DELIGHTFUL FAITH (Mark 7:24-30)
INTRODUCTION:
Within the pages of Mark’s Gospel we meet many people, some are named and other unnamed, the event we are going to look at this morning is of one who was unnamed. What makes this event so remarkable is this woman’s faith that delighted the Lord Jesus. When Jesus delights in someone’s faith it is important for us to look at what make’s that person’s faith delightful. Charles Spurgeon, the prince of preachers, once said concerning this unknown woman whose faith delighted our Savior, “Our Lord had a very quick eye for spying faith. The Lord Jesus was charmed with the fair jewel of this woman’s faith, and watching it and delighting in it He resolved to turn it around and set it in other lights, that the various facets of this priceless diamond might each one flash its brilliance and delight His soul.”[1] We will see in this passage that Jesus first holds this woman’s faith up to the light of His strange silence and then to the light of His apparent rebuff, so that the Church down through the ages could see how beautiful her faith was. When we examine this woman’s faith it can be of great help to any person who has not yet come to faith in Jesus. It can also be an equally great help to the believer who is struggling with his or her faith in difficult circumstances. Let’s pray and then get into our passage of Scripture.
--PRAY--
SCRIPTURE:
Turn in your Bibles this morning to Mark 7:24-30 where we are introduced to this woman and learn of her encounter with Jesus. Please, if you are able, stand in honor of the reading of God’s Word, and follow along as I read.
Mark 7:24-30,
“Jesus got up and went away from there to the region of Tyre. And when He had entered a house, He wanted no one to know of it; yet He could not escape notice. But after hearing of Him, a woman whose little daughter had an unclean spirit immediately came and fell at His feet. Now the woman was a Gentile, of the Syrophoenician race. And she kept asking Him to cast the demon out of her daughter. And He was saying to her, ‘Let the children be satisfied first, for it is not good to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.’ But she answered and said to Him, ‘Yes, Lord, but even the dogs under the table feed on the children’s crumbs.’ And He said to her, ‘Because of this answer go; the demon has gone out of your daughter.’ And going back to her home, she found the child lying on the bed, the demon having left.” (Mark 7:24–30, NASB95)[2]
DELIGHTFUL FAITH HAS A DIVINE ENCOUNTER (Mark 7:24-25)
When this beautiful encounter is viewed from beginning to end in its context, it is evident that it was divinely arranged. Remember that Jesus had just come off a huge clash with a delegation of Pharisees and scribes from Jerusalem. The clash had concerned the concept of ritual defilement, the Lord Jesus had declared that externals do not defile a person, but what is within a person within their heart is what makes a person unclean. The encounter over, our passage tells us that Jesus withdrew to get some needed rest, but in doing so He purposely journeyed into Gentile territory, which according to the Pharisees and scribes was ritually unclean.
Mark tells us that Jesus went to the region of Tyre, which is situated northwest of Galilee. Tyre was a coastal city in the Gentile territory of ancient Phoenicia, which is today located in southern Lebanon, which would not be a safe place for a Jew to go today, especially after the events of this past week. In the parallel account in Matthew 15, Matthew says that Jesus and the disciples went into the district of Tyre and Sidon. These two cities in Lebanon were both maritime cities on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea about twenty miles apart. We will learn that after spending an unspecified amount of time in Tyre, Jesus then journeyed north through Sidon and then east and south coming again to the Sea of Galilee and traveling south along the eastern side of the sea. In the face of His own people’s rejection, Jesus sought rest and seclusion in a Gentile place. Arriving in the vicinity of Tyre, Jesus along with the twelve entered a house and because this was not a mission to the Gentiles but intended for rest and a time for teaching His disciples, Jesus wanted no one to know that He was there; but Mark adds, “yet He could not escape notice.” (Mark 7:24b, NASB95)[3] Even though deep in Gentile territory, roughly thirty-five miles northwest of Capernaum, word about His arrival began to circulate. If you remember from earlier in Mark in chapter three, we learned that people from the vicinity of Tyre and Sidon had been among the crowds that followed Jesus during His ministry in Galilee. Those who had traveled to see Him returned home with eyewitness reports of the amazing miracles they had seen Him perform. Because of this, word about Jesus spread far beyond the borders of Israel.
Though the Lord intended this trip for rest and private instruction for His disciples, He also knew of the divine appointment that awaited Him. The truth being, that divine encounter was a critical part of the apostles’ training to be His witnesses. His meeting with a Gentile woman provided the Twelve with a vivid example of true faith and a preview of what was to come, when they would begin to take the gospel to the ends of the earth.
Word that Jesus was there reached a woman whose little daughter had an unclean spirit, in other words, her daughter was demon possessed, and this woman immediately came and fell at the feet of the Lord Jesus. She had heard of Jesus, and she believed Jesus was her only hope. She believed that He could and would heal her daughter. She came to Jesus in faith, and Jesus knew it. As Jesus drew her remarkable faith out, the first thing we see is that it is a persistent faith.
DELIGHTFUL FAITH IS PERSISTENT (Mark 7:26)
This woman knew about Jesus, knew that He had the power to heal diseases and cast out demons and she came and in humble reverence fell down before Jesus. Throughout Jesus ministry in Galilee, He had regularly healed Jews and liberated Jews from demons. But as Mark explains, this woman was a Gentile, of the Syrophoenician race. Matthew in his parallel account tells us that she is a Canaanite woman. A descendant of that ancient race that Israel had tried to get rid of when they came and took possession of the land. The word translated “Gentile” is actually the word for “Greek” She was a Greek Gentile in the sense that she had been Hellenized by the Greek culture and spoke the Greek language. In other words, she was a Greek speaking pagan Gentile from Tyre. Accordingly, she would have been despised by the Pharisees and scribes and would have been considered unclean—a “dog,” and a female one at that. The barrier here was great, and it went both ways. Greek women were socially savaged by their own pagan culture, which made this woman’s approach to Jesus even more remarkable. But she had a great need: her little daughter was afflicted with a demon. As a mother this woman’s heart was aching for her daughter. With her life and home in satanic turmoil, she had performed whatever ceremonies she thought would appease her false gods, but to no avail. When it became obvious to her that her idols of stone could not deliver her child, she turned away and abandoned her pagan practices. Turning from her mute and deaf idols, she came to Jesus, hoping Israel’s Messiah could free her daughter.
Mark tells us that she kept asking for Jesus’ help, this indicates that this woman was unwilling to give up. Her love for her daughter, the horror of demonic power in her home, combined with her confidence in Jesus’ power, fed her unwavering resolve. This heartfelt persistence was matched by an attitude of humble penitence. As the parallel account in Matthew 15:22 explains, she “began to cry out, saying, ‘Have mercy on me, Lord, Son of David; my daughter is cruelly demon-possessed.’ ” (Matthew 15:22, NASB95)[4] Recognizing her own unworthiness, she begged for mercy on the basis of His inherent goodness, not her own. Her address to Jesus was also characterized by reverence, and a recognition of His messianic role. Even though she was a Gentile, she acknowledged Him as Lord and identified Him by the messianic title, “Son of David.” Her words suggest more than a superficial knowledge of the religious beliefs of neighboring Israel. She rightly understood who Jesus was.
Matthew 15:23, the parallel passage to this one, tells us that although she kept asking persistently, Jesus, at first, did not respond to her, He did not speak a single word to her but kept silent. We may find this a little startling knowing the character of our Lord, but we must understand that Jesus was not being rude or indifferent. There was a reason behind Jesus’ silence, He was illustrating a vital spiritual point; both for the woman and for the disciples. The reason Jesus did not immediately respond to the woman was to allow the vigorous character of her faith to be put on display. After experiencing the superficial faith of so many in Israel, the Lord had found true faith in a Gentile woman from the region of Tyre. The barrier of His silence was not designed to push her away but to display the authenticity of her faith. Unlike the rich young ruler, whose faith crumbled when tested, this woman’s faith was unbreakable as she persistently continued to request her daughter’s release from the demon that possessed her despite the silence of Jesus. That the Lord loved her and showed true compassion to her is seen in the rest of this account.
DELIGHTFUL FAITH IS HUMBLE (Mark 7:27)
Even the disciples asked Jesus to send her away because she kept shouting her request. The interpreted the Lord’s silence was a refusal to help this woman and they were becoming annoyed with her persistence. Jesus response to the disciples is not recorded in Mark but Matthew records it for us in Matthew 15:24. “But He answered and said, ‘I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.’ ” (Matthew 15:24, NASB95)[5] These words of the Lord Jesus reminded the disciples that Jesus’ primary mission was to the Jewish people, and that the time for them to be witnesses throughout the whole world had not yet arrived. Jesus’ statement also tested the woman’s faith, since it sounded like He was saying He might not help her because she was a Gentile. Those whose faith was not a strong as this woman’s might have erupted in anger at these words or walked away in dejection. But not this woman, and as she comes, we see the humility of her faith. Matthew 15:25 records, “But she came and began to bow down before Him, saying, ‘Lord, help me!’ ” (Matthew 15:25, NASB95)[6] This phrase to “bow down” can also be translated and often is “to worship” and this highlights this woman’s reverential and humble attitude toward Jesus. Knowing that Jesus was her only hope, she humbly refused to be dissuaded from coming to Him.
Jesus continued to test the genuineness of her faith by basically telling her the same as He had just told the disciples. Back in Mark 7:27 we read, “And He was saying to her, ‘Let the children be satisfied first, for it is not good to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.’” (Mark 7:27, NASB95)[7] Using different words Jesus reiterated that His ministry priority was first to Israel. A meal prepared for the children should not be given to the dogs before the children have been satisfied. In the same way, the Messiah’s priority was to preach the gospel of the kingdom to the children of Israel. Though the gospel would soon be preached to all the nations, that global expansion was waiting for Christ’s ascension and the arrival of the Holy Spirit. The New Testament uses two different words for dogs. One refers to the feral mongrels that roamed the streets in packs and scavenged for garbage. The term that Jesus uses here is often translated as “little dogs” and referred to small household pets that were cared for by the family. By using this term Jesus was far less harsh than most first-century Jews would have been when using the term to refer to Gentiles. Even so, the woman understood the Lord’s point. His primary focus was on feeding the children of Israel, and she was not included.
DELIGHTFUL FAITH TRUSTS IN JESUS (Mark 7:28-30)
Jesus knew that this woman’s faith was genuine and had been given to her from His Father, and as such it would not be discouraged or dissuaded. Instead of being offended by Jesus’ words, the woman responded with bold and undeterred trust. Building off of Jesus’ analogy, Mark gives her response, “But she answered and said to Him, ‘Yes, Lord, but even the dogs under the table feed on the children’s crumbs.’ ” (Mark 7:28, NASB95)[8] She recognized her unworthiness and humbly acknowledged her place as a Gentile. Unlike many of the Jews, who responded to Jesus with self-righteous pride, her attitude was meek and poor in spirit. For her, just the crumbs were sufficient, she only wanted a crumb of Jesus power, which would be all that was needed to free her daughter. Though the priority of Jesus mission was to the children of Israel at this time, the crumbs of the gospel did fall from the table to satisfy humble Gentiles who hungered for true righteousness. The covenants, Scriptures, and the Messiah may all have been given to Israel, but God intended for the Gentiles to receive the overflow. The message of salvation that came first to the Jews is the same gospel message that was and would be given to the Gentiles. The several Gentile conversions in the Gospels are previews of the future salvation of souls from all nations.
This woman’s response, brought out by the Lord Jesus, displayed a quality of faith that Jesus called “great faith.” In the parallel passage in Matthew 15:28 Jesus said, “O woman, your faith is great…” (Matthew 15:28b, NASB95)[9] On an earlier occasion, the Lord made a similar remark about a Roman centurion who asked Jesus to heal his servant. Matthew writes, “Now when Jesus heard this, He marveled and said to those who were following, ‘Truly I say to you, I have not found such great faith with anyone in Israel.’ ” (Matthew 8:10, NASB95)[10] In both cases, it was a Gentile who demonstrated such remarkable faith. With the woman in our passage, the context suggests that her faith was more than just a nominal belief in Jesus’ healing power. Her persistent, humble, reverent appeal to Jesus Christ implies that God was at work in her heart, drawing her to salvation. Had her faith remained in the pagan deities of her Canaanite culture, it would have been empty and worthless. True faith, faith that is referred to as great faith, sets its hope in the one true God and fixes its eyes on Jesus, the author and perfector of faith.
The greatness of faith displayed in this woman’s life is magnified when you compare it to what she knew about Jesus. Remember she was born and raised in a pagan, idolatrous culture, she did not possess the privileged heritage of the Israelites, she had never been to the temple, she had no understanding of the sacrificial system, she had no access to the Scriptures. Even though she had received only a little revelation, she believed. The greatness of her faith was evidenced by her willingness to turn away from her idols and her pagan lifestyle and embrace Jesus Christ in faith. The display of her faith stood in stark contrast to the Pharisees and scribes who arrogantly condemned their own Messiah as a blasphemer, a friend of sinners, an ally of Satan. Jesus had given a severe warning to the Israelites who rejected Him, He said in Matthew 11:21, “Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles had occurred in Tyre and Sidon which occurred in you, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.” (Matthew 11:21, NASB95)[11] Here was a pagan woman from the region of Tyre who proved the truthfulness of Jesus’ words. What a rebuke she was to apostate Israel, a Gentile who embraces Israel’s Messiah by faith when so many self-righteous Jews rejected Him.
Jesus knew all along what He was going to do for this woman, but He prolonged His encounter with her in order to display the nature of genuine faith. Jesus never refused anyone, Jew or Gentile, who approached Him in sincere faith. Upon hearing this woman’s reply and commending her for her great faith we read, “And He said to her, ‘Because of this answer go; the demon has gone out of your daughter.’ ” (Mark 7:29, NASB95)[12] Because this woman possessed true belief in Jesus, the process of having her faith tested only strengthened it. Her resolve did not waver but grew stronger. And Jesus was delighted with her response prompted by her faith in Him.
The woman wanted her daughter freed from the demon that oppressed her, and Jesus granted that request. He has such control over the spiritual realm that He did not even need to be with the girl. His power is omnipresent, and the evil spirit was immediately compelled to leave this little girl’s body. Having embraced the Lord Jesus in faith, the woman returned home confident that what Jesus said He had done. “And going back to her home, she found the child lying on the bed, the demon having left.” (Mark 7:30, NASB95)[13] That the daughter was lying down in bed suggests both that she was exhausted due to the struggle with the demon and that she could finally rest peacefully, now that the demon was gone. Undoubtedly, there was great rejoicing in that house that day.
CONCLUSION:
This Gentile woman’s little daughter being freed from the demon that possessed her is wonderful, but it is not the primary purpose that this account is recorded for us. The focus of this passage is on the Gentile woman’s faith which was characterized by persistence, humility, penitence, and reverence, and the object of her faith; namely, the Lord Jesus Christ. This woman’s encounter with Jesus is a magnificent illustration of the fact that genuine saving faith forsakes idols, abandons pride, and reverently yet persistently begs for divine mercy and grace. This woman came to Jesus on the other side of the cross. She did not have the ultimate revelation of God’s love and power toward us. But we do. “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.” (John 3:16, NASB95)[14] Like this woman, you may not have had the advantages of being raised in the household of faith. Then again maybe you have. But like this woman in today’ passage, the word has come to you that Jesus Christ can meet your need. He can heal your heart. What is required for this to happen? First, that you approach Him humbly acknowledging who you are, a sinner in need of God’s mercy and grace. Second, you believe that Jesus paid the price for your sin by His death, and that on the third day He rose from the dead proving His death satisfied the justice of God on your behalf. Third, you come to the Lord Jesus, just as this woman did. Jesus said, “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.” (Matthew 11:28, NASB95)[15]
[1]Spurgeon, C. H., The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, vol. 22 (Pasadena, TX : Pilgrim Publications, 1971), p. 458
[2]New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. 1995. La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[3]New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. 1995. La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[4]New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. 1995. La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[5]New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. 1995. La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[6]New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. 1995. La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[7]New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. 1995. La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[8]New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. 1995. La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[9]New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. 1995. La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[10]New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. 1995. La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[11]New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. 1995. La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[12]New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. 1995. La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[13]New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. 1995. La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[14]New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. 1995. La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[15]New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. 1995. La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.