If you look throughout history to those who had the greatest influences, you most often find that they possessed mother’s of great faith. They had mothers who prayed for them and did whatever possible regardless of the obstacles.
Jesus told of only two people that had “great faith”. He said that a Roman Centurion who wanted his servant healed had “great faith” (Matt. 8:10). The only other person who was told this is the mother in our text today. This is a mother who had “great faith”.
Mother’s have so many pressures on them today that it can be difficult to prioritize what do to and how to do it. If we were to look at what God considers of greatest importance, it would be faith, and the picture here of the Canaanite woman exemplifies great faith. People may never know your name, like this woman here, but the impact of your faith may change everything.
In Matthew 15:21-28, we see through this Mother: 1) The Setting for Great Faith, 2) The Qualities of Great Faith and 3) The Lord’s Response to Great Faith.
1) The Setting for Great Faith: Matthew 15:21
Matthew 15:21 [21]And Jesus went away from there and withdrew to the district of Tyre and Sidon. (ESV)
Until this time Jesus had carried on most of His ministry in Galilee; but now He went away because of the rapidly mounting pressures that faced Him there.
He was under pressure first of all from the multitudes who followed Him from place to place and were convinced He was the long-predicted Messiah. They were right in recognizing that His miraculous powers marked Him as the true Messiah, but they were wrong about the kind of Messiah He had come to be. They expected Him to deliver them from the oppressive Romans and their Herodian lackeys and to usher in an unending period of political freedom and material prosperity. After His feeding of the five thousand, they even intended “to come and take Him by force, to make Him king” (John 6:15).
Second, Jesus was under the pressure of possible arrest and execution by Herod Antipas, who thought Jesus was John the Baptist come back from the dead (Matt. 14:2). The king’s jealous hatred of anyone who threatened his throne would have led him to murder Jesus just as coldly as he had John.
The greatest pressure, however, was from the Jewish religious leaders. The scribes and Pharisees of Galilee had already determined to destroy Jesus (12:14), and after He rebuked and embarrassed the delegation from Jerusalem by showing the ungodliness of their man-made traditions (15:1–9), the danger from the religious establishment escalated.
Quote: As Alfred Edersheim commented, Jesus “was saying distinctly un-Jewish things,” and even the enthusiasm of the multitudes cooled rapidly when He began to make clear what allegiance to Him demanded (John 6:60–66).
Besides His need for physical refreshment and time to be alone with the twelve, Jesus therefore had those additional reasons to find a place of temporary retreat. He had moved away by going across the Sea of Galilee to Bethsaida Julias, only to be followed by a massive crowd whom He miraculously fed. And after crossing back over to the Plain of Gennesaret just south of Capernaum, He was immediately recognized and was again surrounded by the sick, crippled, and diseased who wanted healing.
Jesus therefore withdrew from the frenzy of Galilee and traveled northwest to the district of Tyre and Sidon, out of the land of Israel and beyond the jurisdiction of both Herod and the Jewish religious leaders.
The mention of Tyre and Sidon is not merely to document Jesus’ geographical location, but to conjure up images of some of Israel’s most hated enemies (see, e.g., Isa 23; Ezek 26–28; Joel 3:4 (Chouinard, Larry: Matthew. Joplin, Mo. : College Press, 1997 (The College Press NIV Commentary), S. Mt 15:21).
• The district of Tyre and Sidon was the Gentile territory of ancient Phoenicia, an area now in southern Lebanon, on the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea. Tyre was 35 miles from Galilee and Sidon was 60 (Walvoord, John F. ; Zuck, Roy B. ; Dallas Theological Seminary: The Bible Knowledge Commentary : An Exposition of the Scriptures. Wheaton, IL : Victor Books, 1983-c1985, S. 2:55).
As far as we know, this was the only time during His public ministry that Jesus was outside Jewish territory, outside the boundaries of Palestine. (MacDonald, William ; Farstad, Arthur: Believer’s Bible Commentary : Old and New Testaments. Nashville : Thomas Nelson, 1997, c1995, S. Mt 15:21)
• It is possible that He and the disciples spent most of their time in the foothills of the mountains, which would have been a refreshing change in climate from the hot and arid region of Galilee.
• More importantly, Jesus would gain time to be alone with the disciples and to further prepare them for His coming crucifixion and their apostolic ministry.
We have seen: 1) The Setting for Great Faith, Matthew 15:21 and now:
2) The Qualities of Great Faith: Matthew 15:22-27
Matthew 15:22-27 [22]And behold, a Canaanite woman from that region came out and was crying, "Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David; my daughter is severely oppressed by a demon." [23]But he did not answer her a word. And his disciples came and begged him, saying, "Send her away, for she is crying out after us." [24]He answered, "I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel." [25]But she came and knelt before him, saying, "Lord, help me." [26]And he answered, "It is not right to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs." [27]She said, "Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table." (ESV)
The woman was a Gentile and descended from the Canaanites who inhabited Syria and Palestine before the conquest of the latter by Joshua (KJV Bible Commentary. Nashville : Thomas Nelson, 1997, c1994, S. 1924).
• Numbers 13:29 specifies that the area’s inhabitants were called Canaanites.
• Calling her a Canaanite (cf. Mark 7:26), thus conjuring up a long standing animosity, with deep roots in Israel’s history (Chouinard, Larry: Matthew. Joplin, Mo. : College Press, 1997 (The College Press NIV Commentary), S. Mt 15:22)
As a Gentile, she did not enjoy the privileges of God’s chosen earthly people. She was an alien, having no hope. Positionally she had no claim on the Messiah (MacDonald, William ; Farstad, Arthur: Believer’s Bible Commentary : Old and New Testaments. Nashville : Thomas Nelson, 1997, c1995, S. Mt 15:21)
o This is the starting point of great faith: it starts when we acknowledge that we deserve only judgment from God and it is only because of grace in the provision of mercy from the sacrifice of His son.
o Positionally, we should all relate to this woman.
Jesus’ encounter with the Canaanite woman is the story of a faith Jesus called great (v. 28). Great faith is, of course, a relative term. This woman’s faith was not great because it was stronger or more sincere or mature than the faith of many Jews who believed in Christ but because it was based on so little light.
In terms of the Canaanite woman’s background, had been raised in a pagan culture that had been renowned for its wickedness and vileness. She was a descendant of a people God had commanded Israel to conquer and “utterly destroy” (Deut. 7:2). She had no heritage of God’s Word, God’s blessing, or of His Tabernacle, Temple, priesthood, or sacrifices. Therefore, because she believed so much relative to so little revelation, Jesus called her faith great (Matt. 15:28).
It is too easy as moms to focus on what we didn’t or presently don’t have:
o We didn’t have a Christian upbringing, live in a house with two parents, do to the best school, have encouragement etc.
o Or perhaps we focus on what we presently don’t have: We don’t have much time, a family that properly respects us or helps out etc.
The story of the Canaanite woman is a picture of how to overcome all things that we have or presently lack and poses a great faith. She is actually such a great picture of great faith that we can see five general qualities that mark all great faith: It is 1) Repentant, 2) Properly directed, 3) Reverent, 4) Persistent, and 5) Humble.
A) REPENTANT: Matthew 15:22a
Matthew 15:22a [22]And behold, a Canaanite woman from that region came out and was crying, "Have mercy on me
Because this woman was a Canaanite, “of the Syrophoenician race” (Mark 7:26), she was probably a worshiper of Astarte and other pagan deities that were popular in that region. The fact that she came to Jesus, a Jewish teacher and healer, indicates she was disillusioned with the idolatry and immoral debauchery that characterized her religion. In turning to Jesus, she turned from the way of Satan and sin to the way of God, and that is the essence of repentance.
Please turn to Exodus 34
The woman’s plea is further proof of her penitence. She knew she did not deserve Jesus’ help, that she was unworthy of Him, and that her only hope for undeserved forgiveness was in His gracious mercy. By definition, the person who asks for mercy asks for something undeserved. This woman did not come demanding but pleading. She did not ask Jesus’ help on the basis of her own goodness but on the basis of His.
A Mother of faith can be a strong champion of prayer on behalf of herself and her family for God’s mercy. Moses gives us a type of this prayer:
Exodus 34:6-9 [6]The LORD passed before him and proclaimed, "The LORD, the LORD, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, [7]keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children and the children’s children, to the third and the fourth generation." [8]And Moses quickly bowed his head toward the earth and worshiped. [9]And he said, "If now I have found favor in your sight, O Lord, please let the Lord go in the midst of us, for it is a stiff-necked people, and pardon our iniquity and our sin, and take us for your inheritance." (ESV)
• Notice the elements of this repentant prayer: It had a specific plea for God’s presence in the situation, it acknowledged transgression, sought pardon and sought greater fellowship with God.
These are the elements of a prayer of great faith
A Mother of Great faith is 1) Repentant, and:
B) RIGHTLY DIRECTED AND REVERENT: Matthew 15:22b
Matthew 15:22b [22](And behold, a Canaanite woman from that region came out and was crying, "Have mercy on me), O Lord, Son of David; my daughter is severely oppressed by a demon." (ESV)
Great faith must, of course, be directed at the right object. For those without a direct object of faith: Those who believe that somehow, in some way, by some means everything will ultimately work out for the good have faith in an illusion. To declare, “Somewhere there’s somebody who hears every prayer” or “I believe in the darkest night a candle glows,” is to believe in nothing more trustworthy than your own imagination and wishful thinking. It is unbelievably foolish to put ultimate trust in something or someone you know nothing about.
That sort of faith is essentially faith in faith, which is to say no faith at all.
• To jump out of an airplane with a parachute is an act of faith. To jump without a parachute while exclaiming, “I believe,” is an act of stupidity.
• To say no more than, “I believe in love,” “I believe in believing,” or, “I believe it will all work out,” is contentless faith and therefore pointless and powerless.
• It shows no more sense than to go on vacation and leave your three-year-old child behind with instructions to look after the house and pay all the bills while you are gone.
For faith to make sense and to have power it must be placed in a trustworthy object; and as the Canaanite woman turned her back on her idols she placed her faith in the Lord, the Son of David. “Son of David” was a name for the Messiah (Matt. 22:42) (Wiersbe, Warren W.: The Bible Exposition Commentary. Wheaton, Ill. : Victor Books, 1996, c1989, S. Mt 15:21).
Despite her pagan background, she most likely had heard of the Jews’ coming Messiah, who was called the Son of David; and she reverently addressed Jesus as her sovereign and omnipotent Lord.
• As a Gentile had no right to approach Jesus on the basis of Him being the Son of David. This is a personal kingship term that one would address their personal king. That is perhaps why Jesus did not answer her at first (MacDonald, William ; Farstad, Arthur: Believer’s Bible Commentary : Old and New Testaments. Nashville : Thomas Nelson, 1997, c1995, S. Mt 15:21)
She most likely had heard of the Messiah’s great power and great goodness; and she treated Him with both dignity and expectancy. Although she did not yet understand the full meaning of Christ’s lordship or messiahship, she came with a sense of awe and wonder.
• To be a mother of great faith does not mean that we have figured out everything there is to know about God. It means that we know and have a relationship with Him.
This woman loved her young daughter more than her own life, and she came to the only source of help she knew of. Her faith was great because she turned from faith in false gods, dumb idols, and pagan deities to faith in Jesus Christ. Her trust in Astarte may have seemed satisfactory while things were going well but when her daughter became severely oppressed by a demon/cruelly demon-possessed
Her daughter was severely oppressed . Severely or “grievously” means “badly.” It was a serious case. The demon was creating many aggravating problems. To be oppressed means “to be violently possessed by, to be in the power of a demon” (Zodhiates as quoted in Butler, John G.: Analytical Bible Expositor: Matthew. Clinton, IA : LBC Publications, 2008, S. 262).
The mother discovered she could get no help from a goddess of stone. She therefore left her religious system, left her pagan family and friends, left her false belief that had no answers or power, and came to the only One who could help her By her appeal to Christ, she publicly affirmed His power over her former gods of wood and stone and metal.
As Paul said to the Thessalonian believers:
1 Thessalonians 1:9 [9]For they themselves report concerning us the kind of reception we had among you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, (ESV)
• A Mother of faith must admit her mistakes and truly put Christ first even when everything else in her life says it’s useless.
• This means putting pride aside for the true welfare of others.
A Mother of Great faith is A) Repentant, B) Rightly Directed and Reverent and
C) PERSISTENT: Matthew 15:23-24
Matthew 15:23-24 [23]But he did not answer her a word. And his disciples came and begged him, saying, "Send her away, for she is crying out after us." [24]He answered, "I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel." (ESV)
Jesus’ response, or rather lack of response, may surprise or even puzzle us. We have never before seen Jesus treat anyone this way, and we wonder why he did this. The disciples did not understand either, and after a while they urged Jesus to send her away (Albrecht, G. Jerome ; Albrecht, Michael J.: Matthew. Milwaukee, Wis. : Northwestern Pub. House, 1996 (The People’s Bible), S. 228)
Great faith does not give up; it is not deterred by obstacles, setbacks, or disappointments. Jesus therefore tested the faith of this woman by setting up a series of barriers.
There are many struggles that people often have to go through.
• Some people have to struggle against strong doubts before they come to fully trust Christ for salvation.
• Others have to struggle against the objections and arguments of friends and family.
• Still others struggle to believe because they have never heard the gospel clearly presented or because they see inconsistencies in the lives of Christians they know.
• This woman, however, had barriers placed in her way by the Savior Himself.
Sometimes the hardest response to accept is no response at all, and that is what this woman received from Jesus as He did not answer her a word. Jesus was not playing games with the woman, nor was He trying to make the situation more difficult. He was drawing out of her a growing response of faith (Wiersbe, Warren W.: The Bible Exposition Commentary. Wheaton, Ill. : Victor Books, 1996, c1989, S. Mt 15:21).
The disciples apparently interpreted Jesus’ ignoring the woman as a sign of unconcern and wondered why He did not dismiss her. As she continued to plead with Jesus and He continued to ignore her, His disciples became more upset with the woman and more puzzled about the Lord. In frustration they came to Him and begged him, to do something about this nuisance who not only was getting on their nerves and but was attracting attention at a time when Jesus wanted to get away from the pressures and demands of the crowds. Finally they said, “Send her away, for she is crying out/shouting after us.”
The disciples response was insensitive and prejudiced. They did not want to be bothered by this Gentile woman who was interfering with their plans and peace of mind. In advising the Lord to send her away, they may have had in mind His healing the daughter first, sensing that that would be the only thing that would make the woman leave. And on the surface it seems as if Jesus was equally, if not more, insensitive, because He did not even acknowledge her presence.
But Jesus did nothing unloving and nothing without a divine purpose. He had had enough of superficiality and shallowness, of the pretended faith of those who selfishly got what they wanted from Him and left. But more than that He wanted to test the woman’s faith to bring it to full flower. He put up the barriers not to keep her away but to draw her closer. He also used the occasion to show the disciples the value of persistent faith and to help them distinguish between the genuine and the superficial. He erected barriers that only genuine, persistent faith could hurdle.
(Cf. Matt. 19:16–22, where Jesus placed barriers before the young man to test the genuineness of his plea for eternal life.)
• You may be wondering at the apparent silence of God to repeated requests that you have and continue to make. He is not deaf. He does not want you to perform some greater work before he will answer. He just wants you to realize that He has a timing for answering and that timing is always the perfect timing. His delay in answering is to strengthen faith.
In Matthew 15:24, speaking directly to the disciples, but within the hearing of the woman, Jesus answered I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. Jesus reiterated what he has previously said as recorded in Matthew 10:6.
We do not know what the disciples thought of Jesus’ comment, but they must have wondered why He had so willingly healed the servant of the Roman centurion and offered the water of life to the Samaritan woman at Sychar but now refused to help this woman simply because she was not of the house of Israel.
But by those words Jesus assured the disciples that His plan of redemption was still on course. Israel was still the Lord’s chosen people and the kingdom was still offered first to the seed of Abraham. Despite their hostility, resentment, and rejection, the Lord would continue to call the house of Israel to repentance. His primary ministry was still to the children of the covenant. It was not yet time to move to the Gentile nations, because the full opportunity to Israel had not as yet been presented. It is important to note that even after the crucifixion and resurrection,
Whatever effect Jesus’ response had on the disciples, it must have been a painful blow to the woman. Most people would have indignantly said, “So much for your God of love, your message of compassion, and your narrow, bigoted religion. I want nothing to do with a God or religion like that.” But this woman had no resentment or bitterness, only an abiding love for her afflicted little girl and a determination to have her freed from her demonic torture. She also knew that the gods her people worshiped did not care. She knew Jesus was the only hope and that she had nowhere else to turn.
For those who have been following Jesus for what they can immediately get, do not receive what they expect, when they expect it, they become disolusioned. The Canaanite mother had such a great faith she responded like the faithful disciples:
John 6:66-68 [66]After this many of his disciples turned back and no longer walked with him. [67]So Jesus said to the Twelve, "Do you want to go away as well?" [68]Simon Peter answered him, "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life, (ESV)
• Even when false friends turn against us and it seems that God either is not listening or does not care, a mother of great faith trusts in God because she knows there is no other source for what is of eternal significance.
One reason we do not have great blessing today is that there is not much of that dogged prayer and persistent faith seen in the Canaanite woman.
Quote: R. V. G. Tasker wrote about her faith:
She does not stay to argue that her claims are as good as anyone else’s. She does not discuss whether Jew is better than Gentile, or Gentile as good as Jew. She does not dispute the justice of the mysterious ways by which God works out his divine purpose, choosing one race and rejecting another. All she knows is that her daughter is grievously tormented, that she needs supernatural help, and that here in the person of the Lord, the son of David is one who is able to give her that help; and she is confident that even if she is not entitled to sit down as a guest at the Messiah’s table, Gentile “dog” that she is, yet at least she may be allowed to receive a crumb of the uncovenanted mercies of God (R. V. G. Tasker, The Gospel According to St. Matthew (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1961), 151–52.)
D) HUMBLE
Matthew 15:25-27 [25]But she came and knelt before him, saying, "Lord, help me." [26]And he answered, "It is not right to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs." [27]She said, "Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table." (ESV)
When Matthew 15:25 says that the Canaanite woman knelt before him/To bow down it is from proskuneō, which literally means to prostrate oneself and is frequently translated “worship.” Whether or not the woman’s bowing down was intended to be worship, it was clearly an act of humility. She threw herself at Jesus’ feet and pleaded with even greater desperation, Lord, help me!
• It is her expression of total dependency and confidence in Jesus that begins to undermine the exclusivism of the preceding statement. Certainly, few Israelites have demonstrated such a remarkable persistence and dauntless faith in Jesus’ authoritative power (Chouinard, Larry: Matthew. Joplin, Mo. : College Press, 1997 (The College Press NIV Commentary), S. Mt 15:24)
But again Jesus put her off, in Matthew 15:26 saying to her the same basic truth He had just pointed out to the disciples (v. 24): It is not right/good to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.
Two different Greek words are used in the New Testament for dogs. One refers to the mangy and often vicious mongrels that ran in packs and lived largely off garbage and carcasses of dead animals. The dogs referred to here, however, were household pets that were sometimes treated almost like family.
But she was undaunted, and in an incredible flash of insight she picked up on Jesus’ own illustration, saying in Matthew 15:27, Yes, Lord; but even the dogs eat/feed on the crumbs which fall from their master’s table.
It is most probable that the saying is not intended to make a derogatory remark about Gentiles, but rather to differentiate order of priority: children (symbolizing the Jews) are fed before the household pets (dogs symbolizing the Gentiles). In a Palestinian household, which had children and household dogs, the children would be fed first, after which the dogs would be given the scraps from the table. The woman must have understood Jesus’ remark in this way, as her response in verse 27 intimates (Newman, Barclay Moon ; Stine, Philip C.: A Handbook on the Gospel of Matthew. New York : United Bible Societies, 1992 (UBS Helps for Translators; UBS Handbook Series), S. 497)
Jesus was picturing a family gathered at mealtime around a table, eating food provided by the head of the household. The Gentile woman saw herself in this picture. She was not a child in the family (of Israel) eligible for the choicest morsels of food. But she saw herself as a household dog (a Gentile; the Jews often called Gentiles “dogs”) eligible to receive crumbs that might fall from the master’s table. She was not wanting to deprive Israel of God’s blessings. She was simply asking that some of the blessing be extended to her in her need (Walvoord, John F. ; Zuck, Roy B. ; Dallas Theological Seminary: The Bible Knowledge Commentary : An Exposition of the Scriptures. Wheaton, IL : Victor Books, 1983-c1985, S. 2:56)
She knew she was sinful and unworthy of anything He had to offer and was willing to concede that she was less deserving than Jews. In doing so she demonstrated a complete absence of the pride, self-reliance, and self-righteousness that characterized most Jews. She was willing to settle for the crumbs which fall from their master’s table, because that would be enough to meet her needs. A tiny leftover of Jesus’ great power could heal her daughter, and that was all she asked.
• We live in an era that tells women to stand up for their rights and demand all that they get. But God calls both men and women understand their value in Christ and seek to be used by God, not for all that we can possibly get.
Although Jesus’ priority mission was to the Jews, the crumbs of the gospel did indeed fall from their table and feed humble Gentiles who hungered for the Bread of Life.
We have seen: 1) The Setting for Great Faith, Matthew 15:21 the 2) The Qualities of Great Faith: Matthew 15:22-27 and only briefly:
3) The Lord’s Response to Great Faith: Matthew 15:28
Matthew 15:28 [28]Then Jesus answered her, "O woman, great is your faith! Be it done for you as you desire." And her daughter was healed instantly. (ESV)
After putting up a barrier of silence and then a double barrier of seeming rejection, Jesus heard what He wanted to hear. Her seeking heart would not give up. Like Abraham, she grew strong in faith through God’s testing (Rom. 4:20), and like Jacob wrestling with the Lord (Gen. 32:26), she would not let go until He blessed her.
What does the lord expect:
Jeremiah 29:13-14a [13]You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart. [14]I will be found by you, declares the LORD, (and I will restore your fortunes and gather you from all the nations and all the places where I have driven you, declares the LORD, and I will bring you back to the place from which I sent you into exile). (ESV)
Highly pleased with the woman’s response, Jesus declared, O woman, great is your faith! Without having heard the Sermon on the Mount, she came with the humble, mourning, meek, and seeking heart that God requires for kingdom entrance (Matt. 5:3–6).
She exhibited the attitude expressed in Luke 16:16 of vigorously pressing forward (from biazomai) into the kingdom and in Luke 13:24 of striving, struggling, straining every nerve (from agōnizomai) to enter it.
Because of her great faith, Jesus granted her desire/wish that her little child be delivered from the demon, and her daughter was healed instantly/at once. She kept asking until she received, seeking until she found, and knocking until it was opened to her (cf. Matt. 7:7).
It is worth noting that both of the persons in the Gospel of Matthew who had “great faith” were Gentiles: this Canaanite woman and the Roman centurion (Matt. 8:5–13).
• In both episodes the faith of a Gentile stands in stark contrast to the unbelief and blindness of Israel. Therefore, the woman’s confessionary petition becomes illustrative of the response that should have characterized all Israel (Chouinard, Larry: Matthew. Joplin, Mo. : College Press, 1997 (The College Press NIV Commentary), S. Mt 15:22)
• In both cases, Jesus healed the one in need from a distance. Spiritually speaking, the Gentiles were “afar off” until Calvary, when Jesus Christ died for both Jews and Gentiles and made reconciliation possible (Eph. 2:11ff).
This woman’s faith was great because she persisted in asking and trusting when everything seemed against her. Certainly her race was against her: She was a Gentile. Her sex was against her, for most Jewish rabbis paid little attention to women. It seemed that the disciples were against her, and Christ’s words might have led her to believe that even He was against her. All of these obstacles only made her persist in asking (Wiersbe, Warren W.: The Bible Exposition Commentary. Wheaton, Ill. : Victor Books, 1996, c1989, S. Mt 15:21).
Quote: As Spurgeon observed, “The Lord of glory surrendered to the faith of the woman.” She kept asking until she received, seeking until she found, and knocking until it was opened to her (cf. Matt. 7:7).
Genuine biblical faith contains three elements: content (notitia), agreement with that content (assensus), and trust in or commitment to Christ (fiducia). All are here. The woman knew who Jesus was, believed that he could help her, and placed her confidence in him (Boice, James Montgomery: The Gospel of Matthew. Grand Rapids, Mich. : Baker Books, 2001, S. 290)
A woman of faith perseveres against all obstacles. She can be a model of both determination and hope for all mothers.
(Format Note: Outline & some base commentary from: MacArthur, John: Matthew. Chicago : Moody Press, 1989, S. 465)
