Matthew 15:21-39
THE SYROPHOENICIAN
A Gentile woman from Canaan seeks Jesus out and says, “Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David! My daughter is severely demon-possessed.” First, this woman asked for MERCY, calling on the deep love and compassion of the Lord. She trusted in the love of the Lord, even when He stated that His mission was to the Jews. Second, when Jesus said “It is not good to take the children’s bread and throw it to little dogs” He was using a phrase to describe His mission, not because He had racial bias. He was not calling this woman a dog. In fact, He says her faith is great, and set her daughter free from the spirit, making her whole.
Second, THIS WOMAN KNEW HEALING WAS FOR HER- maybe Jesus was called to the Jews, but what He had was for EVERYONE. Her faith was her determined reliance on Jesus.
HEALING THE MULTITUDES
From a mountain, not a church building, people gathered to Him. Imagine a crowd of people on a mountain, marveling because they saw the mute speaking, the maimed made whole, the lame walking and the blind seeing. There were four thousand men, plus women and children. It was not unusual in that culture to count families by counting the men, the head of those homes. Counting a crowd is not to brag about how many were there, but to describe what God was doing. If we count the people in attendance at a gathering, we need to have the right motive – not to feel good about ourselves, but to describe what God is doing.
FEEDING THE FOUR THOUSAND
After the miracles happening, it isn’t surprising that crowds are following Jesus. For three days they have been with Him. They had not eaten, and Jesus didn’t want to send them to walk a distance to get home in a weak condition. They were in the wilderness, and there was no place to buy food. This is the second time we see Jesus performing a supernatural act by multiplying food. Jesus met natural and supernatural needs. What a wonderful Savior!
Exodus 9-11
Exodus 9:16 “But indeed for this purpose I have raised you up, that I may show My power in you, and that My name may be declared in all the earth.” This sounds like a Scripture that could be written to Moses or to Israel, but this verse is written to Pharaoh. GOD RAISED UP Pharaoh, a wicked, hardhearted leader, to SHOW HIS POWER. All these wonders are being done as God shows Himself to be Jehovah.
Over and over, God says, “Let My people go.”
Over and over, “Pharaoh hardened his heart” or God hardened Pharaoh’s heart
And many times, “that you may know that there is none like Me in all the earth.”
“Now if I had stretched out My hand and struck you and your people with pestilence, then you would have been cut off from the earth.” Verse 15. God could do it. Instead of being stubborn and hardhearted, it is wise to humble ourselves and pray. It was true then and it’s true now.
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