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Mark

Mark 
Day 
Day 166

2 Peter 1:13 "Yes, I think it is right, as long as I am in this tent (body), to stir you up by reminding you."

Day 166 – Mark 7

“Yes, I think it is right, as long as I am in this tent (body), to stir you up by reminding you.” 2 Peter 1:13

THE TESTING OF FAITH

From time to time, Jesus tested the faith of His Disciples. These tests were never announced before hand, and so there was no way in which the Disciples could have prepared themselves especially. The principle of testing was also applied to others. An example may be found in this encounter with the Syro-Phoenician woman. To her request for aid for her demonized daughter, Jesus gave this seemingly appalling reply.

“But Jesus said to her,
‘Let the children be filled first,
for it is not good to take the children’s bread
and throw it to the little dogs.'”
MARK 7:27

1. Familiar phrases

The Syro-Phoenician woman would probably be aware of the following phrases:-

a) Israel’s reference to itself
Israel took pride in their understanding that they were “children of Abraham”. By implication, they believed that they had a special relationship with God through the Abrahamic Covenant.
b) Israel’s reference to Gentiles
Israel took an offensive view of Gentiles. It was not uncommon to see them calling non-Jews “little dogs”.

2. In ordinary circumstances

a) Jews and Gentiles kept very distinct and separate ways
Seldom would Jews and Gentiles have a strong social relationship. If ever they have to have business links, the relationship would be almost entirely “business”.
b) A great divide
Jews avoided contact with Gentiles, and vice versa. The great divide between Jews and Gentiles were very sharp in those days.

A SEEMING REBUFF TO THE SYRO-PHOENICIAN WOMAN

It seemed as if Jesus was turning down the request of the Syro-Phoenician woman, despite her desperate cries for help! If the woman was “sensitive”, she might even have felt offended by the way Jesus spoke to her.

Whether or not the woman residing at Tyre and Sidon understood the remarks of Jesus as a test, she was equal to the circumstances. She was not deterred by what Jesus had said to her. The driving motivation behind the strength of her persistence was the need for her daughter to be freed from the power of demons. She held fast!