Parables

Answer:

Jesus preached parables constantly about the coming Kingdom of God (or as Matthew wrote, the Kingdom of 'HEAVEN')

These stories are actually "prophecies" one day to be fulfilled when the Kingdom comes to earth.

Jesus spoke the parable of the talents to His disciples is His chronological explanation of the "signs" of the end times men refer to as the Olivette Prophecy," beginning in Matthew 24. By the end of chapter 24, Jesus has returned with the Kingdom of God and is beginning to judge the nations... and is weeding out dissidents and would-be troublemaker's

In Matthew 25, Jesus informs His disciples of His impending "judgments" upon them according to their individual performances (their works) while He is away in the "far country" of "heaven" when He returns in the parables of the "Ten Virgins" and the "Talents."

The talent was a measurement of money. But a talent is also an individual's "UNIQUE NATURAL ABILITY" that every human seems to have in one capacity or other. We all have our natural abilities as well as our weaknesses.

And since the monetary "talent" is Caesar's... it is evident that Jesus is not talking about money... but of the "talents" and abilities that God gives to men.

Each of His disciples... and everyone whom He calls out from the world... He expects to produce some form of "increase" toward the coming "harvest" at the end of the age. Everyone's talents are different.

God expects us to use our God-given abilities for good. The Man who went to the far country (Jesus, ascended into heaven) "...delivered unto them His goods... to every man according to HIS SEVERAL ABILITY..." (Matt.25:14-15).

And when He returns with His Kingdom, He will demand an accounting of His "servants" as to what they have done with the talents and abilities with which they have been blessed.

There is responsibility with God... not eternal blissful irresponsibility. God is working... preparing His Kingdom for His future Family to live in. And those whom He is calling during this phase of His plan shall become the first generation of His Children to be the leaders of the main body of His Family that shall be born during Judgment Day, a thousand years after Jesus returns. (see Revelation 20) They should be training and improving themselves in the Word of God NOW... in Christ... to be the best Child of God they can be.

God's called out ones are BEING JUDGED NOW... and at the moment of Jesus' return... not on Judgment Day.

"For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God: and if IT FIRST BEGIN AT US, what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God?" (I Peter 4:17)

Modern professing Christianity makes being a follower of Christ seem a mere matter of "believing"... without teaching what it is that we should be believing. Christians should be believing what Jesus SAYS. They should be believing the Bible. Christianity is faith AND works. God's coming judgment on all men will be according to his works.

Notice also in Matthew 25, the parable of the Ten Virgins. If the ten virgins represent ALL CHRISTIANS extant on the earth at the time of the return of the Bridegroom (Christ)... then ONLY HALF OF ALL CHRISTIANS WILL BE READY FOR HIM!

The parable of the talents should be a fair warning to professing Christians to get serious about the service they should be providing to their Master, the King who shall demand an accounting of His servants when He comes.

The story of the Good Samaritan has many meanings, depending on how you look at it. Now, you can look at it as a very vague meaning, and say that it means you should help everyone whenever you get a chance, no matter what.

Or, you can pick every piece apart.

First, the man was going "down from Jerusalem to Jericho."

Jerusalem is the Holy City, or at least it was then. I'm not sure what everyone considers that holy city today, but then, it was the City of God. Down the hill, there is a city called Jericho, and that was the City of Sin.

You can look at that as the man sinned, and he was lead away from God. When you sin, what does that mean? It means that you are lead away from the Lord.

Okay... Second, he "fell into the hands of robbers."

The robbers took everything he had. Just like Satan will do, if you allow sin and temptation to control your life.

Third, a priest came by, and left him there.

You can pass this off by saying that the priest was selfish and blah blah blah. Or you can look at it like this:

A priest is someone who's close to the Lord. But he can't save you from your sins. He can try to lead you in the right path, but he cannot save you from sin.

Fourth, the Levite passed by and left the man laying on the side of the road.

Again, he couldn't save man from sin.

Fifth, a Samaritan walked by and saved him.

What defines someone as a Samaritan? He is a half-breed. He's half Jew, and half.... I forget, but it's not really important for this answer. Anyway, he's half.

Who else was half and half in those days? Jesus Christ. And who can save you from sin? Jesus Christ. In this story, the good Samaritan symbolizes as Jesus.

Next, the Smaritan took care of the man.

Jesus takes care of us, his followers and his people, just as the Samaritan took care of the man.

Lastly, it says, "The next day he took out two silver coins and gave them to the innkeeper. 'Look after him,' he said, 'and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.'"

The Samaritan paid for the man's expenses. What was Jesus sent to Earth to do? He was sent to Earth to pay for our sins.

So in short, the story means that men, priests, or any other creature, can NOT save you from sin. The only person or being that can save you from sin is the Lord, and he will pay for you sins on his own account.

You can be forgiven, no matter how bad you have been, or how much you have messed up.

ANSWER:

The parables of Jesus are usually concerned with spiritual truths rather than morals. Parables are a way of teaching spiritual truths. The spiritual truth is hidden in stories of everyday life - "an earthly story with a heavenly meaning." The real meaning of the parable is hidden to those who are not seeking spiritual truth or are not willing to think about the parable.

The parable of the Lost Son is the third parable in a group of three parables - The Lost Sheep, The Lost Coin and the Lost Son. These three parables are about God's love for people who are lost and, in the context of the parables, God's love for the 'lost' nation of Israel.
The lost son has come unto repentance. When one improves their state, it is better than if they had been good that whole time, simply because they are making progress. The older brother should not have been jealous, but happy that his brother was making progress.

The parable of the lost son is about people coming to the realization that they are lost and turning to God for forgiveness.

The lost son is the repentant sinner, the elder son represents the scribes and pharisees (the religious) of Jesus' time.

The parable is teaching that whatever condition we are in and we realize our condition and turn to God He will forgive and accept us.

Luke 15:10 - 32

(though verses 4 - 9 are relevant too, as they're being amplified by the following story, often called "the parable of the prodigal son".

IMO, the bottom line - "It was meet that we should make merry, and be glad: for this thy brother was dead, and is alive again; and was lost, and is found." (verse 32) is a pretty clear restatement of the idea in verse 7 ("I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just persons, which need no repentance.").

Answer:

The parable of the Prodigal Son is a parable directed to the nation of Israel. When Jesus tells this parable some Pharisees and scribes are listening as well as a multitude of people:

Luk 15:1 Then all the tax collectors and the sinners drew near to Him to hear Him.

Luk 15:2 And the Pharisees and scribes complained, saying, "This Man receives sinners and eats with them."

Luk 15:3 So He spoke this parable to them, saying: .........................

In the parable the father represents God, the youngest son represents Israel and the oldest son represents the scribes and Pharisees.

The oldest son is prejudiced towards the youngest son because the youngest son is treated well, given a lot of attention etc by the father.

In the gospels we can see Jesus paid a lot of attention to the ordinary people the scribes and Pharisees of the day were jealous because they thought they were the spiritual men of Israel. They were put out that Jesus "received sinners" they thought Jesus should have been spending time with them - they were the spiritual ones.

If Israel had repented, accepted Jesus as the messiah and returned to true worship of God (not legalism through obeying evry degree of the Law) then there would have been singing and dancing - as in the parable

In general terms, sins. In particular, any of the main 7 sins:

Pride

Gluttony

Lust

Sloth

Wrath

Greed

Envy

Opinion

The Letter of James addresses this subject in Chapter 1 verses 12 through 15.

"Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him. Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man. But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death."

Some say Christians can lose their salvation and must be born again and again if they fall away. Others say that true believers can not lose their salvation through sin, but they can apostatize or walk away from their salvation. I believe salvation begins at the moment of conversion and continues for eternity. In Philippians 1:6 it says " Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ". Jude 24 guarantees that God "is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy." Christian may stumble and fall but we have a wonderful reassurance from Jesus in John 10:27-29 " My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand."

King James version.

it means dont take life for granted-

or

The Parable of the Lost Coin is one of the parables of Jesus. It appears in only one of the Canonical gospels of the New Testament. According to Luke 15:8-10, a woman searches for a lost coin. It is a member of a trilogy on redemption that Jesus tells after the Pharisees and religious leaders accuse him of welcoming and eating with "sinners."[1] The other two are the Parable of the Lost Sheep, and the Parable of the Lost Son or Prodigal Son.

Contents

[hide]

• 1 Narrative

• 2 Interpretation

• 3 Depictions

• 4 See also

• 5 References

• 6 External links

Narrative

As recounted in Luke 15, a woman with ten silver coins (Greek drachmae) loses one. She then lights a lamp and sweeps her house until she finds it, rejoicing when she does:

Or what woman, if she had ten drachma coins, if she lost one drachma coin, wouldn't light a lamp, sweep the house, and seek diligently until she found it? When she has found it, she calls together her friends and neighbors, saying, 'Rejoice with me, for I have found the drachma which I had lost.' Even so, I tell you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner repenting."

--- Luke 15:8--10, World English Bible

On finding the lost coin, the woman shares her joy with her neighbors (etching by Jan Luyken).

Interpretation

Joel B. Green notes that the woman described is a poor peasant, and the ten silver coins, corresponding to ten days wages, "likely represent the family savings."[2] The coins may also have been the woman's dowry, worn as an ornament.[3][4] Both theories may be true, and either one explains the urgency of the woman's search, and the extent of her joy when the missing coin is found.

Like the parable of the Ten Virgins, this is a parable about women which immediately follows, and makes the same point as, a preceding parable about men.[5] In the Greek, the "friends and neighbors" are female.[6]

Green suggests that the invitation to the "friends and neighbors" may reflect a celebratory meal, which recalls the meals Jesus is accused of sharing with "sinners."[2] The woman's diligent activity in searching may symbolise either Jesus' own activity or that of God the Father.[3] The rejoicing of the angels is understood to be rejoicing along with God.[4]

Depictions

This parable has been depicted by several artists, including John Everett Millais, Jan Luyken, Domenico Fetti, and James Tissot.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Parable of the Lost Coin

See also

• Ministry of Jesus

References

1. ^ Richard N. Longenecker, The Challenge of Jesus' Parables, Eerdmans, 2000, ISBN 0802846386, p. 201.

2. ^ a b Joel B. Green, The Gospel of Luke, Eerdmans, 1997, ISBN 0802823157, p. 576.

3. ^ a b Ben Witherington, Women in the Ministry of Jesus: A study of Jesus' attitudes to women and their roles as reflected in his earthly life, Cambridge University Press, 1987, ISBN 0521347815, p. 39.

4. ^ a b I. Howard Marshall, The Gospel of Luke: A commentary on the Greek text, Eerdmans, 1978, ISBN 0802835120, p. 603.

5. ^ The parable of the Ten Virgins follows the parable of the Faithful Servant, and this parable follows the parable of the Lost Sheep.

6. ^ Mary Ann Beavis, The Lost Coin: Parables of women, work, and wisdom, Continuum, 2002, ISBN 1841273139, p. 36.

External links

• Biblical Art on the WWW: The Lost Coin

[hide]v · d · eParables of Jesus

[hide] Canonical / New Testament

Synoptic

Gospels

Barren Fig Tree • Budding Fig Tree • Counting the cost • Drawing in the Net • Faithful Servant • Friend at Night • Good Samaritan • Great Banquet • Growing Seed • Hidden Treasure • Lamp • Leaven • Lost Coin • Lost Sheep • Master and Servant • Minas • Mustard Seed • New Wine into Old Wineskins • Pearl • Pharisee and the Publican • Prodigal Son • Rich Fool • Rich man and Lazarus • Sower • Strong Man • Talents • Tares • Ten Virgins • Tree and its Fruits • Two Debtors • Two Sons • Unjust Judge • Unjust Steward • Unforgiving Servant • Wicked Husbandmen • Wise and Foolish Builders • Workers in the Vineyard

[hide] Non-Canonical / Disputed

Thomas

Assassin • Empty Jar (eleven other parables have New Testament parallels)

Christianity Portal

This parable is about the nation of Israel. The parable is also connected with the parable of the lost sheep and the parable of the lost son.

Jesus came to call Israel to repentance and many of his parables are about this. The parable of the lost coin is not about the church/christians though many people do apply the parables to people being 'saved'.