Parables in the Bible were an important method because it was used as a tool to connect to the people within the culture. Describe how a certain parable can be taught to impact students in today’s culture…
One of the subjects that stood out to me in Chapter 1.2 was the section on Parables. I have always liked a good story; from Dr. Seuss to J.R.R. Tolkien. Stories are a part of our everyday life. They are fun to read, watch, and listen to, and they can also teach us a lesson. What is the question a parent usually asks their kids after reading a book? The answer: “What is the moral of the story?” or “What can we learn from this story?” Jesus does the same thing by using Parables. One of my favorite Parables is the Parable of the mustard seed in Matthew 13:31-32: He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. Though it is the smallest of all your seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and perch in its branches.” This represents the growth of God’s kingdom and it reminds me that Christian’s need to be willing to be a witness in order to bring others to God’s kingdom. Parables are important because they teach us a spiritual or moral lesson that would be easier to teach through a story rather than through an explanation. People can understand and remember stories better than they would a lecture. Therefore, I think that it is okay to use movies or books as an example to teach a lesson as long as the Bible is the main resource. You could use Horton Hears a Who as a lesson on listening or a lesson on faith. Or you could use The Lord of the Rings as a lesson on perseverance. Of course there is more to these stories than these subjects, but it would be a memory jog for the youth to help them remember the lesson. This makes parables and stories valuable for the fact that they are easy to remember and can teach a lesson worth remembering.
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Emily Grubbs
ReplyDeleteI think parables are necessary to use in communicating with students today. Students get bored easily just listening to a lecture, but if you engage the students with a story that relates to their own lives, they will be more focused on what you are trying to teach them. Just as John Losey says, parables use common, everyday events to teach insightful, uncommon lessons. After a student takes a similar personal experience and connects it with the parable, they are more willing to open up and hear the lesson that is truly behind the parable being told.
Parables are an awesome way to communicate important messages to others. I really like the example in the book about David and the parable that was told to him. I had never connected the fact that the sheep story would have been very close to his heart. I also like how Jesus used simple things to communicate big messages. I think that we, too can take these parables and apply them to every day life in a way that kids will understand.
ReplyDeleteParables are a great way to teach the Bible. They hit the students close to home, when we use a parable they can relate to, and their guards are let down because it is something they are familiar with. As we talked about in class Monday night (the 22nd) parables can be a way to bring the Bible to people without actually shovng the Bible in their face. I think contemporizing parables is another great way to teach. Jesus took everyday, common things that meant a lot to the people, so I believe if we take these parables and put a modern twist on them, (without losing the point Jesus was trying to make) then we can really get to students and teach them something that will stick.
ReplyDeleteWhat made Jesus' parables so effective was that they could and probably would be experienced by the people he told them to. When he spoke to farmers, he gave crop-growing metaphors. To parents, he told stories of families. He knew his audience and knew what trials or tales they might experience. Tell a coal miner a story about a flower, and he might still understand the lesson, but it won't mean as much to him. Compare the Holy Spirit to his pickax and it will stick with him better. Though, that might be delving more into object lessons. Essentially, they serve the same purpose--getting people to think about God in new ways, using whatever means available.
ReplyDeleteI think parables are a really great way to teach the Bible to all age groups. When you read scripture and say why its important does that really get through? But when you use parables to hit home with a passage to any age group (making sure the parable is age appropriate) it helps them to see the passage in a different way, it brings meaning to the massage and parable and to their life.
ReplyDeleteZac
ReplyDeleteI think parables are a tremendous way in which Jesus engaged his audience and helped them to understand hard truths about the Kingdom of God. Stories and parables have a way of really bringing things to life and putting things in perspective. Christ used the everyday/common things in life to explain this "upside down way of living!" These stories, examples, or parables have a way of communicating the message of God in ways that traditional lecture or sermons cannot. The idea of making them contemporary is a necessity because, while the truths of the parables remain the same, the examples used in Jesus' culture will not resonate as well with a Twenty-First century audience.
I feel that parables relate to people in their own personal context. Parables are great instruments to use to connect with an issue or a topic and make it really impact a person. I feel that Jesus used this because he knew they would apply to everyones surrounding and environmental contexts. This is why I feel that parables are eccential for making biblical topics relate in a modern context with people.
ReplyDeleteJessica
ReplyDeleteParables are a great way to teach. Jesus was the best teacher... and he used them so we should too. Parables are more effective sometimes because they relate to the person more and can describe things in a way that normal lectures, sermons, and everyday communication are unable to communicate. Parables include things that people know about or see all the time. For example, the parable of the lilies in the valley. Jesus took something plain and simple and told a parable. Every time they see lilies they think of the deeper meaning behind the parable. They probably would have never thought about it in that way before and they learned. Parables can be confusing though sometimes and need to be explained. Also, I don't think they should be used all of the time.
I think that parables are a great way to relate today. I personally like the one of the prodigal son. I feel that it can still be used to get through to teens today because there are so many of them out there acting like the prodigal son and throwing their lives away. I think it is a great story to show them that even though they turned their back on the Father the Father will never turn his back on them.
ReplyDeleteI think that parables are one of best ways to teach the bible. They were great in the time of Jesus and He saw how effective they were in getting the point across to the people. It is the same concept today, if you use what people know then they are quicker to wrap their minds around the concept that you are trying to explain. Why not use something that gives the audience a better way to understand?
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