Sermons: key points from the series Parables
“He spoke to them in parables about many things. »
The gospels retransmit many teachings of Jesus. As was the custom at the time, Jesus quite often uses parables to illustrate, to make more concrete, an idea, a spiritual concept.
These short stories work by comparison.
The general idea of the parable is compared to the spiritual truth which is thus explained and therefore, it is finally quite easy to find the meaning of a parable:
We just have to live it in our lives with the help of Christ…
To whom is the teaching addressed (allows us to determine to whom this comparison is addressed)?
What is the triggering event that sparks the parable? (Obviously, the parable will answer it).
Find the comparison between the fictional story (the parable) and the spiritual truth that Jesus wants to emphasize.
Jesus often gives, at the end of the parable, either the explanation or an important element of understanding (these precisions will refine our comparison).
All this put together, the biblical truth becomes evident.
The key points below were extracted from a sermon series given at the AB Renens Church , topic: Parables