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![Sermon Summary
Matthew takes Jesus into Tyre and Sidon and lets a “certain woman” step forward with a cry that cuts through the room: “Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David; my daughter is severely demon-possessed.” Jesus stays silent. The disciples fill the silence with “Send her away.” The text lets that tension breathe. The woman keeps moving. She refuses to be shooed from the only door with power behind it. The silence tests her, the pushback refines her, and her plea rises, not prettier, just truer.
Jesus stands there as Israel’s Messiah and the Lord of the nations at the same time. He honors the covenant order, yet he pulls grace across the line. The disciples stand there with correct teaching and empty hands. They have forms, but no juice. Matthew lets that gap glare. The woman becomes the church in that moment, not because she is tidy, but because she is desperate enough to go straight to Jesus when official channels cannot deliver. She knows where the power is.
God names a woman to picture his people. God loves a woman. God makes her the symbol of the church, the bride he will not abandon. The devil knows that and comes after her child, then after her, then after God’s woman everywhere. The devils in this hour are not the old kind. They are networked, educated, smooth, and digital. They traffic in lies dressed as truth, church fights framed as discernment, and attacks on order sold as freedom. The enemy is after the bride, and “send her away” still sounds spiritual on weak lips.
Jesus does not flinch at devils. The devils flinch at Jesus. The text presses the church to stop trying to fix what only the Lord can heal. The woman tried the disciples and found no power there, then she put her face in the dirt before Jesus and found the answer there. The church still has power when Jesus is the one touching the case. Feeble and defective, yes. Chosen and kept, yes. The bride is still the apple of his eye. There will be a wedding. The story ends with faith refusing to quit, Jesus naming that faith great, and the child delivered. Ain’t no woman like this woman when her hand is in his.
Key Takeaways
• 1. Matthew spotlights a persistent woman The Canaanite mother keeps pressing through silence and offense because she knows who Jesus is and what her child needs. The church reads her as a mirror, not a spectacle, learning that urgency before the Lord outruns eligibility debates. Faith here is stubborn, specific, and aimed at the only One with authority. The text insists that persistence in prayer is not noise, it is insight. [64:14] (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ue50VdL2sOk&t=3854s)
• 2. Teaching without power changes nothing The disciples carry Jesus’ words but cannot handle the devil in the girl. Forms without the Spirit create a reflex to “send her away” rather than stand in authority. Orthodoxy without unction gets loud about rules and quiet before demons. The church must trade weak reflexes for kneeling dependence that heaven answers with power. [78:10] (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ue50VdL2sOk&t=4690s)
• 3. New devils require new dependence This hour’s enemies come coded, curated, and plausible, turning AI, platforms, and gossip into pulpits of confusion. Yesterday’s arguments about swaying choirs miss today’s stealth deception that counterfeits truth itself. Discernment grows where prayer deepens and allegiance tightens to Christ and his body. Old weapons still win, but only in fresh surrender. [82:47] (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ue50VdL2sOk&t=4967s)
• 4. Do not bash God’s woman The church is the bride Christ loves, not a project to own or a target to shred. To make sport of her flaws is not candor, it is treason against the kingdom that purchased her with blood. Real love corrects by intercession and covenant loyalty, bringing grievances to Jesus rather than burning the house down. Handle God’s woman like she is his. [99:45] (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ue50VdL2sOk&t=5985s)
• 5. Jesus keeps the church’s power Stories of unlikely conversions and last-minute rescues are not nostalgia, they are proof that the Bridegroom is still working. Even when the church looks spent, the Lord still has the reins and still pours the juice where faith runs to him. Long-haul commitment is not blindness, it is trust in the One who will finish what he started. The bride will make it to the wedding. [109:30] (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ue50VdL2sOk&t=6570s)](https://www.sacsda.org/wp-content/plugins/youtube-feed-pro/img/placeholder.png)
When God Calls You In: Ruth, Redemption, and the Faithfulness of God
When God Moves, You Move - Pastor Ishmael Wade
WELCOME TO SOUTH ATLANTIC!
Spreading the love and teachings of Jesus Christ
The South Atlantic Conference covers the states of Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina. It has a membership of over 36,000, serving 178 churches and companies, employing over 435 people, and operating 15 schools.
The mission of the conference is to empower and encourage every member to know Jesus and experience the Joy of salvation.
So once again Welcome! And let’s pray for one another as we work to hasten the coming of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ!
C. B. Preston
President
Conference Happenings
Latest News & Stories from the SAC
During March Gladness, the Ephesus SDA church had the honor of ordaining the Elder, Deacons, and Deaconess who have answered
The Gethsemane SDA church PBE team, the Gethsemane Cougars, scored first place at the NAD level Pathfinder Bible Experience. There
On Sabbath, April 18, 2026, as a part of their Spring Tour, the Caroliers from Collegedale Academy in Collegedale, Tennessee
During March Gladness, the Ephesus SDA church had the honor of ordaining the Elder, Deacons, and Deaconess who have answered
The Gethsemane SDA church PBE team, the Gethsemane Cougars, scored first place at the NAD level Pathfinder Bible Experience. There
Wellness at Sea Cruise
Conference Happenings
Latest News & Stories from the SAC
During March Gladness, the Ephesus SDA church had the honor of ordaining the Elder, Deacons, and Deaconess who have answered
The Gethsemane SDA church PBE team, the Gethsemane Cougars, scored first place at the NAD level Pathfinder Bible Experience. There
On Sabbath, April 18, 2026, as a part of their Spring Tour, the Caroliers from Collegedale Academy in Collegedale, Tennessee
During March Gladness, the Ephesus SDA church had the honor of ordaining the Elder, Deacons, and Deaconess who have answered
The Gethsemane SDA church PBE team, the Gethsemane Cougars, scored first place at the NAD level Pathfinder Bible Experience. There