Are You Looking for Hidden Truths?

All these things Jesus spoke to the crowds in parables, and He did not speak to them without a parable. This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet: "I WILL OPEN MY MOUTH IN PARABLES; I WILL UTTER THINGS HIDDEN SINCE THE FOUNDATION OF THE WORLD." Matthew 13:34-35 NASB

 Teach me by the Sea of Galilee

Jesus often used scripture from what we call the Old Testament…but that was the Bible of the Jews during His time on earth. This passage is from Psalms was probably well known to the people of Galilee who were known to be Bible scholars. Jesus was sitting by the Sea of Galilee while He was speaking in parables (Matthew 13:1-2).

O my people, listen to my instructions. Open your ears to what I am saying, for I will speak to you in a parable. I will teach you hidden lessons from our past—stories we have heard and known, stories our ancestors handed down to us. We will not hide these truths from our children; we will tell the next generation about the glorious deeds of the LORD, about his power and his mighty wonders. For he issued his laws to Jacob; he gave his instructions to Israel. He commanded our ancestors to teach them to their children, so the next generation might know them—even the children not yet born—and they in turn will teach their own children. So each generation should set its hope anew on God, not forgetting His glorious miracles and obeying his commands. Psalm 78:1-7   

Jesus promised…I will…to speak in parables teaching hidden lessons from stories that all Jews knew. The disciples were even bewildered about the parables and asked Him to explain the stories to them. Hidden truths. Do we see those in our culture today? Are we looking for them? Can we still learn from Jesus’ parables? Of course. As we study the parables we can gain insights not only into life at Jesus time, but truths about our world and life today. Start searching the parables in Matthew, Mark and Luke for yourself. Jesus promised… I will teach you hidden lessons from our past. Are you willing to learn from these old stories? I am—and I am eager to dig into His Word to find new truths to apply to my life.

Here’s a list of Jesus’ parables. [From Jesuscentral.com]
Alert Servants - Mark 13:33-37
Barren fig tree (Repent or Perish) - Luke 13:6-9
Bread of Life - John 6:31-38
Children - Matthew 11:16-19; Luke 7:31-35
Dishonest Manager - Luke 16:1-13
Divided Kingdom - Matthew 12:24-30; Mark 3:22-27 Luke 11:14-23
Evil Spirit - Matthew 12:43-45; Luke 11:24-26
Faithful and Unfaithful Servants - Matthew 24:45-51, Luke 12:35-48
Feast Invitations - Luke 14:12-14
Friend at Midnight - Luke 11:5-13
Good Samaritan - Luke 10:25-37, Matthew 22:34-40, Mark 12:28-31
Great Banquet - Luke 14:15-24, Matthew 22:1-10
Great Physician - Matthew 9:10-13; Mark 2:15-17; Luke 5:29-32
Growing Seed - Mark 4:26-29
Hidden Treasure - Matthew 13:45-46
How to be a Guest - Luke 14:7-11
Jesus and Fasting - Matthew 9:14-15; Mark 2:18-20; Luke 5:33-35
King's War - Luke 14:31-33
Lamp on a Stand - Matthew 5:14-16; Mark 4:21-23; Luke 8:16-18
Leaven - Matthew 13:33; Luke 13:20-21
Lesson from a Fig Tree - Matthew 24:32-35; Mark 13:28-32; Luke 21:29-33
Lost sheep - Luke 15:4-7, Matthew 18:12-14
Mustard Seed and Yeast - Matthew 13:31-32; Mark 4:30-32; Luke 13:18-19
New and Old Treasures - Matthew 13:52
New Cloth - Matthew 9:16; Mark 2:21; Luke 5:36
New Wine - Matthew 9:17; Mark 2:22; Luke 5:37-39
Net of Fish - Matthew 13:47-50
Official who Refused to Forgive - Matthew 18:21-35
One Coin - Luke 15:8-10
Renters of a Vineyard - Matthew 21:33-46; Mark 12:1-12; Luke 20:9-18
Shepherd and His Flock - John 10:1-18
Workers in Vineyard - Matthew 20:1-16
Wedding Banquet - Matthew 22:1-14, Luke 14:16-24
Persistent Widow - Luke 18:1-8
Pharisee and Tax Collector - Luke 18:9-14
Rich fool - Luke 12:16-21
Rich man and Lazarus - Luke 16:19-31
Salt and Light - Matthew 5:13; Mark 9:50; Luke 14:34-35
Servant's Duty - Luke 17:7-10
Sheep and Goats - Matthew 25:31-46
Sign from God - Matthew 12:38-42; Luke 11:29-32, Mark 8:12
Two Debtors - Luke 7:41-43
The Farmer - Matthew 13:3-9, 18-23; Mark 4:3-20; Luke 8:4-15
The Lost Son - Luke 15:11-32
Ten Servants - Luke 19:11-27, Matthew 25:14-30
Two Sons - Matthew 21:28-32
Ten Talents - Matthew 25:14-30, Luke 19:12-27
Ten Virgins - Matthew 25:1-13
True Vine - John 15:1-17
Unprepared Builder - Luke 14:28-30
Weeds Among Wheat - Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43
Wise and Foolish Builders - Matthew 7:24-27; Luke 6:47-49
Wise Steward - Luke 12:42-48

These are 53 parables that we can look at and study together for the next couple of months.

Prayer ~ Jesus, open our eyes, ears and heart to understanding Your words. Guide us into clearly understanding and applying Your teachings to our lives.

Daily Bible Reading: Isaiah 28-30

© 2017 Text and photos by Mickey M. Hunacek. All rights reserved.

All scripture quoted from the New Living Translation (NLT) unless otherwise noted.

Biblical search from Blue Letter Bible - http://v3.blueletterbible.org/search.cfm.