When my children were small, we would often read to them before they settled into bed for the night. Now we can do it long distance with our grandkids over the internet. Occasionally, my kids did not want a story read to them but wanted me to tell them a story. I would make up a story with each of the kids being the hero of the tale. No matter how silly or unbelievable the stories, they all had one thing in common. They all started with “Once upon a time…”
Jesus was also a storyteller. Not only were his stories much better than mine, but they also had a more important purpose. Jesus used situations people could easily relate to, to teach significant, eternal truths. These stories were called parables, and we find them recorded in the Gospels. We looked at one of those over the past few weeks
Although the stories of Jesus were far more valuable than mine, we did have something in common. Most of his stories started with a consistent phrase as well. But instead of the fairytale beginning of “Once upon a time…”, Jesus’ parables began with the phrase, “The Kingdom of God is like…” In other words, Jesus was declaring that we could understand what it means to be citizens of his heavenly, eternal Kingdom while living in the temporal, earthly kingdom of our everyday existence.
This is an important fact. It demonstrates that the promises of God that come with being part of his Kingdom are available to us now, we do not have to wait for our death or his second coming. The two kingdoms are not side by side, but we are in the protective circle of God’s care, while existing in this earthly kingdom. Over the next few weeks, we are going to look at these teachings of Jesus with this question in mind, “As men striving to please our Lord, how can we best live a life reflective of a citizen of God’s Kingdom while we are stuck living in this earthly kingdom.
To continue this process of discovery, we are going to look at how Jesus explains his purpose to his disciples. As Jesus is teaching the crowds one day, his disciples are listening in to his Parable of the Sower, and they reveal their confusion, and maybe even a bit of frustration at this method of teaching, so they ask him about it.
Look at Matthew 13:10-17, The disciples came to him and asked, “Why do you speak to the people in parables?” 11 He replied, “The knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them. 12 Whoever has will be given more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him. 13 This is why I speak to them in parables: “Though seeing, they do not see; though hearing, they do not hear or understand. 14 In them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah: ” ‘You will be ever hearing but never understanding; you will be ever seeing but never perceiving. 15 For this people’s heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them.’ 16 But blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear. 17 For I tell you the truth, many prophets and righteous men longed to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it.
Jesus shows us that God’s Kingdom is revealed to those who seek it. (vs. 10-13) He goes on to define this more clearly when he reveals that God’s Kingdom is closed to those who reject it. (vs. 14-15) However, the benefit of a receptive heart is clear. God’s Kingdom is a blessing to those who receive it. (vs. 16-17) Jesus is going to teach us exactly what the Kingdom of God is like.