Matthew 15:21-28

How often have you reasoned within yourself saying, "If only I didn't have this one heavy burden in my life, then I would be truly happy?" Like the Psalmist, your heart's cry is, "Oh that I had wings like a dove! For then would I fly away and be at rest!" (Psalm 55:6). Perhaps you are now facing what seems to be the greatest crisis of your life, and you are wondering how you will find deliverance. You long for that peace of God you once knew in former days.

If you, as a Christian, are worried about whether you will find relief in your present distress, let not your heart be troubled. For the Lord Jesus Christ has shown mercy to multitudes of others and He has reserved mercy for you as well. He is more desirous to help His people, than they are to ask good things of Him. The Heidelberg Catechism Q46 asks, "Why did Christ command us to address God thus: ‘Our Father'"? The answer is, "To awaken in us at the very beginning of our prayer that childlike reverence for and trust in God, which are to be the ground of our prayer, namely, that God has become our Father through Christ, and will much less deny us what we ask of Him in faith than our parents refuse us earthly things."

Our Lord's encouraging promise that He will answer prayer in Matthew 7:7-8 says, "Ask and it shall be given you; seek and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened." In other words, your heavy burden can be lifted by God's grace in persistently asking, persistently seeking, and persistently knocking with a believing and pure heart. We know that our pleading to God does not merit our deliverance, but the Lord works through the means of importunity (persistence). The Lord would have us to be as Jacob when he wrestled with the Angel of the LORD in prayer. The Angel of the LORD said to Jacob, "Let me go for the day breaketh," Jacob responded by saying, "I will not let thee go, except thou bless me" (Gen. 32:26). Beloved of God, you too must persistently knock at mercy's door as you "cast all your care upon Jesus Christ for He careth for you" (1 Pet. 5:7).

To encourage you to cast your heaviness of heart upon the Lord, please note the great mercy of our Lord, which He declared of Himself saying, "I am sent to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound" (Isaiah 61:1).

In our Scripture text, Matthew 15:21-28, our Lord illustrates His tender mercies to miserable sinners, when He is confronted by a Gentile woman who cried out to Him for mercy. The misery of this poor woman was very great. By her persistent knocking at mercy's door, the woman's pleas were graciously answered by the Lord Jesus Christ.

It was while our Lord was in the coasts of Tyre and Sidon that He met the Canaanite woman. The Jews were taught to keep themselves separate from the Gentile Canaanites, lest they become spiritually polluted. The cities of Tyre and Sidon were Gentile cities on the Mediterranean coast in the land of Phoenicia. It was in these Gentile cities that our Lord had the occasion to minister to a poor, miserable Gentile woman.

It is not explicitly stated why "Jesus went thence, and departed into the coasts of Tyre and Sidon" (15:21). It may be that Christ came in amongst the Canaanites to get free of the Pharisees, who were a menace to His ministry in Galilee. While in Galilee of Israel, the Pharisees came from Jerusalem to Galilee and were interfering with the ministry of His disciples. The Pharisees faulted the disciples of Christ for not washing their hands after the ceremonial washings of the Jews. Though the Pharisees would travel to Galilee of the Jews, they would not follow Christ amongst the Canaanites, because the Canaanites were spiritually defiled. We learn in Mark 7:24, that Jesus in coming into Canaan, "arose and went into an house, and would have no man know it; but He could not be hid." Jesus did not want His coming into Canaan to be public knowledge.

While in Canaan a Gentile woman, when hearing about Jesus coming into the area where she lived, sought the Lord. Matthew 15:22 says, "And, behold, a woman of Canaan came out of the same coasts, and cried unto him, saying, Have mercy on me, O Lord, thou Son of David; my daughter is grievously vexed with a devil."

The Canaanite woman's misery was two-fold. The first ground of her misery was that she was a Gentile. A woman of Canaan by birth, and in the eyes of a Jew, she was no better than a dog. She was of the stock of people that were cursed above all peoples. It is said of her nation in Genesis 9:25, "Cursed be Canaan, a servant of servants shall he be unto his brethren." She was "an alien from the commonwealth of Israel and a stranger from the covenants of promises having no hope, and without God in the world" (Eph. 2:12).

The second ground of the Canaanite woman's misery was that her daughter was possessed of a devil. Day after day she had to live with the misery of seeing her daughter in great torment. She said in verse 22, "O Lord, thou Son of David; my daughter is grievously vexed with a devil" (lit., "she is badly demonized").

Her great misery drew her to Christ for mercy from God. Her cry was very intense, she literally cried with loud shouting. It is apparent her cry was from a heart of trust in the divinity of Christ for she called Him "Lord." She believed Christ to be the true promised Son of David for she called him the "Son of David."

Although her calling upon Christ was for her daughter, it was a personal cry as though it was for herself. "Have mercy on me," was her plea to Christ. Added to all her misery concerning her daughter's condition were some disappointing considerations as she made her intercession for her daughter. Our Lord in verse 23, "answered her not a word, and His disciples came and besought Him, saying, ‘Send her away; for she crieth after us.' "

The woman of Canaan handled her great discouragements in coming to Christ with an unwavering persistence. She knocked at mercy's door until she was unburdened of her grievous misery. How often are you under the heavy load of discouragement, and are kept from persisting in prayer as you should? We must never cease praying because of discouragement. Rather, that is the time when we need to be persistent in prayer. Doesn't Scripture warn us that we have not the things we desire of God because we ask not? We must take our colossal needs to Christ, as Jacob did, and say, "I will not let Thee go, except thou bless me" (Gen. 32:26).

Although the woman cried to Jesus in verse 23, "He answered her not a word." He gave no immediate verbal response to her urgent request. It is very humbling to call to someone, and they do not answer. Christian, have you prayed and your prayers seemed not to reach the throne of grace? Don't stop praying when discouraged, because others have felt the same way. Job 23:8-9 says, "Behold, I go forward, but he is not there; and backward, but I cannot perceive him: On the left hand, where he doth work, but I cannot behold him: he hideth himself on the right hand, that I cannot see him." David in Psalm 28:1 says, "Unto thee will I cry, O Lord my rock; be not silent to me: lest, if thou be silent to me, I become like them that go down into the pit." You must remember that God may not always answer prayer when you first pray.

The Canaanite woman did not turn back from pleading for mercy because she was a Gentile. She did not give up when the disciples said, "Send her away; for she crieth after us." On the contrary, she cried out all the more unto the Lord. She cried out repeatedly, so that the disciples wanted her to go away and stop making a spectacle of herself before the Lord. She prayed to Christ without ceasing! She would not leave off crying until the Lord answered her urgent request.

Although our Lord told the woman very plainly in verse 24, "I am not sent, but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel," yet she hoped in the mercy of the Lord. She would not cease crying for mercy from God until she received it. Clearly, the ministry of Jesus Christ was to the lost house of Israel. Romans 15:8 says, "Jesus Christ was a minister of the circumcision for the truth of God to confirm the promises made unto the fathers." So then, she could not lay any hope of her request based upon being of the Jewish nation. She must rest completely upon the infinite mercy of God. No doubt her hope rested upon the contemplation, "Lord, Thou art merciful, be merciful to me." So, she meekly cried out to Jesus, "Lord help me!" (v. 25).

After making her pitiful plea for mercy, she is humbled with these words from the Lord, "It is not meet to take the children's bread and to give it to dogs" (v. 26). In the Old Covenant the Jews were the people of God. The Jews referred to all other nations as dogs. The Jews looked at Gentiles as dogs, because they were spiritually unclean. A dog was doubly unclean to a Jew, because it neither "parted the hoof" nor "chewed the cud." The pig was more clean than a dog, because a pig parted the hoof, but a dog had both the marks of an unclean animal.

The meaning of our Lord's analogy of not giving the children's bread to dogs is to show the folly of taking a meal prepared for one's precious children and feeding it to dogs. Spiritually, the bread speaks of the gospel of Jesus Christ by which we have eternal life. Although this woman is well aware of her misery, she must also learn to be humbled for her sins. By God's grace she accepts her humiliation, and does not despair after hearing the humbling words of our Lord. This women trusted that God is gracious, and she was willing to come to Christ as a miserable dog. She said it is true that the father should not give the children's bread to dogs, "yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from the master's table" (v. 27). In other words, she believed a crumb of God's mercy was well able to unburden her of all her sins and misery and to heal her daughter.

Her faith would not allow her to take her focus off the mercy of Christ. It was faith that kept her meekly knocking at mercy's door. Her faith in the Lord made her confident in the abundance of God's mercy. Surely after the children are fed there are crumbs of mercy, as when the 5,000 people were fed by Christ and twelve baskets were left over. Oh Christian, never be downcast or wonder whether there is mercy reserved for you. Be assured there is hope of receiving mercy in your darkest hour, for our God's mercy is infinite and everlasting.

Beloved of God, the lesson that you and I must learn from this Canaanite woman is that persistence with a believing heart always prevails at the throne of God's grace. So keep asking, and it shall be given you. Keep seeking and ye shall find. Keep knocking and it shall be opened unto you.

The Canaanite woman's urgent request is granted after four denials, because of her persistent reliance upon Christ's mercy. "Jesus answered and said unto her, O woman, great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt. And her daughter was made whole from that very hour" (v. 28). The mother is commended of the Lord for her great faith. What is great faith? It is faith that continues knocking at mercy's door until what is asked of God is received from the throne of grace.

Dear reader, do you have an ear to hear what the Spirit of God is saying to you in His Word? It is this: persistence in prayer prevails with God. If God gives His children's crumbs to dogs, then what a great feast awaits you if you will believe His promises written in His Word.

Oh dear Christian, what will you do with that great burden you are bearing? You must without delay take that great burden and by faith cast it upon the Lord. Jesus Christ has promised, "Whatsoever ye shall ask in my name; that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son." If you will persistently cry to God in faith "Lord, help me," you will also have Jesus' answer, "O dear Christian great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt" (v. 28).

The verses that follow the healing of the Canaanite woman's daughter ought to encourage everyone of us to come to the Lord and knock at mercy's door, because of the many miracles that followed the healing of the Canaanite woman's daughter. Though Jesus went into Canaan for a time, Matthew 15:29-30 says that "Jesus departed from thence, and came nigh unto the sea of Galilee; and went up into a mountain, and sat down there. And great multitudes came unto him, having with them those that were lame, blind, dumb, maimed, and many others, and cast them down at Jesus' feet; and he healed them: Insomuch that the multitude wondered, when they saw the dumb to speak, the maimed to be whole, the lame to walk, and the blind to see: and they glorified the God of Israel." These all came knocking on mercy's door, and it was opened unto them. To all who by faith come meekly knocking at mercy's door, it shall be opened unto them so that God may be glorified by His mercy, grace, and power.

Rev. Jonathan Merica
Stockton, CA

Caleb and Jacob

Senior citizens in our congregations face many challenges and temptations. On the one hand, the culture pushes them to indulge in every pleasure they can before they are too old to enjoy life. On the other hand, the Devil tries to convince them that as they move into old age they have nothing left to give their church family. Caleb, the son of Jephunneh, didn't buy into that lie. Not only did he have wonderful stories to tell the younger generation of the LORD's works in his long lifetime, he was also ready to take on the Lord's enemies as an octogenarian. Joshua 14:10-12 records his speech,

"And now, behold, the Lord has kept me alive, as He said, these forty-five years, ever since the Lord spoke this word to Moses while Israel wandered in the wilderness; and now, here I am this day, eighty-five years old. As yet I am as strong this day as on the day that Moses sent me; just as my strength was then, so now is my strength for war, both for going out and for coming in. Now therefore, give me this mountain of which the Lord spoke in that day; for you heard in that day how the Anakim were there, and that the cities were great and fortified. It may be that the Lord will be with me, and I shall be able to drive them out as the Lord said." (NKJV)

But we live in a different culture than that enjoyed by Caleb. Our culture often looks at senior citizens as used up-nice to have around in our churches, but of little value beyond that. But, young people, are your spiritual grandmothers and grandfathers useless and used up? Who better to help our young married couples in their twenties with advice on how to have a long and happy marriage, than those who have been married forty or fifty years or more? Who better to counsel twenty-somethings on child-rearing than those who have successfully raised a quiver full? Who better to encourage our youth to take paths which they know by experience will bring the blessings of Christ on them?

Our covenant God uses every generation to bless His people in unique ways that only their generation can. What a powerful picture of a grandfather passing on the heritage of the Lord to his grandsons we have in Genesis 48:

"Joseph said to his father, ‘They are my sons, whom God has given me in this place.' And he said, ‘Please bring them to me, and I will bless them.'. . . And he blessed Joseph, and said: ‘God, before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked, The God who has fed me all my life long to this day, the Angel who has redeemed me from all evil, Bless the lads; Let my name be named upon them, And the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac; And let them grow into a multitude in the midst of the earth."

Passing on to a young generation the heritage of a lifetime spent walking with Christ is one of the highlights of being a seasoned saint. The Triune God deposits a great deal of wisdom into His saints who have served Him for more than half a century. In third world countries today, such elders still sit at the entrance to the village, ready, willing, and able to pass on their God-given wisdom to anyone who asks. Wouldn't it be a blessing to all to find ways of doing something similar in our congregations? Think of the family reunion at Thanksgiving time when everyone from toddlers to great grandma are gathered in one place. What a blessing it is for the twelve-year-old to hear great grandma pass on the spiritual wisdom she has acquired by the grace of Christ.

A Ugandan Funeral

At the end of February, one of my colleagues in Uganda, an OPC missionary, graciously included me as a recipient of his family news bulletin. Under the heading of The Loss of a Friend, he wrote the following about culture in remote and primitive Karamoja. "There were hundreds of people at the funeral. I was struck by the attendance and the quiet, patient love expressed by those who were there. For hours and hours, people just sat. Little was heard between occasional shouts of grief from family members and close friends. The wailing was intense at times-marked by loud screams, falling, and fainting. Some folk had to be carried out and revived. As I watched the people, especially those who sat quietly, I thought that we should learn some things from a culture that is committed to communal life and mutual support. Richard Dowden wrote that the Cartesian motto of Africa is, "I relate, therefore I am." This event, it seems to me, was a model expression of that saying. Few words were said, but the connections between the people were evident and surely felt deeply by those who were present."

Those last three sentences struck me as I prepared to write this article. Anyone who has visited East Africa has been struck by the sense of community among the people there, and their lack of individualism for the most part. When people visit our congregations, one of our hopes as pastors is that they also will tell others that the connections between the people were evident and surely felt deeply by those who were present at our weekly gatherings for worship and other occasions.

Understanding Generations Y and Z

Many of our congregations are made up of several generations. On Sunday morning you may bump into empty nesters from the WW2 generation or the Baby Boom generation. You will probably also encounter members of Generation X (Gen X) consisting of 31-46 year olds. Some of these will likely be elders and deacons. Then the Gen Y folks between 20 and 30 years of age. If your congregation is blessed with children and teens ages 6-20, you will also exchange glances and/or words with representatives of Gen Z.

For our purposes in this article, the question is posed, "What can be done so that the connections between the WW2 generation in our congregations and the youth of Gen Y and Gen Z are evident and surely felt deeply by those who are present?" How can the WW2 generation bless the 12 to 30 year-olds in our congregations?

To answer the question, I want to briefly help those who are 65 and older better understand the sub-culture our youth live in. In July of 2007, Penelope Trunk wrote an article in Time magazine entitled, "What Gen Y Really Wants." Here are a few of the sentences in her article that caught my eye:

"Friendship is such a strong motivator for them that Gen Y workers will choose a job just to be with their friend.. . . It feels normal for Gen Y employees to check in by BlackBerry all weekend as long as they have flexibility during the week. . .Generation Y's search for meaning makes support for volunteering among the benefits it values most. More than half of workers in their 20s prefer employment at companies that provide volunteer opportunities, according to a recent Deloitte survey."

These observations give the WW2 generation some valuable insights into the world of 20-30 year olds (Gen Y). I believe that these insights can help the esteemed grandmothers and grandfathers in our congregation better connect with fellow members who are out of high school, but have not yet hit their mid-thirties.

The same holds true for those students who have not yet finished high school, or are just beginning their college years. Generation Z, as they are called, also intermingle in a very different world from the one familiar to the WW2 generation. Wikipedia, the online encyclopedia, says of them:

"Generation Z is highly connected, many of this generation have had lifelong use of communications and media technologies such as the World Wide Web, instant messaging, text messaging, MP3 players, mobile phones and YouTube, earning them the nickname ‘digital natives' . . . A marked difference between Generation Y and Generation Z, is that older members of the former remember life before the takeoff of mass technology, while the latter have been born completely within it. Some can be described as impatient and instant minded, and tending to lack the ambition of previous generations. Psychologists are claiming an ‘acquired Attention Deficit Disorder' since their dependency on technology is high and attention span is much lower, as opposed to previous generations who read books and other printed material, along with watching live television . . . Generation Z are also more individualistic. While members of Generation Y are group and team oriented, members of Generation Z are more self-directed. Parents of Generation Z are working part time or are becoming stay-at-home parents so that children are raised by them and other family members instead of a day care facility, which forces children to be in groups."

Ministering to Gen Y

A few of the comments above underscore some opportunities for the WW2 generation in our congregations to bless 12 to 30 year-old church members. Those in our congregations between 20-30 place a very high value on spending time with their friends. We want to encourage the communion of saints in that age bracket, but two obstacles to fellowship come to mind. Young adults in this age bracket who are still single often are living at home or in cramped quarters. On the other hand, those 65 and older in our congregations and/or Classes, often have homes with large living rooms or family rooms. Their own children have moved out and the house is pretty empty. Some have very large backyards, conducive to barbecuing or outdoor games, maybe with a swimming pool. What a blessing it could be for the older generation to open their homes to the 20 to 30 year olds for these kinds of get-togethers from time to time.

The second obstacle to fellowship which comes to mind is the need for well-qualified babysitters/grandparent-types. Many members of our congregations between 20 and 30 would love to spend a couple hours each month with RCUS friends, if only someone could watch their kids. At the same time, many in our congregations 65-plus love to spend time around children. If an older couple could help a younger couple or two in this way, what a blessing this could be to them.

Another commendable characteristic of Gen Y is their desire to do volunteer work. Simultaneously, many of our WW2 generation members could use a little volunteer help from time to time. This article is about the older generation helping the younger generation. Yet, it seems to me that older members giving young people an opportunity to volunteer some much needed assistance is helping the youth, in terms of their spiritual growth. Those over 65 in our congregations love to see 20 to 30 year olds maturing in their faith. Here, I think, is a great way to promote what Paul exhorts Timothy and Titus to encourage, in terms of interaction between the generations.

Ministering to Gen Z

Let's turn our attention to the younger youth of our denomination, Generation Z. Our 12 to 20 year olds live in a culture where their peers expect most everything to happen instantly. Many of their acquaintances are impatient and without ambition, overly dependent on technology. What can the WW2 generation do to come alongside the parents and bless these young ones and teens? As I'm typing this, my dear wife is watching the Waltons on TV a few rooms away. That WW2 family typified a family and community which was close-knit in a small town, in which several generations would spend a lot of time interacting with one another. That is still typical in third world countries like Uganda and Kenya. It still happens in small towns throughout the South and Midwest of our country. Many of our beloved members over 65 can remember those days with fondness. Most young people, though not all, enjoy hearing stories from those old enough to be their grandparents-stories of what life was like when they were young.

Most are fascinated to hear about living in what would be considered by Gen Z to be primitive conditions. But what I am getting at here is not just storytelling for its own sake. This kind of communication from grandparent figures to spiritual grandchildren is perfect for passing on biblical values and Christian life-lessons learned. Generation Z would, I believe, profit greatly by being instructed, in this non-threatening and fun way, about developing patience and the importance of Christ-centered, godly ambition. Spiritual grandparents can help our youth learn not only how to survive, but thrive without the latest technology.

But, our 12 to 20 year old church members are still under the authority of their parents, for the most part, to a greater or lesser degree. So, this proposed model takes cooperation between parents, their teenage children, and what I am calling spiritual grandparents. In the days of WW2, in rural communities, such interaction was natural and common. But today, it must be fostered and planned. One venue for such interaction is around the campfire at summer camp. Another opportunity which could bless the youth is 20 or 30 minutes of storytelling from a senior citizen, followed by a Q and A from the Youth Group. Still another is the opening of the homes of spiritual grandparents to the youth group from time to time. Interaction between the youth and the hosts could be one part of the get together. Snacks, prepared by the senior hosts, and perhaps games led by the youth leader could take up the remainder of the event. Once these bonds are forged, our senior citizens may well find themselves being sought out for advice and counsel by those 12 to 30 in our congregations.

In these kinds of gatherings, consider all the things older men can teach younger men and boys as spiritual fathers and grandfathers. Titus 2 says, "that the older men be sober, reverent, temperate, sound in faith, in love, in patience; ¼ Likewise, exhort the young men to be sober-minded, in all things showing yourself to be a pattern of good works; in doctrine showing integrity, reverence, incorruptibility, sound speech that cannot be condemned, that one who is an opponent may be ashamed, having nothing evil to say of you." Consider all the things older women can teach younger women and girls as spiritual mothers and grandmothers. "The older women likewise, that they be reverent in behavior, not slanderers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things-that they admonish the young women to love their husbands, to love their children, to be discreet, chaste, homemakers, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be blasphemed." 1 Timothy 5:5 and 10 says, "Now she who is really a widow, and left alone, trusts in God and continues in supplications and prayers night and day¼.. well reported for good works: if she has brought up children, if she has lodged strangers, if she has washed the saints' feet, if she has relieved the afflicted, if she has diligently followed every good work."

Conclusion

Many of our senior saints have amazing experiences, gifts, and abilities which have the potential of powerfully blessing the 12 to 30 year olds in your congregation or Classis. One of my colleagues in Uganda was a retired minister about 70 years old. Nonetheless, he and his wife, often annually, would come and minister at the Mbale Mission station six months at a time. But our seasoned saints need not travel to Africa to find ways of ministering to the youth in our congregations and Classes. The 12 to 30 year olds of our Classis need what they can give. So the challenge comes to both the young and the seniors. Those between the ages of 12-30, and their parents, must open their hearts and minds to being ministered to by our senior saints. And the seniors, for their part, must be ready and willing to serve in the twilight of their journey. What a wonderful way to prepare for a life of service forever in the new heavens and the new earth.

I want to talk about one sensitive subject that seems to raise its head from time to time, especially-but not exclusively-among our younger members. You might hazard a guess that I must be thinking of something to do with sex or money. You'd be right. It has to do with sex, but on this occasion we can be a little more genteel and call it romance or marriage.

One of the temptations the younger members of our denomination face is relationships with members of the opposite sex who do not belong to the RCUS. Over the years I have been in the ministry, it has been amazing to see how many fellows and girls have left the denomination in order to marry or sometimes just live together with someone outside the church.

Now certain things can be said flat out. For one thing, living together outside of marriage is a sin. Period. Ephesians 5:3-5 says, "But fornication and all uncleanness or covetousness, let it not even be named among you, as is fitting for saints; neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor coarse jesting, which are not fitting, but rather giving of thanks. For this you know, that no fornicator, unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God."

We also know that believers should not marry unbelievers. 2 Corinthians 6:14 commands us, "Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness?"

Well, that's the easy part. Maybe not easy, but clear anyway. Now we enter a grey, murky area. Suppose one of our members decides to marry a member of another denomination? I do not mean a cult such as Mormonism or Seventh Day Adventism. I mean a denomination which, though not Reformed, contains genuine Christians and teaches the Bible in a broadly evangelical way.

The problem here is that we cannot condemn an interdenominational romance as an "unequal yoke" with an unbeliever. It would also be wrong to say that the Reformed Church has a monopoly on the truth and that every other denomination is nothing but an incubator of heresy.

Five Daughters

As far as I can see, the Bible does not directly address this subject. However, I do find one incident recorded in the Bible that I believe can be instructive on the subject. Allow me to present for your consideration five young ladies: Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah. Never made their acquaintance? Their address is Numbers 27. These girls were sisters, the daughters of Zelophehad, who had recently died. Here is their story.

We read in Numbers 27:1-11:

"Then came the daughters of Zelophehad the son of Hepher, the son of Gilead, the son of Machir, the son of Manasseh, from the families of Manasseh the son of Joseph; and these were the names of his daughters: Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah. And they stood before Moses, before Eleazar the priest, and before the leaders and all the congregation, by the doorway of the tabernacle of meeting, saying, our father died in the wilderness; but he was not in the company of those who gathered together against the Lord, in company with Korah, but he died in his own sin; and he had no sons. Why should the name of our father be removed from among his family because he had no son? Give us a possession among our father's brothers. So Moses brought their case before the Lord. And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, the daughters of Zelophehad speak what is right; you shall surely give them a possession of inheritance among their father's brothers, and cause the inheritance of their father to pass to them. And you shall speak to the children of Israel, saying, if a man dies and has no son, then you shall cause his inheritance to pass to his daughter. If he has no daughter, then you shall give his inheritance to his brothers. If he has no brothers, then you shall give his inheritance to his father's brothers. And if his father has no brothers, then you shall give his inheritance to the relative closest him in his family, and he shall possess it. And it shall be to the children of Israel a statute of judgment, just as the Lord commanded Moses."

Let me try to explain this briefly. These five girls came to Moses with a complaint. Their father had died without having any sons. They did not think it was fair that they should lose their inheritance because they were women. Moses took this matter to the Lord, who told him that Zelophehad's daughters should have their inheritance.

The matter of inheritance in Israel was important. First of all, Israel was about to enter the Promised Land. At that time each tribe would be given a portion of land which would then be divided up among the families of that tribe. If Zelophehad's estate was divided up among his nearest male relatives, there would be no land, and his branch of the family would cease to exist. This is why the girls said to Moses in Numbers 27:4, "Why should the name of our father be removed from among his family because he had no son? Give us a possession among our father's brothers."

This physical inheritance was the fulfilment of the Lord's promise to give his people the Promised Land. It was each covenant family's part in the promise. It represented the spiritual inheritance which God promises His covenant people-to believers and their believing children after them. These girls did not want their father's family to lose their share of the promise.

Now a different problem arose. Zelophehad's family was part of the tribe of Manasseh. The leaders of the tribe feared that these girls would marry into other tribes, causing part of the tribe of Manasseh's inheritance to transfer to another tribe.

We read their complaint and Moses' reply in Numbers 36:1-12:

"Now the chief fathers of the families of the children of Gilead the son of Machir, the son of Manasseh, of the families of the sons of Joseph, came near and spoke before Moses and before the leaders, the chief fathers of the children of Israel. And they said, the Lord commanded my lord Moses to give the land as an inheritance by lot to the children of Israel, and my lord was commanded by the Lord to give the inheritance of our brother Zelophehad to his daughters. Now if they are married to any of the sons of the other tribes of the children of Israel, then their inheritance will be taken from the inheritance of our fathers, and it will be added to the inheritance of the tribe into which they marry; so it will be taken from the lot of our inheritance. And when the Jubilee of the children of Israel comes, then their inheritance will be added to the inheritance of the tribe into which they marry; so their inheritance will be taken away from the inheritance of the tribe of our fathers. Then Moses commanded the children of Israel according to the word of the Lord, saying, what the tribe of the sons of Joseph speaks is right. This is what the Lord commands concerning the daughters of Zelophehad, saying, let them marry whom they think best, but they may marry only within the family of their father's tribe. So the inheritance of the children of Israel shall not change hands from tribe to tribe, for every one of the children of Israel shall keep the inheritance of the tribe of his fathers. And every daughter who possesses an inheritance in any tribe of the children of Israel shall be the wife of one of the family of her father's tribe, so that the children of Israel each may possess the inheritance of his fathers. Thus no inheritance shall change hands from one tribe to another, but every tribe of the children of Israel shall keep its own inheritance. Just as the Lord commanded Moses, so did the daughters of Zelophehad; for Mahlah, Tirzah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Noah, the daughters of Zelophehad, were married to the sons of their father's brothers. They were married into the families of the children of Manasseh the son of Joseph, and their inheritance remained in the tribe of their father's family."

The Lord's answer to the tribal leaders of Manasseh was very wise of course, as we would expect. The solution would be that the daughters of Zelophehad were commanded to marry within their tribe. This they did, and, in the words of verse 12, "their inheritance remained in the tribe of their father's family."

Bear in mind that Christians are God's people today just as the children of Israel were God's covenant people in the Old Testament. That's why, in Galatians 3:29, Christians are described as "Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise." Therefore, we should be able to find lessons from the story of Zelophedad's daughters that can be instructive for the church today.

Tribes and Denominations

One of the interesting similarities between the Old Testament Church and the New Testament Church is that, in God's providence, both are divided within themselves. The children of Israel in the Old Testament were divided into different tribes and, in a similar way (I think, anyway), the New Testament Church is divided as well-not into tribes, but into denominations.

In the providence of God, the Lord has allowed His Church to be divided up into different denominations. It is clear that each denomination has a different history with a different heritage: Reformed, Wesleyan, Anglican, etc. I'm not talking about liberalism here. I'm talking about the different heritages found among true believers.

I am comparing these various heritages and histories of the denominations to the different inheritances of the tribes of Old Testament Israel. As we saw, if an Israelite changed tribes, he lost an inheritance. In the same way, when a Christian changes denominations, he exchanges one heritage for another.

At this point, I want to pause and make a personal observation. I believe denominations are a good thing. If all Christians belonged to the same denomination, imagine the turf wars. For instance, you couldn't even celebrate the sacraments (and some would not even approve of that word!) without conflict as to the method and significance of them. You can use your imagination and easily think of other ways in which there would be controversy around every corner.

Denominations allow those of different persuasions to worship the Lord according to their convictions without constant debate and disunity. This also allows different persuasions to work together to some degree, such as in the Right To Life movement, without feeling threatened or defensive.

After all, as someone once said, "good fences make good neighbours." Isn't it interesting that when people forgive or are reconciled, this is described as "mending fences," and not "tearing down fences." People of different denominations can work together because no one feels threatened. They can work together on the things they have in common and then return to their own churches with their own convictions.

I am not saying that one church's doctrine is just as good as another's. I am saying that the existence of denominations allows us some degree of fellowship with other members of the Holy Catholic Church (composed of all the Lord's chosen from the beginning to the end of the world) without constant temptations to conflict or compromise concerning our beliefs.

Keep Your Inheritance

These next two paragraphs spell out what I'm trying to say. Here is the bottom line. If you want to sound clever, you could say that all true Christians share in God's covenant promises, but belong to different tribes. In the case of Zelophehad, all the Israelites were God's covenant people, but each tribe had their own inheritance. In the Church today, all true believers have a part in the covenant promises, but their history, heritage, and theology (their "inheritance," if you will) is different.

What is our inheritance? It's the Reformed Faith. It's the Heidelberg Catechism. It's a precious inheritance, not to be discarded lightly. What is a Reformed guy or gal going to do if he or she finds romance in the air with a good Christian, not only of the opposite sex, but of an "opposite" denomination as well? This causes practical problems if they get married. I could compare it to a three-legged race, like you used to play at camp-but with all the fun removed.

There really are only three possible outcomes to such a situation-well, four, if you think not going to church is an option. The other three are: both go to the husband's church, both go to the wife's church, or each one goes to his own church.

For starters, unless there is a genuine change of religious convictions, if either the fellow or the girl agrees to join a church whose doctrines they do not really believe, this is living a lie. In a similar way, suppose they decide to belong to their own separate churches? That's not any better. Where's the intimacy and unity of marriage in that? What kind of a covenant family would that be?

All these solutions destroy the intimacy of marriage. Genesis 2:24 says, "Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh." Not only that, but the husband becomes the spiritual head, the spiritual leader of his wife. We are taught in 1 Corinthians 11:3, "But I want you to know that the head of every man is Christ, the head of woman is man, and the head of Christ is God." Ephesians 5:22 adds, "Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord."

How can a husband be the spiritual head of his wife if they do not believe the same things? Amos 3:3 asks, "Can two walk together, unless they are agreed?" How can a wife submit to her husband as her spiritual head without being willing, at the very least, to join his church? How can a husband take true spiritual leadership of his wife and allow her to attend the church of her choosing which teaches doctrines with which he disagrees?

Real-Life Wisdom

There is real wisdom in not marrying a Christian from a different "tribe." This, indeed, can ruin a believer's spiritual inheritance. One thing that really saddens me is how little it takes for our younger members to throw over all that their parents have painstakingly taught them. Esau sold his birthright for a bowl of soup. You can read about it in Genesis 25. In the same way, if someone is prepared to sell his Reformed birthright-for which men have fought and died-in exchange for a handsome guy or a gorgeous gal truly shows how little importance one places on his faith. Commenting on Esau's expensive bowl of soup, Moses writes in verse Genesis 25:34, "Thus Esau despised his birthright."

Let me use an obvious example. Suppose a Reformed girl met and married a respectable conservative devout Baptist boy, whose honest convictions were loyal to his denomination. Suppose he had the integrity to say that they only way they could get married is if she joined his church. And suppose she does.

Then, here come babies. Suddenly, the girl realizes her husband would not permit his children to get baptized. The bottom line is that her babies are denied covenant baptism all because she put her own romantic desires above her religious convictions. What has she done? What has she sacrificed? And for what?

Of course you can turn this example on its head. A Reformed man marries a Baptist girl who truly loves the Lord according to how she has been trained. Can you imagine the heartache that Reformed fellow has brought into his life and his wife's when children come? He will insist on covenant baptism for his children, over his wife's objections, and the result will be a great rift in marital unity. Or he might cave in, and that would be worse.

This is only an example, not an attempt to beat up on one particular denomination. You could easily make up other examples regarding conflicts with other denominations as well. I cringe every time I hear some young person say, "Our differences don't matter as long as we both love the Lord." I mentally think to myself, "Your differences don't matter now?"

What does it say about the depth of your faith if you are prepared to discard your religious heritage just to get a really cute guy or gal? What it says is that you place your desire for a particular person above your Reformed heritage.

Now, if a person changes denominations because his convictions change, this is honorable. I was brought up in a kinda/sorta evangelical church which was not Reformed. Now that my convictions have been changed by the Holy Spirit, I thank God from the bottom of my heart that I am Reformed, or, better put, that the Lord lead me to the Reformed faith. This is my inheritance and that of my family. I hope none of us will ever toss it away. I will never go back. Some of our older church members will remember that old Taryton cigarette slogan, "I'd rather fight than switch." That about sums it up.

Essentials

When we see people, both young and old, drift away from the Reformed Church to join with some other church in the community, we are plagued with the question, Why the church-hopping? There are a lot of external and surface reasons that are given-the other church is bigger, nicer, more fun, closer, has less rules, does not require accountability, has more of my friends in it, etc.

None of those are good reasons regarding the church. The church, being the body of Christ, is about a communion of believers with the same true faith. If you are looking for your favorite restaurant, health club, or gas station, then these might be good reasons to make a switch. But church membership is the most important area of your life. It is not about convenience or where you feel the most comfortable. There are "churches" today that do not even require membership so there is no pressure on those who attend. Some people want that.

Without trying to write a treatise on ecclesiology, what are the essentials involved here? There are many doctrines that we could mention that separate one church from another. We know the three marks of a true church as defined in our Belgic Confession-the pure preaching of the Gospel, the pure administration of the sacraments, and the faithful exercise of church discipline. (Art. 29)

What is church membership about? It is about Truth. It is about the unity of true faith in Jesus Christ. It is about communion with Christ, the Head of the Church, and with each other in Christ. There is a doctrinal identity that goes with church membership.

Why would anyone even contemplate leaving the doctrines (accepted teachings) of the Reformed Church? Let's face it, when a person joins another church, he/she is identifying with and accepting those doctrines. Most of the mega-churches of today do not have written creeds as we do that will spell these out up front. But they all do have their own unwritten creeds. That leads to the question: What are the essential doctrines that would have to be sacrificed to leave the Reformed faith?

Everyone probably has a list that comes to mind. In my estimation there are two basic truths that are at stake: The doctrine of the sovereignty of God, and the doctrine of the covenant. In one way or another, these two doctrines touch on virtually every other doctrine or practice in the Reformed Church. I'll try to boil that down to a few words.

The sovereignty of God is about the power and the perfect will of God. When we say God is Almighty, it is grounded in the fact that the Triune God is the Creator and the preserver of His creation. Needless to say, if the creation itself is God's, then everything within it is in His absolute control. He does not just allow things; He ordains them and carries them out. His sovereignty extends to who is saved. If God has decreed to save man by sending His Son to die for them, who can thwart His will?

It is popular today to attribute saving faith to the free will of man, and contrariwise the rejection of saving faith to the free will of man. Man is free, but God is limited. God's hands are tied if man does not accept God's offer. The Bible is very clear that before the foundation of the world God chose who He would save (Eph. 1:4; 1 Pet. 1:2; Rom. 8:30, etc) and that He gave to Christ those for whom He would die (Matt. 1:21; Jn. 15: 11, 14-15, 27-30; 17:6, 11, etc.). By His Holy Spirit, He works faith in His elect's newly-given hearts (Jn. 3:3; Eph. 2:8-9). Man's repentance, faith, and works of thanksgiving are all by grace alone.

Needless to say, God's sovereign rule is not limited. It is over all of life-every event in our lives and in the whole history of the world. His revealed will is found in the Bible and in the ongoing history of the world. Once we believe that, it must follow that God will receive His due glory in every area of our lives forever. There are no secular realms.

The second issue is that of the covenant which God has established. This ties the whole Bible together. His promise is that He would send a Savior, His own Son, to redeem His chosen people through the sacrifice on the cross. This everlasting covenant is increasingly revealed throughout the Bible from the types and shadows to the appearance of Christ Himself. Jesus is now the Mediator of that covenant (Heb. 9:15-17; 10:11-18). Nobody comes to the Father except through His Son. Nobody is saved except by the blood of Christ. And nobody has the blood of Christ except by faith.

Covenant theology is a broad study, but for our purposes here, it affects not only the exegesis of the Bible but also the proper administration of the sacraments and church discipline. The baptism of infants is to reveal that they have the promises of the covenant, and will be taught those promises by their parents. If they believe the promise of the Gospel, they are saved. The Lord's Supper is a celebration of the finished work of Christ by all believers. We live in a covenant relationship with God as Christians, and we are told that within that covenant there are curses for disobedience, and blessings for obedience.

More could be said on these and other subjects that are important, but to leave the Reformed faith is, at minimum, to leave these two essential truths. They may not be popular today because such truths are focused on God alone. Men and women can only believe them and live a life of thanksgiving to God by grace alone. In the end we are "unprofitable servants" who by the sovereign grace of God are numbered as members of His covenant people.

Not only are we called to separate ourselves from a church that denies these teachings, but we are also bound to join and remain with the Church that upholds them.