Matthew 15:22a, 25-28 (NKJV) And behold, a woman of Canaan came from that region and cried out to Him, saying, “Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David… ” ….Then she came and worshipped Him, saying, “Lord, help me!” But He answered and said, “It is not good to take the children’s bread and throw it to the little dogs. And she said, “Yes, Lord, yet even the little dogs eat the crumbs which fall from their masters’ table.” Then Jesus answered and said to her, “O woman, great is your faith! Let it be to you as you desire.” And her daughter was healed from that very hour.
In this passage, the woman’s faith wasn’t blind faith. Instead, she had a genuine conviction of the heart regarding who Jesus is; she worshipped Jesus and called Him Lord! She also had an excellent attitude because she wasn’t offended when Jesus addressed her as a “little dog”, which is more of an affectionate address than a rude or racist remark. She knew what she came for, which was the deliverance of her demon-possessed daughter.
The Bible records several Gentiles who had enormous faith in Jesus, such as the Centurion in Matthew 8:5-10, who asked Jesus to just say the word because he had faith in Jesus’s Word. Jesus commended the Centurion for having great faith. Likewise, this Greek, a Syro-Phoenician by birth, was bold enough to ask Jesus to help cast out the demon in her daughter even though she was a Gentile. There is a hierarchy in the demonic realm, and she believed that Jesus was above all of them. This is what gave her the boldness to worship Jesus and ask for His help. She had heard about Jesus and believed Him to be the Son of the highest God. Both the Centurion and this woman had great faith in Jesus’ impartiality to minister to all, even though Jesus was called to the Jews, the people of God, before He fulfilled the Abrahamic Covenant so that the blessings of Abraham would come upon the Gentiles, and all the families of the earth would be included in the family of God. Jesus also sought to minister to and save the lost. He is a God full of compassion, love, mercy, and empathy.
Hebrews 11:6 (NKJV) But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.
This woman diligently sought Jesus for help and received what she wanted for her daughter. Scripture says that we can only please God with our faith in Him. We need to know that Jesus is impartial to us by connecting our faith in Him when we diligently approach Him. If the Lord could minister to the people of Israel in the Old and New Testament, He can meet your prayer needs today! It depends on how big God is in your hearts and your minds.
Sermon Series: We are entitled to our Bread
你的信心有多大?
马太福音15:22 有一个迦南妇人从那地方出来,喊着说:“主啊,大卫的子孙,可怜我!… 那妇人来拜他,说:“主啊,帮助我!”他回答说:“不好拿儿女的饼丢给狗吃。”妇人说:“主啊,不错,但是狗也吃它主人桌子上掉下来的碎渣儿。”耶稣说:“妇人,你的信心是大的,照你所要的,给你成全了吧!”从那时候,她女儿就好了。
这段经文里,这位妇人的信心并不盲目,她内心深知耶稣是谁。她敬拜耶稣,称祂为主!也看得出她的态度非常好,因为当耶稣称她为“小狗”–这更像是一种亲昵的称呼,而非失礼或种族歧视–时,她并没有受冒犯。她知道她此行的目的,那就是为被鬼附的女儿求释放。
圣经上记载了几个对耶稣有超凡信心的外邦人。比如马太福音8:5-10中的百夫长,他只求耶稣说句话,因为他对耶稣的话有信心。耶稣说,百夫长有极大的信心。同样,这个希腊人,她生来就是叙利非尼基族,尽管她自己是外邦人,却大胆地请求耶稣帮她女儿赶鬼。灵界是有等级之分的,而她相信耶稣的级别在牠们之上。这就是她敢于敬拜耶稣并求祂帮助的原因。她听说过耶稣,相信祂是至高神的儿子。那位百夫长和这位叙利非尼基妇人都相信耶稣会公平地服侍所有人,尽管耶稣在履行亚伯拉罕之约之前先蒙召去到犹太人–即上帝的子民–那里,好教亚伯拉罕的祝福能临到外邦人,地上所有的家庭都得以被纳入上帝的家庭。祂同时也寻求服侍和拯救失丧的人。衪是一位充满怜悯、爱、慈悲和同理心的神。
希伯来书11:6 人非有信,就不能得到神的喜悦;因为来到神面前的人,必须信神的存在,并且信他会赏赐那些寻求他的人。
这妇女煞费苦心地寻求耶稣的帮助,并得到了她为女儿所求的。經上说只有信才能得神喜悦。 当我们想方设法就近祂时,我们要把信心维系在祂身上,要晓得耶稣是公正的。如果主能服侍旧约和新约中的以色列百姓,祂今天也能满足你的祷告需要!这取决于在你的心思意念中神究竟有多大。
讲章系列:我们可享用神的饼
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