I know you want it, I know you deserve it, but how bad do you want it? How bad do you want it? How bad do you want that breakthrough? That miracle? That victory? How bad do you want the job? The money? The baby? How bad do you want it?

Before we go any further, I want you to keep this in mind: keep in mind that because Jesus has now died and resurrected, you and I are now blood bought and have now been adopted into sonship, into the family of God. So now we have rights to the same blessings that were promised to the Jews.

So that’s what I mean by yes you deserve it! You deserve it not because of your good deeds or because of your works, but rather because of the grace of God and the finished work of Jesus Christ on the cross. We therefore have to do away with false humility and stop telling ourselves and others that “Oh no, I can’t have it” or “No God can’t bless me because I have made mistakes” or “No I don’t deserve it because I’m such a sinner.” There comes a time when we have to be bold and stand in our identity in Christ and claim what is rightly ours. Scriptures say in Hebrews 4:16 NLT,

So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most.

I believe sometimes God is waiting to see if we would approach Him boldly to receive the blessings that are readily available to us.

With all of that in mind, let’s take a look at Matthew 15:21-28 NLT. This is the story about “The Faith Of A Gentile Woman.” There are several lessons we can learn from this woman’s encounter and interaction with Jesus. 1. She did not get offended. 2. She did not give up. 3. She swallowed her pride.

Are You Offended? Giving up? Or Prideful?

In verse 23, we see how she received what we would call the silent treatment from Jesus. In the previous verses, she asked Jesus to have mercy on her and deliver her daughter from the demons that possess her. And then verse 23 says,

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.

This verse made me ask myself and I want you to do the same: “what would your reaction be or has been to a seemingly silent response from God regarding your prayers and petitions? Do we throw in the towel and give up? Or do we persist and keep asking? Unfortunately, I know many of us choose the former – we give up at the first sign of “resistance” and forfeit the blessings that should have been ours. Or we let others talk us out of staying in His Presence and persisting in our prayers Why Should I still keep praying just like the disciples tried to do to the woman in this scripture.

Hearing Jesus’ response to her in verse 24

Then Jesus said to the woman, “I was sent only to help God’s lost sheep—the people of Israel,

the Holy Spirit quickly reminded me that because we are now under the New Covenant (blood bought children of God), we now qualify to receive the same blessings as the Jews that Jesus was referring to in this scripture. One thing we would notice from the next couple of verses to follow is that not only did the woman persist in asking despite Jesus’ silence and then comment that suggests He couldn’t help her, she was not offended and neither did she let pride get in the way. Verse 25 says,

But she came and worshiped him, pleading again, “Lord, help me!”” And verse 26, “Jesus responded, “It isn’t right to take food from the children and throw it to the dogs.

Take a minute to think to yourself, “What would have been your response at this point? Would you have felt disrespected or insulted? I know I would have. But we should all aspire to be like this woman. When we seem to not be getting our way or meeting all sorts of resistance, we should channel our energy and focus into worship just like she did. In looking at verse 27, we see just how humbled and determined this woman was to get help for her daughter. She replied:

That’s true, Lord, but even dogs are allowed to eat the scraps that fall beneath their masters’ table.

And in verse 28, she received her blessing.

Dear woman,” Jesus said to her, “your faith is great. Your request is granted.” And her daughter was instantly healed.

It Was All A Test

The Holy Spirit revealed to me that everything this woman just went through in this scripture was to test not only her faith but her endurance and patience as well. Did she have faith for what she is asking Jesus to do? How bad did she really want it? Was she willing to let it go at the moment she met resistance? Or was she going to persist for what she wants?

We all face similar tests each day with the trials we face in life. God wants to see how badly we want what we are asking for and most importantly if we have the faith for it. His goal is to cultivate patience, endurance and perseverance in us. Like scripture says in James 1:4,

Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything” (NIV)

es! Your patience will be tested. Yes! Your faith will be tested. And Yes! Your perseverance will be tested. But you must endure to pass the test so that at the end, just like Jesus said to the woman in verse 28, “Your faith is great, your request is granted,” He will say the same to you!

So my question to you is “How bad do you want it?”

Well until next time, remember, keep your hope in God for He loves you unconditionally and has promised to never leave you nor forsake you!

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