Devotional and Conversation Guide

Devotional and Conversation Guide

Why did Jesus tell Parables? Amidst the numerous stories about Jesus, the Gospels also record 46 short stories or parables that Jesus told to audiences of all shapes and sizes. So captivating was Jesus storytelling that crowds stayed and listened to him all day, forgetting to even go home to eat (Luke 9:10-17). Those who heard him were astonished from the authority of which he spoke, but were often left scratching their heads wondering, What in the world are you talking about Jesus? Can you give some sort of explanation? One such parable in Matthew 20, The workers in the vineyard, describes a rich man who goes into town very early in the morning to hire workers for his vineyard, setting them up with a flat day rate. He goes out again later in the morning and hires more workers for the same rate. He does the same later on in the afternoon, and then again, shortly before dinner offering them all the same pay. When all the workers come to collect their pay at the end of the day, the workers who have been out since sunrise are angry at being paid the same as those who have only been working for an hour. And the landowner tells them to stop complaining. I am not being unfair to you, friend. Didn t you agree to work for a denarius?... Don t I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous? Therefore, Jesus concludes, the last will be first and the first will be last. And that s all He says. It s not the hook for a longer sermon. He doesn t ask anyone if they get what He s trying to say. He doesn t even have the decency to finish His story with a call to action. Jesus tells the story and calls it a day. In our world, that s a terrifying notion. We desire an explanation, a reason or point behind the story. We rely on the so called, wisdom of the experts to provide an explanation, so we may gain an adequate understanding of what is happening. Think cable news. Attempts at explanation can also be seen on almost any given Sunday morning as a sermon seeks to unfold ancient stories through the means of anecdotes, illustrations, video clips and the expertise of the pastor/teacher. Have we come to expect the authority in the room to unfold the real truth of what the story/text really means?

Not with Jesus. With the exception of a few parables explained to his followers, he leaves the listeners alone to put together the pieces of what he was talking about. In the case of the landowner and the vineyard, they had no cheat sheet to determine who the landowner represented, or whether or not anything clever was meant by having four separate groups of workers. They had to engage with the story and with each other asking questions and learning. They had to work together to tie up the loose ends. Jesus parables were not full of saintly protagonists. They weren t set up with neat endings. And they weren t cheap tricks to grab attention. They were as real, complex, straightforward and perplexing, like Jesus. The parables Jesus told were designed to bring great treasure as well as great questions. We ve got to be willing dig deep and trust that the Holy Spirit is more than capable to unveil the truths of God s kingdom directly to us. Explore each week and bring your insights with you to worship! Using this Devotional and Conversation Guide Summer presents a great opportunity to establish a different type of rhythm. Slow down. Use this guide to unearth the great treasure of these great stories. Each week is designed to explore the parable during the week prior to the sermon on Sunday. So explore the questions of week #1 before the June 7th sermon. Explore the parable as individuals, couples, families, groups or as members of the entire human race. Talk about it! Access our Parables from the Red Couch podcast and more materials thru our website (www.holycross-elca.org), HCLConnect mobile app, or the weekly E-News. Use the spaces provided after the question to jot down thoughts, reflections, further questions, or just to doodle.

Parables, Jesus Short Stories Week #1 - June 1-7 A sower and some soils Mark 4:1-9 1 Again he began to teach beside the sea. Such a very large crowd gathered around him that he got into a boat on the sea and sat there, while the whole crowd was beside the sea on the land. 2 He began to teach them many things in parables, and in his teaching he said to them: 3 Listen! A sower went out to sow. 4 And as he sowed, some seed fell on the path, and the birds came and ate it up. 5 Other seed fell on rocky ground, where it did not have much soil, and it sprang up quickly, since it had no depth of soil. 6 And when the sun rose, it was scorched; and since it had no root, it withered away. 7 Other seed fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked it, and it yielded no grain. 8 Other seed fell into good soil and brought forth grain, growing up and increasing and yielding thirty and sixty and a hundredfold. 9 And he said, Let anyone with ears to hear listen! Reflection/Conversation What is your (your family's) experience with farming? What strikes you about the odd farming techniques used by the farmer in this parable? Without relying on your past knowledge of this parable, how may have the crowd/disciples interpreted the meaning of the seed in the parable?

Consider the various types of soil and what happens to the seed that falls on each soil. Where are each of these reflected in our culture? Where are they reflected in your life? Path/Birds Rocky/Sun Thorns (weeds)/choke Good Soil/Harvest Where are you being called to sow seeds? What does this seed look like? Write down a step that you can take this week. How might you cultivate the soil of your life in order to be fertile ground? Write down a step that you can take this week. (To see how Jesus explains this parable to his disciples, read Mark 4:10-20)

Parables, Jesus Short Stories Week #2 - June 8-14 An unforgiving servant Matthew 18:21-34 21 Then Peter came and said to him, Lord, if another member of the church sins against me, how often should I forgive? As many as seven times? 22 Jesus said to him, Not seven times, but, I tell you, seventy-seven times. 23 For this reason the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his slaves. 24 When he began the reckoning, one who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him; 25 and, as he could not pay, his lord ordered him to be sold, together with his wife and children and all his possessions, and payment to be made. 26 So the slave fell on his knees before him, saying, Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything. 27 And out of pity for him, the lord of that slave released him and forgave him the debt. 28 But that same slave, as he went out, came upon one of his fellow slaves who owed him a hundred denarii; and seizing him by the throat, he said, Pay what you owe. 29 Then his fellow slave fell down and pleaded with him, Have patience with me, and I will pay you. 30 But he refused; then he went and threw him into prison until he would pay the debt. 31 When his fellow slaves saw what had happened, they were greatly distressed, and they went and reported to their lord all that had taken place. 32 Then his lord summoned him and said to him, You wicked slave! I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me. 33 Should you not have had mercy on your fellow slave, as I had mercy on you? 34 And in anger his lord handed him over to be tortured until he would pay his entire debt.

Reflection/Conversation What do you think Peter was trying to get at with his question to Jesus? Consider this: If Jesus reply was essentially infinity, what was he trying to convey to Peter? What does this parable tell us about the King? Where do you find yourself like the unforgiving servant? What actions/attitudes did he display? Where do you see yourself showing a lack of mercy/compassion to others? What actions/attitudes did the King display? Why did the King bring judgment on the unforgiving servant? Does Jesus want listeners to equate the King with God or himself? How might the people of God, reflect the mercy/compassion/ forgiveness shown by the King? What is something you can do this week to reflect the King s mercy/compassion/forgiveness?

Parables, Jesus Short Stories Week #3 - June 15-21 A Father s Love Luke 15:11-32 11 Then Jesus said, There was a man who had two sons. 12 The younger of them said to his father, Father, give me the share of the property that will belong to me. So he divided his property between them. 13 A few days later the younger son gathered all he had and traveled to a distant country, and there he squandered his property in dissolute living. 14 When he had spent everything, a severe famine took place throughout that country, and he began to be in need. 15 So he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed the pigs. 16 He would gladly have filled himself with the pods that the pigs were eating; and no one gave him anything. 17 But when he came to himself he said, How many of my father s hired hands have bread enough and to spare, but here I am dying of hunger! 18 I will get up and go to my father, and I will say to him, Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you; 19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son; treat me like one of your hired hands. 20 So he set off and went to his father. But while he was still far off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion; he ran and put his arms around him and kissed him. 21 Then the son said to him, Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you; I am no longer worthy to be called your son. 22 But the father said to his slaves, Quickly, bring out a robe the best one and put it on him; put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. 23 And get the fatted calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate; 24 for this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found! And they began to celebrate. 25 Now his elder son was in the field; and when he came and approached the house, he heard music and dancing. 26 He called one of the slaves and asked what was going on. 27 He replied, Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fatted calf, because he has got him back safe and sound. 28 Then he became angry and refused to go in. His father came out and began to plead with him. 29 But he answered his father,

Listen! For all these years I have been working like a slave for you, and I have never disobeyed your command; yet you have never given me even a young goat so that I might celebrate with my friends. 30 But when this son of yours came back, who has devoured your property with prostitutes, you killed the fatted calf for him! 31 Then the father said to him, Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours. 32 But we had to celebrate and rejoice, because this brother of yours was dead and has come to life; he was lost and has been found. Reflection/Conversation Put together a list (in order) of all the things Jesus wanted to uncover in this parable: What actions of the Father may have seemed absurd to the audience of the time, to us today? If you modernized the parable, what would the actions of the characters look like? How are we like the characters in the story? What is something you can do this week to reflect the love of the Father?

Parables, Jesus Short Stories Week #4- June 22-28 A Samaritan Luke 10:25-37 25 Just then a lawyer stood up to test Jesus Teacher, he said, what must I do to inherit eternal life? 26 He said to him, What is written in the law? What do you read there? 27 He answered, You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself. 28 And he said to him, You have given the right answer; do this, and you will live. 29 But wanting to justify himself, he asked Jesus, And who is my neighbor? 30 Jesus replied, A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell into the hands of robbers, who stripped him, beat him, and went away, leaving him half dead. 31 Now by chance a priest was going down that road; and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. 32 So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. 33 But a Samaritan while traveling came near him; and when he saw him, he was moved with pity. 34 He went to him and bandaged his wounds, having poured oil and wine on them. Then he put him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. 35 The next day he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said, Take care of him; and when I come back, I will repay you whatever more you spend. 36 Which of these three, do you think, was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers? 37 He said, The one who showed him mercy. Jesus said to him, Go and do likewise.

Reflection/Conversation What barriers/boundaries did the Samaritan face to care for the man? What was the significance to the man being a Samaritan? Who are the neighbors that God wants you to care for? What challenges will you face in doing so? Were the religious leaders the bad guys in the parable? How easy is it become indifferent to the broken ones around us? Why do we tend to pass by? How does loving our neighbor equate to loving God? How will you love God and your neighbor this week?

the parables: June 7 a sower and some soils June 14 an unforgiving servant June 21 a Father s love (Father s Day) June 28 a Samaritan Www.holycross-elca.org