How did Jesus communicate truth to the people?

Mt 13:34 All these things spake Jesus unto the multitude in parables; and without a parable spake he not unto them: 35 That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying, I will open my mouth in parables; I will utter things which have been kept secret from the foundation of the world.

Mr 4:33 And with many such parables spake he the word unto them, as they were able to hear it. 34 But without a parable spake he not unto them: and when they were alone, he expounded all things to his disciples.

Jesus used parables to communicate truth—the Word—to the people. The above texts also tell us that Jesus always used parables to teach the people: “without a parable spake He not.”

Why did Jesus speak in parables?

Mr 4:2 And he taught them many things by parables, and said unto them in his doctrine,

Mt 13:10 And the disciples came, and said unto him, Why speakest thou unto them in parables? 11 He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given.

Jesus spoke in parables to teach doctrine to His followers and to teach the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven that had been kept secret from the foundation of the world.

How did Jesus open the understanding of parables to His disciples?

Mr 4:10 And when he was alone, they that were about him with the twelve asked of him the parable. 11 And he said unto them, Unto you it is given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God: but unto them that are without, all these things are done in parables: 12 That seeing they may see, and not perceive; and hearing they may hear, and not understand; lest at any time they should be converted, and their sins should be forgiven them. 13 And he said unto them, Know ye not this parable? and how then will ye know all parables?

The disciples did not understand the parable of the sower that Jesus gave in Mark 4:3-8. Jesus told them that if they could understand that parable, then they could understand all parables. Then, Jesus proceeded to show them how to understand that parable (in verses 14-20) so that they could understand all parables.

Mr 4:3 Hearken; Behold, there went out a sower to sow:

Mr 4:14 The sower soweth the word.

Mr 4:4 And it came to pass, as he sowed, some fell by the way side, and the fowls of the air came and devoured it up.

Mr 4:15 And these are they by the way side, where the word is sown; but when they have heard, Satan cometh immediately, and taketh away the word that was sown in their hearts.

Mr 4:5 And some fell on stony ground, where it had not much earth; and immediately it sprang up, because it had no depth of earth:

Mr 4:16 And these are they likewise which are sown on stony ground; who, when they have heard the word, immediately receive it with gladness;

Mr 4:6 But when the sun was up, it was scorched; and because it had no root, it withered away.

Mr 4:17 And have no root in themselves, and so endure but for a time: afterward, when affliction or persecution ariseth for the word's sake, immediately they are offended.

Mr 4:7 And some fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up, and choked it, and it yielded no fruit.

Mr 4:18 And these are they which are sown among thorns; such as hear the word, 19 And the cares of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lusts of other things entering in, choke the word, and it becometh unfruitful.

Mr 4:8 And other fell on good ground, and did yield fruit that sprang up and increased; and brought forth, some thirty, and some sixty, and some an hundred.

Mr 4:20 And these are they which are sown on good ground; such as hear the word, and receive it, and bring forth fruit, some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some an hundred.

The same parable is repeated in Luke 8:5-15 with some additional details:

Lu 8:5 A sower went out to sow his seed:

Lu 8:11 Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God.

Lu 8:5 and as he sowed, some fell by the way side; and it was trodden down, and the fowls of the air devoured it.

Lu 8:12 Those by the way side are they that hear; then cometh the devil, and taketh away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved.

Lu 8:6 And some fell upon a rock; and as soon as it was sprung up, it withered away, because it lacked moisture.

Lu 8:13 They on the rock are they, which, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, which for a while believe, and in time of temptation fall away.

Lu 8:7 And some fell among thorns; and the thorns sprang up with it, and choked it.

Lu 8:14 And that which fell among thorns are they, which, when they have heard, go forth, and are choked with cares and riches and pleasures of this life, and bring no fruit to perfection.

Lu 8:8 And other fell on good ground, and sprang up, and bare fruit an hundredfold. And when he had said these things, he cried, He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.

Lu 8:15 But that on the good ground are they, which in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience.

Jesus opened the understanding of the parable to His disciples by applying a spiritual meaning to each of the real objects in the parable.

1) Seed that is sown = The Word of God (The Bible)

2) Ground where the seed is sown = People’s Hearts

3) Fowls that devour = Satan / the wicked one (MT 13:19)

4) Scorching sun = affliction, persecution, temptation

5) Young plant that withers away = a former believer

6) Thorns = cares of this world, deceitfulness of riches, lusts of other things / pleasures of this life

 

Where did Jesus get these definitions? If He got them from His own divine wisdom, then it would not be possible for the disciples to use the same method to understand all the parables. He asked His disciples “know ye not this parable?” as if they should not need His explanation. So the definitions must be just as available for them to know as for Him. How? By searching the Scriptures. The Old Testament was all the Scriptures they had at the time so let’s see what they might have known:

1) Seed: Ec 11:6 In the morning sow thy seed. Pr 11:18 To him that soweth righteousness shall be a sure reward. Ps 119:123 ¶ Mine eyes fail for thy salvation, and for the word of thy righteousness. Ps 119:172 ¶ My tongue shall speak of thy word: for all thy commandments are righteousness. Pr 8:8 All the words of my mouth are in righteousness. Isa 55:10 For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater: 11 So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.

2) Ground: Jer 4:3 ¶ For thus saith the LORD to the men of Judah and Jerusalem, Break up your fallow ground, and sow not among thorns. 4 Circumcise yourselves to the LORD, and take away the foreskins of your heart, ye men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem: lest my fury come forth like fire, and burn that none can quench it, because of the evil of your doings. Ho 10:12 Sow to yourselves in righteousness, reap in mercy; break up your fallow ground: for it is time to seek the LORD, till he come and rain righteousness upon you. 13 Ye have plowed wickedness, ye have reaped iniquity; ye have eaten the fruit of lies: because thou didst trust in thy way, in the multitude of thy mighty men.

3) Fowls that eat: 1Ki 21:24 Him that dieth of Ahab in the city the dogs shall eat; and him that dieth in the field shall the fowls of the air eat. Ps 27:2 When the wicked, even mine enemies and my foes, came upon me to eat up my flesh, they stumbled and fell. Hab 1:13 Thou art of purer eyes than to behold evil, and canst not look on iniquity: wherefore lookest thou upon them that deal treacherously, and holdest thy tongue when the wicked devoureth the man that is more righteous than he? Jer 12:9 Mine heritage is unto me as a speckled bird, the birds round about are against her; come ye, assemble all the beasts of the field, come to devour. 10 Many pastors have destroyed my vineyard, they have trodden my portion under foot, they have made my pleasant portion a desolate wilderness.

4) Scorching sun: Ps 121:5 The LORD is thy keeper: the LORD is thy shade upon thy right hand. 6 The sun shall not smite thee by day, nor the moon by night. 7 The LORD shall preserve thee from all evil: he shall preserve thy soul. Jon 4:8 And it came to pass, when the sun did arise, that God prepared a vehement east wind; and the sun beat upon the head of Jonah, that he fainted, and wished in himself to die, and said, It is better for me to die than to live.

5) Withered plant: Job 8:11 Can the rush grow up without mire? can the flag grow without water? 12 Whilst it is yet in his greenness, and not cut down, it withereth before any other herb. 13 So are the paths of all that forget God; and the hypocrite's hope shall perish:

6) Thorns: Ec 7:6 For as the crackling of thorns under a pot, so is the laughter of the fool: this also is vanity.

Jesus showed how Scripture defines its own symbols and told His disciples that if they could understand this parable, they could understand all parables. This establishes a principle of interpreting the parables.

Does Jesus want us to understand His teachings?

Mr 7:14 And when he had called all the people unto him, he said unto them, Hearken unto me every one of you, and understand:

Does Jesus want us to understand the prophetic writings?

Mt 24:15 When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:)

Does Jesus want us to understand all the Scriptures?

Lu 24:25 Then he said unto them, O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken: 26 Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into his glory? 27 And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself. 44 And he said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me. 45 Then opened he their understanding, that they might understand the scriptures, 46 And said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day.

How then can we understand all Scripture?

2Pe 1:19 ¶ We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts: 20 Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation. 21 For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.

1Co 2:9 But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him. 10 But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God. 11 For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God. 12 Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God. 13 Which things also we speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual. 14 But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. 15 But he that is spiritual judgeth all things, yet he himself is judged of no man. 16 For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ.

How can we find the verses that explain other verses?

By the use of an index to the Bible, normally called a concordance. A complete concordance, such as Strong’s, lists every word in the Bible and every verse in the Bible where that word is used. But that is another subject altogether….

Many thanks to Brother William Barrett of The Bible Made Simple Ministry, Greeneville, TN, for much of the research that was compiled into this study. We highly recommend his materials for further information in applying this principle of interpreting Scripture. They are simple enough for children to understand yet deep enough to challenge the most intellectual adults. These materials are available in Canada from Gordon & Rose Rogers.

1) A healthy baby born on Dec 7, Grandpa’s b-day, two days before due date. (YES! Gerald was born Dec 14 on Grandma's b-day, healthy, growing, and eating!)
a.      Sufficient warning to get to the hospital and have my own doctor and doula running the show. (YES!)
b.      No panicky nurses calling the shots. (YES!)
c.      Gordon present for the whole program. (YES! See blog tagged Gerald for details).
d.      CHECK OFF. Thank You Lord!!! For the YES answers on Dec 14, 2008
2)      SLEEP. Not sure how I’m going to function through the holidays being up around the clock with the new baby.
a.      CHECK OFF. Thank You Lord!!! For helping me through the night duty and helping Gerald to sleep through the night after only a few months. (Granted I’m never overdosed on sleep it seems, but at least this one was answered YES.)
3)      Time to put my house in order and set up Roberta’s bedroom. (Someone to come help me would sure be nice!!!!)
a.      CHECK OFF. Thank you Hubby! For helping me do the most important things the week before Gerald arrived. And although the house still needs rearranging and remodeling, at least it is functional.
4)      Time to finish writing Roberta’s next Sabbath School program.
a.      NEARLY CHECK-OFF. It is finished enough to be functional. But I still need to finish it enough to share with others.
5)      Time to write out Roberta’s daily worship plan, selecting songs, memory verses, pictures, and illustrations to go with chronological Bible stories.
a.      NEARLY CHECK-OFF. Finally figured out what best to do by trial and error. So the cradle-roll level is pretty much together for the one-year cycle. And I'm communicating with a friend as to how we can produce some great ideas and materials for others to use! Stay tuned!
6)      Time to wrap up pending office and editing projects.
a.      UH-OH. Sorry customers. No time for the office with two toddlers around. As soon as I sit down at the computer someone is into mischief or filling their pants.
7)      Material Things? Well, most of my non-Pampered-Chef spatulas have died so those among other niceties from Pampered Chef would be useful.
a.      CHECK-OFF. My dear friend Rose sent me two spatulas which got me through this year. But I’m pretty hard on spatulas so am getting by now with two and a half. No complaints.
8)      A small and a large cast-iron skillet and cast-iron muffin pans.
a.      X-OFF. I'm thankful for all the pots and pans I do have and should be making better use of. (Right hubby?)
9)      A big wooden spoon long enough to use in my lovely 20-L stock pot that is 10.5 inches deep.
a.      X-OFF. I only used that big kettle a few times this year. Where would I put a utensil that big anyway?
10)  My new bathroom sink installed, replacing the linoleum at the same time.
a.      X-OFF. Well, it would be nice...... someday. But the rubber-glove-finger is still keeping the graywater channelled down into the right hole most of the time. And hay, those disposable gloves are cheap at the vet supply anyway.
11)  My new ceiling fans installed in the kitchen and vents cut to let more heat into the living room from the wood stove.
a.      X-OFF. Maybe someday it would be nice. But the standing fan we got is doing fine for now.
12)  My new insulation installed in my basement walls.
a.      NEARLY CHECK-OFF. I put up most of the insulation so it takes less heat to keep above freezing.
13)  My old couch removed and the computer desk and old cream separator returned to Mom Rogers’ place.
a.      CHECK-OFF / WISHFUL THINKING. Managed to re-arrange the living room to fit two couches in. (Helps with the baby proofing). And the other machinery could still be put somewhere else but I’m not losing sleep over it.
14)  The rest of my new shelves set up in the basement.
a.      NEARLY CHECK-OFF. Hubby helped me put up one more shelf. Still functioning with the other two not yet assembled.
15)  My “new” wood cookstove moved into the basement and installed for use.
a.      I trust it will get moved in before it rusts anymore. We didn't get enough rain last summer to be a problem anyway.
16)  Roberta’s room painted and the bathroom walls finished with the paint I bought years ago.
a.      X-OFF. Hay, why bother? At least we have walls. And I will probably change my mind a dozen times anyway. Maybe in a couple years i'll let her paint her own room. Wouldn't the kids have a blast. Modern art and all.
17)  A steady personal income to actually live on and get out of debt.
a.      NEARLY CHECK-OFF. Well, we aren’t out of debt but things are looking up. It’s a long complicated story.
18)  My truck to grow up
a.      My Ford Ranger needs to grow into a ¾ ton or 1-ton, Dodge Cummins Diesel, 4WD, 4-door, standard transmission
b.      A painted in bed-liner, grill guard, and matching truck top would be very useful amenities. Gordon likes black and I like red so either/or would be fine.
c.      X-OFF. Thank You Lord for keeping the baby truck running with very little investment one more year!
19)  A new desktop computer with a legal copy of Windows Pro, a brain big enough to do audio editing, and a second hard drive big enough to back up both computers.
a.     X-OFF. Sure this would be real helpful. But I can guarantee you that if someone gave me this, it would be another six months before I found the time to transfer the files to it and another six years more before I ever found time to do the audio and video editing on my todo list.
20)  Low-grade Adobe software for editing home videos so I can share RCR’s video clips over the internet
a.      X-OFF. See previous.
21)  Windows for my basement, and, (wishing big) new windows for the upstairs that actually open.
a.      X-OFF. The window necessity can be removed simply by moving the offices downstairs instead of the bedrooms. Why didn't I think of that before????
22)  A tin, leak-proof roof on my house and tin siding so I don’t have to paint the outside.
a.      X-OFF. We had enough drought this year that leaking wasn’t a problem. Interesting answer, Lord. Everything is still functional so no emergency here.
23)  Guttering around the roof that actually does some good.
a.      X-OFF. Like really. When there is drought, who needs guttering?
24)  Proper flooring in the bedrooms and office, like laminant or hard wood.
a.     X-OFF. I am thankful for my plywood floors which have never yielded a single splinter. My great great grandparents lived in a dirt cave (dugout) with eight small children.

I have been learning to count my blessings this year. The next wishlist should be a bit more realistic, or have more thank-yous on it than requests!

I woke before the little ones for once shortly after 7 am with time to say my prayers and dress. Then Wiggles woke cooing happily so I sat him in his wheelie-chair (stroller; we recently put away the swing and use the mini-stroller instead which he much prefers since RCR can push him around and change the scenery more often). Then Roberta woke and I set her on the potty while I got her clothes together. As soon as she was ready for the day, I sat on the couch to feed wiggles. Roberta played happily for two minutes then came over to sit in the stroller with a meditative look on her face. As soon as she climbed onto the couch beside me, I smelled something suspicious.

I set GCE back in the stroller and took Roberta to the bathroom to clean her up. While she sat on her potty to finish, I proceeded to rinse the cloth diaper, liner, and cover. I usually hold it over the toilet and spray the gunk off with the shower head that is on a flexible hose. I made the mistake of grabbing the shower head first and leave only one hand free to extricate the liner from the diaper without spilling anything. In the process the shower head slipped out of my hand, upside down in the toilet, spraying water (and who-knows-what-else) all over the bathroom. I dropped the gunky-filled diaper into the tub and rescued the shower head.

Everything back under control I rinsed the diaper then proceeded to clean the bathroom. I wiped down the toilet, mirror, and floors and hoped the dripping ceiling and walls could wait until tomorrow, or at least until after breakfast. Oh yes, must at least disinfect the shower head even if I can’t take time to boil it yet!

Meanwhile the phone is ringing and the email beeping and Mom is leaving messages everywhere wondering why I don’t answer. I praised RCR for piddling in the potty and put her all back together again. Wiggles screaming intensifies since his breakfast was so rudely interrupted.

Finally I could sit on the couch to finish feeding him. RCR got Snowbear and sat in the stroller in front of me to feed him. LOL. That lasted only a couple heavenly minutes before she flopped down on the floor and pretended to throw a temper tantrum. I know that means she is asking for a diaper change. (Why she does this instead of signing “potty” which I KNOW she knows how to do is beyond me.) I set Wiggles in the stroller to get his burps out. Sure enough, RCR had wet her pants. I had just finished changing her and putting Wiggles in the jumper when GR walked in the door from morning chores. Seeing the bare table he queried, “Aren’t you making breakfast?” “Ummm, yes dear. As soon as I CAN!”