The Faith of a Canaanite Woman
Matthew 15:21-28
21And Jesus went away from there and withdrew to the district of Tyre and Sidon. 22And behold, a Canaanite woman from that region came out and was crying, "Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David; my daughter is severely oppressed by a demon." 23But he did not answer her a word. And his disciples came and begged him, saying, "Send her away, for she is crying out after us." 24He answered, "I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel." 25But she came and knelt before him, saying, "Lord, help me." 26And he answered, "It is not right to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs." 27She said, "Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table." 28Then Jesus answered her, "O woman, great is your faith! Be it done for you as you desire." And her daughter was healed instantly.
Jesus walked amongst pagans, the Syro-Phoenicians, the Canaanite woman who cried out to Him.
Matthew 15:22-23
22And behold, a Canaanite woman from [the district of Tyre and Sidon] came out and was crying, "Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David; my daughter is severely oppressed by a demon." 23But he did not answer her a word.
God wants to see if we are serious. Will we keep asking for it in prayer? How many times do we let His phone ring? He wants to see if we are persistent (remember in the past I decided "either I make it this way or I'll make it that way, but either way, I'm gonna make it!")
The teacher never talks during the test. The world will stop talking to each other when they are mad at each other. GOD IS NOT MAD AT YOU!
Matthew 7:7-8 -- Continual process of seeking.
7Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. 8For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened.
God wants us to draw near to Him, which is one reason why He doesn't always answer right away.
Then the Canaanite woman bows in front of the Lord and asks for His help.
The disciples ask that the woman be sent away.
Matthew 15:24
24He answered, "I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel."
Who is He answering? The woman or the disciples? Jesus said what the disciples were thinking. Jews thought of gentiles as dogs, even in front of the people they were looking down upon.
James 5:11
11Behold, we consider those blessed who remained steadfast. You have heard of the steadfastness of Job, and you have seen the purpose of the Lord, how the Lord is compassionate and merciful.
The Lord suffers with my pain.
The Lord is NOT prejudiced.
The Lord has made us ALL.
Acts 10:34-35
34So Peter opened his mouth and said: "Truly I understand that God shows no partiality, 35but in every nation anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him."
God is no respecter of persons, and did not love his disciples more than the Canaanite woman.
The Caananite woman heard what the Lord said, and that was another test for her. Is she going to quit because of what He said? Earlier, the Lord cast a demon out of a gentile.
Matthew 15:26-27
26And He answered, "It is not right to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs."
Are you still going to come to Him even if we interpret something He says as hurtful?
mangy dog -- how the disciples viewed gentiles as 'dogs'
puppy dog -- how Jesus described gentiles as 'dogs', in order to soften it for the woman (but to still voice the disciples' thoughts)
27She said, "Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table."
She said, "Yes Lord, but even the puppies feed on the crumbs that fall from the Master's table."
Matthew 15:28
28Then Jesus answered her, "O woman, great is your faith! Be it done for you as you desire." And her daughter was healed instantly.
Hebrews 12:1-2
1Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, 2looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.
We are to run the course with endurance. Can you endure if you must wait for a long time?
Genesis 32:24-26
24And Jacob was left alone. And a man wrestled with him until the breaking of the day. 25When the man saw that he did not prevail against Jacob, he touched his hip socket, and Jacob’s hip was put out of joint as he wrestled with him. 26Then he said, "Let me go, for the day has broken." But Jacob said, "I will not let you go unless you bless me."
Jesus said 2 people had "great faith", and they were both gentiles -- the Caananite woman above, and the Roman Centurian in Matthew 8.
The Faith of a Centurion
Matthew 8:5-13
5 When He entered Capernaum, a centurion came forward to Him, appealing to Him, 6"Lord, my servant is lying paralyzed at home, suffering terribly." 7And He said to him, "I will come and heal him." 8But the centurion replied, "Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof, but only say the word, and my servant will be healed. 9For I too am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. And I say to one, 'Go,' and he goes, and to another, 'Come,' and he comes, and to my servant, 'Do this,' and he does it." 10When Jesus heard this, he marveled and said to those who followed him, "Truly, I tell you, with no one in Israel have I found such faith. 11I tell you, many will come from east and west and sit at the table with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the Kingdom of Heaven, 12 while the sons of the kingdom will be thrown into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth." 13And to the centurion Jesus said, "Go; let it be done for you as you have believed." And the servant was healed at that very moment.
What do you need from the Lord? What test are you going through? Never give up! Trust Him, and you'll see Him do a great work in you!
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