'parables' Tagged Posts
The Most Famous Parable
Since July 5th, we have been studying week by week through some of the parables of Jesus. Using a parable was the favorite way that Jesus taught lessons. These were not just “moral lessons of life,” but instead were views into what the Kingdom of God was like. I have asked you each week to make sure you know how to read all the parables for yourself in your personal study: What is the familiar and recognizable truth that became…
Your Life is a Garden
This Sunday, September 6, we are studying together the powerful and highly realistic parable of the sowing of seeds in a garden. As you prepare for this study: Read the parable: Matthew 13:1-9 & 18-23. The same parable is found in Mark 4:1-9 and Luke 8:4-15. Read these as well. Think through the exaggerated truths that become obvious as you read. Think through spiritual truths and how they apply to your personal life. Then, read these passages that will bring…
Beyond Nice
“Be nice to each other on the playground!” That’s a phrase that comes straight out of our school days. When I would go outside to play with my friends, my mom would frequently voice that comment to me as I headed out the door: “Don’t forget to be nice to each other!” The rules and the boundaries of my behavior were laid out for me at an early age. Why did my mother give me this instruction? Because she knew…
Humble Before God
“I am sure glad I am not like that person!” Have you ever had that thought? Have you ever said those words? Maybe you looked at a poverty situation, and even with a heavy and broken heart, you deep down were thinking, “I sure am glad I am not them!” The parable for this coming Sunday is a contrasting view of life between a well-put-together, humanly respected man (the Pharisee) and a person that had a broken life with layers…
The Kingdom of Heaven is Like…?
Have you ever wondered what it means when people talk about “the Kingdom of Heaven”? This Sunday, in my continued series of messages out of the parables of Jesus, I will walk us through the parable of the Fishing Net, found in Matthew 13:47-52. As you prepare for Sunday’s message, I want you to read not only this parable found here, but all of Matthew 13. This chapter is composed almost entirely of one parable after another that Jesus taught,…
Who is Invited to the Banquet?
Have you ever been invited to a party or asked to show up at a special event, but had to decline at the last minute? Maybe you were too busy. Maybe you got sick. Maybe you had something better to do that came up. Those are the essentials of the parable of Jesus that I will be teaching from this coming Sunday morning. We are in a summer series of messages we are calling Kingdom Surprises. This Sunday, July 19,…
The Kingdom of God is Like…
Beginning this Sunday morning, July 5, at our 10 a.m. streaming service, I have the privilege of opening up a new series of teachings from the parables of Jesus in the gospels. The first parable that I will open is found in Luke 5:33-39, and it is famously called the parable of the wineskins. To prepare your hearts for Sunday morning, I am asking you to read Luke 4 and 5, and get a handle on what was going on…