Biblestudy (Luke 16) Jesus’ Parables (Part 1)
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C.H. Dodd defines a parable as “a metaphor or simile drawn from nature or common life, arresting the hearer by its vividness or strangeness, and leaving the mind in sufficient doubt about its application to tease it into active thought” (Dodd, Parables, 16)
The term “parable” encompasses a broad range of meaning, including full narrative stories, proverbs, riddles, and one-liners.
(Lexaham Bible Dictionary “parables”).
One of the difficulties with interpreting Jesus’ parables is determining where the analogy ends.
(Lexaham)
This comes from my desk and thought. Often times, when Jesus told parables it confounded those who heard his words. They were deep and metaphoric and a lot of times they were hard to understand. So much so that after he would teach in parables, his disciples had to ask him to explain it to them so that they could understand the spiritual truths that he was teaching.
So why did Jesus speak in parables to begin with? Why didn’t he make things plain and understandable?
Because everyone who heard did not have pure hearts.
It was meant for only his true disciples to know and understand the principles of the Kingdom of Heaven.
Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand. And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Esaias, which saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive: For this people’s heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them.
(Read in NLT)
The Lexaham Bible Dictionary states “Apparently Jesus spoke in parables so that the unenlightened might become enlightened while the hard-hearted (who are the hard-hearted…..what does it mean to be hard-hearted?) might become still more hardened in their unbelief. When people responded appropriately, Jesus offered additional teaching and insight. On the other hand, hardness of heart prevented further revelation.
Let me stop there to say, that is why in the church you have some people who grow and some people who don’t grow. You have some people who understand and some people that don’t understand. You have some people that will accept the word of God and others who are hard-hearted that will reject the word of God.
Often times Jesus would propose a parable as an answer to a question that was proposed.
LBD gives three examples:
Question “who is my neighbor?” response the parable of the Good Samaritan.
Question “What is the kingdom of God like?” Response: The Parable of the Mustard Seed)
Question “How many times shall I forgive my brother?” Response: “The Unmerciful Servant”.
A couple of points made:
Jesus used everyday images and examples to convey deep truths.
Most of the time the characters where nameless, with the exception of Lazarus and the rich man.
Most of his parables (teachings) where about the kingdom of heaven or it’s citizens. Matthew 13:24-52 is a series of short cluster parables the presented the kingdom as both a present reality and a future reality.
Finally most of Jesus’ parables contained a shocking punch line or concluded in a shocking manner. Parables were not stories that merely educated, entertained, or satisfied curiosity.
Let me stop there to interject: because most of the people that came to hear Jesus teach came either to be educated, to be entertained, or they were just curious to see what Jesus was going to say. Because we see the same things happening in the church, Solomon said “There is nothing new under the sun.” 1. We see people come to church to be educated…..nothing wrong with that….but these people who were coming to be educated wasn’t really interested in repentance and change, they just wanted to be smarted so that their ego can be fed. 2. We see people coming to church to definitely be entertained. They come to church because a certain choir is going to sing or because it is their turn to sing. They come to church to see what excitement they will receive today, come to church because they think church is just a social club. 3. The come to church to be curious, to see what is happening in church and then when they leave out of church they go back and report what happened in church, not for the intent of building or edifying the kingdom of God, but for the intent purpose of being an enemy of the church. That is what the Pharisees did, they were curious to hear Jesus’ teaching and then that left out of service and went back and reported to the high council and talked about Jesus like a dog…….OH THAT SOUNDS FAMILIAR DOESN’T IT!!
The closing punch line was designed (take this end and hear this) the closing punch line was designed to CONVICT……SOMEONE SAY CONVICT His listeners and ALTER THEIR COURSE…..SOMEONE SAY ALTER THEIR COURSE. Okay, lets make this personal now. Say these words “The purpose, of Jesus’ parables, is to convict me, and to alter my course.”
That is the problem right there because when it is someone else…..we quick to say amen. But when it is us…..some of us….not all of us…..SOME OF US DO NOT LIKE TO BE CONVICTED……WHY? AND THERE ARE SOME OF US WHO WHEN WE ARE CONVICTED THE WORD WILL NOT ALTER OUR COURSE….INSTEAD WE WILL DIG DOWN EVEN DEEPER AND REBEL…..INSTEAD WE BECOME MORE HARDENED IN HEART…..AND INSTEAD OF CONVICTION AND CHANGE……WHICH IS CALLED REPENTANCE WE HAVE REJECTION WHICH IS THE HARDENING OF THE HEART.
So let us consider Luke’s gospel and look at a couple of parables from Luke 16 chapter.
Verses 1-18 let us now read.
Let’s take some points from this:
There was a rich man who had a manager handling his affairs.
A report came in that the manager was wasting his money, so the rich man confronts the manager about the mishandling of his money. The rich man tells the manager get your report together because you’re going to be fired. We can clearly understand this type of illustration because we know that anyone who mishandles money (embezzlement) is going to be fired.
So he comes up with a scheme to make sure he was taken care of when he was fired, why? Because he didn’t have the strength to dig ditches and he was too proud to beg. Then he said, I have plenty of friends that will give me a home when I’m fired.
He invites each person who owed money to his employer to come and discuss the situation…..he was suppose to be getting the report together remember?
The manager invited the people that owed his boss in and asked them “how many gallons of olive oil do you owe, they said 800 gallons, he said change it to 400 gallons. How many bushels of wheat they said 1,000 bushels, he said change it to 800.
Jesus then says, the rich man had to admire the dishonest rascal for being so shrewd……in which ……here is the entire punchline “And it is true that the children of this world are more shrewd in dealing with the world around them than are the children of light.”
The children of the world are some dishonest, ornery people, they have secret meetings, they talk and plot amongst one another and try to get over on other people. Anybody in here having secret meetings and plotting on your job…..having secret meetings, plotting, trying to get your report or your story together in the church, because you trying to trash someone who is suppose to be your brother or your sister….but because you have hatred and malice in your heart, you trying to be slick? If so you’re a shrewd individual. The children of the light aren’t running around plotting, not trying to get over on the boss man, not trying to get over on the family member, and that’s why I always say…..you want to see peoples true colors……wave money in front of them and see how they act.
The love of money is the root of evil. You’re family members will turn on you for money, they will act in ways that are unimaginable. Some people will use money to try to influence the way that things are ran. We see it in the country, big dollar companies will throw millions of dollars to sway people, and those in power will take down from their personal convictions to swoon those who have the money. People will sell their souls to the devil to get money.
We see it in the church, because there are some people in the church that think they can buy power in the church they think they can influence the lay people and get them on their side. Have the pastor tipping on eggshells and afraid to preach the truth of God’s word because he don’t want to lose his good tithe payers. I don’t think that I am talking to no one in our church, I like to believe that everyone here has good hearts and good intentions….but if the shoe fits…whoa unto you. If you feel convicted, then don’t get mad…..change course…..repent.
Jesus says here is the lesson: Use your worldly resources to benefit others and make friends. Then, when your possessions are gone, they will welcome you to an eternal home.
If you are faithful in little things….if you are dependable in little things…..some of us in the church….not just in Bibleway but the church at large….because we have people watching that are not in Bibleway and some of the messages that are preached may not be for anyone in here. But in the church at large, including Bibleway….there are people who are not even faithful in little things. Not faithful in service, won’t come out, not faithful in giving, not faithful in witnessing, not faithful in the gifts that God has given you whether it is a natural or spiritual gift……God just can’t depend on you.
THAT IS A SHOCKING PUNCHLINE…..AM I FAITHFUL?? IS THERE ROOM FOR IMPROVEMENT? If you think you good, if you think you’re alright YOU ALREADY FAILED THE TEST…..THERE IS ALWAYS ROOM FOR IMPROVEMENT!!!
But (Jesus says) If you are dishonest in little things, you won’t be honest with greater responsibilities. And if you are untrustworthy about worldly wealth, who will trust you with the true riches of heaven? And if you are not faithful with other people’s things, why should you be trusted with things of your own?
SO NOW…..THE QUESTION IS…..WHAT LEADS JESUS TO SAY ALL THIS? Look at Chapter 15:1-2.
Then drew near unto him all the publicans and sinners for to hear him. And the Pharisees and scribes murmured, saying, This man receiveth sinners, and eateth with them.
So who is his audience? Tax collectors who collected tax for Rome who was their chief enemy AND notorious sinners…..but guess what…..when it comes to Jesus all are welcomed. The Pharisees and the teachers of the religious law felt offended that Jesus would let notorious people hang with him. He was even eating with them they complained.
And Jesus knowing their hearts…..HE CONFRONTED THEIR ISSUE!!! We have it in our minds that Jesus was so loving…..AND HE WAS…..BUT HE ALSO CONFRONTED SIN!!! IF YOU WERE THINKING THE WRONG THING…..HE CONFRONTED IT. He allowed notorious people to be around him because when you are with Jesus and spend time with him…..IT CHANGES YOU!!!
Jesus then said in verse 13 of chapter 16:
No servant can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.
“No one can serve two masters. For you will hate one and love the other; you will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and be enslaved to money.”
Watch the reaction:
The Pharisees, who dearly loved their money, heard all this and scoffed at him.
Jesus knowing their hearts…..THE LORD KNOWS OUR HEARTS!!!
Then he said to them, “You like to appear righteous in public, but God knows your hearts. What this world honors is detestable in the sight of God.
We are going to stop there.
Next week we will pickup with the end of this parable and deal with the “Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus”.
Lord we have heard your teaching tonight, help us to apply that which we have heard, if we have been convicted, help us to change and to come up to your word, we thank you for feeding us tonight….In Jesus’ name. Amen.