BE LIKE CANAANITE WOMAN
Mathew. 15:21 – 28 …He replied, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to their dogs.” …
The background of the above verse was there was a Canaanite woman (non-Christian) who was praying to Jesus to heal her daughter who was posses by a demon. If we read the full occasion (Mathew 15:21-28) Jesus rejected her prayer for three times, in verse 23 first time He ignored her by not replying to her, in verse 24 second time He said He will not help her as she is non-Israelite (Non-Christian in today’s context) and the third time He insulted her that by saying she was a dog.
KNOWLEDGE OF GOD:
When she prayed to Jesus in Mat. 15:22, she did not pray by calling “Teacher help me (or) Pastor Help me (or) Man help me” She prayed by starting “Lord, Son of David”. She got the attention of Jesus in beginning of prayer itself, because this woman was having the clear idea of who Jesus is, while many Israelites including pharisees & Sadducees do not understand who Jesus was. When she said ‘Lord, Son of David, have mercy on me’ she acknowledged that Jesus is Son of God, the Messiah himself and He is merciful. When we pray we must know who our God is and what He is capable of, that knowledge will open the door of heaven immediately for us.
PERSISTENT IN PRAYER:
When Jesus was silent and did not answer her a word, she was keep crying out after Jesus (Mat. 15:26). Even Jesus himself symbolically told her that I will answer only Israelites, she did not go back, she knelt before him and prayed again to help her. This shows HER PERSISTENCE. When we pray for something and you know morally it is right thing to ask God, do not give up until you see the result. Be like this Canaanite woman, she was keep asking until Jesus responded positively. God is more than willing to give you whatever you ask for, do not give up in asking. He is merciful God.
KNOWLEDGE OF THE LOVE OF GOD:
Mat. 15: 26, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to their dogs.” Here Jesus calling her dog. It sounds big insult to her, isn’t it? How offended she must have been. But to our surprise, she replied to Jesus in a way that ‘let me be a dog, but whatever crumbs fall from the master’s table the dog shall eat, so please heal my daughter’. Imagine if your pastor calls you dog in your dire situation what will you do? Most church people response would be raging and acting against him. Here she was not raging, rather she was still praying, because one side she was loving her daughter so much and the other side she had the knowledge that God loves her, she was confident of the love of God, so the insult word from Jesus did not hurt her.
The Knowledge of God, Persistence in Prayer, and the knowledge of the Love of God will bring answers and breakthroughs in your life. Be like Canaanite Woman.
