PREACHING ON THE PARABLES

NEW INTERESTS IN PARABLE STUDY

• 1. CHARACTERS

• 2. PLOTS

• 3. METAPHORS

• 4. DIRECT DISCOURSE

Metaphoric clusters

• 1. Servant

• 2. Seed

• 3. Advent (Advent and Joy: the sower and the mustard seed; cf Crossan In Parables)

• 4. Householder

the Householder Parables

• 1. The Tares in Mt. 13:36-43 (sabotage)

• 2. Laborers in Vineyard in Mt. 20:1-16 (criticism)

• 3. Wicked Tenants in Mk. 12:1-12 (seizure and murder)

• 4. Great Banquet in Lk. 14:16-24 (rejection)

Patterns in the Householder Parables

• 1. The Intention or Will of the Master is challenged, appears defeated

• 2. The Realism of Rejection and Resistance Plays Out

• 3. Human efforts oppose and thwart the ministry of Jesus and the will of God

• 4. The Ultimate Triumph of God appears

Theodicies, Responses to Genuine Questions about God and World?

• 1. The Challenge is met, the householder never suffering from a loss of words

• 2. The Stories posit both human freedom and divine sovereignty

• 3. God’s will when blocked reasserts itself in fresh and final ways

Go to the classic book by Leslie Weatherhead

• The Will of God

The Metaphor of the Far Country

and the Father’s House (Lk. 15)

The Metaphors of the Jericho Road . . .

and the Inn

The Metaphors of the

Gate(as Scott)and the Chasm (as Herzog) (Lk. 16: 19-31)

Characteristics of the Parables and Intimations about Strategies for Preaching

• 1. Eschatological

• 2. Ethical

• 3. Ecological (occasionally)

• 4. Existential

• 5. Evangelistic

Two Types of Parables (and clues to how to preach)

• General Situation • Specific Situation

A Strategy for the General Situation Parable (Mustard Seed)

• 1. Universal truth

• 2. Historical truth

• 3. Personal truth

One Strategy for the Specific Situation Parable (narrative preaching)

• 1. The Rich Man and Lazarus (Lk. 16)

• 2. “The Prodigal Son” (Lk. 15)

• 3. The Compassionate Samaritan (Lk. 10)

Two Begging Scenes

• Scene One: the Rich Man Dines and the Poor Man Begs Lk. 16:19-22)

• Scene Two: The Poor Man Dines and the Rich Man Begs (23-31)

With a poetic touch (RM and L)

• 1.Act One: The Rich Man seems to be Rich and the Poor Man seems to be Poor

• 2. Act Two: The Rich Man becomes Poor and the Poor Man becomes Rich

• 3. Act Three: The Rich Man needed the Poor Man and the Poor Man needed the Rich Man

Wade Huie

The Compassionate Father and the Angry Brother (Lk. 15)

The Story of the Second Son

• Scene 1: leaving home (vv. 12-13a)

• Scene 2: living in the Far Country (v. 13b)

• Scene 3: surviving in a famine (vv. 14-16)

• Scene 4: coming to himself (vv. 17-19)

• Scene 5: returning to the Father’s house (v. 20a)

A Portrait of Repentance

• 1. A great awakening (v. 17)

• 2. A returning to the Father (v. 18a)

• 3. A confessing of sin (vv. 18b-19,21)

• 4. An entering into the joy of the kingdom (vv. 22-23)

The Even Whens of God: God loves us . . .

• 1. Even when we rebel

• 2. Even when we use God as last resort

• 3. Even when we bring a wasted life

Robert Dale

The Prodigal’s Progress

• The Prodigal saw something had to see: he saw himself

• The Prodigal said something that is hard to say: I have sinned

• The Prodigal did something that is hard to do: he went home

Three Sorts of Folks

• 1. Those who hurt other people

• 2. Those who are hurt

• 3. Those who heal the hurts of others

And/or those

• Who avoid human hurt

• Who expose themselves to human hurt but do not help

• Who will expose themselves to human hurt knowing they do not have it in them to leave the wounded abandoned

How to Handle Criticism (Lk. 15:1-7)

• 1. Expect criticism• 2. Consider the source of the criticism• 3. Stay in Charge of your life• 4. Listen and learn• 5. Answer the criticisms (Jesus responded

to the croaking cry of criticism creatively, concretely and compassionately).

• 6. Move on

DESIGNING SERMON SERIES ON THE PARABLES

Life in the Light of

• 1. Grace (Pharisee and Toll Collector)• 2. Nature (Mustard Seed, Soils)• 3. A Moment of Truth (Compassionate Samaritan)• 4. National Religious Crisis (Barren fig tree)• 5. Death (Rich Fool)• 6. The Final Judgment (Sheep and the Goats)

Three Imperatives of Discipleship

• 1. The imperative of forgiveness (unmerciful servant, Matt 18:21-35)

• 2. The imperative of love (Compassionate Samaritan (Lk. 10:25-37)

• 3. The imperative of perseverance (Persistent Widow, Lk. 18:1-8)

Attractive Titles for Sermons

• “How to Mismanage a Miracle” Rich Man, Luke 12:16-20)

• “You Can’t Keep a Good Woman Down” (Persistent Widow, Luke18:2-5)

• “Who’s That Masked Man?” (Samaritan, Luke 10:30-35)

• “Am I Not Doing You Right?” (Laborers, Matt 20:1-15)

More Titles (from Borsch)

• “The Resilient Rascal” (Unjust Steward, Luke 16:1-8)

• “One out of a Hundred” (Luke 15:3-7)

• ”Waste and Grace” (Sower, Mark 4:3-8)

Books on Preaching on the Parables

• David Buttrick, Speaking Parables (WJK)• Paul Duke, Preaching Parables (Abingdon)• David Granskou, Preaching on the Parables

(Fortress)• Eugene Lowry, How to Preach a Parable

(Abingdon)• Martin Scharlemann, Proclaiming the Parables

(Concordia)• Brian Stiller, Preaching Parables to Postmoderns

(Fortress)

Books of Sermons on Parables

• Charles Allen, When the Heart is Hungry (Revell)• William Barclay, And Jesus Said (Westminster)• George Buttrick, The Parables of Jesus (Baker)• Robert Farrar Capon, The Parables of Grace and

The Parables of Judgment and The Parables of the Kingdom (Eerdmans)

• John Claypool, Stories Jesus Still Tells (McCracken)

• J. Stanley Glen, The Parables of Conflict in Luke (Westminster)

Archibald Hunter, The Parables Then and Now (Westminster)

• J. Ellsworth Kalas, Parables from the Back Side (Abingdon)

• Gerald Kennedy, The Parables (Harper)

• Helmut Thielicke, The Waiting Father (Harper)

• Leslie Weatherhead, In Quest of a Kingdom (Abingdon)