Friday, June 15, 2012

SIH’s Think On These Things: Healing A Gentile Demoniac Child

The next miracle in our series is Jesus heals a Gentile demoniac child …This miracle is recorded for us in Matt 15:21-28, Mark 7:24-30



In this account of the miracle at hand, we find a Gentile (Syrophenician) woman approaching Christ seeking healing for her demon possessed daughter.  The Lord delays the healing by answering her with silence.  When she approaches his disciples they desire to send her away.  But the Lord speaks to His disciples explaining His delay by telling them “I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel”.  The woman comes to Christ a second time asking for His help. 

This is what followed…

Jesus tells her “Let the children first be filled: for it is not meet to take the children's bread, and to cast it unto the dogs.”  She answers him by saying “Yes, Lord: yet the dogs under the table eat of the children's crumbs.”  The Lord then responds “O woman, great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt” He also tells her, “For this saying go thy way; the devil is gone out of thy daughter.”  We are then told that the woman returns to her home and finds out that the demon has been removed from her daughter.



There are several points we must take notice of… 

  1. Please note first, the Lord NEVER refuses to help this woman.
    1. He simply keeps silent at her first request.  Later, He explains to her that, as a Gentile, apart from His grace, she should not expect nor feel deserving of this great miracle that was about to take place.   
    2. Also, when given a request to send her away by His disciples, He does not give His approval. He begins to speak of His motives behind the delay.
    3. Based on the above points, I believe He knew that He would fulfill her request all along. 
  2. If He was going to heal this young woman why did He delay? He was simply teaching His disciples a very important truth, Gentiles would also be the recipients of God’s grace.
    1. Please notice when He spoke to His disciples He made the statement, “Let the children FIRST be filled” in other words, the gospel and His ministry would go out to the Jews first, but eventually it would go out to the Gentiles as well.  They should not misinterpret His ministering to the Jews to mean that Gentiles would NEVER benefit from His works. 
    2. Also, His eventual healing of the woman’s daughter would be another proof that Gentiles were not totally excluded from receiving blessings and healing through His work.
  3. Finally, the events of this miracle teach us that, when the Lord delays answering our requests, He has a reason to do so.  One of His reasons for delay can be to teach a lesson to those who are watching.  What better opportunity do we have to show true faith in Christ even in the midst of a time of “silence” He is showing towards us and our request?



May the Lord bless each one of us as we “Think On These Things”.






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