parable of the sower – Jesus @ 2 am blogs and podcast

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Parables were one of Jesus’s primary tools for teaching, and yet they are easily and often misunderstood. In this episode we look at the genre of parable and how it differs from other literary devices (e.g., metaphor, analogy, etc.). We then apply our interpretive skills to the so-called “Parable of the Sower” and discover layers of meaning that were not immediately obvious.

In this episode I also mention the Trailhead program being offered by Westmont University. I’m honored to have played a small role in helping shape some of the spiritual formation and discernment curriculum and I think it will be a wonderful experience. If you are (or have) a high schooler, I’d love for you to take a look.

Always interested in your thoughts. Please, leave a comment or ask a question! 🙂

Click here to download this episode.

While Jesus certainly gave some famous speeches, most of Jesus’s public teaching was done by means of parables. These short, fictional stories were intended as both calls to action and as a means of offering a vision of an alternative reality- the kingdom of God. Yet they are more than illustrations, stories to be distilled down to their “moral.” Rather, like all great narratives, there is wisdom on every level: the details of the characters, their motivations, the alternative choices…even the tone of the story itself.

In this episode we examine a particularly illustrative example of the parables, that of the parable of the sower. In it, Jesus calls his listeners to consider their true openness to God. Are they willing to let the news of the kingdom’s presence take deep root?

It is a question we must all revisit regularly. And much of the work of the spiritual life involves maintaining our openness to the new.

This sermon/interview was recorded at Canvas (a Presbyterian church in Irvine, CA), March 16th, 2014.

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Tag: parable of the sower

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