Jesus always used stories and illustrations like these when speaking to the crowds. In fact, he never spoke to them without using such parables. This fulfilled what God had spoken through the prophet: "I will speak to you in parables. I will explain things hidden since the creation of the world." Matthew 13:34-35
Meditate.
Consider Jesus’ stories.
Parables.
Stories. Jesus used them to convey His messages to large groups, but the real
meaning of the stories was only revealed to whom Jesus wanted to hear it.
His disciples came and asked him,
"Why do you use parables when you talk to the people?" He replied,
"You are permitted to understand the secrets of the Kingdom of Heaven,
but others are not. To those who listen to my teaching, more understanding will
be given, and they will have an abundance of knowledge. But for those who are
not listening, even what little understanding they have will be taken away from
them. That is why I use these parables, For they look, but they don't really
see. They hear, but they don't really listen or understand. This
fulfills the prophecy of Isaiah that says, 'When you hear what I say, you will
not understand. When you see what I do, you will not comprehend. For the hearts
of these people are hardened, and their ears cannot hear, and they have closed
their eyes—so their eyes cannot see, and their ears cannot hear, and their
hearts cannot understand, and they cannot turn to me and let me heal them.'
"But blessed are your eyes, because they see; and your ears, because they
hear. I tell you the truth, many prophets and righteous people longed to see
what you see, but they didn't see it. And they longed to hear what you hear,
but they didn't hear it. Matthew
13:10-17 (Underlined for emphasis.)
Don't be stubborn like a donkey.
Use your eyes to see...
and your ears to hear.
Ears to
hear? Eyes to see? Permitted to understand the secrets of the Kingdom of
Heaven. Are your eyes and ears open? Do you see, hear, and understand? We
have the advantage of living after Jesus’ resurrection and of having the events
recorded in the Bible. Do the parables make sense to you before you read Jesus’
explanation? Some folks even today may not understand. Are their hearts
hardened? Can you love with a hard heart? Jesus taught that we are to love God
and to love others.
To love someone, you have to know
them—so we need to know God and we do that by reading His word. He reveals Himself
in the Bible. Then, in order to apply God’s word to our lives—to have a
relationship with Him, we have to have some kind of comprehension, an understanding
of His word. Look, listen, and know God—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Discover
the secrets of the Kingdom.
What do you
learn about Jesus from these couple of verses? What is Jesus saying to you
personally?
Prayer
– Lord, open our eyes and ears so that we can see and hear the things You want
us to know and understand. Loving You is what life is all about—so please continue
to reveal more of Yourself moment by moment. May all that I think, say, and do
honor You.
Verse
of Salvation ~ All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is by
his great mercy that we have been born again, because God raised Jesus Christ
from the dead. Now we live with great expectation, and we have a priceless
inheritance—an inheritance that is kept in heaven for you, pure and undefiled,
beyond the reach of change and decay. And through your faith, God is protecting
you by his power until you receive this salvation, which is ready to be
revealed on the last day for all to see. 1 Peter 1:3-5
© 2026 Text, photos, and illustrations by Mickey M. Hunacek. All
rights reserved.
All scripture quoted from the New Living Translation (NLT) unless
otherwise noted.
New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale
House Foundation.
Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream,
Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Biblical search from Blue Letter Bible - http://v3.blueletterbible.org/search.cfm.
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