Great Faith (2)

What made Jesus to describe the faith of both the Centurion and the Canaanite woman to be great? This question will be answered in this Sunday edition of the Rhema Blog…You are welcome in Jesus’ name.

The responses of the two personalities were exceptional.They were like Primary school students solving circle geometry or quadratic equation! Let’s study the response of the Centurion first:

“Lord, don’t trouble yourself, for I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. That is why I did not even consider myself worthy to come to you. But say the word, and my servant will be healed. For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and that one, ‘Come,’ and he comes. I say to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it”-Luke 7:6-8

The hallmark of this response was that He compared the practices in his profession to what could take place in the spiritual realm as well.He was like saying: “I have superior officers that give orders to me which I obey without any objections.They stay in their offices and I go out to carry out their instructions. Likewise, I also have soldiers and servants that I give orders to:Come! They come. Go! They go.If as a human being I give orders and they are promptly obeyed,how much more you the Messiah who has the Angels of God at your disposal…Just release the word right there without coming to my house and God’s Angels will go ahead and carry out your instructions!!!”(my paraphrase)

Jesus said that level of faith was great.Up till that time,Jesus had never taught anybody that He had legions of Angels around Him.Not only that,He had never given any parables that illustrated that physical happenings could be replicated in the spiritual realm.How on earth did this man get to know something as deep as that?

This is a great lesson to the professionals.This man’s response teaches us that what we do in our different professions can be carried out more efficiently on the spiritual terrain.Let me use my profession as an example:As a medical doctor,I give certain drugs to patients that start working in their bodies within microseconds as soon as they are inside the veins.I don’t get worked up doubting whether those drugs will work or not because I know their efficacy and potency.So if ordinary drugs could achieve that,why won’t the word of Christ achieve better results?

“It is the same with my word. I send it out, and it always produces fruit. It will accomplish all I want it to, and it will prosper everywhere I send it”-Isa 55:11

Or better still,a doctor doing exchange blood transfusion,removes jaundiced blood from babies,replaces it with fresh blood and they are saved from having brain injury.If this can be done, how much more the sinless blood of the Lamb:

“Just think how much more the blood of Christ will purify our consciences from sinful deeds so that we can worship the living God…”Heb 9:14a

Can you relate this concept to your profession as well? You see,when we think this way,we are on our way to be called men/women of great faith.Halleluyah.

Furthermore,let’s analyse the response of the Canaanite woman:

“Lord, help me!” He replied, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to the dogs.” Yes it is, Lord,” she said. “Even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their master’s table”-Matt 15:25-27

This one is deeper!

On closer look at the Scripture above,one will notice that Jesus Christ and the Canaanite woman had different perceptions about dogs.While the former saw dogs from the Jewish perspective,the latter saw them from a Grecian viewpoint.On the one hand,dogs were not kept as pets in the house by the Jews.They hated dogs! So there was no way,a dog could eat the same food the children eat.On the other hand,the Greeks liked dogs,they used them as pets in the house.So,Christ had an ‘outside’ dog in mind and on that basis there was no way such dog could have access to the children’s bread because “outside are the dogs…” Rev 22:15. Alright,get ready for this revelation…

The woman,like the Centurion,applied what happened in her day to day activity to spiritual issues! She said,

“It is true that children’s bread is not tossed to the dogs! I agree… But that is for dogs that are outside the house! This ‘dog’ in front of you is not a street dog,she becomes an in-house dog immediately she steps in to ask for your help! So provided she is with you,she doesn’t mind eating the leftovers!!!”(my paraphrase)

Please help me somebody…Mennnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn!!!This woman was already solving postgraduate question while she was still in high school!

Even though Christ wanted to still restrict His ministry to the Jews at that time,this woman fast forwarded this prophecy.There was a rhema hanging in the air that this woman went to pull down.Just think about this Scripture…

“All those the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away.”-John 6:37

Was that not what happened to that woman? Better things can happen to you today because…You are not dogs! You are His sons and daughters! If the dogs could be allowed to eat the crumbs then the bread is for the sons and daughters.

Anyway…I have to go now…I commit you to God and the word of His grace that is able to build you up and give you an inheritance with all those he has set apart for Himself.

We shall see on Wednesday morning by God’s grace.