A Picture of Great Faith

Matthew 15:21-28

In Matthew 15, we are in a section of Matthew where Jesus, having given evidence that He is the Son of God, the Messiah-King, and having taught His disciples about the Kingdom of God, He is now training His disciples in kingdom ministry. The lessons Jesus teaches them in these narratives are about faith—faith in Him.

In the story of the feeding of the 5000, Jesus gave them a lesson in trusting Him and depending on Him to work through them (Matt. 14:13-21). Then, we saw Peter who had “little faith,” yet was able to do the impossible–walk on water to be with Jesus (Matt. 14:22-33). We saw the multitudes bringing their sick to Jesus and believing He would heal them (Matt. 14:34-36). Then we saw the flawed faith of the scribes and Pharisees who trusted in their traditions rather than Jesus and the word of God (Matt. 15:1-20).

These are faith lessons, training us to trust Jesus Christ and His word. They are lessons about saving faith and also about serving faith. We must believe in Jesus to enter His kingdom, and we must believe in Jesus to do kingdom ministry. As Paul writes in Romans 1, our salvation is “from faith to faith” (Rom. 1:17)—that is, it is by faith from beginning to end.

So, today we get another lesson in faith, but not just any faith—this lesson is about “great faith.”