In this chapter, Jesus was criticized by the Pharisees and scribes because his disciples were eating bread without washing their hands. Jesus pointed them back to what the laws say about honoring your father and mother, implying that they were putting all of their time into the temple and would later have no energy to help their parents. Jesus could see deep into their thoughts and hearts. They wanted to test him, but as God in the flesh, he knew how to respond and referred them back to the law that they knew.

Jesus healed a Canaanite woman's daughter because he saw her great faith. After Jesus made a comment about giving to his children before or instead of the dogs first, she responded with great faith, saying that even the dogs can be satisfied with just a little bit of the crumbs that fall from the masters table. [Paraphrased verses 26 & 27]

At this point, she was willing to accept even the smallest thing Jesus could give her for her daughter to be healed. This shows us that as Gentiles, our faith is recognized in heaven and does not go unnoticed. So today, I encourage you to exercise your faith. We are put in situations that only God can fix so that our faith can be tested, and in doing so, we grow spiritually.