Today’s Podcast
Today’s Scriptures
Today’s Bible reading plans include:
Ready – Matthew 15:21-39
Set – 1 Chronicles 12; Matthew 15
Go! – 2 Samuel 3; 1 Chronicles 12; Matthew 15
Matthew 15:21-39
21 Jesus left that place and withdrew to Tyre and Sidon. 22 A Canaanite woman—a non-Jew—came to Him.Canaanite Woman (wailing): Lord, Son of David, have mercy on me! My daughter is possessed by a demon. Have mercy, Lord!
23 Jesus said nothing. And the woman continued to wail. His disciples came to Him.
Disciples: Do something—she keeps crying after us!
Jesus: 24 I was sent here only to gather up the lost sheep of Israel.
25 The woman came up to Jesus and knelt before Him.
Canaanite Woman: Lord, help me!
Jesus: 26 It is not right to waste the children’s bread by feeding dogs.
Canaanite Woman: 27 But, Lord, even dogs eat the crumbs that fall by the table as their master is eating.
28 Jesus—whose ancestors included Ruth and Rahab—spoke with kindness and insight.
Jesus: Woman, you have great faith. And your request is done.
And her daughter was healed, right then and from then on.
29 Jesus left and went to the Sea of Galilee. He went up on a mountaintop and sat down. 30 Crowds thronged to Him there, bringing the lame, the maimed, the blind, the crippled, the mute, and many other sick and broken people. They laid them at His feet, and He healed them. 31 The people saw the mute speaking, the lame walking, the maimed made whole, the crippled dancing, and the blind seeing; and the people were amazed, and they praised the God of Israel.
Jesus (to His disciples): 32 We must take pity on these people for they have touched My heart; they have been with Me for three days, and they don’t have any food. I don’t want to send them home this hungry—they might collapse on the way!
Disciples: 33 We’ll never find enough food for all these people, out here in the middle of nowhere!
Jesus: 34 How much bread do you have?
Disciples: Seven rounds of flatbread and a few small fish.
35 He told the crowd to sit down. 36 He took the bread and the fish, He gave thanks, and then He broke the bread and divided the fish. He gave the bread and fish to the disciples, the disciples distributed them to the people, 37 and everyone ate and was satisfied. When everyone had eaten, the disciples picked up seven baskets of crusts and broken pieces and crumbs.
38 There were 4,000 men there, not to mention all the women and children. 39 Then Jesus sent the crowd away. He got into the boat and went to Magadan.
Today’s Devotional
From today’s background scripture God might say:
Some thought Me cruel and lacking compassion when I didn’t answer the Canaanite woman’s plea to free her daughter from the demon that possessed her. Others thought I was doing the right thing since I was a Jew and showed proper priority of the nations refusing to acknowledge anyone but Jews. Of course, they forgot I had healed Samaritans, and Roman servants, and countless others from the surrounding countries, all considered enemies of God’s “chosen people”.
But like the man born blind from birth, I wanted to use the woman’s nationality and her pleas as a teaching point to those around Me and to My future disciples. The Jews forgot their place in the world. That’s why I came in the flesh in the first place. I told Abraham he would become the father of a great nation so that all nations would be blessed through him.
That doesn’t mean Israel would be the greatest nation or the most important nation among all others. It doesn’t mean I love them more or less than any other. It means I have a special mission for them. I chose them to carry the message of salvation to the rest of the world. I chose Israel to teach the rest of the world about Me. Unfortunately, they let themselves be carried away by the rituals and practices of the nations they were supposed to teach instead of remaining holy.
I used the coming of the Canaanite woman to show the Israelites just how callous they had become. Everyone around Me recognized the faith the woman exercised. She knew I could heal her daughter’s pitiful condition. They saw Me drive out demons with just a single word. It would take Me almost no effort to grant this mother’s desperate request.
My actions that day showed the Israelites how they had failed to reach out to the foreigners among them. My first refusals demonstrated the Jews actions in shutting out their neighbors and failing to embrace them in their faith and teaching them about Me. Their mission from the beginning was to teach others about Me. Instead, they shunned anyone not of their race.
I’m afraid many who call themselves by My name today do the same thing. If others don’t look like them, dress like them, worship like them, speak the same language, travel in the same neighborhoods, they just don’t belong. Nothing could be further from the truth. I created all people. All races. All nations. They exist only because I allow it. Everything belongs to Me. Evil scarred My perfect world, but those who really know Me have an opportunity to introduce others to Me and bring hope to the hopeless. Peace into the middle of turmoil. Calm from chaos.
The world can still be blessed by those who are of My kingdom. The new covenant gives those who follow Me the opportunity to bless each individual in the world in the same way Abraham had opportunity to bless the nations of the world. And like with Abraham and the Israelites, I do not expect you to think yourself better or superior to others, but like when I walked with you, be a servant to others. Show them My love. Love God and love others with all your whole being.
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