I’m currently looking at what I hope will prove to be a three series exploration of the parables of Jesus. (Ten or so sermons each in 2022, 2023, 2024 (!!))
There are a lot of thoughts on the parables of Jesus; my understanding is that Jesus intentionally uses them as teaching device that, rather than making things clear, causes the listener to question their that which they already thought they understood, and in that pause and consideration come to a clearer understanding about the nature of God’s kingdom, about the nature of God’s grace, and about the nature of the his ultimate gathering of people into the fulfilment of his purpose.
“With Jesus, however, the device of parabolic utterance is used not to explain things to people’s satisfaction but to call attention to the unsatisfactoriness of all their previous explanations and understandings.” – Robert Farrar Capon.
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