Preaching The Parables, Pt. 1, Christ in the Parables
When one thinks of the parables of Jesus, one thinks perhaps of pithy sayings, punchy stories, and moral points. The parables of Jesus are probably most often used by people to moralize. Be like the Good Samaritan. Humble yourself like the prodigal son. This is a tendency, to be sure, in our use of the Bible as a whole, but it is no less so with Jesus’ parables. The parables are associations, and especially short stories, Jesus gave to illustrate a point. But as we find them in the midst of our Gospels, the four canonical accounts we have of the good news of Jesus’ first coming into the world, how do the parables point us to Jesus himself?
We know that the word “gospel” means “good news”. Yet it is rather more involved than that. Our word “gospel” translates the Greek word “evangelion,” from which we get “evangelical”. Evangelion has royal, or imperial, associations: the announcement of a new monarch’s ascension to the throne, or a decisive victory heralded to the kingdom from the front lines of battle. When we turn to the four Biblical Gospels, which one would hope form some part of our conception of “the gospel”, we find strong kingdom associations. Both John the Baptist before him, and then Jesus himself, preach “the gospel of the kingdom”. Jesus’ miracles have been accurately explained as signs of the inbreaking of God’s future kingdom into this present, evil age. What about another major feature of the four Gospels besides their narrative, and not just the Lord’s teaching, but particularly his teaching in parables?
When we begin to study Jesus’ parables, we find that they too are about the kingdom that his appearing embodies. When the disciples ask Jesus to explain a parable to him in Mark’s Gospel, Jesus says, “Unto you it is given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God.” (Mark 4:11) And then he asks them, “Know ye not this parable? and how then will you know all parables?” (Mark 4:13) As this prototypical parable has to do with the kingdom, so do the others that follow: “Whereunto shall we liken the kingdom of God?” (Mark 4:30)
The Kingdom that Jesus rules, his life-giving reign in the world, is one that is highly capable of illustrative comparison. Like the mustard tree, it grows from a tiny seed to a great plant (Luke 13:18). Like leaven, it will eventually permeate the entirety of the organisms to which it is introduced (Luke 13:20). It is like a precious jewel, a treasure hidden in a field, an economy of workers, a net filled with fish, a marriage feast, a party of bridesmaids, a tree and its fruit, new wine in old wineskins, new cloth on an old garment, a strong man defending his house, a king going to war–and the forgoing list is just scratching the surface of the comparisons Jesus made. What does this tell us about Jesus? No doubt it speaks to many particular aspects of his character and intentions toward us as we consider the specific qualities of his kingdom in each parable. In general, it tells us that the kingdom he brings is eminently relatable to our world. That reality is demonstrated, in turn, by our world’s fittingness to illustrate his kingdom. Put more practically, Jesus’ work of redemption touches, transforms, and illuminates every aspect of our lives. Rather than looking at them first of all as moral lessons to practice, what if we looked at them first as teaching us about Jesus and his kingdom? Having encountered the king and gained a fresh impression of his kingdom, we could then ask, “how ought we then to live”?
Another way in which the parables reveal Jesus is the very fact that they are, above all, stories. This is captured in the title of Richard L. Pratt Jr.’s book, “He Gave Us Stories,” about the Old Testament narratives. In a real sense, what is true of the parables is true of the Bible as a whole. In his parables, Jesus was unlocking God’s world and God’s word. They are full of stories, because our Lord is a storyteller. He is the ultimate storyteller, because he told the greatest story of all not only with his lips, but in his life. He came from a far kingdom to rescue a doomed bride, lay down his life in sacrifice for his friends, show forgiveness and compassion, and restore his people to a prosperous kingdom.
