Read: Mark 7:24-37
“Sharon” is a new mother. At the end of our conversation, I asked how I could pray for her. Thus began her list: “I try to pray and don’t pray enough. I try to read my Bible and can’t concentrate enough. When it comes to service, I don’t serve God enough. I try to attend every church service, but don’t try hard enough.” And the inventory went on and on. I asked, “Sharon, do you realize how many times you have used the word ‘try’ and mentioned your set of rules? The Pharisees were experts regarding bad behaviors and rule-breaking. What about God’s forgiveness and grace (especially with a new baby in the house)?” All Sharon could see was that she broke the rules and didn’t have the strength to obey. In her rearview mirror was God’s grace and forgiveness. In her desire to obey, she forgot that dependence on God is essential.
HOW FAR DO GOD’S GRACE AND FORGIVENESS EXTEND?
How far do God’s grace and forgiveness extend? Jesus made travel plans to the geographical area chock-full of Gentiles considered beyond the grace of God. Jewish tradition taught that a faithful Jew would have nothing to do with Gentiles and would never enter a Gentile’s house. In Mark 7, Jesus walks to the Gentile region of Tyre. A multitude chock-full of Gentiles tracks Him down. Among the crowd is a lone woman desperately concerned for her demon-possessed daughter, and willing to lay everything down at Jesus’ feet. How far will God’s grace and forgiveness extend?
PRIDE ABANDONED
The woman abandons her pride. She lives in a culture steeped in idolatry, but somehow she has heard about Jesus. There is no reason why He should ever hear her plea. She has nothing to offer Him. However, she does not relent in begging Jesus for help. To our Western ears, you wonder where this story is going. Jesus reminds the woman that the children (the Jewish people) get priority over the dogs (Gentiles like her). At that time, His duty was to the people of Israel, not to the Gentiles (Matthew 15:24). Taking His attention from Israel, in violation of His mission, would be like a father taking food from his children to throw it to their dogs (Matthew 15:26). But in the original language, Jesus did not use the word for mongrels. Jesus softened it into “little dogs” (house pets, rather than wild street dogs). This foretells the expansion to the Gentiles being grafted into the Kingdom of God.
FAITH COUPLED WITH HUMILITY
The woman responds with great faith. She accepts her low place before Jesus and doesn’t argue about the reference to dogs. She asks Jesus to deal with her on her own low level: “Lord, yet even the dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs.” Her humble, faith-filled submission to Jesus brings the victory: healing for her daughter. Nothing appealed to Christ more than faith coupled with humility. Remember, in the previous chapter, Jesus dealt with the religious leaders blinded by pride. They didn’t think they needed God’s grace. Their faith and strength were in themselves, their rules, and their family connections, rather than submission and dependence on God.
FAITH IS NOTHING MORE THAN DEPENDENCE
“Jesus answered her, ‘O woman, great is your faith! Let it be done for you as you desire.’ And her daughter was healed instantly” (Matthew 15:28). Megan Fate Marshman writes, “When you boil it down to its essence, faith is nothing more than dependence. It is acknowledging that God is God and we are not, and that we need Him for absolutely everything. It is relying on God for what we are tempted to rely on ourselves for.”
DEPENDENCE FOR MORE THAN JUST SALVATION
To all of us Sharons, God is more than enough to depend on minute by minute, regardless of what stage of life we are in. Depend on the Holy Spirit for every breath, not just salvation.
