when you're like, I got an 00:29:21.960 --> 00:29:24.240 earache, Pastor Logan, will you pray for it? 00:29:24.240 --> 00:29:28.720 And I'm like, yeah, hold on. You're like, we're 00:29:28.720 --> 00:29:35.059 not going back to that church. So it feels really 00:29:35.059 --> 00:29:39.079 unusual because Jesus doesn't really do that 00:29:39.079 --> 00:29:43.940 a whole lot. We know of one other miracle, right? 00:29:43.920 --> 00:29:47.019 where Jesus spits in the mud and he puts it on 00:29:47.019 --> 00:29:53.119 the man's eyes, right, to heal him? So before 00:29:53.119 --> 00:29:55.619 I keep going any further, notice that it also 00:29:55.619 --> 00:29:58.140 says that he takes the man away from the crowd. 00:29:59.099 --> 00:30:03.819 So he wants to minister to him privately. And 00:30:03.819 --> 00:30:05.660 like we said, he sticks his fingers in the man's 00:30:05.660 --> 00:30:08.619 ears and he touches the man's tongue with his 00:30:08.619 --> 00:30:11.240 saliva. And then he turns toward heaven and he 00:30:11.240 --> 00:30:14.799 sighs deeply before saying apathe. be opened. 00:30:16.880 --> 00:30:19.400 So the question is, is why does Jesus do that? 00:30:20.579 --> 00:30:24.180 Did he do that to heal? Did he do some sort of 00:30:24.180 --> 00:30:29.059 ritual to heal the little girl, the Syrophoenician 00:30:29.059 --> 00:30:36.920 girl? Nope. When he healed Jairus's daughter, 00:30:36.940 --> 00:30:39.500 we unpacked that, right? Did he do anything crazy 00:30:39.500 --> 00:30:44.549 there? Nope. We haven't seen him do, even when 00:30:44.549 --> 00:30:47.509 he fed the 5 ,000, it says he looks up and he 00:30:47.509 --> 00:30:52.390 breaks the bread and gives thanks. And so miracles 00:30:52.390 --> 00:30:55.490 don't require rituals. So what is Jesus doing? 00:30:56.250 --> 00:30:58.509 Like what is he doing this for? Is he just trying 00:30:58.509 --> 00:31:04.509 to gross us out? There's never a special formula. 00:31:04.569 --> 00:31:07.390 There's not a ritual. It's just the power of 00:31:07.390 --> 00:31:11.309 Christ on display that we've seen before. So 00:31:11.309 --> 00:31:13.400 Jesus is doing something, and here's what I want 00:31:13.400 --> 00:31:19.259 you to write down. This miracle isn't about displaying 00:31:19.259 --> 00:31:25.039 power. It's about displaying compassion. Jesus 00:31:25.039 --> 00:31:28.380 is ministering to this man in a way he can understand. 00:31:30.140 --> 00:31:36.279 What do you mean, Pastor Logan? Well, and Pastor 00:31:36.279 --> 00:31:39.299 Logan is not smart enough to get this. It took 00:31:39.299 --> 00:31:41.299 commentaries to point this out to me, because 00:31:41.299 --> 00:31:47.390 I'm like, And this is weird. But when I read 00:31:47.390 --> 00:31:53.849 it, I was like, oh man, the man can't hear, right? 00:31:54.470 --> 00:31:56.650 How do we communicate with people that can't 00:31:56.650 --> 00:32:03.650 hear? Sign language. So this man cannot communicate 00:32:03.650 --> 00:32:09.279 clearly. So Jesus enters into his world. What 00:32:09.279 --> 00:32:12.019 we might call sign language today, Jesus uses 00:32:12.019 --> 00:32:15.220 through physical actions. He's doing it for the 00:32:15.220 --> 00:32:18.359 man, not for anybody else, not because he needed 00:32:18.359 --> 00:32:22.799 to. He's doing it for the man. He's touching 00:32:22.799 --> 00:32:27.420 his tongue. He's touching his ears. And so by 00:32:27.420 --> 00:32:30.000 touching his ears, Jesus is communicating, this 00:32:30.000 --> 00:32:32.539 is what I'm going to heal. Then he touches his 00:32:32.539 --> 00:32:38.180 tongue. This is what I'm going to restore. By 00:32:38.180 --> 00:32:41.339 looking towards heaven, he's communicating the 00:32:41.339 --> 00:32:46.700 help you need comes from God alone. And so Jesus 00:32:46.700 --> 00:32:51.519 is meeting the man exactly where he is. And Jesus 00:32:51.519 --> 00:32:54.900 does this for all of us. He doesn't wait for 00:32:54.900 --> 00:32:58.599 us to climb into his world. He steps down into 00:32:58.599 --> 00:33:01.539 ours and he speaks our language. He meets us 00:33:01.539 --> 00:33:04.960 in our weakness. He comes near and notice that 00:33:04.960 --> 00:33:07.259 he makes the man, or he takes the man away from 00:33:07.259 --> 00:33:09.920 the crowd first. Why does he do that privately? 00:33:10.019 --> 00:33:12.940 Why would he take him away? What do you guys 00:33:12.940 --> 00:33:20.279 think? Wouldn't Jesus want eyewitnesses to this 00:33:20.279 --> 00:33:31.720 miracle? He doesn't need it, right? I think it's 00:33:31.720 --> 00:33:35.920 done out of compassion. This man's entire life 00:33:35.920 --> 00:33:40.359 has likely been a spectacle. People staring, 00:33:41.119 --> 00:33:44.460 people talking about him, people trying to define 00:33:44.460 --> 00:33:48.720 him by a disability. And Jesus refuses to make 00:33:48.720 --> 00:33:51.920 a public spectacle of a man. So he takes him 00:33:51.920 --> 00:33:54.720 away privately and instead treats him with dignity. 00:33:55.839 --> 00:33:59.140 He gives him personal attention. He heals him 00:33:59.140 --> 00:34:02.660 face to face. And then Mark tells us that Jesus 00:34:02.660 --> 00:34:06.220 sighs deeply, and that is important that we understand 00:34:06.220 --> 00:34:11.360 the sigh, because it reveals the heart of Jesus. 00:34:12.380 --> 00:34:15.679 Jesus isn't emotionally detached from human suffering. 00:34:16.039 --> 00:34:19.059 He isn't cold and he isn't indifferent. He feels 00:34:19.059 --> 00:34:21.920 the weight of what sin has done on the world. 00:34:22.639 --> 00:34:25.320 And some scholars suggest that in this moment, 00:34:25.889 --> 00:34:28.809 Jesus is identifying with the man's isolation 00:34:28.809 --> 00:34:32.690 and his alienation. And I personally think that's 00:34:32.690 --> 00:34:38.150 right. Jesus sees the brokenness, he heals the 00:34:38.150 --> 00:34:43.070 pain, and he is moved by it. But there's something 00:34:43.070 --> 00:34:44.909 deeper that we need to look at. Once again, Jesus 00:34:44.909 --> 00:34:48.489 comes face to face with the cost of what he has 00:34:48.489 --> 00:34:51.400 come to do. Every miracle is a reminder that 00:34:51.400 --> 00:34:54.679 the world is not as God intended it to be. Every 00:34:54.679 --> 00:34:57.539 healing points to the curse of sin and every 00:34:57.539 --> 00:35:00.559 restoration points forward to the cross. That's 00:35:00.559 --> 00:35:04.440 why we had Isaiah 35 as our verse of the week 00:35:04.440 --> 00:35:08.659 when the prophet declared, listen closely, say 00:35:08.659 --> 00:35:13.460 to those with fearful hearts, be strong, do not 00:35:13.460 --> 00:35:17.900 fear. He is your God. He will come and save you. 00:35:18.559 --> 00:35:21.400 Then the eyes of the blind will be opened, the 00:35:21.400 --> 00:35:24.900 ears of the deaf unstopped. Then the lame will 00:35:24.900 --> 00:35:27.139 leap like a deer and the tongue of the mute will 00:35:27.139 --> 00:35:31.739 sing for joy." And so Mark is trying to get us 00:35:31.739 --> 00:35:34.420 and the early church to make that connection 00:35:34.420 --> 00:35:39.139 back to that prophecy. Mark is essentially saying, 00:35:39.199 --> 00:35:42.579 do you see the deaf hearing? Do you see the mute 00:35:42.579 --> 00:35:46.119 speaking? Do you see the restoration taking place? 00:35:46.260 --> 00:35:49.079 Then understand what it means. God has come. 00:35:49.360 --> 00:35:52.039 The promises are being fulfilled and the King 00:35:52.039 --> 00:35:58.579 is here. Write this down for me. This miracle 00:35:58.579 --> 00:36:01.739 is not merely about one man's ears being opened. 00:36:03.219 --> 00:36:07.760 It's an announcement to the entire world. Just 00:36:07.760 --> 00:36:11.840 as Isaiah promised, God has come to save his 00:36:11.840 --> 00:36:16.900 people. And his salvation is reaching far beyond 00:36:16.900 --> 00:36:21.079 Israel. It's reaching outsiders. It's reaching 00:36:21.079 --> 00:36:24.300 Gentiles. It's reaching people who never imagined 00:36:24.300 --> 00:36:27.239 they could have a place at the table. And if 00:36:27.239 --> 00:36:30.079 it can reach them, brothers and sisters, it reaches 00:36:30.079 --> 00:36:41.480 us too. So in closing, I want to say this. We 00:36:41.480 --> 00:36:44.000 discovered that we are actually both of these 00:36:44.000 --> 00:36:46.820 people, the Seraphination woman. and the deaf 00:36:46.820 --> 00:36:49.260 and mute man. We are the woman who had no claim 00:36:49.260 --> 00:36:52.539 upon God's promises as Gentiles. We are the deaf 00:36:52.539 --> 00:36:56.179 man who could not help himself. We are outsiders. 00:36:57.519 --> 00:37:00.139 I almost wanted to sing the song, The Outsiders, 00:37:00.320 --> 00:37:03.780 but I need to breathe, but I'll spare you all. 00:37:06.420 --> 00:37:10.119 We are outsiders and yet Jesus welcomes us. Why? 00:37:12.019 --> 00:37:15.519 Because he identifies with us. The Son of God 00:37:15.519 --> 00:37:17.920 stepped into our world, He took our place and 00:37:17.920 --> 00:37:21.699 He bore our shame and He carried our sin. In 00:37:21.699 --> 00:37:25.780 a very real sense, the Son became what we were 00:37:25.780 --> 00:37:29.280 so that He would become what He is, so that we 00:37:29.280 --> 00:37:31.320 could become what He is. The one who deserved 00:37:31.320 --> 00:37:34.360 the seat at the table was cast out so that those 00:37:34.360 --> 00:37:36.820 who deserved to be cast out could be welcomed 00:37:36.820 --> 00:37:41.420 to it. The one who is the eternal Word, went 00:37:41.420 --> 00:37:43.940 silently to the cross so that our tongues could 00:37:43.940 --> 00:37:49.719 be loose to confess it to others. This is the 00:37:49.719 --> 00:37:54.179 gospel, brothers and sisters. Not that we fought 00:37:54.179 --> 00:37:59.519 our way to God, but that He fought for us. Not 00:37:59.519 --> 00:38:02.820 that we earned a seat at the table. Not that 00:38:02.820 --> 00:38:07.460 we have finally become worthy enough. But it's 00:38:07.460 --> 00:38:12.269 that He declared us worthy. He came for sinners. 00:38:12.789 --> 00:38:15.050 He came for people who had nothing to offer but 00:38:15.050 --> 00:38:17.630 empty hands and desperate hearts. And so let 00:38:17.630 --> 00:38:22.010 me leave you with three encouragements. If you 00:38:22.010 --> 00:38:25.190 feel isolated, don't believe the lie that you 00:38:25.190 --> 00:38:31.289 are beyond His healing. If you feel proud, don't 00:38:31.289 --> 00:38:34.590 reject what the gospel says about your unworthiness. 00:38:36.170 --> 00:38:39.519 If you feel hopeless, Don't reject what the gospel 00:38:39.519 --> 00:38:43.679 says about how deeply loved you are. The woman 00:38:43.679 --> 00:38:47.099 came asking for crumbs. Jesus gave her a lot 00:38:47.099 --> 00:38:51.679 more than that. Jesus gave her a daughter restored. 00:38:53.019 --> 00:38:55.599 The deaf man came needing ears open and Jesus 00:38:55.599 --> 00:39:00.480 gave him a voice. And the same Savior still welcomes 00:39:00.480 --> 00:39:02.699 all who come to Him today because at the table 00:39:02.699 --> 00:39:05.579 of grace, outsiders become family. At the table 00:39:05.579 --> 00:39:08.239 of grace, dogs become daughters. At the table 00:39:08.239 --> 00:39:11.300 of grace, sinners become sons. And there is still 00:39:11.300 --> 00:39:15.699 room at the table for all who will come. Let's 00:39:15.699 --> 00:39:15.920 pray.