A Journey of Faith

Pastor Brett Cottrell leads a reflective sermon from Matthew 15, exploring the journey of faith through two pivotal encounters: Jesus' interaction with the Canaanite woman and His healing of a large Gentile crowd near the Sea of Galilee. The sermon unpacks how Jesus deliberately takes His disciples into Gentile territory—Tyre and Sidon, and the Decapolis—to challenge their preconceived notions of purity, righteousness, and divine favor. The Canaanite woman’s persistent faith, despite being dismissed as a 'dog' and ignored at first, becomes a powerful lesson in desperation, humility, and trust. Her declaration that even dogs eat crumbs from the master’s table reveals a depth of faith the Pharisees and disciples lacked. The sermon emphasizes that true faith is not inherited or earned, but born out of brokenness and dependence on Christ. This theme continues as Jesus heals the crippled, blind, and mute, demonstrating God’s power extending beyond Israel. The disciples, though slow to grasp it, begin to understand that they, too, must rely not on their own strength but on God’s grace. The sermon concludes with a call to daily faith—where trust in God becomes instinctive, not a conscious effort—rooted in a lifelong journey of humility, worship, and dependence on divine power. The journey of faith is not a one-time event but a daily surrender to God’s work in us.