Instruction
Scripture: Mark7:24-37
Jesus had confronted the scribes and the Pharisees about
what defiles a person: the sins of one’s heart. In the first half of this
reading He is confronted by a person who would have been considered defiled
because she was a Gentile, whose daughter had an unclean spirit. This is a
difficult passage! It is followed by Jesus opening the ears of a deaf person.
The function of the passage is challenging. If forces us to consider what makes
us part of God’s family and how we relate to Jesus.
Teaching
The account of Jesus and the Syrophoenecian woman is
unsettling. It appears that Jesus is being rude to the woman and callous to her
need. It is helpful to know that as Jesus speaks of children and dogs, the word
He uses for dogs is not the form that would be used to speak of wild or street
dogs, but of a family pet. There is a question of belonging to God’s family
here, and the woman understands that while the pet’s relationship to master is
different than the children’s, the pet is still loved and cared for. In a
similar way the Gentiles’ relationship with God is different than the Jews’ for
they were his chosen people, but God still loved, cared for, and provided for
them. It is a sign of faith that the woman is content, knowing she doesn’t have
the prime place, but that she is nonetheless loved and provided for.
Life
It is hard for us to “hear” Jesus speak to the woman the way
He does in this reading. We sometimes feel that we are children at God’s table
and that we have every right to be there. There is truth in this because we are
called the children of God. At the same time, there is a sense of wonder and
awe in being welcomed and fed at God’s table. There is a realization that,
because of our sin, we don’t belong there any more than a dog belongs at the
dinner table. But how wonderful it is that whether we are pets or people God’s
gracious provision is ours because He loves us.
Prayer
This prayer is written
in the themes of Petition, Instruction, and Thanksgiving.
O God, welcome us to Your table although we are unworthy to
have a proper place there. Give us faith to hear Your words of invitation and
know that Your gifts as so marvelous that even if we were only to receive
scraps that fall to us, it will be more than sufficient for our joy and
salvation. We pray that You would open the ears of all to hear Your Word and
believe it that they too may be fed from Your table and receive the healing
from sin You have won for all who trust in You.
Teach us, Lord, that what You provide is sufficient. Indeed,
it is beyond sufficient, so that when we receive Your Word and grace we would
receive it with the enthusiasm of a dog who gets scraps that fall from the
master’s table. You opened the ears of the deaf, and You have opened our ears
to hear Your Word and to believe it. Keep speaking, “Ephphatha,” to our hearts
and minds so that they will be open to You and to believe You.
Thank You, for giving us a place at Your table. We am
thankful to receive even scraps of Your love and forgiveness, but You have not
given us mere scraps but made us Your children to receive the fullness of Your
gifts. Your goodness is overwhelming! Not only that but You have indeed opened
our ears, hearts, and minds so that we may believe Your Word and have Your
salvation. Thank You! Amen.
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