JESUS' PARABLES WERE SHORT STORIES THAT USED COMMON EXPERIENCES AND SITUATIONS TO CONVEY A MORAL LESSON OR INFORMATION THAT WAS OTHERWISE UNKNOWN.
THE LORD TAUGHT THESE FASCINATING FIGURES OF SPEECH BECAUSE THEY ACHIEVED TWO MAJOR GOALS. THEY FIRST HID SPIRITUAL TRUTH FROM UNBELIEVERS AND THOSE WHO REJECTED HIS MINISTRY. TO THOSE WHO BELIEVED IN HIM, HOWEVER (E.G. THE DISCIPLES), THEY REVEALED ASPECTS OF GOD AND HIS KINGDOM THAT PREVIOUSLY WERE MYSTERIES.
"BECAUSE IT HAS BEEN GIVEN TO YOU TO KNOW THE MYSTERIES OF THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN, BUT TO THEM (UNBELIEVERS, ETC.) IT HAS NOT BEEN GIVEN." (MATTHEW 13:11).
* PARABLE FACTS *
THE BOOK OF MATTHEW RECORDS 35 PARABLES WHILE MARK LISTS 17, LUKE 39 AND JOHN 2. OF THESE, 12 ARE UNIQUE TO MATTHEW, 2 IN MARK, 18 IN LUKE AND 2 IN JOHN MAKING 34 OF THESE UNIQUE STORIES WRITTEN IN THE GOSPELS.
THE LORD'S FIRST PARABLES WERE GIVEN DURING HIS SERMON ON THE MOUNT. THEY WERE THE SALT OF THE EARTH (MATTHEW 5:13), LIGHT OF THE WORLD (V. 14), BLIND LEADERS OF THE BLIND (LUKE 6:39), FALSE PROPHETS KNOWN BY FRUITS (MATTHEW 7:15 - 23) AND THE WISE AND FOOLISH BUILDERS (VERSES 24 - 27).
BOTH THE SALT OF THE EARTH (MARK 9:50, LUKE 14:34 - 35) AND LIGHT OF THE WORLD PARABLES (MARK 4:21, LUKE 11:33) ARE THE ONLY ONES JESUS GAVE TWO MORE TIMES AFTER HIS FAMOUS SERMON. THE LORD ALSO TAUGHT FIVE OTHER PARABLES ON TWO SEPARATE OCCASIONS.
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