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Parables • Sermon • Submitted • Presented • 35:25
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· 241 viewsChrist often taught about the kingdom of God using every-day stories. In Mark’s gospel we see an example that shows us why Jesus uses parables, and how to understand what parables mean.
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Again Jesus began to teach by the lake. The crowd that gathered around him was so large that he got into a boat and sat in it out on the lake, while all the people were along the shore at the water’s edge. He taught them many things by parables, and in his teaching said: “Listen! A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants, so that they did not bear grain. Still other seed fell on good soil. It came up, grew and produced a crop, some multiplying thirty, some sixty, some a hundred times.”
Then Jesus said, “Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear.”
When he was alone, the Twelve and the others around him asked him about the parables. He told them, “The secret of the kingdom of God has been given to you. But to those on the outside everything is said in parables so that,
“ ‘they may be ever seeing but never perceiving,
and ever hearing but never understanding;
otherwise they might turn and be forgiven!’”
Then Jesus said to them, “Don’t you understand this parable? How then will you understand any parable? The farmer sows the word. Some people are like seed along the path, where the word is sown. As soon as they hear it, Satan comes and takes away the word that was sown in them. Others, like seed sown on rocky places, hear the word and at once receive it with joy. But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away. Still others, like seed sown among thorns, hear the word; but the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful. Others, like seed sown on good soil, hear the word, accept it, and produce a crop—some thirty, some sixty, some a hundred times what was sown.”
What is a parable?
What is a parable?
The Bible contains a variety of writing styles. There are several genres of literature all represented in scripture. There is narrative story. There is historical documentation. There is poetry. There are prayers. There are letters written back and forth. There are prophecies. And then in the gospels we find Jesus teaching in a way that almost exclusively uses a technique that we call parables. Today we are beginning a series for the summer that looks at some of the parables of Jesus. So, it might be helpful right here at the beginning to talk a little bit about parables. We cannot figure out WHAT these stories mean until we know HOW these stories should be read.
Maybe that’s a new idea for you today. We do not read all scripture the same way. Because there are so many examples of different literary genres in the Bible, we also bring different expectations and techniques depending on what part of the Bible we are reading. Parables are always a good place to remind ourselves of this.
What do I mean by different expectations? We read different literary genres with different expectations of what the writing is supposed to mean. Or, in other words, we bring expectations to text based on the kind of text we are reading. Let me give an obvious example of how this works. A newspaper. Newspapers contain a variety of different literary genres. And we carry certain expectations to what we are reading depending on what section of the newspaper we are looking at. I would like to think that when I am flipping through the national and local sections of the newspaper, that the stories are credible and sources are checked and confirmed. But when I read op-ed articles in the opinion section, now my expectation of what I am reading shifts because I know these are articles that are not intended to report unbiased fact, but rather these are authors who are trying to sway public views by expressing opinions. And when I read the business section and flip through the stock market, I don’t read it like some kind of story. The stock page is a chart of data, not sentences and paragraphs. The comics page again shifts my expectations of what I am reading. I am looking for the line or picture that is funny, because the intention of comics is to make us laugh.
Do you get what I mean here? I don’t read the opinion page or the events page or the stock market page or the comics page to same way. I carry a completely different set of pre-loaded expectations into the text of a newspaper depending entirely upon what section of the paper I am looking at. Do we do that same thing with the different kinds of writing we find in the Bible? We should! I should not read a Psalm the same way I read narrative, or the same way I read one of the apostolic letters, or the same way I read prophecy. I have different expectations loaded into what it is I’m reading in the Bible based on what part of the Bible I’m reading.
This is all introduction. Today we are reading a parable. And we cannot understand and interpret this story unless we understand a few things about parables in general. What we see here in Mark 4 is such a perfect example because I think Mark understood this too. Mark dedicates part of his gospel to go out of his way and catch his readers with a reminder that parables are completely different kind of style.
This parable of the sower that we see in Mark 4 is an example of what I will call a true parable. Not true in the sense that it actually happened, but true in the sense that it actually could happen. It is a story with characters and a plot. The story of this parable is plausible; it could actually happen. There are also saying of Jesus that are more about similarities or metaphors, but not actually a plausible story. I am vine, you are the branches. I am the light of the world. You are the salt of the earth. These sayings are metaphors for comparison—one thing is like another thing.
Now a word about what parables are NOT. Parables are not allegories. An allegory is a story in which every character and plot feature has some kind of direct one-to-one reference to some real-life person or event. Parables make general comparisons. Allegories make specific comparisons. Parables are not meant to be that specific. Here is why that is an important distinction for us to make. We should never read a parable and then start to pick apart every single character and every single detail trying to make one-to-one match ups for what all these things mean. No, parables are much simpler. The point of a parable is meant to be simple and generic, not complex and complicated.
What kind of simple generic meaning do these parable sayings all have in common? I was once told that parables are an earthly story with a heavenly meaning. I’m not sure how helpful that is. It still kind of leaves us wondering what a heavenly meaning might be? I think it might help us to be a little more accurate in our definition of a parable. It is not just an earthly story with a heavenly meaning.
I’m going to define it this way. Parables convey a Kingdom idea which calls for a response from the hearer. Back in Mark 1 we see the very first words of Jesus that Mark records in his gospel: “the time has come, this kingdom of God is near.” Parables take that skeleton statement and puts some meat on those bones. Parables convey simple ideas of what Jesus means when he talks about the kingdom of God. Parables are stories and comparisons which should give us a clearer picture of the kingdom. They are not direct literal descriptions of the kingdom of God. But Jesus uses parables to lay out ideas about the kingdom that help us recognize the kingdom when we see it.
And the second part—which is always essential to the parable—is the call for response. Parables are not cute stories that merely teach some kind of knowledge. Jesus always intends for these stories to produce some kind of response from those who hear it. There needs to be a reaction of some kind. Sometimes the response is a call to action in a way that shows us how to embrace and live out this kingdom idea. And sometimes we see the response is a reaction of anger and offence as those who thought they already knew and understood the kingdom are singled out and corrected by Jesus. Either way, the parable hits in a way that brings a response. If you read a parable and walk away without any kind of reaction or any kind of response, then you missed it.
Jesus acknowledges that here in Mark 4. That some people just seem to miss it. Some people just don’t catch the point. The authors of the gospels are quite intentional in the way they arrange these stories. The parables of Jesus are not randomly sprinkled throughout the gospels. Rather, the apostles place them together in groups that help us pull out the kingdom idea and see the response which Jesus intends. The structure of the gospels themselves help us with this. And in this case, the structure also helps us understand why it is that some other people miss the point and just don’t get it.
Parables in the Bible
Parables in the Bible
In your sermon notes is a goofy looking outline that goes from A to D and then back to A again. I’m going to put Mark 4 into this outline so we can better see how the arrangement of these parables also helps us understand the meaning.
A. narrative introduction vs 1-2
B. seed parable vs 3-9
C. hiddenness vs 10-12
D. parable explanation vs 13-20
C’. hiddenness vs 21-25
B’. seed parable vs 26-32
A’. narrative conclusion vs 33-34
Verses 1-2 are a narrative introduction. Verses 3-9 follow with a seed parable—the one we read already, the parable of the sower. Verses 10-12 contain what seem like some very confusing words from Jesus about the hiddenness of the message in his parables. We’ll take a closer look at that in a bit. Verses 13-20 are the explanation of the parable of the sower. And that’s all we read today.
From this point it might be easier for us to take everything Jesus says about the meaning of this parable and apply it back to the story in verses 3-9. That’s the easy way for us to ignore verses 10-12. But we can’t leave that out. Mark is pretty intentional about keeping this little conversation right in between the parable and the explanation of the parable. It’s not a distraction. It’s not a sidebar. This is information that is part of the parable meaning, and it’s confusing.
At first glance it looks like Jesus is telling his disciples that he speaks in parable because there are some certain people from whom he is intentionally trying to hide the meaning of the kingdom of God, otherwise they might turn and be forgiven. Wait. Jesus is hiding the message of the kingdom from some people on purpose? There are some people whom God does not want to turn and be forgiven? Does that sound right? Does that fit with what we know about God elsewhere in scripture? I don’t think so. Well then, what do we do with what he says here about speaking in parables? This will make more sense as we keep going.
We did not read anything past verse 20. But if we were to keep going what we would find is that this passage turns around repeats itself all the way back to the beginning. The last part of Mark 4 is a mirror echo of the first part of Mark 4. In verses 21-25 we find Jesus telling a parable specifically about hiddenness. Then in verses 26-32 he tells two more seed parables; the growing seed and the mustard seed. And then in verses 33-34 Mark rounds it out with a narrative conclusion that echoes verses 1-2 and serves as a bookend for this whole piece of Mark’s gospel.
This kind of mirror outline structure is something you will see me bring up from time-to-time in sermons because it is actually a very common way for many parts of scripture to be organized. If you start looking, you can find this kind of structure all over the place in the Bible. And it’s helpful because it reinforces the theme—not by simply repeating it—but by going back through it in reverse order.
Now then, what should we say about these confusing words from Jesus about the hiddenness of the kingdom as he explains it through parables? The story about the lamp in verses 21-25 make it pretty plain that everything that is hidden is, in fact, meant to be disclosed. In other words, Jesus is NOT hiding the kingdom of God on purpose. Yet, for some people this seems to be hidden. Stay with me, let’s keep digging.
We have to get a little bit nit-picky with one word. It’s the Greek word hina. In your English Bibles it translates into the phrase “so that.” I’m looking at the reason Jesus gives to his disciples in verse 12. He tells them that he speaks in parables “so that they may be ever seeing but never perceiving, and ever hearing but never understanding; otherwise they might turn and be forgiven!”
The Greek word hina can convey two possible meanings. It can communicate purpose. It can also communicate result. In both cases it comes into English as the phrase “so that.” What’s the difference? Purpose would indicate that Jesus forcefully intends this outcome. He uses parables ‘with the intent that’ or ‘for the purpose that’ there may be some who hear but do not understand. That would be hina indicating purpose. Result simply states the outcome without any connection to the intended purpose. If that were the case, Jesus speaks in parables ‘with the result that’ there may be some who hear but do not understand. But this is a result that is not the intended purpose.
How do we know which meaning to use? Usually context helps us decide. In this case the story of the lamp in verses 21-25 make it clear that result is the meaning of “so that.” Jesus does not have the intentional purpose of hiding the kingdom in his parables. Yet for some people, this is the result.
Point of reference
Point of reference
Alright then, let’s bring all this back into the parable of the sower and nail it down. What is the kingdom idea in this parable? And what is the response? The only way to know that is to identify the point of reference in the story. Every parable has a point of reference. What I mean by that is every parable has a point at which the reader or hearer is meant to identify themselves into the story.
In the parable of the sower we have the farmer, we have the seed, and we have the four types of soil. Jesus cuts right to the chase when he explains this parable to his disciples. The farmer and the seed are not the points of reference in this story. It is the four different types of soil that are the points of reference. We—the hearers—are supposed to read this story and catch the reference. In this case Mark plays it our for us by including the explanation of the parable. But in other parables, the explanation is not included. The hearer is just supposed to catch the reference and understand.
In this way, a parable is like a joke. I don’t mean that parables are supposed to be funny. I mean that parables are meant to have an understood reference that everyone catches and does not need to have explained. It’s the punchline. Jokes only work because they have a punchline. There is a reference in the joke that should not have to be explained, it’s just meant to be caught. And for those who catch the punchline, the joke is funny. For those who miss the punchline, the joke is not funny. If I have to go back and explain the whole joke for those who don’t get it, it’s already too late. If you missed the punchline the first time, the effect is already gone.
Parables are like that. Jesus intends that his hearers will catch the reference. He intends that we get the punchline. For those whom the punchline needs explanation, the effect is already gone. The parable is meant to have a reaction, it is meant to produce a result in the hearer. And we are meant to catch that point of reference in the moment without needing the explanation.
Either way, in this instance Jesus gives us the point of reference as a teaching tool for his disciples. There are four types of ground unopened which the seed falls. The path, the rocky places, the thorns and weeds, and the good soil. Jesus even offers a bit of commentary on how the point of reference connects in each instance. There are those for whom the gospel message is snatched away from them without ever taking root. The temptations and sinful brokenness of this world places them in a position where they don’t even want to let the seed of the gospel in. There are those for whom the seed of the gospel is shallow. They never allow it to take deep root in their lives. Then when times get tough and their faith is challenged in some way, they wither away. There are those for whom the seed of the gospel gets choked out by other competing distractions that take over in our busy lives. And then there are those for whom the seed takes root and grows and produces fruit.
So, what kind of ground am I? I think if we’re honest about that question we would quickly realize that it is not a zero-sum game. It is not that I can reduce my entire life of faith into just one of these four ground-categories. There is crossover. There are seasons of life in which I may gravitate my point of reference more toward one and then toward another. I don’t think the point is for each one of us to chart out where we are on this garden-ground scale and then click together an action plan for how we can all be perfectly tilled and fertilized fields all the time. It’s a lofty goal, and there’s nothing wrong about that. I just think it misses the point of the story.
Kingdom Idea
Kingdom Idea
Let’s not lose sight of what a parable is and why Jesus tells these stories. This parable—like all parables—conveys kingdom ideas. In this stretch of stories woven back and forth through Mark 4 we see a few kingdom ideas working together to form the message of this parable. If this parable was meant to be about how you can become fertile soil and avoid the rocks and weeds and thorns, then it seems to me that Jesus would have told it that way with something about the farmer clearing the rocks and pulling the weeds and plowing the field. But that’s not what happens. That’s placing too much into the story that was never there. That misses the point.
The parable of the sower is actually something quite simple when we see it in the context of all Mark 4. The story has a very simple message. A farmer scatters seed. The seed grows. But it doesn’t grow everywhere.
A Kingdom that is growing
A Kingdom that is hidden
The first kingdom idea Jesus shares in the parable of the sower is that the kingdom of God is a kingdom that is growing. Jesus says the kingdom is something that is meant to multiply once it is planted. The kingdom is something that is ever growing. It feels like my kids are ever growing. Didn’t we just get you that new pair of shoes, and now they don’t fit anymore? Growing means changes. What used to fit at one time no longer fits as growth occurs. Growing means changing in other ways too. As my kids got older and matured, they started taking on more responsibilities. When they were infants, Laura and I cared for every single one of their needs. Now they are more-and-more able to care for themselves. And beyond that, they are able to care for one another and some of our family needs by helping with chores. Now they are able to pitch in and contribute.
Jesus says the seed that grows produces a crop. The kingdom of God is something that we recognize by what is produced. It is recognized by its growth. This week in our bulletin we noted some of the statistics about how many individuals have completed the programs at Love INC and Deborah House and have graduated out. The partnership this church has with Love INC and Deborah House is instrumental to the path of the individuals who come through those ministries. That is a very real example of what the kingdom looks like right here in this place. That is a very real example of how Jesus says the kingdom grows and produces a crop just like seed planted by a farmer—that there is a group of volunteers here who take the time and dedication to pour into the lives of others so that the flourishing shalom (peace) of God continues to spread and continues to grow. That’s one example right here in this place. I know there are other examples. Wherever we see the seed of the gospel bearing fruit, we know the kingdom of God is growing there.
But there is something else in this story. Jesus says the seed does not grow everywhere. There are some places where the farmer scatters seed and it does not produce a crop. It is not that the seed has been withheld. The farmer seems extremely generous in throwing out the seed. It is simply that there are some places in which the seed will not grow. And about these places, Jesus says that his parables and his teachings remain hidden. That is the other kingdom idea we see in this story, that the kingdom of God is a kingdom that is hidden. Not everyone sees it the way we see it. God sows the seed of his kingdom generously for all people. He scatters the seed of the gospel everywhere. It is not as though the kingdom has been withheld by God from anyone. Rather, Jesus says that there are instances in which that vision of the kingdom of God declared by Jesus remains hidden, and the seed does not grow.
That may be tough for us to understand. I wish it were true that the kingdom of God would grow and flourish everywhere all the time throughout the entire creation. But I think it is also pretty obvious in this world that it doesn’t always work that way. And this is exactly what Jesus is also saying in this parable.
So, that’s it. We filled up a pretty big pot with a ton of information this morning and have been boiling it down for the past 25 minutes, and here is what we are left with. The parable of the sower reduces down to a simple kingdom idea. The kingdom of God is a kingdom that grows, but not everywhere. Now, what’s the takeaway? Parables also call for a response. What is the response we should give to this story?
First of all, don’t lose heart. Sure, there are some places and some instances in which the seed of the gospel seems to fall without producing the expected crop. But even so, there are also many other places that exist where the seed of the gospel grows and bears fruit. We may not see the kingdom of God flourishing everywhere all the time, but it is out there. It is growing. Don’t lose heart.
And the second takeaway: go where the growth is. Wherever you see the kingdom of God flourishing, hop on board and be a part of that. I gave one example here in this church of the partnership we have with Love INC. As I continue to get to know all of you I’ve been hearing other stories as well of the places you volunteer and give your time for other people to flourish in the lives God has given to them. Keep seeking to place yourselves in those opportunities. The kingdom of God is a kingdom that grows. God generously plants the seeds of his kingdom all about you in your lives. And God wants it to be growing in and through you. Don’t let that seed stay hidden.