Women, Called and Serving in Leadership

Full Inclusion – the Canaanite Woman

May 11, 2009 on 4:56 pm | In Women in Ministry | No Comments

The Canaanite Woman

Matt 15:22 -28 And a Canaanite woman from that region came out and began to cry out, saying, “Have mercy on me, Lord, Son of David; my daughter is cruelly demon-possessed.” 23 But He did not answer her a word. And His disciples came and implored Him, saying, “Send her away, because she keeps shouting at us.” 24 But He answered and said, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” 25 But she came and began to bow down before Him, saying, “Lord, help me!” 26 And He answered and said, “It is not good to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.” 27 But she said, “Yes, Lord; but even the dogs feed on the crumbs which fall from their masters’ table.” 28 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.

The first thing I noticed when beginning the story of this woman’s encounter with Jesus is that she called Him Lord and Son of David. “Son of David” is a term which represented Jesus as being the promised and long waited for Messiah.

This Canaanite woman – a woman from the wrong side of the tracks – recognized Jesus as the promised Messiah of God.

The disciples did not have compassion for her or her need. When they saw Jesus not answer her or give heed to her cries they asked Him to send her away.

Could Jesus’ silence have been a test to see what was in the heart of His disciples? Could He have been silent in the hope that they would implore Him to give aid to this woman based upon her recognition of Him as Messiah?

Scripture does not give us the answer to my question, it does tell us that Jesus DID NOT send her away as asked by His disciples – instead he begins to speak to her.

I like how verse 24 says it, “But he answered and said”. The disciples implored Him to send her away BUT instead of sending her away He answered her cries for help.

Jesus reply to her was in answer to her recognition of Him as the Messiah. He replied, “I am sent to lost sheep of the house of Israel.”

This fact – He, the Messiah, was sent only to the house of Israel – did not dissuade her or stop her. She bowed herself before Him as an act of worship and said, “Lord, help me!”

KJV of verse 26 says, “Then came she and worshiped him, saying, Lord, help me.”

The Greek word translated as worship means “to prostrate oneself in reverence, to adore, to worship.”

This Canaanite woman bowed herself down and worshipped Jesus as the Messiah and called Him Lord.

Jesus answered her, “it is not good to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.”

A common name used by the Jews for the heathens was dogs. Jesus was not calling this woman a dog as in one of no value or worth, rather he referred to her as being a gentile and as such separate from the covenant and promises of God.

The Canaanite woman responded, “the dogs – the gentiles who are separated from the covenant and promises of God – feed upon the scraps that fall from the Master’s table.”

What a statement of faith by this woman!! She knew that God – the Master – feeds the just and the unjust!! She knew that God – the Master – caused rain (His goodness and His provision) to fall upon the just and the unjust!!!

Her faith kept her pressing in to receive. Her faith kept her from being dissuaded.

Jesus said this Canaanite woman’s faith was great – of huge amount and proportion!

She believed that Jesus was the Messiah – the sent one of God. She believed that she a gentile could indeed receive the crumbs of goodness and provision which fell from the Master’s table.

Believing she could receive, she received what she asked of Him.

Again, we have a story of inclusion of one who was separated by birth from the covenant and promises of God. Separation is not the end of the story, through persevering faith she received what she asked of Him.

We, who by birth are born in the gender of a woman and once excluded in the OT from the priesthood, through faith receive full inclusion and full membership in the priesthood of all believers.

These two women’s stories are examples of the full inclusion of women.

Through persevering faith let us press in to possess the full inclusion the cross purchased for us.