The
Parables of Christ 1
Why
Did Jesus use Parables
Rev. Brian Kocourek
This morning we will begin by the Grace of God to
look at the parables of Christ and to view them not from a 2000 year old
perspective, but to view them in the light of the hour in which we live. For if
we see them only from a 2000 year old perspective, there is no life in them.
But to see them in the present tense, brings them alive and gives us hope and
understanding of the day in which we live. For God is the Present Tense God,
not a God of past ages. He said, I am that I am. Not I
was what I was. He is a Living God, and if this be so then His Word will come
alive in our life if we have been made alive in Him.
William Branham in
his Audio letter to Lee
Vayle 64-0500 he said, Would it be, you think, advisable in here, to
say that God then, in order to proclaim this, has to send a prophet in order to
inject this, make this real again, show the people the hour we're living in? Because if they only see it
in the hour past, then there's no hope for the church. The church must see it in the present
tense. So God sends His prophet to manifest, present tense of it. You see?
And then, after it's over, then history is. Now, you might inject that, Brother
Lee. I don't know whether that's any good or not, but it's just a thought right
here. Thanks a lot.
Notice he said, “if
the church only sees it in the past tense then there is no hope for the church.”
I believe that God makes His Word to come alive in each age. To those who are
looking for Him to manifest Himself, He does so as the “Living God”.
From the Message Anointed
ones at end time 65-0725M P:168 William Branham also said, "For it is impossible for those which were once
enlightened and didn't move on with the Word as it come to pass...they’re dead,
gone."
And there is one more
quote I would like to share in our preparation for this study on the Parables
of Christ, and that is from a Message he preached called, Shalom 64-0119 P:92 In this message William Branham vindicated
prophet of God said, All the New Testament speaks of this hour.
Therefore, as we
study these Parables of Christ, we will want to keep these 3 quotes of William
Branham in the forefront of our minds or our thinking. For these three quotes
are essential to understanding the Living Word.
He said, if they do
not see the word in the present tense there is no hope for the church, and if
they do not move on with the Word “AS” it comes to pass they are dead, gone.
And if all the New Testament speaks of this hour, then we ought to be able to
know how it speaks of this hour. And in being able to see how the New Testament
speaks of this hour, not only gives the Church hope, but also brings into view the reality of the Living
God. In other words, we see the Word
with a Present tense view.
Now, I do believe
that God is not the God of the dead, But rather He is God
of the Living. He is the Living God.
He is the Living Word. And if He is the Living Word, then that Word must become
alive to us if it is to do us any good.
Now, there are 48 times in the New Testament that the
word parable is used, or it’s Greek equivalent parabole.
Now, a parable is a simple story that illustrates a moral. It is used by Jesus
in the New Testament to illustrate a lesson. But we find that there is another
reason He used parables, and that is to blind those that are not ordained to
see what He was talking about. William Branham also spoke in parables to the
people. These are the countless stories that he used to illustrate His point.
However, there is a danger that must not be
overlooked in our understanding the use of parables or stories by our Lord
Jesus Christ, or His prophets for that matter. The danger in using parables or
stories to illustrate a point is that if you do not understand what the speaker
is really talking about, the story or parable that He chooses to use can be a
two edged sword, and you can end up running in the wrong direction based on
what you perceive the story to be telling you. A parable then can mislead an
audience just as easy as it can drive a point home.
MATTHEW 13:10
And the disciples came, and said unto him, Why speakest thou unto them in parables?(Notice, they did not say why do you speak in
parables, but why do you speak to them in parables. Up to this point Jesus must
have been pretty forthright with the Apostles, and must have spoken pretty
straight to them, but they noticed that when he spoke to a mixed multitude, he
used stories and parables, and they were asking Him why h did that. And he
tells them it is for the purpose of hiding from them what they are not ordained
to know and understand.) 11 He answered and said unto them, Because (which means the reason for this is that) it is given unto you
to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given. (He
says, you are supposed to know these things but they are not supposed to know.)
Then He says, 12
For whosoever hath,(and the word hath should not have been
translated hath. The Greek word echo should have been left in tact. The verse
should have read, “to him that is of such a character that he is able to echo back
my thoughts and words”) “to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance” (and
why would you have more abundance? Because if you can echo, then you can repeat
them over and over and over, and as you do the spoken Word becomes multiplied
over and over and over and brings you grace and peace and many divine blessing
concerning your life. The Apostle Peter told us in II PETER 1:2 Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through
the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord, So we see that in multiplying the
Word of God, we receive Grace and Peace. Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge
of God, and of Jesus our Lord
3 According as his divine
power (and what is His Divine Power? Divine is God Life and He is
the Word, and therefore the Divine power is what Paul said in Romans
And we will se the importance of how all things are
working together for our good, and how the all things that are given represent
the Word of God in our Life, and we will see in the first parable Jesus told what
that significance means to us.
Now, in getting back to Matthew 13, we pick up at
verse 12 where Jesus says, but whosoever hath not, (whosoever is not made up
in such a way as to be able to reflect my Words, ) from him shall be
taken away even that he hath(from him shall be taken away even that
which he thinks he is reflecting). 13 Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they
seeing see not; (he tells us they are able to look with their eyes,
but they are not able to see with the eyes of their heart) and hearing they hear not, (and
although they are
hearing with their ears, they are not able to listen and
therefore neither can they understand. He says,) neither do they understand. 14 And in them is fulfilled
the prophecy of Isaiah, which saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not
understand; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive: 15 For this
people's heart (the heart means understanding, so their
understanding) is
waxed gross, and their ears (their ability to listen attentively)are dull of hearing,
and their eyes they have closed;(and if they closed them, then they
are closed willfully. They closed their own eyes. ) lest at any time they should see with their
eyes, (notice he said, they shall see with their own eyes. Now catch
what he is saying here. He says these people are only looking through their own
eyes. They are left to themselves.) and hear with their ears, (and
notice their hearing is with their own ears. Which tells
me that these people cannot look with the eyes of God, nor do they hear with
the help of God,)
and should understand with their heart, (and notice the
understanding is with their own hearts, and yet we have a promise of a new
heart, but thee people do not have a new heart. They do not have a new
understanding, because they are left up to their own heart or their own
understanding.
There is a way which seems
right unto man, but the end there of are the ways of death. Man can not get the right understanding by his own
efforts. His own efforts will always take him further from the truth. There is a way that
seems right to man but the way thereof are the ways of
death. Literally, man is incapable of knowing the things of God
because the Things of God are spiritually discerned, and you must have the
Spirit of God to know the things that are freely given from God. Revelation of God’s Word is a gift from God
and either He gives it to you or you are left on your own without it.) lest
at any time they should see with
their eyes,and hear with their
ears, and should understand
with their heart, and should be
converted, (you see if they were concerted they would not see with
their own eyes, nor would they hear with their own ears, nor would they
understand with their own heart) and I should heal them. 16 But
blessed are your eyes, for they see:
and your ears, for they hear.
17 For verily I say unto you, That many
prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which ye see, and
have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard
them.
Unless we are given a new heart and a new spirit form
God there is no way for us to see and hear and thus understand what the
EZEKIEL 36:26 A
new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I
will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart
of flesh. 27 And I will put my spirit
within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my
judgments, and do [them].
Concerning this new heart and new spirit, Brother Branham
said in the message IMPERSONATION OF CHRISTIANITY 57-0120M So God had to give you a new heart, not a
patched up one, a new heart. That's your
intellects that you think with, a new way of thinking. 043 Then He said after that, "Then I'll give you a new spirit." What's that? A new
desire, "I want to do right."
And then God said, I will
give you My Spirit. First God gives you a new understanding,
Flesh and blood
has not revealed this to you, but My Father which is in Heaven. God
gives you that new understanding. Then that new understanding brings forth a new
desire in your heart, and finally God gives you of His Own Spirit and places it
within you. Christ
in the you, the Hope of Glory. Christ in you, the anointing of God
in you, the Hope of Doxa, the Hope of having the very mind that was in Christ.
Look, how else could you understand the things of God except the spirit of God
be in you.
I CORINTHIANS 2:9 But
as it is written, Eye hath not seen,
nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which
God hath prepared for them that love him. 10 But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for The Spirit
searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God. 11 For
what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? Even
so the things of God knoweth no man, but
the Spirit of God knows. 12 Now we have received, not the spirit of the
world, but The spirit which is of
(of = out from
) God; that
we might know (and here is the key, we receive the spirit of God
that we might know the things of God) the things that are freely given to us of God. 13 Which
things also we speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing
spiritual things with spiritual. 14 But the
natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are
foolishness unto him: neither can he
know them,(Why?) because they are
spiritually discerned. 15But he that is spiritual judgeth all things, yet he
himself is judged of no man. 16 For who hath known the
mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ.
So you see then, that it takes a mind that has been
anointed from God to be able to see and hear the things that are freely given
to us from God. But the natural man can not see nor can he hear, and neither
can he understand. And so we see that Jesus used parables because they would be
given in such a way that those who did not have the Spirit of Christ in them,
would not in any way, shape or form be able to understand, perceive, and have
any clue as to what they really meant. And we will find out from Jesus own
Words in Mathew 13 when he is asked about his use of parables, he tells them
that he uses them so that those who are not ordained to see will not be able to
get it, and those who are ordained to get it will.
Again we find this understanding being again
referenced in the Book of Mark.
MARK 4:10 And when he was alone, they that were about
him with the twelve asked of him the parable. 11 And he said unto them, Unto you it is given to know the mystery of
the kingdom of God: but unto them
that are without, (the Greek
word there was EXO which means outside or those on the outside,) all these things
are done in parables: 12 for the reason That seeing they may see, and not perceive; and
hearing they may hear, and not understand; lest at any time they should be
converted, and [their] sins should be forgiven them. The very
purpose of the parables for one group is to blind and for the other is to
clench the nail concerning the doctrine. So we must
be careful how we are hearing, and we must be careful in what manner we are
hearing.
In fact in the Gospel of Mark Chapter
In Deuteronomy 28
we see that the attitude that the people take towards the Word of God will
either bring them either blessings or cursing. They will be blessed if they
take it into their heart and believe it and live it, but if they turn their
hearts from it, that same word will then become a curse to them. Therefore when Jesus is warning us that we
must be careful how we approach the Word, he is not giving us new advice. This
is the very same thing that God the Father told us back in the Book of Two Laws
Deueter-onomy. Deut or deuter
meaning two and “onomy”
meaning laws.
And what are those
two laws? Blessing and cursing. And both come by the same Word. It al depends
on what you do with it, and how you approach it. If you come with your mind
already made up, then it becomes a curse to you. If you come with an open mind
and an open heart, then the Word will bring Life to you.
Again we find Jesus
give the same warning in the Book of Luke. Luke Chapter 8: 18 Take heed therefore how ye hear: for whosoever hath, to him
shall be given; and whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken even that which
he seemeth to have. Now, in this
translation we see the words, Take heed therefore how
ye hear, but we know that Jesus is not telling them to take heed
how you hear as if there is some other way to hear than with the ears.
Therefore, again we see it is not the particular thing but rather the manner in
which they have come to hear that he is warning them about.
The
Greek word that this was translated from means “in what way”. Therefore again we hear Jesus say in Mark, “take heed in what
manner you hear”, and in the book of Luke, we hear Him say, “Take heed in what
way you hear.”
Now, both of these
statements are very consistent, and could actually be translated using the same
words.
Now, the first recorded words we have of Jesus preaching
to the people we find him using a parable. In Matthew chapter 5 we hear Jesus
standing before thousands as he preaches the sermon on the
mount. And after he tells the people how they are blessed, he says in
verse 13…
MATTHEW
Now notice he is using an illustration or parable
here. He tells them that they are the salt of the earth, and then tells them,
“however, if the salt looses is savour, what good
will it be?
The Greek word that savour
was translated from is a word which means insipid, and the word insipid means
1. Lacking flavor or zest; not tasty. 2. Lacking
excitement, stimulation, or interest; dull.
So Jesus was
using an illustration here to admonish the people to not loose their excitement
for the Word.
Now, just think about this. We have been showing you
that the word must be a present tense reality to you or it just becomes a
boring tradition, and here we find the very first time Jesus uses a parable, he
is telling the people that they are the salt of the earth, but if they loose
their zeal, or their excitement for the Word, then they have become useless,
and are good for nothing, boring and should be cast aside as useless vessels,
not fit for the King’s Table.
But then he tells them in verse 14 Ye are the light of
the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be
hid. 15 Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a
candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in
the house. 16 Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good
works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.
Again we see Jesus use another parable to admonish
the people to become actively involved in reflecting the Gospel light in their
day. He says, you people are the Light of the World, and yet you are hiding the
great Light that has been given to you. He says, don’t do that because you are
the only light the world will have, and if you hide that light from them then
the world will have no light. He said to them, Let your light so shine
before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is
in heaven. Now when he says, Let your light so shine before men, the
Greek word for shine is “lampo” which we get our word
lamp. And it means to shine forth, to bem, to radiate
brilliantly, to give light. And we know the purpose of a lamp is to guide and
direct the path of those using the lamp.
Therefore, we see Jesus come bursting forth on the
scene with an admonition to the people that they are not to be passive
observers of the Word but active participators in the Living Word of the Living
God.
As Brother Branham
said, if they only see it in the hour past, then
there's no hope for the church. The church must see it in the present tense and
"For it is
impossible for those which were once enlightened and didn't move on with the
Word as it come to pass...they’re dead, gone." And thus when he
also said, All
the New Testament speaks of this hour, we can see that Jesus came
forth saying the same thin to the people.
Look, you are the only Word of God that many people
in this world will ever come across. And if you hide the light God has given
you under some bushel basket, then you might as well not even be lit up for
Christ. And how might you hide it under
some basket? And why did Jesus use the
figurative idea of a basket to hide the light under?
To know why Jesus used a basket to illustrate, we
must know what a basket represents.
There are 35 times throughout the Old and New
Testament that the word basket is used. In each and every one of them there is
a reference to Life.
Paul’s life was saved
by being let down over the wall in a basket. The people were fed when the
fishes and loaves were blessed and filled 12 baskets with leftovers. The baker
was given a dream where 3 baskets represented three days he had left to live.
In Deuteronomy Chapter 26:2 we
are told That thou
shalt take of the first of all the fruit of the
earth, which thou shalt bring of thy land that the
LORD thy God giveth thee, and shalt put it in a
basket, and shalt go unto the place which the LORD
thy God shall choose to place his name there.
Notice how the basket
represents the life of the people. It represents everything they live for and
work for. It is a representation of their livelihood. And when they offer it to
the Lord they are offering up their own selves to God in a thanksgiving
offering.
DEUTERONOMY
26:1 ¶ And it shall be, when thou
art come in unto the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee for
an inheritance, and possessest it, and dwellest therein; 2
That thou shalt take of the first of all the fruit of
the earth, which thou shalt bring of thy land that
the LORD thy God giveth thee, and shalt put it in a
basket, and shalt go unto the place which the LORD
thy God shall choose to place his name there. 3 And thou shalt go
unto the priest that shall be in those days, and say unto him, I profess this
day unto the LORD thy God, that I am come (You see this is not about
a basket of something, this is about you, and your life and the stewardship
over that inheritance that God has given you) I am come unto the country which
the LORD sware unto our fathers for to give us.
Now, notice verse 4, And the priest shall take the basket out of thine hand, and set it down
before the altar of the LORD thy God. And thou shalt
speak and say unto the Lord thy God, and
then they are to speak of their testimony and how God watched over them and
cared for them and delivered them. It’s
not about offering up some fruits and vegetables. God could care less about
that. Its about themselves, showing God what He has
given them for their nourishment and livelihood. The basket represents all that
they have because of e divine promise from God.
Notice Deuteronomy 28:verses
5 and 7 Blessed shall be thy basket and thy store.
And verse 7 Cursed
shall be thy basket and thy store. Notice
the basket represents all they have, what thy are and
all they possess. The basket is you. And Jesus is telling the people you are
the light of the world. God wants to reflect Himself through you,
He wants to use your body to manifest Himself to the generation of peoples in
your day. He has given you light, and He wants you to reflect that light, which
means not only to understand it, but to reflect it to others. But He admonishes
the people, he says, “Don’t put your basket over that light. Don’t let your life
and all your goods and all that you are living for interfere with your ability
to reflect Christ the Word to Others.
Matthew 5:14 Ye
are the light of the world. A city that is set on an
hill cannot be hid. 15 Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a
bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto
all that are in the house. 16 Let your light so shine before men, that they may
see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.
Jesus in this first
parable to the people tells us that we are to be a reflector of the Glorious
Light of the Gospel, and that we should not let anything stop that light from
going forth, especially our life and our livelihood. Oh, what people we ought
to be when Christ Himself has come down in this hour to wrap it all up, and
take us out of here for the catching away of the elect, and yet we let our jobs
an our income and all the things God has blessed us with, we let those things
stop up the light from reflecting through us and from us to a lost and dying
world.
Don’t let your basket
of blessings, become the basket that hides the Light that God has given you to
reflect. He said, He said, Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your
good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven . Let your
light so shine. Don’t let those things that God has blessed you with become the
very things that curses your life. Keep your lamps
trimmed and burning and do not allow the basket which represents everything God
has done for you to be the very thing that hides His Word from reflecting in
your life to others. The Rich Young
Ruler believed in tithing and and told Jesus that He
paid tithes of all, and God so blessed him that his barns became so full he had
to build new ones much bigger to hold all those blessings, and yet when it came
time to truly decide to follow Jesus he couldn’t do it.
IS YOUR LIFE WORTHY 63-0630E
242 Let's compare the life of
One
had It from a knowledge; the other one had the germ of
Life in it. When that Light flashed across in front of Paul, he said,
"Lord, Who are You?"
Said, "I'm Jesus." "Here
I am then." He was ready.
245 The Light struck both men. One was germitized, the other was not. That's the way it is today:
Church spiritual, church natural. The rich man had his excuse. He couldn't do
it. He was too weighted down with too many friends of the world. He didn't want
to quit associating. That's what's the matter with a lot of
people today. You think because you belong to a lodge, you just couldn't
forsake that brotherhood: "They all drink and things like that, and they
do this." All right, go on with it. Nothing against the lodge, nothing
against the church, I'm talking about you. See, yeah. See?
Nothing
against that. For one... Six of
247 Notice. The rich man had his excuses. He never forsaken his testimony though. We find out that he
went to great business. He had knowledge, and he went to such a place till he
had to increase so much, till he had to build new barns to put his things in.
And when he died... And some bachelor with his collar turned around preached
his funeral, no doubt. And when he did, he might've said... They half-masted the flags and said, "Our dear beloved brother,
the mayor of this city, now is in the arms of Almighty, because he was a great
member of the church. He did so-and-so-and-so." And the Bible said,
"In hell he lifted up his eyes being in torment." See?
248 And remember, he still wanted to hold his
profession in hell. He seen Lazarus in the bosoms of Abraham, and he said,
"Father Abraham, send Lazarus down here," (See?) still calling him
his father. See? He took his knowledge and went to an intellectual church. When
the Light struck him, he turned It down. If that isn't
the modern trend of the church today, I don't know it. No matter what God
flashes across their path, the Pillar of Fire or whatever it might be, they
still with their knowledge, they can explain It away and go to the intellectual
group for the social standing. But Paul was already in the social standing,
with great knowledge, a great scholar under Gamaliel,
a right-hand to the high priest insomuch till he went
to the priest and got orders to put all them holy-rollers in jail. But when the
Light struck his path, and he seen that that same Pillar of Fire that led
250
Could you call that rich man's life a life worthy of the Gospel that he
heard? Though he was a believer, could you call that kind of a life amongst the
intellectuals and entertainments and... That night up there on the--as the sun
went down, giving a toast and maybe some priest saying a prayer up on top of
there... And he had the entertainments and a beggar laying at his gate down
there. And he give his toast and talked about his
great faith he had in God, and before daylight the next morning, 'fore the sun
could get up, he was in hell. That's right. There's your
intellectuals.
251 But Paul, when the Light struck him, let's
compare his life and see whether it's worthy. What happened? When Paul, the
Light struck him, he forsook all of his knowledge and got away from that
intellectual group, and he walked in the Spirit of Jesus Christ. (Glory to God.) But as smart as he was, he never even used
big words. When he come from amongst them Corinthians,
he said, "I never come to you with the wisdom of men. I never come to you
with swelling words, because you'd put your faith in that, but I come to you in
simplicity, in the power of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, that your faith
would be in there." There's a life. Watch it. He never used his education.
He never walked with the intellectual bunch. He walked in the Spirit of Christ,
humble, obedient to the Word of God when It was very
much contrary to their creeds. But Paul saw the Light and walked in it (That
right?), letting the Life of Christ reflect Jesus Christ to the age that he
lived in, that the people might see the Spirit of God in him. And the humble
believed it so much till they even wanted to bring handkerchiefs in. They'd
take them off of his body. And they believed it so much... He was such a
representation of Jesus Christ till whatever he touched they believed was
blessed. Yes. What a man that was. Give his life, his riches, his everything he
had, his education, forgot all to walk down with fishermen, and beggars, and
bums on the street, to let his lights reflect the love of Jesus Christ. He
said, "I've been striped across the back forty and nine times. Don't bother
me, 'cause I bear in my body the marks of Jesus Christ."
The
poor little fellow in such a terrible condition, he said, "I bear in my
body the marks of Jesus Christ." What a different from this great
dignitary with the priests all around him.
253 And when he was at
A
man with an education like him and a scholar like him standing with a
scholarship from Gamaliel, one of the greatest
teachers there was of the day, and stood arm and arm with the high priest...
Brother, he could've been worth millions of dollars and had all kind of
buildings. That's right. But he said, "I..." He didn't even have but
one coat.
And Demas saw. A man with
such a ministry as that, II Timothy the 3rd chapter he said, "Demas has
forsaken me, and all other men, loving this present world." Said, "When
you come, bring me that coat I left up there. It's getting cold." A man
with a ministry like that, he could only have one coat... Glory
to God.
256
Reminds me of
II CORINTHIANS 4:3 But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost: 4
In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not,
lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God,
should shine unto them. 5 For we preach not ourselves,
but Christ Jesus the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus' sake. 6 For
God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our
hearts, to [give] the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of
Jesus Christ. 7 But we have this treasure in earthen vessels,
that the excellency of the power may be of
God, and not of us.
Let’s bow our heads and pray. Dear gracious and
loving Father, I pray that you would take these words today and make them live
in our hearts, and may we always be mindful of those words that your son Jesus
said, “My meat is to do the will of Him that sent me.” May it also be our meat
and our basket, and may our basket be brought before you with a full
representation of all that we are and may it be as the Apostle Paul said in ROMANS 12:1 ¶ I beseech you therefore, brethren, by
the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies
a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable
service. 2 And be not conformed to
this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of
your mind, that ye may prove what [is] that good, and acceptable, and perfect,
will of God. 3 For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is
among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to
think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.
Grant to us Father to have the mind that was in Christ that we might know our
place and that we might use everything you have given us for the glory of your
name, for we ask these things in the lovely name that you gave your son Jesus
Christ Our Lord.