Parables in the Gospels
/Parables
* The meaning of most parables is not so obvious, or at least it shouldn't be. If we assume we know what Jesus is talking about, we are probably missing the main point; if we are too familiar with the story (having heard it so often before), we might not think carefully enough about its real meaning.
* Most parables contain some element that is strange or unusual. They should cause you to say, "Wait a minute! That's not how farmers do their work! Wealthy landowners would not give such astronomical sums of money to underlings with so few instructions!! That's not what normally happens in nature!" And this strange element should cause you to think.
* Parables do not define things precisely, but rather use comparisons to describe some aspect of how God acts or interacts with human beings. Yet to say "A is like B" does not mean that "A is identical to B in all respects"; so one should be careful not to misinterpret or misapply the parables. Some would say that parables should be treated as allegory, not metaphor or simile.
*We might think that Jesus spoke in parables to make it easier for people to understand his message. According to the Gospels, however, he surprisingly does NOT expect everyone to understand them!
In Matthew, at least the disciples of Jesus understand the parables; but in Mark, even they have a hard time understanding, despite receiving extra instructions in private!
(Adapted from a short analysis by James C. Christensen)
Parables were meant to catch Jesus' listeners off guard, to make them re-evaluate their normal ways of behaving, and to align their hearts with God's heart. Many parables, like the one about the Pharisee and the Publican, or the one about the Good Samaritan, employed elements which were very countercultural, and shocking to the people of Jesus' time. In the story of the talents, the master reprimands the last servant for not investing money and charging interest on it. However, every one of Jesus’ listeners would have known that this practice is forbidden in scripture (Exodus 22:25’ Leviticus 25:35-28). This would be a huge red flag to the listener that something is going on here.
In our own case, because we have grown up with them, the details of the parables seem familiar or even ordinary to us, and we don’t experience the shock value of the stories. Often, we need to translate those stories using examples from our own social and cultural situations in order to see how truly counter-cultural they are.
These parables, which appear to be simple and straightforward stories, are actually multi-dimensional and complex. Frequently, we are left with things unresolved and have to make some conclusions of our own. Does the elder brother ever go in to join the party welcoming the prodigal son home? How do those in the vineyard who worked much longer hours respond to the words of the vineyard owner? Does the Good Samaritan return, and what happens to the victim? Does the Pharisee ever understand his spiritual arrogance? Once they get inside, do the five "wise" virgins enjoy the banquet, knowing that their sisters are still outside? Why DID a guest at the wedding feast show up poorly attire and refuse to explain why? Why was a servant actually punished when he did not waste or lose any of the landowner’s money? How we resolve those issues in our own minds tells us a lot about our own attitudes. Are they in line with God's or not?
If there is some overall wisdom to be gleaned from parables, it is this: God's ways are not our ways. Parables tell us that the fight for the kingdom is not played out in palaces and war rooms, but in the everyday events of our everyday lives. The struggle for the kingdom is carried out in our divided hearts, where we sometimes mutter "Thy kingdom come" without fully realizing that we might have to pray "My kingdom go". (Alan Redpath, British Baptist Preacher). The parable demands that each of us answer the question "What do YOU say? How we answer defines our moral landscape.
