Imagine hearing from your beloved Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, one of his sharpest rebukes directed at you: "Get behind me, Satan!" Those are the words of Jesus directed at the first and chief disciple, Peter.

What's most striking is the rebuke comes after Peter makes one of the greatest professions of faith in Jesus recorded in all of Scripture. Jesus had just asked the disciples, "Who do people say that I am?" They responded, "John the Baptist; and others say, Elijah; and others, one of the prophets."

Then Jesus asks the most important question each person must answer: "But who do you say that I am?" Peter, answers first (of course), "You are the Christ."

In that split-second, Peter saw Jesus so clearly. That's why it's so surprising, that in the very next text, Jesus rebukes Peter with the bone-chilling words, "Get behind me, Satan! For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man."

This is the miracle. It's right before us, right before us supervised by the Holy Spirit and it tells us everything we need, everything we need to know about God, who he is, about the person of God.

One of the most descriptively vivid and uncannily accurate phrases God uses to describe the sinful human condition is "stiff-necked." If you have a small child, or even a dog, you're intimately aware with the behavior this phrase describes. When a child is told it's time to get off the swing and go home, but they refuse. You go to pick them up, and they stiffen their body (adding what seems like 20 pounds to their body weight). Or when you're walking a dog and it refuses to turn a corner. The neck gets stiff, to match the posture of heart. 

And when we present the gospel, we say, "Look, it starts with the bad news." The bad news is we have broken God's sovereign law. Whenever you break any law, there are to be consequences for the breaking of the law, especially when it comes to God. Whoever transgresses even one law deserves death. The word of God says, "Deserves eternal damnation." The word of God says, "That's the bad news. Apart from God, we are not children. Apart from God, we are sinners." "And yes, Lord, I am a sinner. I am a filthy, wretched dog. I am a dog. Can I be Your dog? I hear You're a good master." That's what she's saying. That's why I use the word for chutzpah, it's nerve, it's brass, it's confidence and actions gall. It's audacity.

In the Gospels, only a few people truly impress Jesus. What impresses Jesus? Education? Money? Power? No. What impresses Jesus is faith.In our text for Sunday, we meet a gentile woman who amazes Jesus with her faith in Him, so much so, he exclaims, "O woman, great is your faith!" Her great faith released His great power in her life. Great faith releases great power. Why? God honors bold faith because bold faith honors God. What made this woman's faith so impressive? She humbly accepts Christ's no, while persistently asking for his yes. 

One of the great principles that came out of the Reformation, along with Sola Scriptura, Sola Gratia, Sola Fide, Solus Christus, and Soli Deo Gloria, was “Semper Reformada” – Always Reforming. This isn’t a call for the church to evolve in an ever-changing culture, but a battle cry to continuously reform the church in accord with the Scriptures. The church is formed by the Word of God and always being reformed by the Word of God. Just like individuals are. How does reformation happen in our lives and in our churches in our land? When we look into the Word of God, into the Law of God, and say, Lord, where have I added to it and where have I taken away?

Wouldn't you like to be more joyful? I think all of us would. We'd like to grow in joy. And joy isn't something that you can manufacture. It's not a personality trait. It's not like happiness. It's not like pleasure. Joy is opening your eyes to the deeper realities of life, away from the temporary to the eternal. And that's the only way to experience everlasting joy. And we all know this thing joy exists. We're all actively or passively, consciously or subconsciously, we're seeking it more than just pleasure, more than happiness. We want that joy and pleasure is felt in the body. Happiness is felt in the mind. And the feeling joy, it's felt in the soul, in the center of your being, the everlasting part of you.

When an angel of the Lord appeared to a group of shepherds to announce the birth of Jesus Christ, the angel said to them "Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people."Good news that brings with it great joy. Joy is found in knowing and receiving the good news. This news is good because it's true. The joy is grounded in truth. Happiness is in the feelings. Joy is in the facts. Joy is found in Jesus Christ. He is the only one who can give you joy because He is the only one who can change the ultimate facts of your eternal destiny.