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Last updated 11.20pm Sunday 26 April 2026 (BAF).
Sunday 26 April 2026
Weekly Sheet
The weekly sheet is available to download (26/04/2026) as are the sermon notes.
Apologies for the delay in uploading the audio recordings - Andrew.
Sermon Notes
The Parables of Jesus – An Introduction
Matthew 13:10-17
Learning at Jesus’ Feet
Jesus the teacher - the gospels communicate that Jesus had an extensive teaching ministry. Jesus is often described as the greatest teacher there ever was, even those who do not accept who Jesus himself claimed to be, acknowledge that he was a great teacher, which is humorously ironic considering that the purpose of his teaching was to clearly state who he truly is!
It is Jesus’ intention that his teaching ministry continues and features prominently in the church:
All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age Matthew 28:18-20
And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship Acts 2:42
A key feature of his teaching was the use of parables. And the prominent theme of Jesus’ parables is the ‘kingdom of God.’ Therefore, the main purpose of Jesus’ parables is to, ‘help us to understand the nature of the Kingdom of God and point us to the King of that Kingdom’ (The Parables of Jesus - Knowing the Bible by Douglas Sean O’Donnell) The purpose of Matthew’s gospel, which contains many parables, could be simply summed up as, ‘Jesus is King.’
Parables:
· In teaching - Parables were not unique to Jesus’ teaching ministry, there are examples in the OT: Judges 9:7-15; 2 Samuel 12:1-4; 2 Kings 14:9-10; Ezekiel 17:2-10, and Isaiah 5:1-7.
However, the way that Jesus uses parables is unique to him, simply because of who he was, the second person of the Trinity, the Son of God! As RC Sproul states, ‘everything he said carried the weight of his own authority.’ The crowds who flocked to hear Jesus teach recognised, though they could not explain it, that Jesus’ teaching was unlike any teacher they had heard before, ‘No one ever spoke like this man!’ (John 7:46) and Matthew records, ‘He was teaching them as one who had authority’ (Matthew 7:29).
· In the Gospel - All the gospels include Jesus’ teaching, though we will not find any of his parables recorded in John. The parables are recorded in the ‘Synoptic Gospels’ - Matthew; Mark; and Luke - but mainly in Matthew and Luke. The Greek word, ‘parabole’ which is translated ‘parable’ in our English Bibles occurs approximately 52 times in the NT, mainly in Matthew and Luke. Matthew records ten unique parables and Luke records 15. The most common form of parable taught by Jesus was narrative parables - Jesus taught approximately 40 narrative parables that are recorded in the gospels.
· Grouping - For this series we will use the fivefold grouping of the parables of Jesus suggested by James Montgomery Boice. The parables of:
· the kingdom;
· salvation;
· wisdom and folly;
· the Christian life; and
· judgement
‘Not surprisingly, [these] are also five natural groupings of our Lord’s teaching’ (Boice).
What is a parable? - I was often told as a youngster that a parable was, ‘an earthly story with a heavenly meaning’. This certainly explains a parable well, but from the lips of Jesus they are certainly much more than that:
‘A parable is a short story or saying composed as a kind of metaphor that uses some element of everyday life to present a moral or spiritual lesson. The lesson is not always explicit within the parable itself, but becomes so when the hearer is attuned to the heart and mind of the rabbi telling the parable’ (ESV Archaeology Study Bible) This last part of the definition is essential to understand for Jesus’ teaching is not simply designed to communicate information, it is also profoundly relational.
The word translated ‘parable’ in our Bibles is made up of two Greek words:
· ‘para’ - ‘beside’ - literally to ‘toss next to,’ and
· ‘bolla’ - ‘to cast’ - alongside (The Parables of Jesus - Knowing the Bible by Douglas Sean O’Donnell).
‘Parable means something that is thrown alongside something else. In order to illustrate a truth he is teaching, Jesus throws a parable alongside it’ (What Do Jesus’ Parables Mean? RC Sproul) e.g. ‘the kingdom of heaven maybe compared to …’ (Matthew 13:24). A parable is something akin to a preaching illustration.
Why did Jesus use Parables? - This is the question the disciples asked Jesus in our reading from Matthew 13. Before looking at Jesus’ reply it is helpful to consider the context in which the disciple’s question is asked.
Matthew’s gospel contains five major blocks of teaching - the Sermon on the Mount being the best known - and chapter 13 is the third of them and is sometimes referred to as ‘the parabolic discourse’ since it is made up of a collection of eight parables, the parable of:
the Sower (v1-8)
the weeds (v24-30)
the mustard seed (v31-32)
the leaven (v33)
the hidden treasure (v44)
the pearl of great price (v45-46)
the net of fish (v47-50)
of new and old treasures (v51-52)
In Matthew 13 Jesus is teaching on the shore of the Sea of Galilee (13:1) and as the crowd grows, he enters a boat and teaches from just off the shore (13:2). Twice in these verses we are told that Jesus sat down, this is the posture of a Rabbi when he teaches his disciples. Among his teaching - ‘he told them about many things in parables’ (13:3) he tells the crowd the parable of the Sower after which his disciples ask him, ‘Why do you speak in parables?’ (13:10)
Jesus answers them, saying, ‘To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given. For the one who has, more will be given, and he will have an abundance, but from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. This is why I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand’ (Matthew 13:11-13)
This answer may surprise us! Especially if we have always thought that Jesus used parables drawing on familiar images to make potentially complicated matters easier to understand. Jesus here is saying that he speaks in parables for two important reasons, to:
‘reveal the truth to those who by God’s grace will submit to Christ and his rule’ - the parables reveal the kingdom of God
‘conceal the truth from those who will not submit to Christ and his rule’ (Matthew: All Authority in Heaven and Earth, by Douglas Sean O’Donnell - Preaching the Word)
This may initially sound harsh, but as Jesus explains, ‘seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand’ (Matthew 13:13) their failure to see though seeing, or hear though hearing is reflective of the condition of their heart concerning who Jesus is. Their failure to see and hear is of their own making.
Jesus concludes the parable of the Sower saying, ‘He who has ears, let him hear’ (Matthew 13:9) In the Greek language there is ‘hearing,’ that is the physical hearing of something, and then there is ‘obeying’ what you hear, allowing what is said to, ‘pierce [your] understanding or [your] heart’ (What Do Jesus’ Parables Mean? RC Sproul) As stated above, ‘the lesson is not always explicit within the parable itself, but becomes so when the hearer is attuned to the heart and mind of the rabbi telling the parable’ (ESV Archaeology Study Bible)
A heart that recognises who Jesus truly is will hear what Jesus is teaching, and their hearts will embrace and follow what he teaches.
Why Should we study parables? - It is important to study the parables of Jesus, because:
· they are an invitation to sit and learn at the feet of Jesus - this is the posture that
· we are to adopt as we encounter the teaching of Jesus recorded in the Scriptures
· they are an invitation to unwrap the gifts to us from Jesus contained with his parables - ‘the secrets of the kingdom of heaven’ (13:11)
· they help us to understand the kingdom of God which as believers we belong to and how we are to live as citizens of that kingdom
· they reveal to us that Jesus is the Sovereign King of this Kingdom and that this King loves us and our natural response is to show our love through obeying his word
· by studying them we can fulfil the call of the church to ‘Go’ and to make disciples by teaching all that Jesus taught
· they teach us that not everyone will hear and believe
Questions for Homegroups:
How does the understanding of parables help reveal the nature of the Kingdom of God?
What is the significance of the phrase 'He who has ears, let him hear' in the context of Jesus' teaching?
What does the phrase 'seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear' indicate about the hearts of those who hear Jesus' teachings?
How do the parables invite listeners to a closer relationship with Jesus as a teacher?
What role do the parables play in fulfilling the church's mission to make disciples?
These questions are to accompany the material in the Parables Booklet.
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Tuesday 21 April 2026
Heating and Electrics at Church
Last Sunday, we experienced issues with the electricity supply in the church. The circuit affected is the one which supplies the new heater (as well as other sockets). We are working round this issue for the time being. Although the problem is not confirmed as being as a result of the new heater it is certainly the no 1 suspect.
Engineers and an electrician will be coming to sort out these issues next week (w/c 27 April) so we anticipate having working heating and electrics a week on Sunday. In the meantime, please do wear suitably warm clothing.
The hall heating system is not affected by this.
Thank you for your patience in this matter.
Wednesday 15 April 2026
Jim Harries - Mid-April News
In Jim's latest news, read all about Jigger Fleas, having one's Bibles stolen in church(!) and the African 'Jesus', Ondeto.
Jim also appeals for an offer of accommodation within easy travelling distance of Fareham (Hants) in June. Please ask around.
Sunday 12 April 2026
The Marriage of Tom Ibbott and Poppy McCarthy
Yesterday, Saturday 11 April 2026 1pm
If you would like to see the video of the wedding, once it has been edited, please contact Tom or Poppy.
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