F.M. Riley (1
July 2018)
"A Puppy, or are you A
Big Dog?"
Are you
A Puppy, or are you
A Big Dog?
By Pastor F, M. Riley
June 12, 2018
"And behold, a woman of Canaan came out
of the same coasts, and cried unto Him, saying, Have mercy on
me, O Lord, thou Son of David; my daughter is grievously vexed
with a devil [demon].
But He answered her not a word.
And His disciples came and besought Him, saying, Send her away;
for she crieth after us.
But He answered and said, I am not sent
but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel.
Then came she and worshipped Him,
saying, Lord, help me.
But He answered and said, It is not
meet to take the children's bread, and to cast it to dogs.
And she said, Truth, Lord: yet the dogs
[Greek...little puppies] eat of the crumbs which fall from their
master's table.
Then Jesus answered and said unto her,
O woman, great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou
wilt. And her daughter was made whole from that very
hour."
Matthew 15:22-28
Introduction
Pride; wicked pride; often gets in the
way of the work of the Lord in people's lives. There is no
better illustration of this truth in God's Word than the above
text. In this study I want to point out truths in this text, and
in other Scriptures, which are often overlooked or ignored by
people today.
The Woman's Position
This woman was a Canaanite; a
descendant of Ham, Genesis 10:6-20.
As such, she was dark skinned, likely a black woman of the negro
race. For centuries the Canaanites and Israelites had been
bitter enemies. The common feeling of the Jews towards the
Canaanites through most of human history, is that they were more
worthless than "dogs."
If our readers will study the
context, the Lord Jesus had just entered into the borders of
Tyre and Sidon. In ancient times, both of these cities
were occupied by black people. The Israelites had no
dealings with these people, literally despising them, due to the
enmity between the two races from ancient times. The Jews
regarded them as Gentile "goyim;" Gentile dogs.
Nevertheless.....this Canaanite
woman was a mother, and obviously had a mother's love for her
daughter. So having heard of Jesus, she went to Him for
help for her daughter.
The Woman's Plea
Obviously the woman had heard about the
Lord Jesus Christ. I suspect that at the Lord's first
coming, even by word of mouth, the Lord's fame as a miracle
working healer spread all over the Middle East. It
is a simple truth of human nature, that when we are confronted
with "big news," we form some kind of opinion about it. And the
Lord Jesus Christ, at His first coming, was "big news."
This woman obviously had believed what she had heard about this
man, Jesus, and in her own heart, knew that He was the Messiah
and Savior promised to Israel, and all of mankind, in the Holy
Old Testament Scriptures. So she sought Him out as her
only source of help for her daughter.
The Woman's Persistance
The woman approached the Lord and His
disciples crying out for help for her demon possessed
daughter. Notice that she first cried out for mercy for
herself. Then she addressed Christ with recognition, as
"Lord, thou son of David." If one does not first recognize
and acknowledge their own need for the mercies of the Lord God,
then there is little use in calling upon Him to help those you
love. A prayer uttered in unbelief is an abomination
to the Lord, Proverbs 15:8. If an unbeliever wants the
Lord's attention, there has to be some repentance and faith for
the Lord in their heart.
Notice that the Lord twice ignored her
and refused to answer. This is a reflection of the Jewish
attitude towards the Canaanites. Those Jewish
disciples of the Lord asked the Lord to send her away. The
Lord's disciples didn't even want to be seen in her
company.
However, the woman refused to stop
following the Lord. She was determined to get help for her
daughter. She then came and "worshipped" the Lord, asking
again for the Lord's help.
The Woman's Humility
The Lord then told her plainly that He
had only been sent to minister "to the lost sheep of the house
of Israel." She was a Gentile woman, not an Israelite,
therefore the Lord had not been sent to her. If our
readers are careful Bible students, they will find that the Lord
ministered to only five Gentiles at His first
coming. That was enough, for "5" is the number in the
Bible which signifies, "the grace of God." There would be
an entire Dispensation of Grace yet ahead, in which the
gospel of God's saving grace would be proclaimed to all nations
and peoples, but it wasn't yet the "appointed time" for it at
the Lord's first coming. But the woman refused to stop
crying out to the Lord. She just refused to become
discouraged and quit, like some do today.
Instead she acknowledged the Lord's
statement of being sent only to Israel and the Israeliite people
as "truth." But at the same time, she made one of the most
enlightening and precious statements found in God's Word,
"Truth, Lord; yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from
their master's table."
In making this statement she was
acknowledging the truth of what the Lord had said. She
apparently even knew something about "rightly dividing" the Word
of God. She knew, that at His first coming, the Lord had
not been sent to the Gentiles, but only to the people of
Israel. Yet she had a need, and was determined to not be
turned away. How many of God's people today, when we lay
our needs before the Lord in prayer, have this kind of
persistance? Well...??
Now look up the word translated as
"dogs" in this Scripture, and the reader will see that the Greek
word actually means, "little dogs; puppy dogs." This
Canaanite woman knew that she was considered nothing but a
"Goyim;" a Gentile "dog" by the people of Israel. Yet she
had enough "humility" to accept such an inferior term applied to
her, if she could only have the Lord's mercy to heal her demon
possessed daughter. Does the reader have such an humble
heart? Think about it!
The Lord's Response
Dear readers, the Lord will always
respond to true faith coming from an humble heart. "...God
resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble," James
4:6.
So the Lord told this Canaanite woman,
"O woman, great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou
wilt. And her daughter was made whole from that very
hour," 15:28.
Do our readers have the faith and
humility displayed by this despised Canaanite woman? If
you don't, faith in the Lord Jesus Christ is the only source
from which to receive it. Take heed!
Dogs in the Bible
I am not going into a study on the
words translated as "dogs" in this study. I don't want
such a study to detract from what has been presented.
However, if the reader wants to know the truth about the
"big dogs" mentioned in the Bible, and warned against,
then I suggest they make a study of the word in your own
home Bible studies.
Conclusion
I write these studies for the spiritual
growth and benefit of God's people, and to set forth the way of
salvation for lost seeking souls. I hope every true
believer will pray for me, that God's blessings will rest upon
this Bible Study ministry.
If any reader is not saved, then
get a Bible and study John 3:3-7, 3:16-18, 3:36, 5:24, 14:6,
Acts 4:12, 16:30-31, Romans 10:8-13, and Ephesians 2:8-10.
And while you read, pray for the Lord to hear and enlighten your
heart and soul.
May God add His blessings to this
study, and use it to bless every reader is my prayer.
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Permission is granted to any true
believer, or Bible believing Christian ministry to reproduce
this study to share with others, or to quote from it in context
as written.
Those readers who would like to contact
me personally may do so by one of the following methods:
POSTAL.........Pastor F. M. Riley, 14275 Co. Rd. 8120, Rolla, MO
65401
EMAIL............francismriley34@gmail.com
PHONE..........573-202-6493
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