the children and the dogs

Matthew 15:21-28

New International Version (NIV)

The Faith of a Canaanite Woman

 ²¹ Leaving that place, Jesus withdrew to the region of Tyre and Sidon. ²² A Canaanite woman from that vicinity came to him, crying out, “Lord, Son of David, have mercy on me! My daughter is demon-possessed and suffering terribly.”  ²³ Jesus did not answer a word. So his disciples came to him and urged him, “Send her away, for she keeps crying out after us.”
 ²⁴ He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel.”
 ²⁵ The woman came and knelt before him. “Lord, help me!” she said.
 ²⁶ He replied, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to the dogs.”
 ²⁷ “Yes it is, Lord,” she said. “Even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their master’s table.”
 ²⁸ Then Jesus said to her, “Woman, you have great faith! Your request is granted.” And her daughter was healed at that moment. 

These verses were not meaningful to me as they are now. I can hear the desperation on the mother's voice. I can almost hear her crying her heart out while nobody cared. She was utterly neglected, ignored. Her background could have disqualified her from being near the Miracle-worker. Even the people around Jesus just noticed her because they she started to get into their hair. You see, all the disciples could do was to be humans, go by the rules and treat people as to what they deserve. But Jesus is Lord. He went beyond our human tendency to discriminate, He loves mercy.

In the text, Jesus did not say anything at first. Like those days when we were at our lowest and our cries were beyond control, yet no single word form the Lord was heard? After reading it, I can feel the heart of the Lord. He was so into helping the mother but He stretched out her faith at its best. If Jesus just gave away what He was being asked to do, then the mother will get the miracle but not get the whole point of it. When God doesn't say a word that doesn't mean He doesn't have a message. It's beyond words, feel His heartbeat, there you'd find the truth. It beats you. He has your prayers in his heart.

I perceive this event as one of the most powerful evangelism known. Jesus showed what the Law was offering. To make things worse on the sight of many, He even gave an illustration on her position in life. People around may always give us a picture of ourselves lower than we actually are. We may see our feet standing on a wrong ground, miles away from heaven, far from righteousness but hey!. He so longs to save us- both the children and the dogs.