A Gentile woman who lived there came to
him, pleading, “Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David! For my daughter is
possessed by a demon that torments her severely.”
But Jesus gave her no reply, not even a word.
Then his disciples urged him to send her away. “Tell her to go away,” they
said. “She is bothering us with all her begging.”
Then Jesus said to the woman, “I was sent only to help God’s lost sheep—the people of
Israel.”
But she came and worshiped him, pleading
again, “Lord, help me!”
Jesus responded, “It isn’t right to take food from the children and throw it to
the dogs.”
She replied, “That’s true, Lord, but even
dogs are allowed to eat the scraps that fall beneath their masters’ table.”
“Dear woman,” Jesus
said to her, “your faith is great. Your request is
granted.” And her daughter was instantly healed. Matthew
15:22-28
When I was a teenager, an early
mentor of mine told me to always listen because you never when you might learn
something. It was also a necessity
because my mother would have conference calls talking with colleagues from
home, and I had to literally sit at times for almost an hour before I could
actually speak to her. I guess that’s
where I got my sense of patience as well, and as strange as it seems, those two
things would be invaluable attributes that help me to connect to people. Why?
People want two things no matter if it is with a stranger or their
spouse of over fifty years. They want to
be heard, and they want to feel valued.
To take time out to listen to someone serves that purpose because there
is no more precious commodity than . . . time. When we speak about solving problems, we
cannot start unless we truly understand the issue. What is wrong? Why do you feel that way? How can I help? These are questions that we as Christians
should be asking all of the time.
However when speaking to Millennials, it often feels like . . . well
preaching. When I have a conversation
with my twelve year old daughter, I tend to preach first and ask second, and I
need to get better at listening. When
we talk about the church being in a crisis with Millennials, we talk from a
place of what we know, which is what our parents and our experiences taught
us. That’s not all bad. However, we can’t solve this crisis preaching
the Gospel first. We can by sharing it,
but we can’t share without first listening.
Jesus teaches us to listen and
understand before acting. The story of
Gentile woman with great faith showed Jesus’ ability to turn listening into a
teachable moment. Here was a woman
pleading with Jesus to heal her possessed daughter. I read as the disciples urged Him to send her
away, and how Jesus said nothing for a while.
Then, He said, “I was sent ONLY to help God’s lost sheep – the people of Israel.” One might ask, “Why would Jesus exclude her
just because she was not a Jew?” This is
part of the teaching because His audience was not just the Gentile woman. It was His disciples. When Jesus seemingly ends the discussion
saying, “It isn’t right to take food from the children and throw it to the
dogs,” we are almost left speechless.
This feels like our response to those who have chosen not to believe,
right? Why would we take time away from
those who share our belief and spend it on you, the non-believer? Then her response, “That’s true, Lord, but
even dogs are allowed to eat the scraps that fall beneath their masters’ table,”
is the most amazing and dare I say ‘perfect’ response. What could Jesus say? He did not dismiss her saying, “I’m the Son
of God, I do not need to hear this.” She
had acknowledged Jesus as Lord, ‘master,’ and her authority figure. He listened, and acknowledged her faith. If we
acknowledge Jesus as God, He is all knowing, and thus, He knew the response was
coming from the woman. He wants us to
see that all can come to Him no matter where they came from! It was that teachable moment for the
disciples that God is God to all who would acknowledge Him as Lord of their
lives, but we cannot acknowledge others without first doing as Jesus did and
listen.
Spreading the Good News of Jesus
requires us to understand where people are first. Our mission then becomes to share how God can
help them where they are and not condemn them for where they are. If we are to help those who choose not to
believe, our response must be to first listen and hear their pain,
frustrations, and concerns of where God fits in their life. Only then can we truly share the Good
News. Do you know someone who has
rejected the Gospel? Have you taken time
out to understand why? My prayer and
challenge is that we are willing to do what we Jesus knew all along; listen and
learn. Amen.
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