Do you remember the story of the Canaanite woman who came to Jesus about her daughter who was severely oppressed by a demon? How did she know her daughter was oppressed by a demon? How is it that we, today, are not aware when we are being oppressed by a demon? Let’s read this account in Matthew 15:21-28 and learn how a parent has the authority to ask God to deliver their children from demons.
And Jesus went away from there and withdrew to the district of Tyre and Sidon. 22And 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.” 23But 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.” 24He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” 25But she came and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, help me.” 26And he answered, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.” 27She said, “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.” 28Then Jesus answered her, “O woman, great is your faith! Be it done for you as you desire.” And her daughter was healed instantly.
Observation:
- The news that Jesus was in the area brought a foreign woman to seek healing for her daughter.
- She first asked for mercy.
- She knew that Jesus was the Son of David and called Him Lord.
- She presented her need for Jesus to heal her daughter, who was oppressed by a demon.
- Jesus would not answer her because His mission was to reach the lost sheep of Israel.
- She continued to cry out to Jesus, asking for mercy and for His help.
- She humbled herself by kneeling before Him out of worship.
- Jesus was not inclined to help her and even called her a dog.
- In great humility, she responded that even dogs eat what falls from the table.
- Jesus was amazed by her faith and gave her what she asked for.
- Her daughter was healed instantly.
There is another account in Mark 7:24-30. And from there he arose and went away to the region of Tyre and Sidon. And he entered a house and did not want anyone to know, yet he could not be hidden. 25But immediately a woman whose little daughter had an unclean spirit heard of him and came and fell down at his feet. 26Now the woman was a Gentile, a Syrophoenician by birth. And she begged him to cast the demon out of her daughter. 27And he said to her, “Let the children be fed first, for it is not right to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.” 28But she answered him, “Yes, Lord; yet even the dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs.” 29And he said to her, “For this statement, you may go your way; the demon has left your daughter.” 30And she went home and found the child lying in bed and the demon gone.
- Jesus was trying to hide, but He was so famous, even in the Greek region called Cannon, that they knew where to find Him.
- In this account, the daughter was described as having an unclean spirit. I explained in a previous post that being oppressed by a demon and having an unclean spirit are synonyms.
- The mother wanted Jesus to cast the demon out of her daughter.
- The last post I wrote describes how you know if you are being oppressed by a demon.
- Jesus spoke the word, and the demon left the child, and the child was healed.
- When the mother went home, the child was well, and the demon was gone.
Interpretation:
- The woman was considered a heathen because she was born in Phoenicia in the Canaan area, which is now modern-day Syria.
- The King James Version said that the woman’s little girl was grievously vexed by a devil.
- By calling Him the Son of David, she is acknowledging that He is the Messiah.
- The woman’s approach is an example for us.
- She boldly came to Jesus with her request, knowing Jesus was the only one who could help her daughter.
- She humbled herself and worshiped Jesus. Even when He told her He was not there to help her.
- She was persistent in her request.
- She was specific about what she wanted Jesus to do.
- She believed Jesus could deliver her child from the oppressing demon.
- Casting out demons also heals the person. Every person whom Jesus cast out a demon was also healed.
Application:
- A parent or grandparent has authority over their children and can petition God to heal or deliver their children from every oppression.
- We need to be humble, specific, and persistent. This passage does not say how long she pleaded with Jesus, but in Matthew’s version of the story, the disciples said the woman kept crying out after them. The New American Standard version said she kept shouting at them.
- We also need to have faith like this heathen woman and believe that Jesus can and will heal our loved ones.
- Often our afflictions are the result of demon possession or oppression, which appear to be the same. Possession refers to having control or dominance over a person’s spirit and body. Oppression is the exercise of control over a person’s spirit and body, causing hardship and suffering.
As a school teacher, I had to take authority through Jesus Christ to command demonic spirits to leave the classroom. Every time I had to do this, there was immediate peace, and the student who brought the demon with them calmed down. Once, I had to sit in a detention room with a first-grader and his aide. The student kept talking about wanting to be a bully and his Pokémon cards. He would not do his school work and would not cooperate with any of our instructions. The aide had to leave to use the bathroom, and the detention room had a glass wall facing the principal’s office, so I stood next to some filing cabinets and prayed softly for the demons to leave the boy and the room, in Jesus’ name. At that moment, the boy sat up straight in his chair, and we had no more problems the rest of the day. He even finished all his schoolwork. The aid was amazed by this, so I told him what I prayed, because the aid was a Christian as well.
I also teach a Bible study at the county jail and have encountered many demons throughout the years. Before I go into the jail, I pray and ask God to protect me, and I put on the armor of light (Rom. 13:12) that dispels the dark forces of evil. I also ask God to remove all demonic spirit attachments from the girls before they come into the room. One girl said that the only place she feels peace is when she comes to our Bible Study.
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