Matthew 15: 21-39

Outline

I. Matthew 15: 21-28

A. A Canaanite woman from the region of Tyre and Sidon approached Jesus

1. The woman indicated that her daughter is suffering from demon possession.

2. At first, Jesus did not respond.

 

B. The disciples ask Jesus to send the Canaanite woman away.

1. The disciples were frustrated that the woman kept requesting Jesus' help.

 

C. Jesus advised the woman that He was sent to the lost sheep of Isreal.

1. He indicated that it is not right to take the bread meant for children and instead toss it to their dogs. 

D. The woman pointed out that the dogs sometimes eat crumbs that fall from their master's table.

  

E. Jesus commended the woman's faith and healed her daughter.

II. Matthew 15: 29-39

A. Jesus left this area and went to a mountainside where He continued to heal those that came to Him.

1. The lame, the blind, those that were crippled and many others sought Jesus' healing.

2. The crowds were amazed at Jesus' miraculous healing.

3. They, in turn, praised the God of Israel.

B. Jesus continues to have compassion on the people and wanted them to be fed for they were following Jesus for 3 days.

1. The disciples questioned if there could be enough bread to feed the multitude of people.

C. With seven loaves and a few fish, Jesus fed the crowd of people.

1. Afterward, the disciples were able to pick up seven basketfuls of broken pieces.

2. Besides woman and children, there were four thousand people that were fed.

Discussion questions

1. Review vs 21-23

-Matthew pointed out that this woman was a Canaanite. Why did he add this information?

-Why did Jesus not answer her when she first called Him?

-Why were the disciples frustrated by her pleading for help?

-Why did the disciples feel that the woman was calling out for them?

2. Review vs 24.

-Who are the lost sheep of Israel?

-How did they come to be lost?

-Did they know they were lost?

-Why would God send Jesus to these people first? What about the rest of the lost?

3. Review vs 26

-Did Jesus' statement seem out of character? Is this a racist comment? 

-Why would Jesus compare the woman to a dog?

-Why did Jesus say this to her, but not to any other Gentile that approached Him? This woman was not the only Gentile that Jesus healed or helped- (xref the Roman Centurion in Matthew 8...) 

4. Let's take a second and breakdown the woman's response in verse 27

-Why did the lady not retreat into the crowd after this comment from Jesus? 

-Why did she acknowledge that she was in low standing versus trying to defend herself?

-What are the crumbs that she referred to?

-Would you have felt defeated? Would you have just turned around and left?

5. Review Jesus response in v 28

-How did the woman's response show "great faith?"

-Why did Jesus change His course of action? Were the lost sheep of Israel no longer His chief concern?

Jesus Feeds the four thousand

In Matthew 14, Jesus healed 5 thousand people and faced a similar situation near the Sea of Galilee in Chapter 15.

1. After the people of the crowd were healed, vs 31 indicated that the crowd "praised the God of Israel."

-Was this a crowd of people that were not Israelites?

2. Why did Jesus bring the hunger of the crowd to the attention of the disciples?

-If the disciples had been with this crowd for 3 days, why hadn't they noticed that people hadn't eaten.

3. Review vs 33

-What led the disciples to forget that Jesus was able to feed this large group of people?

-Are the disciples just pointing out a fact or is this a lack of faith?

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How are these stories related to the "clean and unclean" section at the beginning of Matthew 15?

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Additional questions:

1. In reference to the story of the Canaanite woman, do you think that sometimes people don't approach Jesus because of the level of sin in their life? Do you think they view themselves as "dogs?"

2. Facing 4 thousand hungry men, women and children, the disciples question if there is enough food to feed them all. That said, they have witnessed Jesus feed more than these and even greater miracles.

-When we face trials in our life, why do we forget that God has taken us through even bigger trials in our past?

Teacher: Jeff Dodge

Matthew 15: 21-39