Hypocrisy is such a tricky thing isn’t it? We all know what the right thing to do is – most of the time – but we don’t always do it. We’re very good at saying, “Oh, people shouldn’t behave like that” when our own behaviour isn’t exactly exemplary. We’re very good at seeing the faults in others when we don’t really want to look at ourselves because the truth is that we know we won’t like what we see if we’re honest.
Jesus saw through human hypocrisy. He saw the damage it does to us and to those we spend out time with and He was pretty good at pointing it out. The first part of today’s chapter shows us what hypocrisy looks like and the second shows us what it would be like without it.
The Canaanite woman knew who she was. She knew that she was considered the lowest of the low. A foreigner with no social standing in a Jewish community. She didn’t try to cover up her status or make herself out to be more than she really was but instead came to Jesus in complete humility and asked Him to bless her with a few ‘crumbs” (v.27). When Jesus fed the 4,000 He did that in humility giving thanks to God for the blessing of the small amount He had to work with before He gave anything away.
The point should be fairly simple for all of us. Remember who we are – God’s creation, His children. Remember what we are and where we stand. Remember what God has given us and therefore where our blessings come from. Base all of our decisions and our thinking on that foundation and everything will fall into the right place.
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Questions:
What do you take for granted and what do you give thanks to God for? How many of your personal achievements to you count as yours and not blessings from God? How much of your wealth, status or standing to you consider to be the result of your personal effort and how much do you see as God’s blessing?
Prayer:
Cleanse us all Lord of our unholy pride and our hypocrisy. Let us not be consumed by our personal ambition or our personal achievement but let us see Your hand and Your provision in all we have and all we do. Amen.