To Those That Have Ears
- Cornerstone Church
- Mar 29
- 3 min read
What is a parable and why did Jesus so often teach with them? A parable is commonly defined as “a simple story used to illustrate a moral or spiritual lesson.” A parable that you would be more familiar with that is shared in our culture is ‘the Boy who cried Wolf.’ The moral lesson is if you lie nobody will believe you, then isolated harm will befall you by the natural order of the world i.e. roaming wolves. However, that lesson is never explicitly told but left to hearers to draw out and understand through the story. The bulk of this week’s readings will be Jesus teaching about those in and outside the Kingdom and what the Kingdom is like through parables. That’s the Big Picture.
Each week, as you take in the Bible, find some friends to talk it out. You can follow this simple guide to help. First, R.E.A.D. and P.R.A.Y. on your own. Then, meet with friends to share what you've learned.
R - Repeated words
E - Examine and mark
A - Ask what you learn about God
D - Do if there is anything to do
P - Praise
R - Repent
A - Ask
Bible Reading Plan - Week 14
Daily Prayer Plan – Week 14
START IT.
We're reading the Bible together in 2025 to see how Love Shows Up from the Old Testament and into the New Testament. How do we understand so many stories and lessons through the entire Bible while trying to stick to the "sacred timeline"? The answer is the big picture. If we get the big picture, we get the story the Bible is trying to tell. From Sunday's message or The Big Picture Bible Reading Plan this week in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke, what is impacting you the most? How has praying daily through the Psalms impacted you? Was there a word, phrase, Bible verse, or theme that impacted you?
STUDY IT.
Read Matthew 13:10-15. What was the reason Jesus gave for speaking in parables?
Read Matthew 13:16-17 and Colossian 1:26-27. What mystery did many prophets long to see but was finally revealed?
Read Mark 4:15-19. What do the first 3 seeds have in common?
Read Mark 4:20. What is the main point of the parable? How does good soil relate to hearing?
Read Luke 8:22-25. Why were the disciples afraid in verse 24? Why were they afraid in verse 25? What does this show us about Jesus?
SHARE IT.
Read Luke 8:18. What is evidence that we are listening carefully to God’s teaching? What is evidence of us being careless in our hearing?
Read Matthew 13:44-45. How do these parables both challenge and encourage you?
Read Matthew 13:51-52. What are the teachings of God that are precious to you that you keep in your “storehouse?”
What parable is the hardest for you to understand?
Do further study on that parable. Consider also using a commentary or listening to a sermon by a trusted source. What did you learn?
FINAL THOUGHT
There are two types of ears without hearing described in scripture I would like to point out. The first is very bad. The second is unbelievably good. Jesus is recorded in Matthew 13:14-15 quoting a passage out of Isaiah 6. He is explaining that there are people whose hearts have grown callous and are hard of hearing. These people will not accept Jesus’ message of salvation and doom themselves to eternal separation from God. The second type is also ears that have not heard. 1 Corinthians 2:6-16 speaks about spiritual wisdom and says in verse 9, “What no eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no human heart has conceived —God has prepared these things for those who love him.” One set of ears is calloused and cannot hear God’s message. The second set of ears has not heard all that God has in store for those He loves because no person could imagine it! So, listen carefully to Jesus, for He Himself, “Let anyone who has ears listen.” (Matthew 13:9)
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