Story of the Month - Revised

Us and THEM

Matthew 15:21–28

Jesus thoroughly enjoyed his vacation. But then, Matthew doesn't tell us much about Jesus's vacations—in fact, he doesn't even mention the word! Matthew does tells us that Jesus and his disciples hiked thirty miles from Galilee to Tyre and Sidon, gentile cities on the coasts of the Mediterranean Sea. There, one can imagine some of the disciples kicking off their sandals and splashing around in the surf. Perhaps, some dove right into the cold, clear waters. I like to picture Jesus in the midst of the hubbub.

A few of his disciples looked out across the vast blue sea, wondering, "What kind of boat would weather the waves? What kind of nets would bring in the catch from a sea THIS size?" As they chatted among themselves, the disciples were careful to avoid making contact with the Gentiles in the region. After all, those Gentiles, like dogs, were not ritually clean. Even to touch an unclean person could render one unfit to enter the Temple until one found the time to scrub, put on a new change of clothes, and go for ritual immersion to restore one's state of purity. Being unclean would leave one unable to go directly to God's House, should the occasion arise!

Suddenly, and without warning, a resident of one of the towns, a Gentile woman, tried to penetrate their circle around Jesus, crying, "Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me. My daughter is in terrible bondage to the power of demons!"

The disciples looked around in complete amazement. How would Jesus respond? They were not sure how Jesus would answer the woman. On the one hand, she was pleading for mercy, but on the other hand, Jesus was not sent to Gentiles. That was to come later—after he came for Israel!

Yeshua gave passing attention to her pleas. But the woman persisted, annoying the disciples. Finally, the disciples came to him and said, "Send her away [healed], for she cries after us." But, Jesus called out to her in Greek, saying, "I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel."

Shaking off his words, she bowed, prostrating herself before him and pleading, "Lord, help me!" He responded, "It is not good to take the bread of little children and toss it to the house dogs." To this, the woman answered with great wisdom, saying, "Yea, Lord, for even the little dogs eat of the little pieces which fall from the table of their masters."

Like the Samaritan woman who had come before, this Canaanite woman clearly recognized that "Salvation is of the Jews." She knew her lowly position and had made a point of preserving Israel's historical privilege. And she accepted her present standing as a foreigner and an outsider, too.

Still, Canaanites were the vaunted enemy of Israel! On top of that, the woman was asking, in Greek, to be healed on Gentile territory! How could Jesus respond to the woman and still remain obedient to the word of his Father in heaven? The disciples froze and waited to see.

Turning to her, Jesus spoke, "O woman, awesome is your faith. Let it be as you wish." And her daughter was healed that very hour!

That day, the disciples learned something new about Jesus's mission to his people. They had to think deeply about how God responds to those who face the truth and still seek Him from the depths of their humility. There was something lasting about God's compassion for people who approach His son in faith, begging for grace.

Dr. Feinberg,

Thank you for accepting my challenge. I enjoyed reading "Us & Them" from a different viewpoint. I believe you added a lot of insight I had not thought of before.

I still have difficulty thinking the disciples wanted the Lord to send the woman away healed. It challenges my thinking, but I have yet to see that interpretation. I'll "chew on it" some more.

I also think you give the woman more understanding about Jewish thought then she probably had. I personally think she was responding to faith given to her there on the spot as it related to her immediate need. Still, I know that it is possible for her to have a background in Jewish culture and religion.

I need one more thing if you don't mind. Would you give me the central truth of your story? In other words, why would you tell it, who would you tell it to, and what results would you hope to get from those who hear it? It would be good to balance the reasons I gave you for why I crafted the story in the first place.

Thank you again for your work on this story.

—John