The Callousness of Religion

Matthew 15:22-28

And behold a woman from Canaan came out of the same coasts and cried to him saying Have mercy on me O Lord thou Son of David My daughter is grievously being demonized But he answered her not a word and his disciples came and besought him saying Send her away for she cries after us

Comments: ^{Matthew 15:22-23} The callousness of religion. Jesus’ hand-picked inner circle had not yet learned compassion. Rather than their hearts going out to this woman and her tormented daughter, they just wanted rid of her. Not their problem.

But he answered and said I am not sent but to the lost sheep of the house of Israel Then she came and worshipped him saying Lord, help me But he answered and said It is not appropriate to take the children's bread and to cast it to dogs And she said Truth Lord yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters' table Then Jesus answered and said to her O woman great is thy faith Be it unto thee even as thou will And her daughter was made whole from that very hour

Comments: ^{Matthew 15:22-28} This woman of faith, though not a Jew, knew that Jesus was the prophesied Messiah. She called him Son of David, a title for the Anointed One. Jesus tested her, not for her sake because he already knew her heart, but for the sake of his heartless, self-centered, and racially prejudiced disciples, who even after watching Jesus’ compassion, would still have a long way to go in allowing the Holy Spirit to transform their arrogant religious hearts into hearts that were more like that of their Creator’s.

Jocelyn Andersen is the author of several non-fiction books, including, Redemption: Bible Prophecy Simplified, a Study of HOPE.

Note from the editor: I read my Bible every day, always picking up today where I left off yesterday. I call this my “on-track” Bible reading. I have been doing this for over 44 years. It was the best advice I was ever given, and it changed my life. If you are not presently doing the same, I invite you to join me. How much you read on a daily basis isn’t important. It only matters that you read, feeding your spirit with a prayerful dose of the alive and powerful Word of God.

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