A Faith Answer

Jesus is looking for faith answers. These are responses that reveal our faith in Him. These do not always come in simple confessions that Jesus is Lord or that Jesus is the Son of God. In fact, these may not really be faith answers, but rather expected answers. We sometimes say what is expected of us instead of what our faith demands. In reading Matthew and Mark about the Gentile woman whose daughter was demon-possessed, we see her faith answer and Jesus' response to that answer. Her answer was "Yes, Lord, but even the dogs under the table feed on the children's crumbs." This is a faith answer. His response was "Because of this answer go your way; the demon has gone out of your daughter." And, again, "O woman, your faith is great; be it done to you as you wish."  This is only the second time Jesus tells someone they had great faith, and both were Gentiles. So what was it about this answer that caused Jesus to call it Great Faith?

First, she was not offended by His answer. Remember we just had the story earlier in Matthew 15 and Mark 7 about the Pharisees and scribes being offended by what Jesus said to them. Surely it is no accident that the next story we have has a completely different outcome. It is as if Jesus said, "Let me show you how someone should respond to me when they could be offended by me." The contrast is stark. The woman could have obtained an attorney to sue Jesus for racist insensitivity. "I'll teach Him to call me a dog!"  She could have walked away in a huff and said "forget you." So many people today never put their faith in Jesus because they do not like being called a sinner or an adulterer or a fornicator or a thief or any other type of sinner. Instead of humbling themselves before the Healer, they would rather criticize his bedside manner as being too harsh or too insensitive. Second, this woman's faith was great because her need outweighed anything else. She knew her need was great and there was no where else to turn. Just as Peter had proclaimed in John 6 that Jesus had the words of eternal life and there was no where else to go, this woman knew no one else could cast out this demon. The Pharisees did not think they needed anything from Jesus. They thought they had eternal life. So their answers were not faith answers. We only exercise faith when we know who has the words of eternal life. This woman also knew she did not have to have the entire slice of bread, crumbs would do. In fact, there is no indication that Jesus even knew her name. He called her "woman." She needed no recognition or special place in the kingdom. She needed one thing: for her daughter to be healed.

Thirdly, great faith was indicated in her persistence. She did not give up. She was not put off. She was not deterred. She came for an answer from Jesus. She had to have it for her daughter's sake, and she got it, and Jesus honored her for it. It reminds us of the persistent widow story in Luke 18. This Gentile woman living in a remote area of Israel far from the temple, and never having studied in a synagogue demonstrated that faith answers can come from the most unexpected places.
(BTW, in a previous post I indicated that Jesus went to her house. On second read, I was wrong or only assumed that he did.)