34Jesus spoke all these things to the crowd in parables; he did not say anything to them without using a parable. 35So was fulfilled what was spoken through the prophet:
“I will open my mouth in parables,
I will utter things hidden since the creation of the world.” (Matthew 13:34-35)
Thoughts: parables are a mixture of poetry and narrative. They have a point and a theme, but every detail is not to be taken literally or examined with a microscope. Jesus spoke in parables because like a song, they are easier to remember. In an oral (as then) but also a visual culture (as today) a parable can be grasped easier than just factual teaching. So the parable of the Good Samaritan conjures up an image of a man helping a stranger on the road. So the parable of the lost sheep elicits the image of a shepherd leaving the 99 to find the one who is lost. But the parables of Jesus also utter things hidden. In a hidden way they speak of hidden things with new angles. How to love a neighbor better- who is my neighbor? How God cares for us often more than we know.
Thoughts: parables are a mixture of poetry and narrative. They have a point and a theme, but every detail is not to be taken literally or examined with a microscope. Jesus spoke in parables because like a song, they are easier to remember. In an oral (as then) but also a visual culture (as today) a parable can be grasped easier than just factual teaching. So the parable of the Good Samaritan conjures up an image of a man helping a stranger on the road. So the parable of the lost sheep elicits the image of a shepherd leaving the 99 to find the one who is lost. But the parables of Jesus also utter things hidden. In a hidden way they speak of hidden things with new angles. How to love a neighbor better- who is my neighbor? How God cares for us often more than we know.
Prayer: Lord, give me ears to hear your words and patience to digest and understand them throughout my life.
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