What if I told you that God could be seen in the most ordinary things every day?
What if I told you that every day, ordinary events could teach us extraordinary eternal truths? Would you believe me?
Welcome back to season 6 of the Set Your Mind Above Podcast! My name is BJ Sipe, and I am a Christian, a preacher, a husband, and a father. In our next few moments together, we hope to learn some of the most important lessons from some of the simplest things in life. Thank you for taking this journey with me.
We took a little break to celebrate the holiday over the weekend, so you get two podcasts this week! One today and once again this upcoming Friday. I’m an old soul, and I don’t say that without ample evidence. I prefer black and white movies to color. I prefer older muscle cars to newer high-tech ones. I prefer vinal records to streaming music, and the only Taylor I listen to is that of James Taylor. If you were to ask my what my most watched shows are – things like Perry Mason, I Love Lucy, and the Twilight Zone would pop up on that list. I’m just a 36-year-old man with a 75-year-old taste. And here is the best part – I have passed that on down to my children. You can regularly catch my children singing oldies or asking to watch I Love Lucy (which happens to be my oldest daughters favorite show).
Well, as we were having some down time on Friday, Ava climbed up into my bed where I was getting some work done and asked if we could put on an older movie that she had not seen yet. She had a few things in mind, like Abbott & Costello meet the Mummy and other fun monster flicks, but I had a different idea all together that I knew she would just love. I clicked on a thumbnail and said, “How would you like to watch a movie about one of the greatest story tellers of all time?” Her eyes lit up! “Oh yes, daddy! That sounds amazing!” she looked at the thumbnail and said, “Is that Bing Crosby?” I was beaming with pride that she even thought to ask that, and I responded, “Nope, but he co-stars alongside of Bing in White Christmas. That right there is Danny Kaye, and in this movie, he plays a cobbler by the name of Hans Christian Anderson – but in reality, his passion is story telling.” I went on to explain that the real Hans Christian Anderson is the original author of many popular stories today (though his were quite different), such as the Little Mermaid, The Emperor’s New Clothes, Thumbelina, and the Ugly Duckling (all of which were referenced in the movie).
She settled in and was enamored right away. Before too long, all three kids were nestled in on my bed, beaming with bright grins alongside the children in the film. They were pulled in by the stories and the songs, and after I while I finally just put my computer down and enjoyed sitting together with them for a few minutes. There is something about a good storyteller and a good story. We relate to them, become invested in them, and can even learn from them. As Danny Kaye would say to his naysayers and the schoolmasters in the film, “There is more than one way that we can learn.”
While I love the film and love the stories penned long ago by Hans Christian Anderson, there was a far greater storyteller long, long ago. Someone that used short stories that others could relate to, become invested in, and ultimately learn from. But these stories did not just have temporary benefit, they had eternal benefit. These stories were parables, and that storyteller was Jesus.
In Matthew 13, Jesus tells the story of a farmer; in particular a Sower who went out to sow seed. In this story, he sows the seed just about everywhere – on the road, in the rocky soil, among the thorns, and in the good soil. In the case of the first three soils, no good came from them. But in the case of the final soil, it produced much fruit. Upon hearing this parable, the disciples asked him beginning in vv. 10, “Then the disciples came up and asked him, “Why are you speaking to them in parables?” He answered, “Because the secrets of the kingdom of heaven have been given for you to know, but it has not been given to them. For whoever has, more will be given to him, and he will have more than enough; but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him. That is why I speak to them in parables, because looking they do not see, and hearing they do not listen or understand. Isaiah’s prophecy is fulfilled in them, which says: You will listen and listen, but never understand; you will look and look, but never perceive. For this people’s heart has grown callous; their ears are hard of hearing, and they have shut their eyes; otherwise they might see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their hearts, and turn back— and I would heal them. “Blessed are your eyes because they do see, and your ears because they do hear. For truly I tell you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see the things you see but didn’t see them, to hear the things you hear but didn’t hear them.”
The stories that Jesus told were able to instruct those whose hearts were receptive to his words, while at the same time were left concealed to those whose hearts were hardened to his teaching. Through parables, the listener had to wrestle with the truth that was being revealed to them – even search for it. And while all could relate to the initial scenarios and stories that Jesus told, not all were actually able to learn from them. It was only those who had ears to hear and eyes to see, who were invested in the truth of his teachings and willing to inquire further as to what these things meant to them.
While scholars disagree on what exactly ought to be classified as a “parable” – conservative estimates report anywhere from 35-40 parables being recorded, with more generous scholars saying there are over 60 found in Scripture. Without a doubt, Jesus likely taught in far more parables that were simply never recorded for our benefit. As John would write at the conclusion of his gospel in chapter 21:25, “And there are also many other things that Jesus did, which, if every one of them were written down, I suppose not even the world itself could contain the books that would be written.” That being said, what we can conclude with confidence is that Jesus often taught through parables and stories to help his listeners to learn and understand. What does this mean for us?
First, if Jesus is the master teacher, we ought to learn from his example. Jesus shows us that we should never outgrow learning from storytelling. We often dismiss such learning as for children – and most commonly fables and stories are marketed as such. But if we want to follow after the pattern of Jesus, we will not only use the parables frequently and often to teach ourselves and others, but we’ll use modern things that others can relate to in order to teach them spiritual truths as well. As a matter of fact, is that not the entire premise of this podcast? To take every day, ordinary things and stories to teach eternal spiritual truths? I aspire to teach like Jesus, who is the greatest teacher and storyteller of all.
Second, we must have ears to hear. The parables have a great number of things to teach us today, and if we merely dismiss them as old stories that we don’t relate to as well as the first century audience, we will fall prey to having the very heart warned against through the prophet Isaiah. We need to be invested in the things that Jesus did and taught. Even to those who heard Jesus words at first in that day and time, his meaning was not always clear. They needed to investigate, inquire, search inwardly and apply the true meaning of what Jesus was teaching to themselves. If they were required to do these very things as the original audience, how much more must we be willing to do the same 2000 years removed from when these parables were first spoken?
Finally, we must actually apply the things we are instructed to do through parables. That is the difference between a story and the way that Jesus spoke – a good story is something that often entertains but does not require action. While it might inspire one, it does not instruct someone. Jesus made it clear in the conclusion of the sermon on the mount the intention of these parables: to move us to action. He would teach in Matthew 7:24-27, “Therefore, everyone who hears these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain fell, the rivers rose, and the winds blew and pounded that house. Yet it didn’t collapse, because its foundation was on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and doesn’t act on them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. The rain fell, the rivers rose, the winds blew and pounded that house, and it collapsed. It collapsed with a great crash.”
My friends, we must not view the teachings of Jesus as simply fun or fanciful stories – they were never intended to be so. Certainly, they are relatable, and of course we are invested in them, but they are intended always to move us to action. Of all the soils that the Sower sowed upon, it was only the good soil that bore fruit. May we each have hearts prepared and ready to receive the instruction of the master teacher, to be moved to action, and to bear fruit for Jesus.
This has been season 6 episode 21 of the Set Your Mind Above Podcast – and I’m so thankful that we had this time to grow together! A new episode is dropped each Friday of the week. If you’re able to, go ahead and like and subscribe to the podcast, give us a good rating, and tune in next week. Even more important, share the spiritual truths that we learned today with someone else. And more than anything my friends, always remember the following: know that I love you, that God loves you, and may we all each and every day set our minds above.
