Look inside this book.Where the Bush is Burning: A Daily Devotional by [Thomas Tice]

Tag: Matthew 15
The Walk Of Faith

The Walk Of Faith

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And Peter answered Him and said, Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water. So He said, Come. And when Peter had come down out of the boat, he walked on the water to go to Jesus. 

Matthew 14:28-29 

The walk of faith takes us places we never imagined ourselves going. Peter had been a fisherman on the Sea of Galilee all his life. It is highly unlikely he had ever contemplated walking on the water. Now he found himself in the situation where he could see Jesus walking on the water. It defied everything Peter knew about water. As soon as he realized what was happening, he responded with, ‘Lord, since it is You, command me to come to You on the water.’ Of the twelve, he was the only one who made such a request. The others were not lining up behind him. He did not presumptuously leap over the side unbidden, rather he appealed to Jesus to ‘command’ him to come to Him. Jesus said, ‘Come,’ Peter exercised greater faith than any of the other disciples. The walk of faith took him somewhere he would never have gone otherwise. We may find ourselves in situations where we are already exercising faith, and Christ may give us the opportunity to exercise more faith. When we do, we may not have much company. This should not discourage us. If Christ has bidden us come to Him walking on the water, He is going to lead us through some remarkable experiences.  

Our Gracious Lord and Master, 
we rejoice that You lead us in our exercise of faith. 
We praise You that You take us places 
we never would have gone 
without You. 

Tomm Tice
Where the Bush is Burning
From That Very Hour

From That Very Hour

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Then Jesus answered and said to her, O woman, great is your faith! Let it be to you as you desire. And her daughter was healed from that very hour. 

Matthew 15:28 

God moves according to His Own timetable. He may wait long to perform something, yet when He does act there is instant resolution. We see this in the history of the children of Israel. When God determined they should be a free people. He liberated them in a brief space of time. When He intervened at the Red Sea, He did so swiftly. Christ behaved similarly during His earthly ministry. On many occasions, we observe Him granting instant healing of various maladies. In the case before us, having had the exchange with the woman which elicited from her the response that demonstrated her great faith, Christ declared, ‘Let it be to you as you desire. And her daughter was healed from that very hour.’ We cannot know God’s timetable. We can petition Him in faith for the desires of our heart. We may wait long for Him to act, knowing that when He does, the answer may come very swiftly. The sacred history reveals His Character. He is for us. We wait upon Him knowing He has acted for others who had faith in Him. If He acted for them we have hope He will for us. 

Our Wise and Sovereign God, 
we rejoice that Your timing is perfect. 
We praise You that You will bring all things to pass 
that are necessary. 

Tomm Tice
Where the Bush is Burning
Faith Satisfied

Faith Satisfied

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And she said, Yes, Lord, yet even the little dogs eat the crumbs which fall from their masters’ table. Then Jesus answered and said to her, O woman, great is your faith! Let it be to you as you desire. And her daughter was healed from that very hour.  

Matthew 15:27-28 

Christ satisfies faith. This woman had great faith. She persisted in pursuing Christ to heal her demon-possessed daughter.  Christ responded to her in a manner which was not at all encouraging. She would not cease in her quest.  Her view was that for Him to heal her daughter was a mere bread crumb, by contrast to the wonderful things of which He was capable. Christ recognized and commended this high view of Him. He called her faith great, and did what she desired. Thus, He satisfied her faith. Throughout history we have beheld Christ satisfying faith. From Abraham, the father of the faithful, through to Christ’s arrival according to the word of the prophets; to His performance of all the Scripture promises concerning Him, He has done all things well. He shall not stop satisfying faith until all the promises to the faithful are fulfilled. Therefore, we have every reason to continue to believe. Christ has not failed, is not failing, and shall not fail. He is utterly worthy of our faith. ‘They shall not be ashamed that wait for Me.’  

High King of Heaven, 
we rejoice that Your Word is good. 
We praise You that we can depend upon You, 
to fulfill all Your promises, to Your people. 

Tomm Tice
Where the Bush is Burning
Great Is Your Faith

Great Is Your Faith

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And she said, Yes, Lord, yet even the little dogs eat the crumbs which fall from their masters’ table. Then Jesus answered and said to her, O woman, great is your faith! Let it be to you as you desire. And her daughter was healed from that very hour.  

Matthew 15:27-28 

Christ knows His people. He also knows how to highlight their faith. In the passage which precedes our text, Christ appeared to be unwilling to help the Canaanite woman whose child was demon-possessed. He cited the fact that He was only seeking the lost sheep of the house of Israel and that it was not appropriate to give the children’s food to the dogs. The woman countered that the little dogs got the crumbs that fell from the table, thus implying that healing her daughter from demon possession was a crumb by comparison to the things of which Christ is capable. Christ seems quite impressed by this remark and responds, ‘O woman, great is your faith.’ We may find ourselves from time to time where this woman was. It may seem God is not interested in our plight. We may even feel as if He is discouraging us from pursuing His intervention. It is by these means He draws from us the great faith He has given us, which may come as a surprise even to us. He orders and arranges circumstances to prove to us He is worthy of our faith. 

Our Glorious Living Savior, 
we rejoice that You understand us thoroughly. 
We praise You that You order and arrange our circumstances, 
to bring forth our faith. 

Tomm Tice
Where the Bush is Burning
Home Truths

Home Truths

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And she said, Yes, Lord, yet even the little dogs eat the crumbs which fall from their masters’ table. Then Jesus answered and said to her, O woman, great is your faith! Let it be to you as you desire. And her daughter was healed from that very hour.  

Matthew 15:27-28 

This Canaanite woman could speak truth herself. When Christ first says, ‘I was not sent except to the lost sheep of the house of Israel,’ and followed shortly with His remark about the children and the dogs, this woman received these truths without argument. She does come back with a winning truth which indicates her great faith. She says, ‘Yes, Lord, yet even the little dogs eat the crumbs which fall from their master’s table.’ It is as if she said, ‘I am only a little dog waiting under your table for a little scrap to fall to me.’ The little scrap she wanted was the healing of her daughter from demonic possession. We would think that a great and high miracle. Her estimation of Christ was such she considered such a miracle to be a mere scrap in contrast to the greater things of which Christ was capable. The home truth she spoke was, ‘even the little dogs get the crumbs.’ She made a powerful point. She was humbly begging for a small miracle by contrast to the great things which her Master could do. She spoke truth and prevailed with Christ Who speaks truth and hears truth. 

Our Gracious God and our Savior, 
we rejoice that You are the living truth. 
We praise You that You bring us to an 
understanding of truth.  

Tomm Tice
Where the Bush is Burning

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