Purpose Of The Parables

⏱️ 5 minutes.

Greetings brothers and sisters in Christ,

Today, let’s take a look at Jesus’ teachings through parables:

“And He began to teach again by the sea. And such a very large crowd gathered to Him that He got into a boat in the sea and sat down; and the whole crowd was by the sea on the land.”
— Mark 4:1

We see an interesting approach that Jesus takes here—He gets into a boat and goes a short distance into the sea while the crowd stays ashore. This not only creates space but also prevents the crowd from overwhelming Him. Luke adds that people were coming from different places, including Jerusalem:

“Now when a large crowd was coming together, and those from the various cities were journeying to Him, He spoke by way of a parable:”
— Luke 8:4

This further emphasizes how large these crowds were.

“And He was teaching them many things in parables, and was saying to them in His teaching,”
— Mark 4:2

Here, we see another mention of Jesus’ use of parables. Mark’s first reference to these parables comes only a few verses earlier when Jesus responds to the scribes’ accusations that He was possessed by demons and casting them out by Satan’s power:

“And He called them to Himself and began speaking to them in parables, ‘How can Satan cast out Satan?’”
— Mark 3:23

While at this point Mark doesn’t explicitly tell us why Jesus began teaching in parables, he would later give more details about this account. However, Matthew records an important moment that triggered this change in His approach. When the disciples asked Jesus why He spoke to the crowds in parables, He answered:

“And the disciples came and said to Him, ‘Why do You speak to them in parables?’ And Jesus answered and said to them, ‘To you it has been given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given.’”
— Matthew 13:10-11

This exchange happens immediately after the scribes accused Jesus of being possessed by Satan. Because they rejected the work of the Holy Spirit, they were judged and denied access to the deeper truths of Christ’s teachings. This is why Jesus began teaching in parables. Matthew also records the blessing given to those who are granted access to understand the mysteries of the Kingdom:

“But blessed are your eyes, because they see; and your ears, because they hear. For truly I say to you that many prophets and righteous men desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.”
— Matthew 13:16-17

This shows the gravity of the sin of blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, leading to a denial of access to the Kingdom of God.

Such is the case for those who harden their hearts when they witness the works of the Holy Spirit. Severe judgment awaits those who deny the Lord Jesus Christ and the Spirit of Grace. Jesus later spoke about the role of the Holy Spirit:

“And He, when He comes, will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment; concerning sin, because they do not believe in Me; and concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father and you no longer see Me; and concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world has been judged.”
— John 16:8-11

One of the roles of the Holy Spirit is to convict the world of sin, specifically because they do not believe in Jesus Christ, the Son of God, sent to redeem mankind.

This access into the Kingdom is what Jesus would later speak to Simon Peter about. To those who hear and accept the message of the Gospel, the doors of heaven are opened to receive saving grace. Conversely, to those who reject the message, access to the Kingdom is denied:

“I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; and whatever you bind on earth shall have been bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall have been loosed in heaven.”
— Matthew 16:19

This is an appeal to those entrusted with the Gospel—we must never shrink back from sharing it with those around us. Through the Gospel, we offer access to salvation and freedom from God’s wrath against all ungodliness.

Sharing the Gospel is a genuine act of love. We cannot say we love those around us if we are willing to see them perish in the eternal lake of fire.

Let us not grow weary in sharing the Gospel with people.

I pray that in understanding the purpose of the parables, we see the seriousness of the sin of unbelief and the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. May this encourage us to be bold in sharing the Good News with everyone, every tongue, and every tribe.

May the Lord grant you boldness to share the message of truth.