3/30/14 Parables of Jesus

BUILD STRONG - DON’T LET IT CRUMBLE

    For the next few weeks, we are going to look at some of the teachings of Jesus, specifically using His parables.  This will lead us to Easter.  We are going to start with a quick look at: what is a parable and how did Jesus use them?
    The definition I remember hearing as a kid in Sunday School is that a parable is an earthly story with a heavenly meaning.
    Parables are stories told to furnish a vision of life, especially life as it is in God’s kingdom. Parables are a means of grasping the purpose of a teaching to give us a better  understanding so the teaching can be applied to life. Parables use word pictures to explain.
    Jesus often used simple parables that represent a picture elaborated into a story.  It was a story that made sense to the hearers.  This is why He talked about fishing and farming.  The parables were not simply clever stories, but a proclamation of the gospel. The hearer then is responsible to respond to the message.  Each person is responsible to make a decision about the kingdom and what Jesus did for them on the cross.
    Stories that make sense to the hearer.  If Jesus lived here today, He would not tell parables about pumping water, like in Africa.  Just as if He was in the tropics He wouldn’t tell stories about ice fishing. (Two pics, river and frozen river).
Today: two parables.
First:  Foundation
    A little review from our own experiences here at Cornerstone.  Before we did this (3 pics, trusses and shingles),  We did this (4 pics of digging, foundation).  We laid a good foundation.  That solid foundation has been especially necessary this harsh winter we have had.
Luke 6:46-49 NIV
46 “Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say? 47 I will show you what he is like who comes to me and hears my words and puts them into practice. 48 He is like a man building a house, who dug down deep and laid the foundation on rock. When a flood came, the torrent struck that house but could not shake it, because it was well built. 49 But the one who hears my words and does not put them into practice is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. The moment the torrent struck that house, it collapsed and its destruction was complete.”
Brief Review.
Lord.  Many want a Savior, He must also be our Lord.  That shows us His expectation of our obedience to Him.  46 “Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say?
    To live under His Lordship spells obedience.  What Jesus expects of believers is that they will do the will of the Father. Jesus strongly taught that actually doing God’s purposes and commands was expected for those entering His Kingdom.  This is not teaching salvation by our own works.  Salvation is a gift from God.  Yet, Jesus taught that we must obey.
    As we mature spiritually and live the Christian life, ongoing obedience to God’s will required.  Living the life is a heart response to and a result of genuine salvation.  God gives us the strength to live by His standards.
    As we can see from what Jesus said, He really EXPECTS our life to display Him and His teachings.
    When we do this we are building our lives on something that will stand the storms.  We will face battles and storms.
    Believers will be insulted, tormented and mocked.  Believers are called stupid, brainwashed and incapable of rational thinking.  They are called bigots, narrow and stuck in the past.
    We are called by mockers to:
compromise
change our teaching
let others tell us what to believe
hide our faith
    But, what we find is that when we really make Jesus our Lord and Savior, when we really live the life Jesus taught, when we build life on what He gave, we will make it through the battles of life.  We have hope and peace that the world doesn’t understand.
    The world continually attacks the foundations of life and expects everything to be just fine.  That simply doesn’t make sense.
What About the Foundation?  Ravi Zacharias
    I did a lectureship at Ohio State University. As I was being driven to the lecture, we passed the new Wexner Art Center. The driver said, “This is a new art building for the university. It is a fascinating building designed in the post-modernist view of reality.”
    The building has no pattern. Staircases go nowhere. Pillars support nothing. The architect designed the building to reflect life. It went nowhere and was mindless and senseless.
    I turned to the man describing it and asked, “Did they do the same thing with the foundation?” He laughed. You can’t do that with a foundation. You can get away with the infrastructure. You can get away with random thoughts that sound good in defense of a world view that ultimately doesn’t make sense. Once you start tampering with the foundations, you begin to see the serious effects. Yet the foundations are in jeopardy; the foundations of our culture do not provide coherent sets of answers any more.
Ravi Zacharias, “If the Foundations Be Destroyed,” Preaching Today, Tape No. 142
    An absolutely critical question that every person must ask:  what have I built my life on?  And: will it stand when the storms hit?
Luke 11:28 NIV
28 He replied, “Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it.”
    The second teaching we want to see today is about leaven, yeast.  The Bible talks a lot about leaven.  We are talking today about   BUILD STRONG - DON’T LET IT CRUMBLE
    We talked about building a strong foundation.  Once we have a strong foundation, we must be sure that the building doesn’t crumble.
    The picture of leaven is the fact that just a little of something that is let in can impact the whole.  A few germs can kill the whole body.  A little rust can destroy the whole car.  A little sin can ruin a whole life.
Luke 13:20-21 NIV
20 Again he asked, “What shall I compare the kingdom of God to? 21 It is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into a large amount of flour until it worked all through the dough.”
    The Kingdom of God has a powerful impact on the world around it.  Just a little can make a major change.  In bread, the yeast slowly permeates the large mass of dough and causes it to rise.  The all-pervading and powerful influence of God’s kingdom will affect the world around it.  The power of the Holy Spirit poured out in Acts shows how God uses the small folks of the world to turn it upside down.
    Many see this parable referring to the powerful influence of God’s kingdom as it works in people from the inside out to affect the world. God works in and through us.  That includes YOU!!
    Opposition will not stop God’s work.  We can’t become depressed because of resistance or the immensity of the task.  God’s power will overcome all.
    Remember what we have said and applied: Together With God We Can.  And, Together With God We Will.
    In the Bible, yeast (or leaven) is also used to talk about sin and the influence of sin.
    We have a perfect illustration of the negative Biblical use of leaven from the recent news out of the Cities.  It is about a police chief who had to resign in shame.  I have never heard of him before and don’t know anything about him except for what has been reported.  Let me share a few details.
    The Robbinsdale police chief, Steven Smith, resigned from his position when he notified city officials he was arrested in a prostitution sting last month.
    The sting happened on February 20 at a home in Coon Rapids. Ten people were arrested and cited for hiring and engaging in prostitution, including former Chief Steven Smith.
    Robbinsdale Mayor Regan Murphy said Smith was an excellent police chief.
    Murphy said: “It’s a sad day for the city. Chief Smith made a great contribution to the city and was a great employee. Smith stepping down was the best decision, and the city is moving on.”
    Murphy said city officials were blindsided by Saturday’s revelations.
    Here’s another quote from the mayor who said the former chief is known to be a family man. “He worked hard and he went home after work just like the rest of us to be with his family and I just can’t imagine... he has to deal with that piece of it and that’s his cross to bear.”
    I know nothing about this man.  Now, he has to deal with the shame, his reputation is ruined, I don’t know anything about his family.  He gave up a job paying him $110,00 a year plus benefits.  I would guess he never started out to have this happen, but that’s what happens when a little leaven is let in.
Luke 13:20-21 NIV
20 Again he asked, “What shall I compare the kingdom of God to? 21 It is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into a large amount of flour until it worked all through the dough.”
    In the Old Testament, yeast normally represented the presence of evil or impurity that brought corruption.  The New Testament yeast pictures false teaching and hypocritical lifestyles of the Pharisees and Sadducees. In his epistles, Paul shows yeast to represent malice and wickedness.
    Some interpret this parable to teach how evil, false doctrine and spiritual impurity exist and spread throughout all areas of God’s work, deceiving many people.  Evil can permeate God’s kingdom when human concepts take priority over the authority of the Bible.  Also, we must keep worldliness and immoral behavior out of the church.
    We must reject pride and ambition that causes us to seek position or power within the church.  In the world today we see the power of spiritual yeast to destroy God’s work.
    The key to victory is keeping our eyes focused faithfully on Jesus as we reject the temptations and evil influences of the world.
DISCUSSION
Key points of these two parables.
Personal application.
Think about the positive impact of yeast, the positive impact of God’s Work changing western Wisconsin.  Our involvement!!

Prayer for God to help us all be strong, built on God’s foundation, and stable spiritually, growing and impacting our world.