"Stay tuned!"

Have you ever felt like you have to go through a complete overhaul on your mind? That may seem like a stupid question to those of us who are followers of Christ, but I've come to find that many people are, to use a coined phrase, "sleeping giants." Now, I know that this colloquial term usually encompasses the entirety of the Church of Christ, but since we're "more than conquerors," it follows that we should be living our lives larger than, well, life.

A few months ago, our church was given a sort of guide for reading through the New Testament together in a couple of months. Well, that couple of months has come and gone, and quite honestly, I'm nowhere near the mark that was set for us. But, I have been taking very seriously the challenge that was posed alongside the schedule: read everything about Christ as though you'd never heard of, let alone read about, Him.

This is getting difficult.

You see, my whole mind feels like it's going opposite ways. To use an illustration here to let you gather a better picture of how I feel, imagine a chocolate chip cookie. Oh, yeah. You know what I'm talking about...it's the perfect one, straight out of the oven in a Nestle's Toll House commercial. Warm, and when it pulls apart, you see all the strings of that heavenly chocolate pulling away from the halves they were once member to.

Yeah...that's NOT how my mind feels.

Now imagine with me The Hulk. You know, the big green dude who really should take a few anger management courses, but it's probably better that he doesn't, because he'd likely murder the group leader and other members? Now imagine him holding a tank in his hands. You see where this is going? As he rips the Panzer apart, the metal squeals, shrieks, and pries apart with a stubborn tenacity only found one of those tiny fruit flies that goes kamikaze into your mouth as you're trying to enjoy your dinner. Got it?

That's more like what I'm going through...but don't be disillusioned. I'm actually really happy with it, because it means there's hope.

Case in point: in the book of Matthew, after Jesus is finished feeding the 5,000 on the hillside, walks on water to the disciples, heals many people, and ticks off the Pharisees, He encounters a Canaanite mother. Let's read it together to refresh our memories of the story:

And 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." But 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." He answered, "I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel." But she came and knelt before Him, saying, "Lord, help me." And He answered her, "It is not right to take the children's bread and throw it to the dogs." She said, "Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their master's table." Then Jesus answered her, "O woman, great is your faith! Be it done for you as you desire." And her daughter was healed instantly.

---Matt. 15:22-28 (ESV)

Whoa...we tend to glaze right over that one, don't we? What has often been used as a passage for sermons based on faith and determination has been transformed in my mind. Yes, this passage speaks of those things. Be like the Canaanite woman, don't stop knocking on the door, stay at Christ's feet until He answers. But there's a HUGE theme here that most people miss, unless we ask ourselves a vital question: "Why is this even in the Bible?" It's NOT about the healing. In fact, I don't necessarily think it's about faith as much as being about Christ's availability. But not to man. Rather, this passage is about Christ's availability to God.

Keep in mind, right before this incident, Christ was said to "withdraw" to the region of Tyre and Sidon. Withdrawing tends to share the meaning of "getting away from it all." We see Him doing this all the time throughout the Gospels. Basically, Christ ministered and then withdrew to a place by Himself or just with His disciples to pray. What would He pray for? Strength, determination, love, communion with the Father? Yes, all of these, because these are the things He taught us to pray for. However, I believe that there was something more.

Remember, Christ was God, but He was also COMPLETELY man. That said, I don't believe He saw the future the way He inevitably does now...there were things that God the Father gave Him in glimpses as to where He was going, but I don't think He saw everything coming a mile away. (viz., being "surprised" at the centurion's amount of faith, and even the exclamation point at the end of this passage shows surprise at the Canaanite woman's logic) The point is, you're not surprised if you already know what's going to happen. Jesus didn't know everything that was going to happen so He could maintain a fair amount of humanity. Otherwise, it's an unfair advantage and we don't have the Perfect Sacrifice. Make sense?

As I was reading this, I began to see that Christ did everything purposefully. We all agree with that. He had a road to walk and neither looked to the left nor the right. THIS is why this passage is necessary. Jesus knew His purpose was to save the "lost sheep of the house of Israel." But more than that, His purpose was to "do only what the Father does, and say only what the Father says." He knew that His whole existence hinged on God's glory. At this moment, God decided His glory would be best shown through His Son by doing something that, until that moment, had been hidden from Jesus' mind.

So, re-imagine the passage with me:

Jesus is getting away from the crowds to commune with God the Father, and is in an area that is not inundated with Jews. While there, a non-Jewish woman comes to Him with a request. Jesus has already heard from the Father that His goal is to save the lost Jews, not anyone else. As He walks, though, Christ is continually listening to keep Himself in check with the Father. And then, this woman comes along, and at first Christ doesn't pay her any attention. Is He being cold to her? Or, is He listening to hear from the Father what to do about her?

She continues to plead with Him, and He tells her honestly what He's here to do. And she uses a logic that not only astounds the human part of Christ, but also speaks to the Spirit-led part of Him, allowing Him to turn from the road He's on momentarily to show the others NOT that He was here at that time for anyone else but the Jews, but that He WAS here to obey EVERYTHING the Father told Him to do.

Basically, it's a first-class scenario of God telling you to jump, and the correct response being "how high?"

This passage is about obedience. And Christ set the mark, and He did it perfectly.

Do you hear God say something, get the message, embrace it, and then turn off the spiritual "walkie-talkie" until you get to a fork in the road? Or, like Christ, do you constantly listen to that walkie to hear God's voice as you go. He may tell you to do things that don't line up with your idea of His vision for you. But that doesn't matter. He's God, and we're not. Listen always...pray without ceasing. Do what the Father says do and say what the Father says say, and you'll be in perfect harmony with God's will.

My challenge is simply this: ALWAYS listen for the Holy Spirit's prompting, whether you feel like "you've got this one" or not. Then, and only then, will the sleeping giant be awakened. We can do it. Let's do it, then.