The Storyteller
How Jesus' Parables Draw Us to God
By Carla Williams
“Jesus spoke all these things to the crowd in parables; he did not say anything to them without using a parable. So was fulfilled what was spoken through the prophet: ‘I will open my mouth in parables, I will utter things hidden since the creation of the world.’” (Matthew 13:34-35 NIV)
A good story can change our lives.
When we were children, stories were a gateway to understanding the world. We learned bravery, kindness, consequences, and an unending hope in the “ever after” through the tales we heard.
Because story is so vital to how we navigate the world, it’s no surprise that God is the ultimate storyteller. Not only is every facet of creation, history, science, and eternity all part of His elaborate narrative, but He also frequently uses the elements of storytelling to communicate with His people.
For example, the book of Hosea is a living allegory. God asked the unfortunate prophet to choose and marry an adulterous woman. She would leave him repeatedly, bear unloved and unclaimed children, and cost him everything—all so God could reveal His heartbreak and unbending faithfulness toward His stubborn and straying people. Or, read the captivating book of Ezekiel, where God artistically likened His relationship with Israel to one of the most enthralling romances of all time—full of devotion, conflict, and a gloriously faithful Hero.
The Old Testament is full of God’s creativity, poetry, metaphors, character development, allegories, and recurring themes. God is a storyteller.
JESUS THE STORYTELLER
God’s storytelling nature is fully evident in the life and teachings of His Son Jesus. During His ministry on Earth, Jesus consistently drew crowds in with stories that challenged their beliefs and revealed the heart of God to them. Jesus walked this earth in the complicated balance of being fully man and fully God. His ability to tell engaging and compelling stories was one of the traits that most united His humanity and holiness.
When Jesus would tell stories, there was a new level of connection for those who listened. Suddenly, He was not just a mysterious prophet who could heal people and speak with authority. He was an accomplished storyteller who could challenge them with simple and profound truths.
REVEALING THE HEARTS OF MANKIND
Consider the story Jesus told of the good Samaritan in Luke 10. An expert in the law, trying to convince himself of his own righteousness, asked Jesus what he had to do to inherit eternal life. He assured Jesus that he’d kept the commands to love God and love his neighbor as himself.
But then, in a moment of uncertainty, he asked Jesus an important question: “And who is my neighbor?” (Luke 10:29 NIV)
Jesus launched into a pivotal parable. The story of the good Samaritan—a man who stopped to sacrificially help his enemy in distress even though others who should have helped him passed on by—is a story that challenged everything good Hebrews believed to be true.
Before this story, they would have felt vindicated in their disdain and avoidance of the Samaritan people. They believed the Jewish people alone were the true and faultless children of God, and everyone else was unwelcome, unloved, and untouchable. But Jesus used a simple story about a man who had mercy to reveal their biases and challenge their actions. It’s a story that resonates even today. Jesus used a carefully worded parable to connect with the emotions, experiences, and compassion of His audience, and His stories still reach us in those same ways.
DRAWING US INTO THE HEART OF GOD
Jesus also used parables to reveal the nature and glory of God. This is especially clear in one of the most well-known parables Jesus shared: the story of the prodigal son in Luke 15. This was the third in a series of parables Jesus told in response to the Pharisees’ complaint that He was spending too much time with “those sinners.”
In the first story, a shepherd can’t find one of his 100 sheep. He leaves the 99 and searches for the lost one until it’s found. Then he joyfully calls everyone to celebrate with him. Then Jesus told a story where a woman with ten silver coins loses one. She meticulously goes through her house until she finds it. And then she, too, rejoices with neighbors.
And that leads to the third, most powerful story. A loving father. An errant son. A jealous brother. A long-awaited reconciliation and a bring-out-the-fattened- calf welcome home party.
Instead of responding to the Pharisees with, “I spend time with sinners because God celebrates when they come home,” Jesus helped them evaluate their stance and address their own sinfulness. And as His followers began to understand their own hearts, they suddenly had a very clear picture of God Himself. This is the Shepherd who searches tirelessly for those who are lost. He’s the Creator who celebrates extravagantly when His people return to Him. And He’s the Father who generously invites others to rejoice with Him.
As Jesus told these stories, He was introducing them to the heart of God. Each parable explained God more closely, more personally, and more tangibly to those who had long been burdened with rules and laws they could never carry. And Jesus’ stories still reveal our hearts. They still challenge our behaviors. And they still connect us to the Author and Perfecter of our faith, our Holy God.