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PREACHING ON THE PARABLES. NEW INTERESTS IN PARABLE STUDY. 1. CHARACTERS 2. PLOTS 3. METAPHORS 4. DIRECT DISCOURSE. Metaphoric clusters. 1. Servant 2. Seed 3. Advent (Advent and Joy: the sower and the mustard seed; cf Crossan In Parables ) 4. Householder.
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NEW INTERESTS IN PARABLE STUDY • 1. CHARACTERS • 2. PLOTS • 3. METAPHORS • 4. DIRECT DISCOURSE
Metaphoric clusters • 1. Servant • 2. Seed • 3. Advent (Advent and Joy: the sower and the mustard seed; cf Crossan In Parables) • 4. Householder
the Householder Parables • 1. The Tares in Mt. 13:36-43 (sabotage) • 2. Laborers in Vineyard in Mt. 20:1-16 (criticism) • 3. Wicked Tenants in Mk. 12:1-12 (seizure and murder) • 4. Great Banquet in Lk. 14:16-24 (rejection)
Patterns in the Householder Parables • 1. The Intention or Will of the Master is challenged, appears defeated • 2. The Realism of Rejection and Resistance Plays Out • 3. Human efforts oppose and thwart the ministry of Jesus and the will of God • 4. The Ultimate Triumph of God appears
Theodicies, Responses to Genuine Questions about God and World? • 1. The Challenge is met, the householder never suffering from a loss of words • 2. The Stories posit both human freedom and divine sovereignty • 3. God’s will when blocked reasserts itself in fresh and final ways
Go to the classic book by Leslie Weatherhead • The Will of God
The Metaphor of the Far Country and the Father’s House (Lk. 15)
The Metaphors of the Gate(as Scott)and the Chasm (as Herzog) (Lk. 16: 19-31)
Characteristics of the Parables and Intimations about Strategies for Preaching • 1. Eschatological • 2. Ethical • 3. Ecological (occasionally) • 4. Existential • 5. Evangelistic
General Situation Specific Situation Two Types of Parables (and clues to how to preach)
A Strategy for the General Situation Parable (Mustard Seed) • 1. Universal truth • 2. Historical truth • 3. Personal truth
One Strategy for the Specific Situation Parable (narrative preaching) • 1. The Rich Man and Lazarus (Lk. 16) • 2. “The Prodigal Son” (Lk. 15) • 3. The Compassionate Samaritan (Lk. 10)
Two Begging Scenes • Scene One: the Rich Man Dines and the Poor Man Begs Lk. 16:19-22) • Scene Two: The Poor Man Dines and the Rich Man Begs (23-31)
With a poetic touch (RM and L) • 1.Act One: The Rich Man seems to be Rich and the Poor Man seems to be Poor • 2. Act Two: The Rich Man becomes Poor and the Poor Man becomes Rich • 3. Act Three: The Rich Man needed the Poor Man and the Poor Man needed the Rich Man Wade Huie
The Story of the Second Son • Scene 1: leaving home (vv. 12-13a) • Scene 2: living in the Far Country (v. 13b) • Scene 3: surviving in a famine (vv. 14-16) • Scene 4: coming to himself (vv. 17-19) • Scene 5: returning to the Father’s house (v. 20a)
A Portrait of Repentance • 1. A great awakening (v. 17) • 2. A returning to the Father (v. 18a) • 3. A confessing of sin (vv. 18b-19,21) • 4. An entering into the joy of the kingdom (vv. 22-23)
The Even Whens of God: God loves us . . . • 1. Even when we rebel • 2. Even when we use God as last resort • 3. Even when we bring a wasted life Robert Dale
The Prodigal’s Progress • The Prodigal saw something had to see: he saw himself • The Prodigal said something that is hard to say: I have sinned • The Prodigal did something that is hard to do: he went home
Three Sorts of Folks • 1. Those who hurt other people • 2. Those who are hurt • 3. Those who heal the hurts of others
And/or those • Who avoid human hurt • Who expose themselves to human hurt but do not help • Who will expose themselves to human hurt knowing they do not have it in them to leave the wounded abandoned
How to Handle Criticism (Lk. 15:1-7) • 1. Expect criticism • 2. Consider the source of the criticism • 3. Stay in Charge of your life • 4. Listen and learn • 5. Answer the criticisms (Jesus responded to the croaking cry of criticism creatively, concretely and compassionately). • 6. Move on
Life in the Light of • 1. Grace (Pharisee and Toll Collector) • 2. Nature (Mustard Seed, Soils) • 3. A Moment of Truth (Compassionate Samaritan) • 4. National Religious Crisis (Barren fig tree) • 5. Death (Rich Fool) • 6. The Final Judgment (Sheep and the Goats)
Three Imperatives of Discipleship • 1. The imperative of forgiveness (unmerciful servant, Matt 18:21-35) • 2. The imperative of love (Compassionate Samaritan (Lk. 10:25-37) • 3. The imperative of perseverance (Persistent Widow, Lk. 18:1-8)
Attractive Titles for Sermons • “How to Mismanage a Miracle” Rich Man, Luke 12:16-20) • “You Can’t Keep a Good Woman Down” (Persistent Widow, Luke18:2-5) • “Who’s That Masked Man?” (Samaritan, Luke 10:30-35) • “Am I Not Doing You Right?” (Laborers, Matt 20:1-15)
More Titles (from Borsch) • “The Resilient Rascal” (Unjust Steward, Luke 16:1-8) • “One out of a Hundred” (Luke 15:3-7) • ”Waste and Grace” (Sower, Mark 4:3-8)
Books on Preaching on the Parables • David Buttrick, Speaking Parables (WJK) • Paul Duke, Preaching Parables (Abingdon) • David Granskou, Preaching on the Parables (Fortress) • Eugene Lowry, How to Preach a Parable (Abingdon) • Martin Scharlemann, Proclaiming the Parables (Concordia) • Brian Stiller, Preaching Parables to Postmoderns (Fortress)
Books of Sermons on Parables • Charles Allen, When the Heart is Hungry (Revell) • William Barclay, And Jesus Said (Westminster) • George Buttrick, The Parables of Jesus (Baker) • Robert Farrar Capon, The Parables of Grace and The Parables of Judgment and The Parables of the Kingdom (Eerdmans) • John Claypool, Stories Jesus Still Tells (McCracken) • J. Stanley Glen, The Parables of Conflict in Luke (Westminster)
Archibald Hunter, The Parables Then and Now (Westminster) • J. Ellsworth Kalas, Parables from the Back Side (Abingdon) • Gerald Kennedy, The Parables (Harper) • Helmut Thielicke, The Waiting Father (Harper) • Leslie Weatherhead, In Quest of a Kingdom (Abingdon)