No 9
(The Syrophonecian woman)
“And she said, Truth, Lord: yet the dogs
eat of the crumbs which fall from their master’s table.” Mark
This woman gained comfort in her misery
by thinking that Jesus was able to heal her daughter. Jesus had just talked about the children’s
bread and she figured that since Jesus was the Master of the table of grace, there
was sure to be an abundance of bread on the table. And since there was such an abundance of
bread for the children that the crumbs that end up on the floor for the dogs
the children would not be any worse off if the dogs are fed. She thought Him one who kept so good a table
that all that she needed would only be a crumb in comparison; yet remember, what she wanted was to have the devil cast out of
her daughter. It was a very great thing to her, but she had such a high esteem
of Christ, that she knew that it was nothing to Him but a crumb to give. This
is the road to comfort. Great thoughts of your sin alone will drive you to
despair; but great thoughts of Christ will bring you into the haven of peace.
Our sins are many, but it is nothing for Jesus to take them all away. The
weight of our guilt presses heavily down on us, but it is no more than a grain
of dust to him, because He has already paid the penalty in His own body on the
cross. It will be but a small thing for Him to forgive us and it is an infinite
blessing to receive it. The woman
opened her soul’s mouth very wide, expecting great things of Jesus, and He
fills it with His love. She laid fast hold upon Him and drew arguments even out
of His hard words. She believed great
things of him and she won the victory by believing in Him. Her case is an
instance of blind faith and if we want to conquer like her we must take hold of
Jesus and His promises.