I was not sent except to the lost sheep of the house of Israel

 

 Then Jesus went out from there and departed to the region of Tyre and Sidon.  And behold, a woman of Canaan came from that region and cried out to Him, saying, "Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David!  My daughter is severely demon-possessed."  But He answered her not a word.  And His disciples came and urged Him, saying, "Send her away, for she cries out after us."  But He answered and said, "I was not sent except to the lost sheep of the house of Israel."  Then she came and worshiped Him, saying, "Lord, help me!"  But He answered and said, "It is not good to take the children's bread and throw it to the little dogs."  And she said, "Yes, Lord, yet even the little dogs eat the crumbs which fall from their masters' table."  Then Jesus answered and said to her, "O woman, great is your faith!  Let it be to you as you desires."  And her daughter was healed from that very hour.

 

- Matthew 15:21-28 

 

On Saturday we read that the scribes and Pharisees who were from Jerusalem came to Jesus, saying, "Why do Your disciples transgress the tradition of the elders?  For they do not wash their hands when they eat bread."  He answered and said to them, "Why do you also transgress the commandment of God because of your tradition?  For God commanded, saying, 'Honor your father and your mother'; and, 'He who curses father or mother, let him be put to death.'  But you say, 'Whoever says to his father or mother, "Whatever profit you might have received from me is a gift to God" -- 'then he need not honor his father or mother.  Thus you have made the commandment of God of no effect by your tradition.  Hypocrites!  Well did Isaiah prophesy about you, saying:  'These people draw near to Me with their mouth, and honor Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me. And in vain they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.' " When He had called the multitude to Himself, He said to them, "Hear and understand:  Not what goes into the mouth defiles a man; but what comes out of the mouth, this defiles a man."  Then His disciples came and said to Him, "Do You know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this saying?"  But He answered and said, "Every plant which My heavenly Father has not planted will be uprooted.  Let them alone.  They are blind leaders of the blind.  And if the blind leads the blind, both will fall into a ditch."  Then Peter answered and said to Him, "Explain this parable to us."  So Jesus said, "Are you also still without understanding?  Do you not yet understand that whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and is eliminated?  But those things which proceed out of the mouth come from the heart, and they defile a man.  for out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies.  These are the things which defile a man, but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile a man."

 

 Then Jesus went out from there and departed to the region of Tyre and Sidon.  My study Bible explains that today's story of ministry to a Gentile women from the region of Tyre and Sidon is an illustration of the Jewish orientation of St. Matthew's Gospel.   The same story of this encounter is found in Mark 7:24-30, but there are two major differences.  In St. Matthew's version here, he records Christ's words which concern the lost sheep of the house of Israel, while St. Mark does not.  Also, St. Matthew records this woman using the title Son of David, which is a Jewish term for the Messiah, and St. Mark does not.  It says that Christ went to the Gentile cities not to preach, but to withdraw from the faithless Pharisees (see Saturday's reading, above).  This is confirmed in St. Mark's version, where it's noted that Christ "wanted no one to know" He was there, and here where He says that He was only sent to the house of Israel.  

 

 And behold, a woman of Canaan came from that region and cried out to Him, saying, "Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David!  My daughter is severely demon-possessed."  My study Bible comments that this woman shows immeasurable love, in that she so identifies with the sufferings of her daughter that she cries "Have mercy on me," as she sees her daughter's well-being as her own and her daughter's sufferings as her own. 

 

But He answered her not a word.  And His disciples came and urged Him, saying, "Send her away, for she cries out after us."   But He answered and said, "I was not sent except to the lost sheep of the house of Israel."   Christ refuses to answer, my study Bible notes, not only because she is a Gentile and His ministry before His Passion is first to the Jews, but also to reveal her profound faith and love.  Several patristic accounts see this disciples' request to send her away as an attempt to persuade Jesus to heal her daughter -- as if they're saying, "Give her what she wants so that she will leave."   My study Bible says that Jesus' response indicates that this interpretation is correct, as Jesus once more refuses to heal the daughter. 

 

 Then she came and worshiped Him, saying, "Lord, help me!"  But He answered and said, "It is not good to take the children's bread and throw it to the little dogs."  And she said, "Yes, Lord, yet even the little dogs eat the crumbs which fall from their masters' table."  Then Jesus answered and said to her, "O woman, great is your faith!  Let it be to you as you desires."  And her daughter was healed from that very hour.  My study Bible comments that having evoked this woman's love and persistent faith, Jesus now reveals her humility.  She accepts her place after the Jews ("the lost sheep of the house of Israel"), who were the chosen people of God, but she still desires a share in God's grace.  His hesitancy was not a lack of compassion, but rather a conscious means of revealing the virtues of this woman, both to the disciples and for her own sake.  Moreover, her ultimate acceptance by Christ also points to the gathering of the Gentiles into the Church after Pentecost, no longer as little dogs (puppies), but as children who are invited to eat the bread of eternal life.  

 

In a modern Western context, we might be offended and surprised at Christ's reluctance to help this woman.  But if that is true, it is because we are viewing it through a lens that is not appropriate to its place and time, nor even the aims of Christ.  Just as when we study a subject in school, advances in understanding come to those who are prepared to accept them, and who have a foundation through which to properly understand them.  So it is with Christ who has come "to the lost sheep of the house of Israel" for a reason and purpose.  The "house of Israel" is the one which has been prepared spiritually for the coming of Christ.  Indeed, if we look at the whole of the Holy Bible, we understand the New Testament to be the fulfillment of the Old.  Without that preparation of spiritual history under the old covenant, Christ could not be properly understood nor received with understanding.  Although of course, the gifts of Christ we understand come to all cultures and all peoples, indeed, expanding whatever is true and good and beautiful to be found in that culture.  But that does not erase the preparation and bedrock of Jewish spiritual history, the whole of the Old Testament Scriptures, the patriarchs from Abraham who was justified by faith, and all that we know from this history.  In the case of this individual woman, we observe her growth in the story.  That is, because of the difficulties which Christ gives to her, she grows into an understanding of Christ and acceptance of His mission.  She shows her humility (the most essential qualification and foundation for Christian virtues), she shows her patience and persistence, she shows her great love.  Most of all, she shows how much she really desires and values what Christ has to offer.  If we look at all of the parables of the kingdom of heaven which Christ has told in Matthew 13, we see the great emphasis on the cherished and priceless quality of Christ's gifts to us.  In our reading from Friday, it was observed that when the disciples were running into troubles and fears as they struggled to cross the sea, Jesus did not give them immediate relief nor lessen the conditions of difficulty -- but rather He added to them just before He announced His presence (walking on the water, they imagined He was a ghost!).  According to St. John Chrysostom, in this way Christ prepares His disciples to meet challenges, and even through difficulties to bear them with courage rather than seeking immediate relief.  This is perhaps one of the most perplexing ways to understand Christ from a certain modern perspective, but if we look at His life, if we look at the lives of the disciples, apostles, and saints, we find quite the opposite:  that this, indeed, is preparation for greater things for human beings, for the growth that we are capable of reaching and expressing.  So it is with this woman, for Christ -- through His challenges given to her -- in fact draws her out, bringing her virtues to the fullness of the encounter and granting her cherished grace.  Let us bear with patience and courage our own challenges, and understand that God's love works not to make things simple or easy, but to give us growth and courage, to expand beyond our old limits and into the greater potential we have in God's sight.  For this is God's always surprising love at work in us, and so often we may not understand it until we know it and grow through it.