But blessed are your eyes, because they see; and your ears, because they hear.
Matthew 13:16,17
Welcome to 2020! In this wondrous year that God is making can we open our ears and eyes to also see the power and wisdom of Jesus’ parables? Over the next few weeks we will examine these parables seeking to understand what Jesus is saying to not only the first century audience, but also to us today. There is powerful wisdom in the parables if we are willing to see it.
I am using a text by a Jewish theology professor to give us an insight into Jesus’ world. She believes that we often misunderstand Jesus’ main point because we cannot relate to the context of His world. Our goals during this study should be to find the power of the parables and really unleash them in our lives. Please join me in seeking the wisdom of Jesus in the form of His parables.
To do this we must first understand what a parable is and how it functions. Essentially, parables are short stories with meaning; often multiple meanings. Professor Levine would say we have tried to tame the parables by giving them easy interpretations. She would argue that we should focus less on what they mean and more on what they should do.
Parables should remind, provoke, refine, confront, disturb, and afflict its hearers. Does that sound right? Should the parable of the Lost Son make us feel good about God’s love or challenge us to return home to our Father? Often, we tame the parables because we really do not understand their context. The Good Samaritan is a story about a good Samaritan, but the Jews did not know any good Samaritans. It would be like someone talking about a good “Jihadi” in today’s America. We cannot conceive of this idea so how can Jesus tell a story about something that does not exist? Parables should teach us as much about ourselves as they moralize.
The real challenge of unleashing the parables to help us understand what they should mean and do on multiple levels is they should cause change in our lives. If we truly have seeing eyes and hearing ears, then we should begin to understand how our lives need to grow and mature into the people we need to be today and for eternity. Please join me in really seeing and hearing the deep meanings of the parables and reacting to their freeing enlightenment as they challenge us to grow in Christ.
Scripture: Matthew 13:10-17
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