You may not think your life matters and that it is not significant to Me because you are pretty much unnoticed by the world, but that is not true. I planned every life and called it into being and I would send Jesus even if there was only one person who needed saving.
And in the conversation of Jesus we are considering today that was the case. This is one of the most unusual conversations Jesus had in His three years of earthly ministry as one like you, so do not just gloss over it and make up your own interpretation, as many have, even trying to justify to those who are critical of what Jesus said and making up all the wrong reasons to cover for Him, such as the difference between a puppy and a dog.
But let us begin with some background of how He got to where He was to encounter a certain Syrophoenician woman.
Jesus had multiplied the five loaves and two fish and then had walked on the water to catch up with the boat wherein His disciples were trying to reach the other side. And Peter had begun to also walk on water at the invitation of Jesus, but taking his eyes off Jesus and putting them on the wind and the waves, he faltered and began to sink. Jesus took him by the hand and got him back into the boat. Much to Peter’s great joy. The joy of your life is the strength, health, forgiveness, protection, salvation, righteousness, provision, light and love that I have given you freely in Jesus. Never lose sight of how loved you are as manifested in what I have done and am doing for you in Him.
When they had crossed over, they came to land at Gennesaret. And when the men of that place recognized Him, they sent into all that surrounding district and brought to Him all who were sick; and they implored Him that they might just touch the fringe of His cloak; and as many as touched were cured. Matthew 14:34-35. The ease with which the miracles were flowing here shows the faith was great. These people connected, they linked, with Jesus by faith.
Gennesaret was located on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee. It was a small plain situated between Capernaum and Magdala. Jesus had His home in Capernaum after He and Mary left Nazareth when they tried to kill Him there at the beginning of His public ministry. You know He only did what I showed Him and I had directed Him to Capernaum where Jairus was the head of the synagogue. The people of Nazareth had no faith in Jesus and He was wasting His precious time there where He could work no miracles. Not because the power was not present but because no one had the faith to connect with it.
It was at this time that some Pharisees and scribes came to Jesus from Jerusalem and said, questioned Jesus about why His disciples were breaking certain traditions, such as certain ceremonial washings of the hands before taking food, that were of men but they ascribed to Me. The Pharisees got offended when Jesus concluded that what came out of your mouth, which originated in your heart, was far more important in determining whether you were clean or defiled than whether you ate with unwashed hands or not. But we will go into more about this conversation in another Life Lesson. Today I am headed past that but will come back to it.
Jesus than took a rather unusual journey. His mission while He was on earth as one like you was to the lost sheep of the house of Israel, but once they rejected Him and put Him to death, it opened the new and living way to Jew and Gentile (those who had been without Me in the world due to unbelief and the worship of idols), that is to whomever had faith in My Son. You are justified by faith in Him. All who BELIEVE have eternal life and shall never perish. You enter the New Covenant only one way and that is by faith in the good news I have revealed to you in Jesus.
This is back to the Covenant of Abraham, which was righteousness by faith. Remember Abraham believed Me and I credited his faith to him as righteousness. But now Jesus has obtained a more excellent ministry, by as much as He is also the mediator of a better covenant, which has been enacted on better promises. Hebrews 8:6. But it is entirely based on faith in Me and the One whom I sent, Jesus your Messiah.
After His encounter with the critical Pharisees and scribes who had come to question Him with hard and unbelieving hearts, Jesus went away from there, and withdrew into the district of Tyre and Sidon.
This might not look to you very significant, but it is a very significant journey for two reasons, it was about fifty miles in walking from the area of Gennesaret to Tyre and Sidon. Gennesaret and Capernaum are situated inland, on the shore of the Sea of Galilee, which is a freshwater lake. Tyre and Sidon were coastal cities on the Mediterranean Sea.
It took Jesus and His disciples about eleven hours to walk there and this journey took Jesus outside of His usual area of activity around the Sea of Galilee and into Gentile territory, which was significant in the context of his ministry.
But what makes it the most significant is the fact that He traveled that far, a full day’s journey walking and a full day to return, for a single interaction with a Canaanite woman. And even if you do not realize it, I do the same to seek out and save every one of you.
And please note that this woman was a Canaanite. These were the ones I told Joshua were so evil that if My people did not come in and take the land from them, the land itself would vomit them out for their unclean practices, degradation of their bodies in immorality, and sacrificing of their children to idols. But just as Rehab, who was of the people of Jericho whom I had set judgment against, and Ruth, who was a Moabite who I warned My people not to enter into marriage with as they would lead them astray to false gods and evil practices, entered Covenant with Me by faith, your background, ancestry, and former life style will not hinder your becoming a new creation in Christ when you have faith, the true faith that humbles your heart and fills you with thanksgiving, the faith that transforms from the profane to the sanctified, the faith that works by love, that is, that comes from knowing and believing in the love I have for you and My desire for you to prosper and be in good health even as your soul prospers by walking in the truth.
Jesus brings shalom, shalom (perfect wholeness and peace) to those far and those near. I send Him and draw you to Him to draw you back to Me cleansed of sin and made righteous with My own righteousness. And the journey He took to do that was from His throne in Heaven in glory through the birth canal of the flesh to be birthed upon the earth at the fulness of time.
Jesus’ reputation as a miracle worker had reached the Gentiles as well as the Jews. Jesus, even in this area of Tyre and Sidon that was not Jewish but was involved in idol worship and the perverted and evil practices that go with this realm of demonic darkness such as witchcraft, child immolation and sacrifice, and cult works of obscenity, was known as a man who worked miracles who could very well be the promised Messiah. Even the Samaritan woman that Jesus encountered at the well in Sychar knew of the promised Messiah who would tell them everything and would explain the true worship of God.
After hearing of Him, a woman whose little daughter had an unclean spirit immediately came and fell at His feet. Now the woman was a Gentile, a Canaanite of the Syrophoenician race. Mark 7:24-26; Matthew 15:22. It is very important what you hear about Jesus and about Me. Faith begins where My Will is known. This woman heard that Jesus delivered people from demons and that He healed people and so she came to get a miracle. And she began to cry out, saying, “Have mercy on me, Lord, Son of David; my daughter is cruelly demon-possessed.” But He did not answer her a word. Matthew 22-24. This Canaanite woman is referring to Jesus as the Messiah, the Son of David, and she is calling Him Lord, but she is not in Covenant with Me but worshipped idols. She, unlike the Centurion, had never done anything to benefit any of My people. But she kept asking Jesus to cast the demon out of her daughter. Mark 7:26.
His disciples came and implored Jesus, saying, “Send her away, because she keeps shouting at us.” Jesus never casts anyone away who comes to Him. He answered and said, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” My Son came to the Jews to save them first, but He is My gift to the world so that all who believe in Him would not perish but have eternal life. When My people rejected Him, and after He had shed His blood for all and I had raised Him from the dead, a new age began, the church age, and the message went to the Gentiles as well. But salvation is from the Jews out to the Gentiles.
But when she saw her imitation of Jewish covenant talk was not impressing Him into thinking she was Jewish, she did not give up. She wanted her daughter set free from the horrible torment she was in that kept her and their entire household from getting any peace or rest. So she simply went to Him in complete faith and trust and worshipped. “But she came and began to bow down before Him, saying, ‘Lord, help me!’” Matthew 15:22-25. This is one of the best prayers you can pray for it is from the heart. And I am your helper. It honors Me when you come to Me for help. It blesses Me because then I can bless you.
And Jesus answered and said, “Let the children be satisfied first, for it is not good to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.” Dogs have souls but no spirits. It is people who are in My image and according to My likeness and I am Spirit and those who worship Me must worship in spirit and truth.
When Adam rejected My Words and submitted to the lies of a creature who is not a source of life but death, his spirit became dead to Me and alive to sin. There is a kind of worldly wisdom that is animal like in that it lacks spiritual insight and divine power. And that is the way all are born and remain unless they are born again from above and receive the authority to be My children.
And that is what Jesus is referring to in what He answered this woman who had lived entirely in the world and worshipped idols and satanic practices. And her lifestyle and that of the people among whom she lived gave access to the devil to possess them. Their door was wide open to him and the followed his immoral and degrading practices.
But Jesus was calling “children,” those who believe in My Word and are in covenant with Me as My children, and the spirit has become alive (raised with Christ) to Me and dead to sin, and the bread He is speaking of is the both the healing in My Words and in Him, the bread of life, the bread a man eats and never dies. And as at the Last Supper, My Son shows you that His body and blood are only for disciples.
While they were eating, Jesus took some bread, and after a blessing, He broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; this is My body.” And when He had taken a cup and given thanks, He gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you; for this is My blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for forgiveness of sins.” Matthew 26:26-28.
And who is a disciple? Let Jesus define it: “If you continue in My Word you are truly My disciples and then you will know the truth and the truth will set you free.” The dividing line is faith in My Word between the sanctified and the profane.
This woman was not stopping where she was, she had heard of Jesus and faith comes by hearing and hearing My Word, she answered and said to Him, “Yes, Lord, but even the dogs under the table feed on the children’s crumbs.” Mark 7:27-28. And she also said, “Yes, Lord; but even the dogs feed on the crumbs which fall from their masters’ table.” She humbled herself and cast all her care on Jesus. And she had such faith that she knew just a crumb of the bread He would give could totally heal her daughter, the whole loaf was not necessary, not even one slice, just a crumb was sufficient. Like the centurion, she knew one Word from Jesus would do it. And she got the same praise the centurion got.
Then Jesus said to her, “O woman, your faith is great; it shall be done for you as you wish.” And her daughter was healed at once. Matthew 15:26-28. And going back to her home, she found the child lying on the bed, the demon having left. Mark 7:30.
Do you notice that Jesus did not go to cast out the demon or even speak to the demon, He did not address the demon at all. Her faith had connected to His power to deliver and that was enough for it to be just as she desired. When your faith connects with My power, no demon or the devil himself can withstand the force of that connection.
Why did she get the children’s bread? Do you see what happened? Remember that it was Abraham’s faith that was credited to him as righteousness and that put him in covenant with Me. The blessing of Abraham was the gift of righteousness by faith and not by works of the flesh. He was made perfect by faith in My Word, for Abraham saw the day of Jesus and rejoiced. And I made covenant with Abraham.
She called Jesus “Lord” and bowed to worship Him as she sincerely prayed from her heart with utter confidence, “Lord, help me.” One crumb, one Word, from the true bread come down from Heaven would heal her tormented daughter. Remember Jesus told the crowd after they had eaten the bread He multiplied that to do the works of God they had to believe in the One that He sent. Jesus. The true bread come down from Heaven for a man to eat and never die. This woman had found the true bread come down from Heaven and she was not leaving without at least getting a crumb, and that would be enough.
The Abrahamic covenant, which is still running though all has become new in Jesus, is the covenant for those of like faith to your father in the faith, Abraham, the believer. Romans 4:16-17. By her faith in Jesus she had entered the Abrahamic Covenant and that was credited to her as righteousness and qualified her for the children’s bread. The good Shepherd came to seek out and save that which was lost. And to do so He had left Galilee and gone into the land of the Gentiles who were strangers to the Covenant, without Me, and without hope in the world. But the woman, like Abraham, had dared to hope against hope that My Word would be fulfilled. And as she spoke with Jesus she became fully persuaded.
Learn to rely on your great High Priest and your great Good Shepherd who laid down His life for you and feeds you with His Body and Blood. Psalm 23 is yours now in Him. And so is Revelation 7:17: “The Lamb in the center of the throne (in My bosom) will be their Shepherd and will guide them to springs of the water of life and God will wipe every tear from their eyes.” You are no longer a slave but a son and a joint heir with Christ of all I possess.
I love you. Let Me help you. I have made you more than a conqueror. Start having faith in that by speaking out who you are when the devil attacks. Be ready to always have the victory.