Life Of Jesus Research Paper
UNDERSTANDING PARABLES AS ONE OF JESUS’ TEACHING METHODS
By
Gcinekile Sharon Mogokgwane
A Project
Submitted to Reverend Lebetwa
Assembly Bible College
In Partial Fulfilment of the Requirements For
BIB1032/3
The Life of Christ in the Synoptic Gospels, Third Edition
Assembly Bible College
July 2013
Table of Contents
Introduction............................................................................................................................... 3
Definition of Parable................................................................................................................ 3
An explanation of why Jesus used Parables...............................................................................3 …show more content…
The four Guidelines for interpreting Parables............................................................................5
Conclusion.................................................................................................................................6
References.................................................................................................................................7
Introduction
This paper aims to give a definition of the word “parable”, give an explanation of why Jesus deliberately used parables and finally give guidelines for interpreting parables.
A study of Christ’s parables is both interesting and enlightening; hence it is also vital for one’s spiritual understanding. This is true because Christ established doctrines in His teaching that He often illustrated by a parable. Nearly one third of all Jesus’ recorded words involved this method of teaching, we must understand His parables if we are to grasp clearly what He taught. Understanding parables and how to interpret them will increase our knowledge of some of the main themes of Christ’s teachings.
Definition of Parable
Intellectuals of the Bible note that the word parable comes from a Greek word which means “to put things side by side” (Comparison and analogy are two English words that give a similar meaning.) A parable is a system of teaching in which the teacher uses familiar concepts or ideas to illustrate unfamiliar concepts in terms the learner understands. In the bible context, the unfamiliar concepts are spiritual truths.
Jesus’ approach in using this method was uncomplicated and distinctive. He used known examples from everyday life and nature and used them to teach spiritual truth. It has thus been concluded that a parable can be defined as “an earthly story with a heavenly …show more content…
meaning.”
Jesus’ Use of Parables
Parables are not just trite stories for unintelligent people or children but they put into concrete form the substance of faith. They dealt with all the topics that people faced in their search for meaning and purpose, including death, resurrection, the church, evangelism, social concern forgiveness, justification and sanctification. Over and above that they had a revolutionary quality because they challenged many of the ideals and values that people held. It’s no secret that Jesus used them on purpose to shock, to provoke and cause His hearers to respond. It was not his mission to explain everything to everyone’s satisfaction; rather His goal was to point out that His hearers’ previous understandings and explanations were unsatisfactory. His purpose was to direct their thanking and actions into a whole new realm.
Parables make teachings easier to remember and apply. Learners respond well to stories that they can understand readily and remember easily. So frequently, He probed the depth of life and truth by telling simple stories that portrayed clearly and graphically what He wanted to communicate. Jesus knew that people tend to forget abstract teaching, but a story tends impress itself upon their memories for a long time.
Parables were also the style of teaching of the day. Just as it is fashionable to tell it like is today, in those days, religious teachers always taught in parables. Heaps of rabbinical writings from that era have survived to this day, and they all attest that parables worked. People expected religious leaders to speak in parables. The teachers who were better storytellers had more followers.
Parables are more lasting than telling it like it is.
Social problems come and go. The way it is becomes the way it was. Old sermons addressing old social problems are out of touch with today. Parables deal with basic principles, whereas telling it like it is deals with how those principles apply to specific situations. If the situation changes, “telling it like it was” becomes irrelevant, but the parable lives on. Jesus’ parables are still relevant to everyday life even after 2,000 years and technological, social, and political changes beyond anyone’s wildest imagination. The Lord’s parables live on. Parables allow you to make statements that would otherwise get you in trouble. Many of Jesus’ parables made the Pharisees angry, because they taught things that weren’t to their liking, but stated them indirectly. The only teaching Jesus got in trouble for was His plain teaching that He is the Son of
God. Parables have a time-release effect; they plant seeds that sprout later. Jesus taught the public in brief and memorable parables, so that people would remember them, discuss them, and try to figure out what they meant; and in this way the parables spread far beyond their original audience. Jesus deliberately withheld the meaning of the parables from the public to equip the disciples for successful evangelism later on. He explained the parables to the disciples, told them to wait for the proper time, and then declare to all people what they had heard in secret. After the Resurrection and the coming of the Holy Spirit, the disciples did exactly that. The Four Guidelines for Interpreting Parables 1. Do Not Overemphasize Details within a Parable Generally, each parable has one particular truth to convey. Our goal is to interpret that truth and to let the details support it. When we fail to observe this rule, we miss the meaning Jesus intended and in addition, introduce serious problems in the interpretive process. 2. Determine whether Christ himself supplied the meaning of a parable The Synoptic writers note that occasionally after Jesus had concluded a parable. Je gave a point by point explanation of the details of the details as well as the truth of the parable itself. In these cases, the meaning He intended is obvious. 3. Avoid using parables as the foundation and source of doctrine Even as we can show the doctrines that Christ established by His other teachings quite effectively through the truth of a parable, we must not base our doctrines on the strength of a single parable. Since a parable represents a figure of speech that requires careful interpretation, it is subject to abuse. If one fails to use proper guidelines for interpreting parables and does not give them the meanings Christ intended he or she could accept as doctrine what is not substantiated by the total teachings of Christ. 4. Use the Truth in a Parable in its Proper Context Generally the faith of man and the frace of Godm which are necessary for salvation, are not themes of the parables. In spite of this, many of the parables do portray the fruit of salvation that is good works. We should use the truth in a parable in its proper context. If we follow this rule, we will not fall into the error of substituting the message of salvation by grace with a message of salvation by human works. Conclusion The parables used familiar symbols so the listener could relate and, if need be, be shocked. Whatever the outcome in the hearer, the parables required a response. Either the hearer was to change a behavior, or a thought, or a belief, or something else. But change is the reason for the parables. They were not simply stories. They were living words from the mouth of God.
References
By
Gcinekile Sharon Mogokgwane
A Project
Submitted to Reverend Lebetwa
Assembly Bible College
In Partial Fulfilment of the Requirements For
BIB1032/3
The Life of Christ in the Synoptic Gospels, Third Edition
Assembly Bible College
July 2013
Table of Contents
Introduction............................................................................................................................... 3
Definition of Parable................................................................................................................ 3
An explanation of why Jesus used Parables...............................................................................3 …show more content…
The four Guidelines for interpreting Parables............................................................................5
Conclusion.................................................................................................................................6
References.................................................................................................................................7
Introduction
This paper aims to give a definition of the word “parable”, give an explanation of why Jesus deliberately used parables and finally give guidelines for interpreting parables.
A study of Christ’s parables is both interesting and enlightening; hence it is also vital for one’s spiritual understanding. This is true because Christ established doctrines in His teaching that He often illustrated by a parable. Nearly one third of all Jesus’ recorded words involved this method of teaching, we must understand His parables if we are to grasp clearly what He taught. Understanding parables and how to interpret them will increase our knowledge of some of the main themes of Christ’s teachings.
Definition of Parable
Intellectuals of the Bible note that the word parable comes from a Greek word which means “to put things side by side” (Comparison and analogy are two English words that give a similar meaning.) A parable is a system of teaching in which the teacher uses familiar concepts or ideas to illustrate unfamiliar concepts in terms the learner understands. In the bible context, the unfamiliar concepts are spiritual truths.
Jesus’ approach in using this method was uncomplicated and distinctive. He used known examples from everyday life and nature and used them to teach spiritual truth. It has thus been concluded that a parable can be defined as “an earthly story with a heavenly …show more content…
meaning.”
Jesus’ Use of Parables
Parables are not just trite stories for unintelligent people or children but they put into concrete form the substance of faith. They dealt with all the topics that people faced in their search for meaning and purpose, including death, resurrection, the church, evangelism, social concern forgiveness, justification and sanctification. Over and above that they had a revolutionary quality because they challenged many of the ideals and values that people held. It’s no secret that Jesus used them on purpose to shock, to provoke and cause His hearers to respond. It was not his mission to explain everything to everyone’s satisfaction; rather His goal was to point out that His hearers’ previous understandings and explanations were unsatisfactory. His purpose was to direct their thanking and actions into a whole new realm.
Parables make teachings easier to remember and apply. Learners respond well to stories that they can understand readily and remember easily. So frequently, He probed the depth of life and truth by telling simple stories that portrayed clearly and graphically what He wanted to communicate. Jesus knew that people tend to forget abstract teaching, but a story tends impress itself upon their memories for a long time.
Parables were also the style of teaching of the day. Just as it is fashionable to tell it like is today, in those days, religious teachers always taught in parables. Heaps of rabbinical writings from that era have survived to this day, and they all attest that parables worked. People expected religious leaders to speak in parables. The teachers who were better storytellers had more followers.
Parables are more lasting than telling it like it is.
Social problems come and go. The way it is becomes the way it was. Old sermons addressing old social problems are out of touch with today. Parables deal with basic principles, whereas telling it like it is deals with how those principles apply to specific situations. If the situation changes, “telling it like it was” becomes irrelevant, but the parable lives on. Jesus’ parables are still relevant to everyday life even after 2,000 years and technological, social, and political changes beyond anyone’s wildest imagination. The Lord’s parables live on. Parables allow you to make statements that would otherwise get you in trouble. Many of Jesus’ parables made the Pharisees angry, because they taught things that weren’t to their liking, but stated them indirectly. The only teaching Jesus got in trouble for was His plain teaching that He is the Son of
God. Parables have a time-release effect; they plant seeds that sprout later. Jesus taught the public in brief and memorable parables, so that people would remember them, discuss them, and try to figure out what they meant; and in this way the parables spread far beyond their original audience. Jesus deliberately withheld the meaning of the parables from the public to equip the disciples for successful evangelism later on. He explained the parables to the disciples, told them to wait for the proper time, and then declare to all people what they had heard in secret. After the Resurrection and the coming of the Holy Spirit, the disciples did exactly that. The Four Guidelines for Interpreting Parables 1. Do Not Overemphasize Details within a Parable Generally, each parable has one particular truth to convey. Our goal is to interpret that truth and to let the details support it. When we fail to observe this rule, we miss the meaning Jesus intended and in addition, introduce serious problems in the interpretive process. 2. Determine whether Christ himself supplied the meaning of a parable The Synoptic writers note that occasionally after Jesus had concluded a parable. Je gave a point by point explanation of the details of the details as well as the truth of the parable itself. In these cases, the meaning He intended is obvious. 3. Avoid using parables as the foundation and source of doctrine Even as we can show the doctrines that Christ established by His other teachings quite effectively through the truth of a parable, we must not base our doctrines on the strength of a single parable. Since a parable represents a figure of speech that requires careful interpretation, it is subject to abuse. If one fails to use proper guidelines for interpreting parables and does not give them the meanings Christ intended he or she could accept as doctrine what is not substantiated by the total teachings of Christ. 4. Use the Truth in a Parable in its Proper Context Generally the faith of man and the frace of Godm which are necessary for salvation, are not themes of the parables. In spite of this, many of the parables do portray the fruit of salvation that is good works. We should use the truth in a parable in its proper context. If we follow this rule, we will not fall into the error of substituting the message of salvation by grace with a message of salvation by human works. Conclusion The parables used familiar symbols so the listener could relate and, if need be, be shocked. Whatever the outcome in the hearer, the parables required a response. Either the hearer was to change a behavior, or a thought, or a belief, or something else. But change is the reason for the parables. They were not simply stories. They were living words from the mouth of God.
References