parable Archives – Sonshine's Journal

July 15, 2022July 15, 2022

Wise or Foolish?

Prov 12 Proverbs are wise sayings explained through illustrations, but wisdom “has never appealed to proud intellectuals who consider themselves beyond the simplicity of God’s truth.” [Dr. Constable]

Looking back at Proverbs 6, we are told to consider the ant and how she wisely prepares and works. Aesop captured those principles in a fable about the ant and the grasshopper. Whereas the ant wisely prepared for the winter months, the grasshopper spent his time playing his fiddle. When winter came, and the grasshopper was hungry, the ant reminded him there was a time for work and play. In the NT, Jesus used the parable of the homebuilders of the wise and foolish to show that principle in real life. While the wise built on rock which took time, patience, and planning, the fool built his house on sand which was impulsive and quick. [Matt 7:24-27] Just like the grasshopper fable, when the winter storms came, all was lost. The Israelites also failed to learn the lessons as well and spent forty years wandering in the desert.

The MSG captures this lesson: If you love learning, you love the discipline that goes with it-how shortsighted to refuse correction! [Prov 12:1] We must be hearers of the words; learn from them and put them into practice, which is true wisdom.

Prov 12 reminds us of this principle: The inspired word of God is “useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness.” [2Tim 3:16]

©Dreamstime image

November 8, 2018

Who Am I? Who Are You?

Proverbs 26 “Who Am I? Who Are You?”

Jesus told a parable of the Pharisee and the publican. The Pharisee, in his boasting, left his time of worship just as he came, unforgiven and unloved by God. The publican in his humility left his time of worship full of joy because the Father God saw his heart. This is where the intellectually wise and the simple fool part ways. If truth be told, sometimes we find ourselves wearing the shoes of one or the other.

We need discernment to decide the character of each before us. There is the Pharisee; loud, prideful and pushy who can’t see beyond their noses; speaking gracious words that belie what they really think. They are only wise in their own opinion. It is certain that there is more hope for a fool than them.

There is the publican graciously waiting his turn in the line of the faithful as Esther did. She waited patiently to seek the ear of the king and see the scepter extended her way.

The Father God sees it all.

He sees through the Pharisees words as evil deceit from a lying tongue and a flattering mouth—all of which will bring down their ruin. Beware of them. Like the rich man in Luke 16, their earthly pomposity will lead them to the eternal pit of hell where they will look over and see the humble, basking in Paradise.

Who Am I? Who are you? One day we will stand before the wisest king who will hand down his judgments. Ask God now to:

“Examine me O Lord and test me!

Evaluate my inner thoughts and motives.” Ps 26:2

January 14, 2014

Importunate Prayer

Are you waiting on the scepter to be extended to you to enter God’s throne room much like Esther waited on the king to extend her the golden scepter to offer her admittance? How do you come? Fearful or fearless? “Afterward I will go to the king, even though it violates the law…. If I perish, I perish!” [Esther] Today, as a child of God we do need an appointment, or be fearful of this for we have this promise: Heb 4:16 Therefore let us confidently approach the throne of grace to receive mercy and find grace whenever we need help. God’s door is always open, thus “Pray without ceasing.” [IThess] And although we have never seen the vision of God’s throne as John did, “jasper and carnelian in appearance, and a rainbow looking like it was made of emerald” nor have we seen Jesus transfigured as Peter, James and John did, when we enter our prayer closet it is as if we are entering that sphere where the God of the universe stops and listens; His Son Jesus intercedes and the Holy Spirit interprets.

As we read Luke 11 it is as if the disciples saw and experienced this preciousness of this heavenly scene as he prayed to His Father. It was then that when he had ceased his time alone with His Father, they asked; “Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.”

Jesus began by teaching them “when you pray.” When, not if, but a definite time frame. As Jesus taught them a model prayer they learned much about the pattern one should consider. Following that he gave them a parable about the importunate man who came at midnight seeking help from a friend to teach them about the persistence of prayer, a valuable lesson for all of us when we fail to receive answers due to our “laxity, faintheartedness, impatience, and timidity which is fatal..” [E.M. Bounds] In all of this teaching, Jesus is emphasizing that we have a relationship with God by which we can come importunately seeking and expecting answers. The pattern is as follows: First: addressing of a Holy Righteous God who sits upon the throne in heaven; secondly, petitioning for our needs, thirdly seeking restoration to a state of total and complete forgiveness all because we have what “God desires—a humble spirit – a humble and repentant heart He will not reject.”[Ps 51], and lastly petitioning to be guarded from the one who seeks to distract and devour us from our walk of holiness. In all of this there is no fear, but like Esther, we are to have a determination to enter and seek boldly our answers. It is there that we seek the face of the one who is the author and finisher of our faith.

Jesus offers insight to how this works through the parable of the importunate [persistent] friend who seeks help from the source he trusts expecting an answer and not willing to depart until his request is answered. So too with Esther as she demanded the law be reversed regarding her people. We are to be as bold and assertive as both the friend and Esther. “Importunate praying is the earnest, inward movement of the heart towards God…no principle is more definitely enforced by Christ than prevailing prayer must have in it that quality which waits and perseveres, the courage that never surrenders, the patience that never grows tired, the resolution that never wavers.” [E.M. Bounds] That is what Jesus was teaching his disciples.

Beloved, today as you enter the throne room of the Lord God Almighty are you coming asking, seeking and knocking not for answers from an earthly king but the King of Kings? If so, go therefore and pray importunately for He is waiting: Psa 66:19 However, God heard; he listened to my prayer.

September 22, 2013

Heart Issues…1Cor 11

In all of life there is an order to be followed. God designed order so that there would be peace and tranquility. He even asked Job where he was when He laid the foundation of the earth for that is when He instituted order in creation. In chapter 10 Paul reminded the Corinthians that orderly public worship brings glory to God. Later Paul will remind the Corinthians: 1Co 14:33 for God is not characterized by disorder but by peace. Thus the principle is this: without order there is disorder and confusion, without order we cannot glorify God, without humility before God we bring dishonor and confusion to our public worship.

Now in the Corinthian church there seems to have been some disorder and confusion and it related to praying and prophesying and the Lord ’s Supper. To set the stage Paul writes: “But I want you to know that Christ is the head of every man, and the man is the head of a woman, and God is the head of Christ.” Further on Paul remarks: “I hear that there are divisions among you and in part I believe it.” Paul notes that this has occurred due to their misunderstanding regarding headship, specifically noted with the issue of head coverings in public worship and their confusion as they take the Lord’s Supper. From this premise Paul speaks to both men and women that they know, understand, and follow this order for one reason; OUR PURPOSE IS TO GLORIFY GOD.

What does this entire section have to do with understanding? What is the bottom line issue that we need to grasp? To help us understand we might look at the parable of the Publican and the Pharisee in Luke 18. Jesus used this parable to teach a principle: God looks at the heart and that is the important issue. In this parable the Pharisee stood and prayed about himself. The Publican stood far off and would not even look up to heaven. One was proud and one was humble. The issue the Corinthians were facing was a problem with pride and arrogance as we have been discussing and this parable reflects where they were spiritually. Paul is saying not only is order needed in the church during public worship but also there must be humility for Jesus taught that it was the Publican that went home justified not the Pharisee.

The relevant issue is this: When we pray or prophesy, when we partake of the Lord’s Supper, we are to be humble before God and before men that God is glorified. The Lord spoke to Samuel “God does not view things the way men do. People look on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”

July 30, 2013

The Parade of Jesus

Parades are gaudy and ostentatious but we all seem to love them…even Fido! But aside from dressing up to the fullest some of us just are happy to be merely spectators.

As a spectator, where do you like to stand in a parade? Do you just enjoy sitting on the curb waiting for the many bands and floats to go by or do you join in and follow the parade? After the parade has finished where are you? Do you just pick up your chairs and go home and this day is forgotten?

Did you know that even Jesus had his own parade? It is found in Matt 21 and came about so that Zech 9:9 could be fulfilled ” your king is coming on a donkey.” Just as in our parades to day then there were several spectators who reveal to us of people’s responses to the “Son of David.”

First are the disciples who did Jesus’ bidding and prepared his “float” on which he would ride. They prepared the coverings and joined in the celebration, perhaps even leading the donkey and her colt. Perhaps they moved aside the crowds so Jesus could ride unimpeded.

The crowds: instead of being bystanders, they went ahead and kept shouting “Hosanna “Lord save us” to the Son of David.

The city: thrown into an uproar! They began to question each other…”who is this?” Others in the crowd said “This is the prophet Jesus from Nazareth in Galilee. We remember what Nathanael had said about this: Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” and later the religious leaders taunted Nicodemus “you will see that no prophet comes from Galilee!”

The blind and lame: came to him in the Temple and were healed. As he was busy there the children began to cry out in the Temple: “Hosanna to the Son of David.”

The religious leaders: became indignant when they heard the children crying out and questioned Jesus who said “have you never read?” They feared the crowds because they believed John to be a prophet. Jesus asked them if the people believed why had not they? Again after telling two parables to the religious leaders he again said “have you never read the scriptures…” Instead of being repentant, they wanted to arrest him but were afraid of the crowds who now were saying this Jesus was also a prophet.

All of this reminds us the parable of the soils. The four soils are four hearts and so today we have four hearts in our passage. The footpath: some heard and asked “who is this?” but when the answer came back Satan snatched it away. The rocky soil: the blind and lame came but like many who came and experienced Jesus’ compassion, they did not endure after their healing (to our knowledge). The thorny soil: the religious leaders who heard, saw the evidence but the status of their position and the wealth that they had accumulated, like the rich young ruler, choked out the word. It produces nothing and so Jesus said that the kingdom would be taken from them and given to another. Lastly the cultivated soil : the children with humility proclaimed the Messiah as truly the Son of David. Later, the disciples who have yet to produce will come to realize the whole truth after the resurrection.

So where are you in the parade of life? Are you merely a spectator or are you a participant? Which soil reflects your heart today?