Key Verse: Then Jesus said, "Woman, you have great
faith! Your request is granted."
Matthew 15:28
What would I look like if I lived with such great faith on
display that the Lord Himself would praise me for it? Well, we can see one
example of what it might look like in our reading today.
Once again we have discrepancies to deal with. Was this
woman Greek or Canaanite? Was she loud or quiet? Those details however are minor
distractions. What we have here is our Lord taking a much needed break in Tyre,
which is near Galilee, a Gentile city, away from Israel. We have a desperate
Gentile mother with a tormented daughter and in this mother we have an example
of a kind of faith lived out that Jesus admires. So, what did that faith look like?
First of all, it was focused. This mother knew what she
wanted. She was very clear on this point, she wanted her child well.
Secondly, she was not discouraged. This woman had many
strikes against her in approaching Jesus with her request. First of all, she
was a Gentile and He was a Jew. Secondly, she was a woman. Thirdly, the
disciples, twelve burly men, were trying to keep her away. Finally, Jesus
Himself was not exactly encouraging in the way He addressed her. He specifically
told her that He had not come to help people like her. In fact, he called her a dog compared to the children
of Israel!
A lesser woman would have gone home in tears at that point. Amazingly
she humbled herself to accept that title and make the most of it. However, there
is also some local background that may help us understand another reason this
woman may have been willing to accept Jesus’ words. The people of Tyre were known to buy grain
from Galilee because the Tyreans had the money and could afford to feed
themselves while the people of Galilee were poor and needed what money they
could get to survive. This would mean that
the people of Galilee, the children of Israel, were not getting the bread that should
have been theirs because they had to sell it as an export. So the dogs were indeed taking the children’s
bread!
In this context, Jesus' statements may have been easily
understood by everyone nearby that day. Why should she, a comparatively rich Gentile
receive God's grace when they were already so much better off than His own
people? Jesus said, “It’s not right.”
However, finally, this woman was bold. After being insulted
and thwarted, she continued to plead her case for the sake of her daughter.
"Yes Lord, but even the dogs under the table eat the children's
crumbs." (Mark 7:28) Jesus appreciated that. In saying this she admitted her low position,
that she didn’t really deserve his help, but that she understood his grace and
power to be so abundant that it spills over to bless others not of the fold. While back in Matthew 14, Peter had been
gently chided for his "little faith," when he walked on the water,
Jesus heralds this woman for having "great faith," and rewards her
for her tenacity.
Imagine only needing a crumb of grace from God to heal a
sick child. Yet, God's grace for us, His children is abundant, full and free.
There is nothing else like it in the entire universe. It is Grace that brought
Jesus to earth in the first place to die for our sins, while we were still His
enemies. (Romans
5:8) It is His grace that sets us free from our sinful selves to walk with
Him victoriously. "He who did not spare His own Son, but gave Him up for
us all how will He not also, along with Him, graciously give us all
things?" (Romans
8:32) And we are encouraged to approach that throne of grace boldly, not
timidly to ask for a mere morsel. (Hebrews
4:16) All that we truly need is in Him and I promise you, it is more than a
crumb.
Hymn: "Wonderful Grace of Jesus"
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