Daily Reading: 6-1-16
Mark 7:24-30 (CEV)
Faith is acting like we believe the Word of God’s Love is Truth; human activated faith pleases God (Hebrews 11:6). Scripture teaches, “Faith is the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not yet seen” (Hebrews 11:1). Today’s passage shares the active faith journey of a desperate mother. Her daughter is inhabited by a demon. We are not told how the demon gained possession. Scripture teaches it is possible for us to open our hearts to be ruled by habitual sin and provide an invitation for a demon to enter (e.g. refusal to forgive). A demon is an angelic entity who opposes God’s sovereign control of Love. Demons influence people to live in a way that is contrary to God’s intentions.
News has traveled the area about Jesus; the One who delivers the captives. This mother does not stop until she finds Jesus and petitions Him to provide the grace she knows He possesses in order to heal and deliver her daughter. She believes Jesus is the Messiah of Truth sent by God. Therefore, she stands on the prophesied Word from Isaiah about Messiah, “The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the LORD has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released, that the blind will see, and the oppressed will be set free” (61:1). She does not take “no” for an answer; she does not leave without the Word of the Lord being spoken over her daughter. Jesus tells this mother He has really come to release the Word of grace in order to “feed” or teach the Jews. It is not time to reach out for Gentiles or non-Jews. She accepts that Messiah came first for the Jews, but she begs for the crumbs of grace, because she is convinced that even the crumbs of God’s Love and mercy will bring the miracle she needs. Jesus is impressed with her statement of reasoning; her Word usage accompanied by faith.
A Woman’s Faith
24 Jesus left and went to the region near the city of Tyre, where he stayed in someone’s home. He did not want people to know he was there, but they found out anyway. 25 A woman whose daughter had an evil spirit in her heard where Jesus was. And right away she came and knelt down at his feet. 26 The woman was Greek and had been born in the part of Syria known as Phoenicia. She begged Jesus to force the demon out of her daughter. 27 But Jesus said, “The children must first be fed! It isn’t right to take away their food and feed it to dogs (translates pets).”
28 The woman replied, “Lord, even dogs eat the crumbs that children drop from the table.”
29 Jesus answered, “That’s true! You may go now. The demon has left your daughter.” 30 When the woman got back home, she found her child lying on the bed. The demon had gone.
Jesus uses the imagery of dogs (pets) as an example of Table (Communion) fellowship regarding salvation. In other words, Jesus is simply reminding this woman that salvation is from the Jews or God’s covenant people. The faith of this mother goes beyond that reasoning. She believes there is more than enough mercy from God’s covenant to spill out for her needs as a Gentile, too. It is a picture of the Holy Spirit pouring salvation out into the world. There is more than enough grace to deliver and save us all…praise God!
Prayer: Lord, help me to act in such faith, today. I believe Your Word of Love is Truth for my heart and healing for my soul. Cover me with Your grace and spill salvation into Your world. We need You! In Jesus’ name. Amen.