Nigeria Baptist Convention Sunday Bible Study Manual For April 28, 2024 : Topic – FAITH OF A CANAANITE WOMAN.
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SUNDAY SCHOOL LESSON FOR YOUR PREPARATION
NBC SUNDAY SCHOOL OUTLINE
Theme for the Month: “THE MEASURE OF FAITH.”
DATE: SUNDAY, 28TH APRIL, 2024.
TOPIC: FAITH OF A CANAANITE WOMAN.
Devotional Reading: Psalm 61:1-8.
Background Scripture: Matthew 15:21-28.
Lesson Scripture: Matthew 15:21-28.
GOLDEN TEXT: “Then Jesus said to her, ‘Woman, you have great faith! Your request is granted.’ And her daughter was healed at that moment.” Matthew 15:28
OBJECTIVES:
By the end of the lesson, class members should be able to:
● Define faith and its receiving one’s miracles;
● Discuss the relevance of persisten prayer;
● Make a personal commitment to seek for Jesus’ help whenever they need.
INTRODUCTION:
Every responsible parent would want his/her children to succeed in all aspects legitimate and sometimes, illegitimate to get such a mission accomplished without considering the negative consequences. Sometime ago, a video went viral on socio- media about a woman who connived with one of her sons to kill his brother, for the purpose of money ritual. When she was arrested and interrogated, she agreed to have committed the crime. According to the story, her intention was to use the money (to be realised from the crime) to establish her other children in their various business endeavours, so that they can fulfil their dreams in life. Do you know that some mothers go the extra mile to encourage their children to be initiated into cults for the purpose of making it in life? They even assure them of protection. Others enrol their children at special examination centres where examination malpractice is allowed, and some even falsify certificates for their wards so as to gain employment in choice industries. It is no longer news that some parents give bribe so that their children can get promoted or secure appointments, especially when it is a well- raise children! If such parents know the implication of their deeds, they would not venture into them.
Fortunately, the case of the woman in today’s passage is quite different from the examples above. This woman had an urgent need, she had faith and she identified the right source of the solution she needed (Jesus), and approached Him without hesitation. She desperately sought the help of Jesus for her daughter who was demon possessed. In spite of the obstacles that she encountered in her attempt to see Jesus, she did not give up until she got what she wanted. Her daughter became well because of her faith that Jesus has the power to heal. Jesus healed all manner of sicknesses and diseases while He was on earth, especially those who came to Him in faith, irrespective of their race, age, or religious background, like the Canaanite woman whose case we shall be studying today.
THE LESSON EXPLAINED…
A. MOTHER’S EARNEST REQUEST
[Matthew 15:21-25]
Jesus is both man and God so, He was subject to the weakness of the body, especially after a busy day. This sometimes made Him to withdraw from the teeming Jewish crowd to the region of Tyre and Sidon in order to rest. The news of Jesus at a particular place would spread like wildfire, and people will come to Him for various reasons including healing. According to verse 22, a Canaanite woman from that region came to Jesus crying out, ‘Lord, Son of David, have mercy on me! My daughter is demon possessed and suffering terribly.’ Unfortunately, Jesus did not respond to the woman immediately probably to test her faith and persistence, and that gave His disciples the opportunity to interfere (v. 23). They said to Him, ‘Send her away, for she keeps crying out after us.’ It should be noted that Jesus’ silence was not as a result of His unwillingness to help the woman but possibly to prove that His primary mission was to the Jews (v. 24), whom He described as ‘the lost sheep of Israel.’ However, Jesus knew that the woman’s plea was sincere; hence He was moved with compassion to heal the demon-possessed girl.
Noteworthy in the passage is the woman’s simple prayer. The content of her prayer was that Jesus should have mercy on her daughter who was suffering from demonic attack. Her prayer was simple and characterised by faith, humility and respect for Jesus. Although she was not a Jew, she depended on the mercy of Jesus as her last hope. She was desperate, determined, and not willing to give up because she knew that Jesus has the power to heal and deliver. Indeed, the importance of persistence in the place of prayer cannot be overemphasised, as seen in today’s text. The woman persisted, she was humble enough to kneel and ask for help. Her confession revealed that she believed in Jesus’ power to heal her sick daughter. Eventually, her persistence, the content of the prayer, and its modesty impressed Jesus so much that her daughter was healed, to the glory of God.
DISCUSSION TIME:
1. Discuss what it means to persist in prayer and be modest, like the woman in the passage.
2. What is the place of sincerity and humility in getting our request from God?
B. JESUS COMMENDS THE WOMAN’S FAITH:
[Matthew 15:26-28]
It should be noted that Jesus’ response to the woman in verse 26 when He said, ‘It is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to the dogs’ (v. 26) was not as a result of His inability to grant the woman’s request. Rather, Jesus meant that she was a non-Jew and, therefore, was not qualified to receive the blessings intended only for the Jews. Nonetheless, the woman was not offended by Jesus’ answer and her response was unbelievable. She admitted the privileged position of the Jews and agreed that even dogs (an abusive term for Gentiles) could eat the crumbs of food that fell from their master’s table. In other words, even though she has been regarded unworthy to receive what she asked for, Jesus should just grant her request and heal her daughter. Jesus was amazed at her response. He said to her, “Woman, you have great faith! Your request is granted.” Immediately, her daughter became well (v. 28). The daughter’s healing can be linked to her mother’s persistence, humility and faith in Christ Jesus.
One of the attributes of Jesus is compassion. He could not have refused a request made with such resolute faith and humility. Jesus’ response to the woman as having, “great faith’ (v. 27) means that the woman’s trust and confidence in Him was commendable. The book of Hebrews defines faith as confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see’ (Hebrews 11:1). The woman had confidence in the healing of her daughter (what she actually hoped for), even though the evidence was not in sight. What a great faith! The testimony is that her daughter was healed by the power of Jesus. The lesson is a reminder that Christians should not give up over any matter, even though it may seem hopeless. When we have faith in Jesus and come to Him in faith, like the Canaanite woman, our requests will be granted. We should not also assume that unbelievers cannot come to the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. Therefore, no one should be denied the opportunity of coming to Christ Jesus; after all, He died for all (John 3:16).
DISCUSSION TIME:
1. What is faith? Why do some believers find it difficult to persist in the place of prayer.
2. Apart from faith, what other things do we need to receive miracles from God?
Fellowship and Ministry Building Activity:
● Let two class members dramatise the dialogue between the Canaanite woman and They should pray and ask God to increase their faith.
Take Home: Write down three lessons you are taking home from today’s lesson?
● __________
● __________
● __________
Commitment:
● Based on today’s lesson, make a resolution to trust God for the seemingly impossible always.
REVIEW FOR THE MONTH OF APRIL
Since the beginning of the month, we have been studying different aspects of the measure of faith. I know we have truly been blessed through the wonderful lessons. Therefore:
● How did the faith of the four friends motivate you to help someone in need?
● What are the new lessons you learned about Jesus’ authority?
● What did the faith of the Canaanite woman inspire you to do after we studied the lesson?
● What were your struggles in understanding Jesus’ power to forgive sins?
Happy Sunday in Advance.
Remain Inspired & Be Lifted!