An Introduction to the Parables, Part 1

Why did Jesus sometimes teach in parables? Some say it is because stories are a better means of engaging people and a more winsome way of preaching and teaching. They tell us that propositional truth and theology are too dry or difficult to understand, and that stories better satiate the hunger people have for an experience with God. If Jesus occasionally taught through stories, should we be doing the same? As always, the answer is found in the Scriptures. When Jesus taught the crowds in parables, even His disciples wanted to know why. After all, with so many people coming to hear, wouldn’t it be better to speak more plainly? Jesus’ explanation for teaching the crowds through stories stuns the human mind. He did so because unlike the disciples, God had not granted that they know the mysteries of the Kingdom of Heaven. Far from being an effort to make the truth more appealing, accessible, or somehow more seeker-friendly, parables actually had the effect of disguising the truth. They were the evidence of God’s judgment on hardened and unbelieving hearts.