Week 6 MORE PARABLES OF JESUS

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1 th st Week 6: Mon, Feb 15 Sun, Feb 21 Scripture: Matthew 13:1-58; Matthew 20:1-16; Matthew 25:1-46; John 10:1-18; John 15:1-17 *NOTE: *Denotes sermon passage for February 21st (Excerpted, with some edits and additions, from The Essential Jesus: 100 Readings Through the Bible s Greatest Story, by Whitney T. Kuniholm.) Week 6 MORE PARABLES OF JESUS Page 1

2 Matthew 13:1-58 Kingdom language is a big part of Matthew, more than any other gospel. It all began with his first preachin words: Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand! (4:17) Pretty much all of the references to a kingdom in Matthew refer to God s reign, or the sovereign power of God. Whether it s the kingdom of the Father, of the Son of Man, or when Jesus is referred to as King of the Jews, they all mean the same thing the sacred story of the Creator God s saving act. It means God is Creator and has power over all. But the way the world is operating, its present condition, does not match up with the will of the Creator. God chooses to reveal His will (what the kingdom looks like) through particular communities. In the Old Testament, this was the nation of Israel. With the advent of God s son in to the world, this group of chosen people is expanding, and their identity is founded in belief of Jesus Christ as the Messiah. Those believers are called to live out the kingdom, which will reach its complete fulfillment in the future. At that time, there will be no doubt by anyone, believer or non-believer, that God is sovereign. Until that time, God is working to restore a fragmented and rebellious universe so that they are in conformity to His will. The Kingdom is bigger than the church, it is God s will. But God desires for Kingdom Life to be lived out by the church. This is the message Matthew is preaching. In the parables of this chapter, Matthew talks about this by describing the Kingdom of God. None of the descriptions are complete on their own. But together, they give us a detailed picture of what the Kingdome of God is like. Perhaps the most famous of the 6 parables in this chapter of Matthew is the first, about the sower (vs. 3-9). Even though most of us don t live in agrarian society today, Jesus reflections on where the seed fell still communicates an important truth about the Word of God: it must be received and nurtured in order to bear fruit in our lives. The parable is about the fate of the seed (the reception of the Word of God) in different kinds of soils (levels of receptivity of the heart of the listener). The sowing of the seed is the preaching and teaching of the Kingdom; in this case, by Jesus. Here are the four levels of reception by those who hear the words (where the seed is sown): *No understanding (they cannot grasp the meanings of the parables talking of the Kingdom) *There is no root. They listen and have some understanding, but don t act on it. *The word is choked. There is receptivity and action, but other things become more of a priority. *There is understanding, and a great crop! The focus on this parable is not just the levels of receptivity. It is also the bountiful harvest potential of the Kingdom of God! There is talk of the fulfillment of the kingdom in the future, when judgment will take place, and right will be called right, and wrong will be called wrong. Also, in Matthew s teaching of the Kingdom, there is a call for believers who hear the words of Jesus to put them into practice and bear much fruit. In this parable, as well as others, we see some declarations or affirmations. Victory in the Kingdom of God is sure. The harvest will come, because it is God s doing. There is a hard and difficult road between sowing and reaping, and what is reaped is dependent on how the listener responds to the message. In other words, the victorious Kingdom is assured, but each person s participation in that kingdom is an individual choice. In this first parable, the sower is Christ. Matthew will preach through his gospel, that Jesus faces rejection as King by many, if not most people, but He will be triumphant and will fulfill God s purpose. Those who don t reject Jesus recognize the kind of king he is called to be. In this chapter, Jesus answers the disciple question of why he used parables. The answer has to do with our willingness to receive his message. To learn from Jesus parables requires that we receive his message with humility and faith, which is something many of his listeners lacked (vs. 58). By quoting from Isaiah (vs ) Jesus is saying that those who understand with their heads only, that is, without believing, don t really understand it at all. To enter the kingdom of heaven requires knowledge and belief. That s what it means to understand with your heart (vs 15). One of the ways to understand the parables is to seek out the answer, which the disciples did by asking Jesus what the parables meant. Although they struggled to understand the meaning of the parables, they believed in Jesus and were willing to dig deeper into what they mean, and have a better picture of the Kingdom of God. Week 6 MORE PARABLES OF JESUS Page 2

3 We have our first of the Kingdom of God is like. parables. With the parable of the weeds, the seed are the people who hear the word; it is not the word itself. And, there are two times of sowing when good seeds are sown and when weeds are sown. It begs the question, who or what are the weeds? In that context, they likely were the Pharisees, who were inviting people to be a part of a community that did not rightly represent the kingdom of God. The interpretation can go much deeper when we apply it to different contexts: it could apply to people in or outside of the church, or it can apply to objects like temptations or distractions or other gods. The question the listener is left with is, Are you the good seed sown by Jesus, or the weeds sown by the evil one? This should be a call on us as believers to open our hearts and lives, and ask the Holy Spirit to make us what God would have us to be. The separating of the weeds and wheat at the end of time is not told because we are to be happy that those who are evil are condemned, but is a warning to us to make sure we are wheat and not weeds. We have two sets of parables about what the kingdom of God is like. The first set is the parables of the mustard seed and they yeast. They convey basically the same message: The kingdom of God is supernatural and surprising. It starts small or in a low place (like a king who is meek, i.e. Jesus) and it brings greatness and shows God s power and glory. In these cases, Jesus uses powerful images to convey the point: a large tree from a mustard seed, and a large amount of flour that one woman takes and transforms through a little yeast. The proper way to say it was that the yeast was hidden in the flour, pointing to the Kingdom working in unexpected and even scandalous ways. The next set of parables (treasure hidden in a field, pearls) speaks to the immense value one should place in the kingdom of God, and the willingness to surrender all in order to gain it. This is a powerful image of what discipleship is about (take up your cross ). Taken together, these parables help us see a more complete picture of the kingdom of heaven. It starts small (like seeds) and has a unique power to grow (like a mustard seed or yeast). It s worth everything you have to obtain (like hidden treasure or a pearl) and eventually will include many, many people (like a net). There s only one dark cloud on this beautiful canvas: some will oppose the kingdom of heaven and its inhabitants (like weeds). It s amazing how much truth Jesus packed into a few word sketches. Matthew 20:1-16 The punch line of the parable of the generous landowner is familiar to most people (vs. 16). You might hear it quoted as a joke when someone cuts in the front of a long line: Well you know, the last will be first, and the first will be last. But the parable and its point were not joke to Jesus. Through them he was communicating another important point about the kingdom of heaven. The parable seems easy to understand at first: workers are hired at different points throughout the day with the promise of fair wages at the end. A denarius was offered for those at the beginning of the day, which was the usual amount for a day s worth of work. When the landowner goes out to recruit the next group, he offers to pay them WHAT IS RIGHT. Those who say yes trust the landowner will be fair. The suspense builds as the early birds anticipate how much overtime pay they might collect. But that s where the plot gets complicated: everyone receives the same amount. Those who worked twelve hours are paid the same as those who worked one. Is the landowner fair or unfair? Is he a rich oppressor or a heartless communist? Justice, or what is right, would be to give equal pay for equal work. By the landowner not doing this, the parable is challenging the way this would normally be viewed and handles. It seems justice is being given a different definition. But Jesus is using this seeming unfairness to make his point. The kingdom of heaven cannot be earned; it is a gift from God (Ephesians 2:8-9). Instead of calling this the parable of the workers in the vineyard, it might be more accurate to call it the parable of the generous landowner. That s because Jesus is saying our salvation is dependent on God s generosity, not on our good works. That was a tough message for the religious experts of Jesus day to accept. After all, they led the chosen people. They scrupulously followed God s commands and regulations. If anyone deserved to get into the kingdom of heaven, it was them. But religion based on human effort and earning salvation leads away from God and into pride. There is resentment from the workers who have sweated all day and not received more than those who worked just an hour, even though they are being given what was agreed on at the beginning. It was hard for them to accept the gracefulness of the kingdom. Justice would be to say the early bird workers are not getting what they deserve. Or, those who came later are getting what they do not deserve. Justice says there should not be equality Week 6 MORE PARABLES OF JESUS Page 3

4 here. But grace says there is. It is an amazing grace Jesus presents here. The truth is that grace which can be calculated or is expected is really no longer grace. And, the truth is, God wants everyone to enjoy the benefits of His kingdom. Instead of grumbling about who deserves to be in or out, the workers would have done better to celebrate with the generous landowner at the end of the day. That s what it will be like in the kingdom of heaven. Matthew 25:1-46 In this passage, we come back to Jesus last sermon as it is recorded in Matthew his final discourse. Matthew 23 & 24 covers the first part of it. In earlier parables Jesus made the point that God invites everyone to enter his kingdom. But now he says some won t accept that invitation; some will be left out and it won t be God s fault. Each of the ten virgins had an opportunity to get away and get ready for the bridegroom; five used it wisely and five let it slip away. All three of the servants received an investment from the wealthy man; two made the most of it and one misused it. We can t look at the parable of the ten virgins to get an accurate picture of how a wedding took place back then. In this scene, there is no bride. The ten virgins, or attendants, are the focus. Perhaps it s because they would be dressed the same and you can t tell them apart. Also, they all fall asleep, so this is not what distinguishes them. What sets them apart is their READINESS. The verb at the end of the parable for keep watch (vs. 13) can also be translated be ready and is probably the better way to go here. Matthew s gospel does not support this frantic quest to figure out when Jesus would return and then be watching so you would not miss it. From before, we know that Matthew reassures his listeners that everyone will know when Jesus returns, and no one will know the exact time that will be. The call is to be ready, even when His coming does not come when we thought it would. (This was likely what Matthew s community was dealing with.) Matthew s encouragement for them is to be ready, to be found as one who is fulfilling his or her responsibility as one who is the citizen of the kingdom. This is also what the second parable demonstrates. The men are given a large amount of money, pointing to the abundance of the kingdom of God. (A talent would have been equal to 15 years of wages.) The first two men were faithful, in that they were responsible and showed initiative with what they were given and expected to use to further the kingdom. The third man was not this way, and even what he had was given to the first man. (The first man, who had proven faithful, was given more.) It s interesting that two characterizations of the wealthy man are given in this parable. One is of a master who rewarded those who were faithful. The other is given directly by the third man, of a master who is a hard man, harvesting where you have not sown and gathering where you have not scattered seed. It caused the third man to be afraid, as if the master was out to get the man if he didn t do things exactly right. I wonder if we view God this way, as we balance the God of judgment and the God of love. Do we see God who is looking for any way he can condemn us, or do we believe in a God who calls us to be faithful and desires to reward us when we are faithful? The last parable is perhaps the most sobering of all. It is the only glimpse we get in the New Testament to the actual coming of Jesus. It envisions a final day of reckoning when the son of Man will sort out the sheep from the goats; that is, he ll determine who will enter the kingdom of heaven and who will not. At the first reading it might seem like Jesus is saying we can earn our salvation after all, if we just help the homeless, hungry, imprisoned and needy. But we can t see this parable in isolation from his earlier teaching. First, we must accept and believe in Jesus, that is, we must understand with our hearts (Matt 13:15). Then we must demonstrate the reality of that belief through our compassionate actions. It s the same thing the apostle James said many years later (James 2:26). Some people find the idea of a final judgment difficult to accept; they feel that hellfire-and-brimstone preaching is manipulative. Unfortunately it can be. Preaching that is like this only focuses on the eternal aspect of the kingdom, and the assurance that we will be a part of it kind of like fire insurance preaching. However, when we recognize God desires for His kingdom to be present now while we live life on this earth, the response we have to the grace God gives us (which we talked about in earlier passages) causes us to want to live the Kingdom life now. But that doesn t eliminate the reality that Jesus will someday return to judge humankind. And no matter how we may feel about it, the best response is this: use your time now to get ready. And, simply put, to be ready, as Matthew s gospel preaches, is to live the Kingdom life, as it is laid out in places like the Sermon on the Mount. Then you ll hear God say, Well done, good and faithful servant. Week 6 MORE PARABLES OF JESUS Page 4

5 John 10:1-18 At different points in his teaching ministry, Jesus used a variation of the parable style of teaching to communicate with his listeners. He used a figure of speech (vs. 6). Instead of telling a story, he presented word pictures or analogies, and then used them to describe several nuances of a spiritual truth. We find these present in this public discourse by Jesus, his last one in the gospel of John. (He has one more in John 14-16, but it is a private discourse with his disciples.) This is part of a familiar pattern in the Gospel of John: miracle, dialogue, discourse. In chapter 9, Jesus heals a man born blind. After the Jewish leaders launch an inquiry into what happened, which involved summoning the man to the temple, and then subsequently throwing him out, they get into a dialogue with Jesus at the end of chapter 9. This discourse in chapter 10 is on the heels of that dialogue. In John, we have the I am statements of Jesus. For John, one of his main purposes was to lift up the divinity of Jesus. The I am statements would have been powerful statements for Jews to hear (and read). They would point back to Moses and his burning bush experience with Yahweh, when God identified Himself as I am. There are several I am statements throughout the gospel of John, and two of them are in this passage. In verse 9, Jesus declares, I AM the gate. In other words, Jesus is the entry point into God s kingdom. He is the access point to God for the sheep. He will lead them to God. A link can be made between this declaration and Psalm 118: The sheep Jesus is speaking of are not only the people of Israel, but also other sheep as well, which would refer to Gentiles. In general, Jesus sheep are those who believe in Him as God s Son. He is the means of salvation. Others try to enter a way other than the gate and offer other means of salvation, but they are known to be thieves and robbers. In light of this discourse following Jesus s dialogue with the religious leaders after they rejected Jesus healing of the blind man, the role of thief and robber would be played by them! Also, in verse 11, Jesus declares, I AM the good shepherd. Good here means model or true. The Bible often uses the image of a shepherd to communicate God s relationship with his people. The first example of this is in Numbers 27:17. One of the most familiar examples is Psalm 23. But this particular I AM statement has a clear reference to Ezekiel 34: We see Jesus describe himself as a Shepherd here much like God talks of being a shepherd in Ezekiel. Jesus is not so subtly declaring that He is fulfilling God s role as a shepherd and doing His work. There is a powerful intimacy that Jesus talks of between the Himself and the sheep. The sheep know his voice. And Jesus, as the shepherd, calls them by name and leads them. Jesus followers can enjoy close relationship with Him (10:14). He is not an impersonal being. He knows your name; he cares about you like a shepherd who recognizes and loves his sheep. Not only this, but Jesus foreshadows his impending death and resurrection by declaring that he lays down his life for the sheep. He does it willingly, and he does it only to take his life back up again. He speaks of his divinity when He talks of the authority He has, from the Father, to lay his life down and take it back up again. For those listening and reading, Jesus is clearly expressing his oneness with God, his divinity. Jesus talks as well about being the only access to God in in John 14:16 I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. The gospel story tells us this is the case because we can only come to God when the sentence for our sin has been met. As the good shepherd, Jesus is willing to die for us and our sin. Because of this, we are reconciled to God. Without his sacrifice, we would be lost. But Jesus desire is to save us through his death and resurrection. And, his desire is to find us as lost sheep and invite us to accept his grace and redemption, through the work of the Holy Spirit. We are called to lovingly share this gift and promise to everyone around us. We share it primarily by living the kingdom life, so people can see the Jesus who loves and saves us through our actions. John 15:1-17 It s important to understand the context in which Jesus introduced this next figure of speech. In John 14-17, John records an extended, private teaching session that Jesus has with his disciples the night before he was arrested (John 18) and then crucified (John 19). This would be the same night Jesus would introduce what we would refer to today as Communion. While celebrating a Passover meal that remembers God saving the Israelites during the 10 th plague leashed on the Egyptians because Pharaoh would not let God s people go, Jesus would pass around bread and wine, telling his disciples that God would save them Week 6 MORE PARABLES OF JESUS Page 5

6 (and everyone who would believe in Jesus) from their sin and its death sentence. This part of that evening is not recorded in John, but John does chronicle the washing of the disciples feet by Jesus. This event frames the words of Jesus in the following chapters, including our particular passage of John 15:1-17. The two themes of loving one another (the foot-washing was a model to the disciples of how they are to love another) and Jesus abiding presence with his disciples (Jesus tells the disciples they are part of him by allowing him to wash their feet) are at the heart of the passage for this day. We see here the last I AM saying of Jesus in the gospel of John. In chapter 10, Jesus declared Himself as the gate and the Good Shepherd, proclaiming he is the only access to God and he gives direction to those who believe in Him. Here, in chapter 15, Jesus declared Himself to be the True Vine, the connection for his believers to God, and the source of their spiritual growth. John 15:1-17 is part of Jesus last opportunity to communicate the nature of his relationship with his Father and his followers. It was a tough challenge, so Jesus used the familiar image of a vine and its branches. Jesus says he s the vine, his followers are the branches, and God is the gardener. Think about all the things that such a simple analogy would communicate. The gardener is in charge. The vine holds everything together. The branches cannot live apart from the vine. There are some powerful messages here about the relationship of Jesus to his Father, and of Jesus to the community of those who believe in Him. God is the source of Jesus calling, and the subsequent calling of those who believe in Him. The call is to bear fruit. And, for those who believe and respond to this call, they are pruned or cleaned or cleansed so that they bear even more fruit. Jesus goes on to emphasize two specific points about the analogy that he felt were especially important. The first was the significance of FRUIT. The main job of the branches was to bear fruit; that is, for Jesus followers to do the things he s been instructing them to do (vs. 7-8). That s still true today. The most important thing we can do in life is not be successful or wealthy or recognized. It s to bear fruit that will last (vs. 16). His second point refers to LOVE. Jesus didn t encourage his disciples with some Disney-style platitude: Just follow your hearts. Instead, he commanded them to love one another (vs. 17). That s tough work, especially since he set the ultimate standard (vs. 13). True love involves both obedience to God s commands and sacrifice for the good of others. Jesus words here are a repeat of John 13:34-35 when he calls on his disciples to love one another, and this is how all will know they are his disciples. It s worthy to note the two events that took place right before this: the washing of the disciples feet and the departure of Judas to go betray Jesus. Jesus shows them a WAY to love one another (by serving) and TO WHAT EXTENT (even those who betray you)! Jesus tells his disciples he no longer calls them servants but friends. He is indicating the transition in their calling. The disciples are being invited into the intimacy that Jesus shares with God, and to bear fruit because of that connection. They do this because they are his friends. Friend here indicates one who is loved; it s a reminder of the love Jesus has for them, so much love that He would lay down his life for them. Jesus has chosen them. It was not of their own initiative that they have been given this calling. It is the grace of God. Their part was to receive this grace and calling when it was offered to them. This same grace and calling are offered to us by God s initiative! There is a powerful message here for the community of believers, the church. The intermingling of the branches in the vine and the Gardener s attentive care to the faithfulness of the branches creates the ultimate visual image of the life of the Christian community that is shaped by the love of God and grounded in His presence. This begs some questions of the church: What does it mean for the church to live as the branches of Christ the vine? What would church look like if it embraced this model for its corporate life? I think the simple answer is There is no I in church! Fruit hangs on the branches because of the vine. Our dependence is on the grace of God through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, which not only redeems but also empowers (II Corinthians 12:9). In this image, all branches look the same and Week 6 MORE PARABLES OF JESUS Page 6

7 cannot be distinguished from each other; and, they are interconnected to each other. The measure of strength of the believer is dependent on the community into which he or she grafts themselves. God intends to strengthen us individually as we are joined to the vine with other branches. The focus is not on any individual branch. This challenges our culture s tendency to celebrate the individual. Churches should be known for acts of love done in community more than individual accomplishments. We see a parallel to this with Paul s words in I Corinthians 12 about the body of Christ. Although Paul underscores differences in the body, no part is more valuable than the other, and each part needs the other to do their part to bear the fruit God has called the church to bear in this world. Matthew 13:1-58 *What word picture would you use to describe your understanding of the kingdom of heaven? It s like? *What is the key to understanding the Kingdom of God? What should we do with that understanding? *Have you ever seen or experienced examples of the kingdom of God here on earth? What was it like? *From the parable of the sower, what does it mean to not understand? To have no root? For the Word to be choked out? To have a bountiful harvest? *These parables speak of receptive soil (hearts) and weeds that grow alongside good plants. What factors make for a person to have (or not have) a receptive heart? *Can you think of a time when you saw God take someone s small offering and do something great with it? Why is it encouraging to know that God makes something great out of something small? *When you think about the end of time, when judgment will take place and the evil will be separated from the good, what kind of feelings does that stir up? Do you feel the evil are getting what they deserved? Are you sad for those who face that kind of judgment, and hope that everyone comes to a faith in Jesus Christ, regardless of what they have done? Matthew 20:1-16 *Why were the early workers upset? What does this parable tell you about God? Do you feel God has been fair and generous with you? Why or why not? *Which image best describes your view of the Christian faith: a rule book or a Christmas gift? Why? *Why do you think most of the religions of the world are based on the idea that we can somehow earn salvation? *If salvation is a gift from God, is there any need for good works? Why bother to do good if you can t earn your salvation? Matthew 25:1-46 *What does it mean to be ready for the coming of Jesus Christ? *Do you believe in a final judgment? Why or why not? If you do, what do you think it will be like? *How should this picture of the final judgment influence the way we view those who are in need? *How do you feel about a final day of judgment? What are you doing to get ready? Week 6 MORE PARABLES OF JESUS Page 7

8 *Do you think preaching and teaching about judgment should have greater or lesser emphasis in churches today? Why? John 10:1-18 *Why do you think some people have so much trouble believing that Jesus is the only way to God? What reason would you give to a person for why you believe this? *Today, some people are offended by the idea that Jesus is the only way to God. What do you think? Is it acceptable to express this view in public? *Note some characteristics of this Good Shepherd. In what ways do you see an intimate relationship portrayed in this passage? *What does it mean for the church to live as Jesus sheep? What does a church that understands itself as jesus sheep look like? How will its identity be manifested in the world? John 15:1-17 *What does it mean for the church to live as the branches of Christ the vine? What would church look like if it embraced this model for its corporate life? *Which goal do you need to work on more in the next month: bearing fruit or showing love? How could you do this? *In what ways should a Christian bear fruit? Should all believers bear the same kind of fruit? Is there some fruit that all followers of Christ should have? *This agricultural parable has an important message. What do you think it means to remain in Jesus? What kind of fruit do you think you are supposed to bear? *What are the best examples of sacrificial love that you ve seen in your lifetime? *What is the general understanding of love in our society? How would you explain what real love is? How is your definition different? Answer the following questions as a way to sum up the message for the week, and to help tie things off for your small group time. -What do we learn about God? -What do we learn about ourselves? -How might God be working or we be acting in a similar way today? -How might we act on this passage? The Essential Jesus (Whitney T. Kuniholm) & The Essential Jesus Challenge Guide from Scripture Union. (Italicized portions, unless otherwise noted, are quotations.) The New Interpreter s Bible Commentary, Volume VII & VIII Week 6 MORE PARABLES OF JESUS Page 8

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