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112: Lesser Known Parables In The Bible (Part 1)
45 Plays23 days ago
Jesus was a master storyteller. Through the use of parables, He could reveal His true nature and communicate important spiritual truths. The stories His followers recorded hold our attention, stir our emotions, and help us remember His teachings. The most popular are recognized by those outside the faith (e.g., the Good Samaritan) and the teachings they contain continue to challenge Jesus’s followers today. In Storyteller, we will look at some of the lesser-known parables to uncover what Jesus was telling His first followers about the Kingdom of God that we are still trying to understand today.
Pastor Jim Mueller joined Jill Devine this week to talk about the lesser known parables he preached on during our Storyteller series; The Fig Tree and The Unmerciful Servant.
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Transcript
Misconceptions about Christianity
00:00:00
Speaker
The following podcast is a Jill Devine Media production. Christianity has become known for judgy people, strange words, ancient stories, confusing rules, and a members-only mindset. This is why I stayed away from the church for so long, but it's not supposed to be that way. I'm Jill Devine, a former radio personality with three tattoos, a love for a good tequila, and who's never read the entire Bible. Yet here I am hosting a podcast about faith. The normal goes a long way podcast is your home for real conversations with real people using real language about how faith and real life intersect. Welcome to the conversation.
Storyteller Sermon Series with Pastor Jim Mueller
00:00:39
Speaker
No stranger to the podcast, Pastor Jim Mueller. Welcome back. Thank you, Jill. So we are going to talk about what we recently wrapped up, the Storyteller Sermon Series at Messiah. And I always like to get you guys on to talk about some of the things that didn't happen on a Sunday morning in your message, kind of the cutting room floor kind of stuff. And so the Storyteller Sermon Series is all about the lesser known parables in the Bible, correct? yep All right, so let's first start with what is a parable? Okay, well, a parable is a short, simple story that illustrates a point. Okay. It illustrates the truth. um Usually kind of one main point. And in the case of Jesus's parables, the stories are made up, but the point is true. And let me give you just a little bit of Greek, because I know how much you love foreign languages. Yes, I sure do. um the The Greek word parabole,
00:01:38
Speaker
which is where we get the word parable. It's literally just transliterated from Greek parabola. It means to throw alongside or to bring alongside. So it's kind of like you have this truth and what Jesus does is he brings alongside something you can understand so that when you see it next to this truth, it makes sense to you.
00:02:01
Speaker
And something I want to bring up, parables are not just related to scripture. Parables happen in the real world, or we brought this term up before, a term I don't love, but in the secular world, which means basically it's not associated with religion. And so I was wondering if you had a parable from the so-called real world that somebody might know that you've learned that's outside of scripture.
Understanding Parables in Teaching
00:02:31
Speaker
ah Yeah, I mean there's ah the famous one about the stick and the master shows it to his student and says this can be both used to harm you or to heal you and he takes a string and he brings the stick together end to end and it can either be a bow ah you shoot somebody with or it can be a harp that you play music for. So it can both harm you or heal you. And yeah. i mean I've never heard that one. Super ancient as well. Oh, okay. All right. What are, would you say, the most popular parables in scripture? Probably the Good Samaritan, o ah the parable of the lost sheep, the prodigal son.
00:03:18
Speaker
When I was a kid, it always seemed to be like the mustard seed was one we talked about when I was a kid. And so one thing I have in my office, since I'm guessing most people are not agrarian anymore, they're not from farming culture like maybe they were in Jesus time, I actually have a cup of mustard seeds in my office.
00:03:39
Speaker
And so that way when you teach on it, I can invite kids to come up and hold one in their hand and see when Jesus says the mustard seed is like the smallest seed, but it grows into the largest bush or plant in your garden. That's what he's referring to, this tiny little seed.
00:03:56
Speaker
that can blossom is just like your faith. It might feel small sometimes, but that doesn't mean it's not powerful even still. so like As a kid, like that that was something I learned in Sunday school. We would sing songs about the mustard seed parable. yeah All right. pretty fun so then how did the staff here at Messiah decide, hey, we want to do this sermon series about the lesser known parables. like Why aren't the lesser known parables taught? I think our first drive was because right now in society, storytelling is such an art form. In fact, people are getting degrees in storytelling.
00:04:38
Speaker
um We thought we wanted to present Jesus as a great storyteller. We started with that premise, not that we were going to do parables. or We just wanted to present Jesus as this amazing storyteller because we know people love stories buthu and they really love stories in our culture.
00:04:57
Speaker
which is kind of interesting. Jesus's day storytellers were the best teachers. And what we're finding now is in our um digital age that we that that the art form is coming back more popular than ever. So it's kind of funny that in a digital culture, we're starting to need to teach more like Jesus. Teachers are starting to teach more like Jesus ah in schools
Impact of Storytelling in Sermons
00:05:23
Speaker
because they have to. You have to be more story-based, narrative-based.
00:05:27
Speaker
So we started with kind of that idea, but then we said, you know, if we just teach on the same five parables that most people know, the problem with that is Chuck and I have probably used those parables several times this year already. So it's like.
00:05:45
Speaker
You know, you're you're talking about not giving up on somebody because, you know, God still can have a plan for them. You just naturally say, like in the story of the prodigal son, you know, that father went down to his driveway every day, hoping his son would come back, hoping his son would come back. And yeah, he really messed up. Um, but when he saw him, he ran to him and he grabbed him and he hugged him and treated him well. And God's like that. That's such a natural.
00:06:12
Speaker
Like and a natural thing to include in a message, even if you're not preaching on it, you just use it as an illustration. And we thought, well, we're going to do that naturally. What do we not do naturally? We don't naturally preach on the parables that are hard to understand or the parables that people don't know. And so we wanted to challenge ourselves that way. And what was funny is like we went through the list and there was a lot of them that we figured most common people probably Right. And I think that that's exactly what we need. We need to hear multiple stories that connect because each one is different for everyone. yeah like I mean, maybe I understand the mustard seed better than
00:07:01
Speaker
most people in the congregation, I don't know. But maybe it is the prodigal son that hits somebody differently. like You have to have different stories and different types of teaching so that you can hit someone. yeah I know that you understand this and know this, but every single Sunday that I go to church, I try to get one thing out of it. But maybe sometimes I'm like, okay, I enjoyed that,
00:07:31
Speaker
but that one thing didn't hit me, but it hit somebody else and that's what matters. like I just think that it's so cool that we can switch it up and that we can think about, okay, this person may need to be fed, this person may need to be fed. We don't necessarily know who those people are right now, but my words can help with that.
00:07:51
Speaker
What's funny is a lot of times like as a preacher, you have a goal in mind, a point you want to make, a place you want to go, ah maybe even a call to action that you hope somebody who's listening might might actually do. But what's really funny is you preach something and you think it went a certain way and then afterwards somebody said, oh my gosh, you made me cry and cry. And I'm looking at them like, un Why did I make you cry? I wasn't trying to make you cry. That was the last thing I was trying to do. um But he but i you know I take it for what it's worth. I said it in a good way and so that was wonderful. So yeah, I think that's in particular, that's what's different about spiritual teaching and that's what's different about um preaching the Bible is you realize
00:08:39
Speaker
You're working on it and you're delivering it, but you're not in control of it. First off, you're not the Holy Spirit. You're not that other person who's listening and you don't know necessarily always what they've been going through that particular day or that particular week. so As much as you work it and you you try to to do your best thing, you have to be humble enough to know you don't get to control it. And you certainly don't get to control how it works on that person. And that's the beautiful part is it it takes a lot of work, but it takes a lot of hope and faith that God's going to do what God wants to do with it.
00:09:17
Speaker
And you were just saying what, you know, like the outline of what your goal is. I mean, and you guys are the storytellers on Sunday mornings. And that's a really cool thing too, that you're sitting there in preparation and, you know, giving it to the Holy Spirit and just whatever happens happens. And even though you are saying the same things to hundreds of people. They're all taking something different, like the one person that came up to you and cried or the person that comes up to you and laughs and says, oh my gosh, this sign. And like you said, the things that you had no idea would make a difference. And they did. It's almost kind of like, I don't know, maybe comedians when they think a joke fell short, but they thought that the joke would be really good and land home. And you just don't know sometimes.
00:10:08
Speaker
Yeah, because and I do listen to a lot of comedy and it it is funny that the room really matters. It does. You know, they all can be top of the food chain, like amazing. And what happens in a stadium is very different than what happens at like when when you're hired by like a ah local business to come speak at their seminar. Yeah. And you know, you are up there entertaining. And the truth is all those business people are out there hobnobbing and trying to make a deal. and It's just not like the venue you got paid for it for it, but like the venue wasn't right for your art form, right?
Exploring Forgiveness and Patience through Parables
00:10:46
Speaker
the lesser-known parables that you Taught on the unmerciful servant and the fig tree. Yeah, so let's start with the first one Why did you choose that one or was it given to you?
00:11:02
Speaker
ah No, yeah it was not given to me. And the second one, The Fig Tree, I last minute changed that one. You did? I totally had something else written. I had a 30 minute whole talk written. It was really good. And something hit me after I had preached the first one and then the other guys had preached as well. I thought, oh, we're there's a teaching missing here.
00:11:26
Speaker
who And I also felt like what I was going to talk about was something that I said not all that long ago. And I'm like, no, I need something fresh. I need i need to go in a different direction. So totally scrapped a whole 30 minute talk that I was really proud of and switched it last minute to the fig tree. And um I'm glad I did.
00:11:49
Speaker
but Yeah, the unmerciful servant, why do why do I like it? Because Jesus tells the most outlandish story to prove the most outlandish true point about God. um You have ah two servants, one who is a poor servant and one who is maybe a bit more of a lead servant. And the lead servant owes the king $6 billion dollars worth, ah in today's money, $6 billion dollars worth of of a debt six billion dollars worth of a debt and we can't even imagine what is a six billion dollar debt and Somehow when he goes to the king and he begs for mercy The king has mercy on him and forgives the debt doesn't doesn't just not throw him in prison
00:12:35
Speaker
but he actually forgives the debt. and Then this servant turns around and finds a servant of his that owes him $10,000 and has him beaten and his family beaten and thrown into prison. You hear that parable and it's like, oh my gosh, like first off, nobody could ever owe $6 billion dollars and then somebody forgives that debt.
00:12:57
Speaker
right And how then can he, if that did happen, how could he be so unmerciful to somebody that only owes him $10,000? Or as I put it, he was forgiven $6 billion and he couldn't forgive somebody who used Honda. Like, it just seems crazy.
00:13:14
Speaker
And then Jesus is kind of looking at the crowd and he's looking at you and me and he goes, that's exactly what God did for you. He forgave you the most impossible amount of money, the most impossible debt. um His forgiveness and love and mercy for you, that that is the depth of what the cross means for you. And then let's say you've got a kid and your kid is really messed up. How are you going to treat them? Yeah, they wronged you.
00:13:40
Speaker
But it's like that used Honda kind of debt compared to the amount of debt that we owe God or friend who's betrayed you. Yeah, they betrayed you and yeah, they owe you. I mean, there's a debt, but how is it in comparison to the debt you owe God um for the eternal gift that he is giving you?
00:14:01
Speaker
So it's an outlandish story that makes an outlandish true point about God and his love for us. And so I thought, well, there's probably no better message than that. ah her First off, there's no better message than the message of the love that God has for people. But number two, then that point back to me, hey, Jim, how are you treating the people in your life? Yeah, even the people that wronged you, how are you treating them?
00:14:30
Speaker
All right, the fig tree. Yeah. I really liked this one. Why? i just it It seemed like it was so easy, honestly, like the scripture to go with it, to just be patient and to wait. It was just beyond that. I i don't really know quite how to explain it to you, but it just hearing the scripture and then hearing your message with it, it just, I don't know, it made me to say, just sit and pause. Talk to me about that one a little bit more. Cause I mean, you just said that was a last minute.
00:15:05
Speaker
decision to change all that up. I really wanted something that emphasized what Jesus was doing in his last days and the fact that he is comparing himself going to the cross as a farmer who is fertilizing and tending and cultivating a fig tree so it can come back to life or it can bear good fruit. um I just thought it was such an interesting parallel and I'm not even sure The disciples got it.
00:15:37
Speaker
I'm not even sure that they got it. But you know, even the reference where the owner's like, for three years, this thing hasn't been giving me fruit. Well, that's Jesus ministry for three years. He's been out there teaching, trying to inspire people. And it's like these religious leaders still want nothing to do with them. There's no fruit in their lives. Well, how perfect to challenge the idea of what does our fruit look like as Jesus is trying to tend to this tree and get it to bear fruit. Well, what about my life?
00:16:08
Speaker
Also thought how many kids nowadays even know what a fig is and how much our figs brought up throughout scripture So yeah, obviously a fig isn't like maybe a normal tree We have in st. Louis, Missouri, you know and in this region and they were far more common in that time ah but biblically, there's actually a lot of rich examples of figs being brought up and so I just wanted to point that out that like if Jesus tells you something about a fig tree or does something with the fig tree, sometimes he might be paying a bit of a marge to other fig references that happened in the Old Testament too. Adam and Eve, what what type of fruit did they bite? Well, everybody says it's an apple, but you think it's a... um Oh, you told me in one of our episodes, you thought it could have been a... Not a pomegranate. ah
00:17:02
Speaker
Who knows, right? We don't actually know. I've really wondered and I think a fig tree has to be in the running just because they were very common in that time and eight it has some real significance symbolically in scripture. So it's at least one of the options.
00:17:20
Speaker
also bring up the fig leaves that you talked about too. Yeah, that Adam and Eve, when they they send, number one, and as sin is in them now, um immediately comes shame, which by the way, and they're ashamed of their bodies, they're ashamed of being naked. And even when they tell God, you know we we sewed clothes from fig leaves to ourselves and God's like, yeah because we were naked, God said, who told you you're naked? As if God's saying, why'd you just make up this term?
00:17:51
Speaker
What does the term naked even mean? Well, to them it had to do with their shame. Ever since, men and women, people, after about the time you're probably three, we feel shame. And it's almost like they're in Genesis 3, God's disappointed. Oh no, what'd you guys do?
00:18:11
Speaker
As you bite from the fruit, I told you not to bite. Oh, no. People out there, I just want to say to you, every time the that you're feeling some shame, remember Genesis 3. Remember it's because sin entered us. Like, in a way, in a small way, every time you feel that, physically or otherwise, in a way it's the devil whispering to you, you're not enough.
00:18:36
Speaker
And at the same time, God's trying to whisper to you and say, who told you you're naked? Who told you you get to have shame? No, well you're yeah my child. maybe So I just thought the fig leaves that they sewed into garments, they were covering themselves because they were shameful. um Surely when Jesus tells a parable about a fig tree, I'm thinking back to that story, thinking back to that result.
00:19:02
Speaker
It's fascinating to hear different teachings. And again, certain things as to, like you could ask the same question to someone who was listening. Like you asked me, like, why did you like it so much? And I said, I, you know, patience. I'm trying, you know, just because something doesn't happen overnight, quote unquote, overnight, three years, you know what I mean? Like, be patient. yeah Somebody else could have heard something totally different.
00:19:32
Speaker
but also relevant to them. And that's what's really cool. That's what's cool about storytelling. Yeah.
Reflecting on Jesus's Teachings through Stories
00:19:37
Speaker
All right. So I'm going to put the whole storyteller sermon series at normalgozalongway.com and then highlight the ones that you did. So ah you can check out exactly what Jim was preaching on, learn more, and thanks again for being here.
00:19:52
Speaker
Yeah. Thank you. And Hey everybody, I just want you to know we are doing our best to try to teach like Jesus cause he's the great storyteller. So get into God's word, read a gospel sometime and um learn directly from Jesus, how much God loves you.