The University of the Canaanite Mother

(By Dave, 10-15 min)

Scripture

Matthew 15:21-28 (RSV)

And Jesus went away from there and withdrew to the district of Tyre and Sidon. And behold, a Canaanite woman from the region came out and cried, “Have mercy on me, O Lord, son of David; my daughter is severely possessed by a demon.” But he did not answer her a word. And his disciples came and begged him, saying, “Send her away for she is crying after us.” He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” But she came and knelt before him, saying, Lord help me.” And he answered, “It is not fair to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.” She said, “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from the master’s table.” Then Jesus answered her, “O woman, great is your faith! Be it done for you as you desire.” And her daughter was healed instantly.

Send her away

Just prior to today’s Scripture verse Jesus learned that John was beheaded. He then sought solitude only to be followed by a crowd of 5,000. Having compassion, he miraculously heals their sick and feeds them. Pharisees then travel from Jerusalem to antagonize him, and now he is withdrawing and doesn’t want people to know where he is. Into this maelstrom steps the Canaanite woman.

Jesus does not initially answer her because he did not come to Tyre to start another mass healing. He came to step away from that aspect of his ministry. Although the Lord ignores her, he does not send her away even when prompted to do so by his disciples. Instead, he engages her. There is something about this Canaanite woman we and his disciples are to see.

A mother’s response

plead with him for help. First, he ignores you and his assistants counsel him to send you away. Then he says his skills are only for the sick Jewish people, not you.

That would make most parents angry, and most would get much angrier with what follows. The healer then tells you that he is the bread of the special people. He is not going to give that bread to your daughter because the children of his faith come first. He says it is not right to take their food and give it to the dogs. The dogs would be you and your daughter.

How would you feel? I would be furious. The help my daughter needs is right in front of me but because of the land and religion into which I was born, no help will be forthcoming. Is a child’s life not more important than religious or national bigotry? The remarkable Canaanite woman of today’s Scripture verse has a much different response.

Grace before it’s time

The outrage I would feel in the Canaanite woman’s position overlooks something she did not. Not one word that Jesus said was untrue. Whether the woman was a Canaanite (Matthew), or a Greek born in Syrian Phoenicia (Mark), she is a Gentile and not of the Jewish faith. The prophets say that the Messiah of the Jewish people will come to save them. Those prophecies are a direct extension of the promise of God to never abandon his chosen people. The response of Jesus to the woman is not bigotry, it is a statement of fact. God’s plan for all human salvation is to be realized through the interaction of Jesus with the Jewish people.

Jesus is also truthful in his description of bread and dogs. Pagan beliefs abound in the territories around Israel and likely this woman was raised worshiping the gods of those beliefs or none at all. She does not know, nor has she lived, worshiping the one true God. By Old Testament standards her people are dogs. Recollect that the Canaanites were to be completely removed from the promised land so that their detestable practices were not taken up by the Jewish people (See here for more on this passage).

The Canaanite woman accepts the fact that she is far from God and that her daughter is not for whom Jesus was sent. Instead of anger, she maintains her faith that Jesus will help her even though she does not warrant his help. Her three-word plea, “Lord, help me”, demonstrates she knows there is nothing she can do to save her daughter. Only Jesus can give her daughter unwarranted healing. Only Jesus can overcome the evil that possesses her little one. The Canaanite woman is the first person in history to understand God’s grace, and she understands it before the first Easter Sunday made it a reality for all.

In response to this wisdom and unwavering faith Jesus responds “Woman you have great faith! Your request is granted.” How could it not be? Her faith was so great that she believed even a crumb from the Lord could defeat the demon in her daughter even though she was a sinner.

The University of the Canaanite woman

I am delighted the Canaanite woman was not sent away. She shows us that true Christian faith is an unshakable confidence that Jesus alone can right our relationship with God and only he can extend the unwarranted gift we now call grace. Secondly, she teaches that truly understanding grace requires accepting the truth about yourself without reticence. For if we believe there is nothing separating us from God, then what need is there for grace?

Graduates of the University of the Canaanite woman will pause under criticism and consider the possibility that what is being said about them is true. They will not respond in anger that someone dared criticize them. Instead, they will recognize and accept any truth about their sinful selves. Then they will turn to Jesus for help and see his sacrifice remove sin from their relationship with God as surely as the Lord drove the demon from the Canaanite woman’s daughter. These graduates approach their Lord with faith, humility, and confidence.

The University of humans

After several years in graduate school, I was scheduled to give a presentation to my dissertation committee detailing the progress and future of my project. My advisor wanted to hear the 20-minute talk. For 2½ hours he ripped it apart. Not only its content but virtually every sentence I spoke. There was something wrong with all of them. His criticisms included calling statements complete nonsense, utter gibberish, wildly imprecise, incoherent or flat-out wrong.

I left there angry because I thought the talk was fine. He was just being cruel. I made the changes he wanted not believing any of them mattered. Over time, it dawned on me that responding to his criticisms was making me a better and better speaker. Everything he said was true. In pride I willfully denied the truth to my detriment

How much worse is it to embrace the teaching of the University of humans when the criticisms are about your moral fiber and relationship with God. The detriment that lives on unaddressed is not simple imprecision in speaking. It is willful harboring of sin that separates us from God in the face of a loving Jesus who wants to cast it out. In the face of grace. Nothing good can come from these teachings.

Choose your school

Every day, almost in every circumstance, we can choose which school’s teachings we embrace. Suppose you have a disagreement with your wife. In the heat of the discourse, she says you are a selfish person who is incapable of thinking about others. How will you respond?

Will you, or any of us in a similar situation, choose the teaching of the University of human? If so, we will be offended and likely retaliate. Not for a moment will we consider perhaps we are selfish. Because the truth is denied, the selfishness and its sin-laden underpinnings live on unaddressed as we morally stagnate.

Or will we choose the teaching of the Canaanite woman and consider the possibility that we are selfish. When the Canaanite woman was told she had no portion in the Jewish people, she accepted it because it was true and appealed to Jesus for mercy anyhow. The teachings she displayed, the teachings Jesus wanted us to hear by engaging her, strongly counsels people to accept the truth about their sin and take it to God saying: “Lord, help me.”

But the teaching of the gospel is still deeper. Humbly accepting the truth about yourself is not only about self-awareness and growth. Accepting the truth is prerequisite to understanding the unwarranted forgiveness Jesus offers. How can we accept grace if we don’t think we need it?

The difference between choosing the teachings of the gospel over those from the human University is life altering. One pathway leads to self-righteous anger, moral stagnation and unhappiness. The other promotes deep humility, personal growth, and life-changing gratitude for the staggering sacrifice of Jesus that rights our relationship with God. One leaves a barrier between people and God and the other tears it down.

It’s very easy to see which University people chose to attend. My heart breaks for those who have yet to read today’s Scripture verse and the remaining teachings of the Gospels. As their self-torture plays out on social media, they do not know the gift of grace that awaits by accepting the truth and having the Canaanite woman’s faith in Jesus.

We can try to help these folks by spreading the teachings of Jesus as he commanded us to do. But that all begins with us. My prayer for you and me today is that we will remember our schooling and accurately perceive the sins that others or the Spirit identify for us. Then we can take those sins to Jesus and receive the help and forgiveness we need even though we don’t deserve it. Every day we do that, we shine a bit more of God’s light into ourselves and the world.

If you are like me, there’s still lots of sins knocking around inside of you, but none of them can stand against the Savior. Let’s emulate our remarkable Canaanite friend and accept without resentment that we are unfit for God while confident beyond measure that we are saved by Jesus. Every day we can remember this, it’s a good day to be God’s people. Many blessings to you all.

Dave