Reflective Bible Study

Over the past several episodes, we have covered a set of six parables that together form an interesting theme. While too often, we take one or two parables and pull the themes from the smaller picture, I thought this episode would be a great time to zoom out and look at the logical pattern Matthew takes when telling us these parables.

In Matthew’s gospel, chapter 13, we find more parables than any other single chapter in the whole gospels. From the outline of our year looking at Jesus’ parables, I count 8 parables included in Matthew 13, and the next highest a single chapter comes is 3. So far, we have looked at 7 of the Matthew 13 parables, and in our next episode, we will focus in on the eighth.

While Matthew 13 begins by sharing the significant parable of the farmer planting seed and the four types of soil, the next 6 parables all reference the Kingdom of Heaven, and when looked at as a set, they form a logical, intentional structure.

The first three parables form one set. These parables are the Wheat and the Weeds parable, where the farmer plants wheat and his enemy sneaks in and plants weeds; the parable of the Mustard Seed that grows into a great tree; and the parable of the Yeast Hidden in Flour.

Within this first set of parables, we see several big themes. Within the focus of each of these parables is the theme of growth, the theme that the kingdom needs spiritual water to fuel its growth, and the theme that growth takes time. All three of these parables in our first set touch on all three of these themes.

From this set of parables, we can learn that God’s kingdom is a growing kingdom. While some of the parables allow for setback within the growth theme, these three parables tell us that growth is present.

From this set of parables, we also learn that God’s kingdom needs water to fuel its growth. With this theme regarding water, I am reminded of the Water of Life that Jesus referred to in other places in the gospels. This water of life is something that Jesus gives to those who ask and this water is spiritual water that satisfies our spiritual thirst. In the context of our first set of parables, I wouldn’t be surprised if the water that is needed for kingdom growth is the water of life.

Also, this set of parables focuses us on the detail that the growth of God’s kingdom will take some time. It takes time for a seed to turn into a plant, or a seed into a tree. It also takes time for yeast to rise when it has been mixed into dough. Given enough time, all these situations will equal growth, but they all need time. Yeast needs more than 5 minutes, and a seed needs more than 5 days to fully mature. We shouldn’t expect God’s kingdom to instantly appear in the world today or even instantly appear in our hearts. Instead, we should expect that God leads us on a journey of growth that will take time.

After this first set of three parables, Matthew shares Jesus’ explanation for the first parable, and He emphasizes in this explanation how the harvest this parable refers to is the Day of Judgment when the wicked will be separated from the righteous.

Following this explanation, Jesus then shares three short parables that also include some shared themes. These last three parables together form our second set of parables. These parables are the Treasure Hidden in a field, the Merchant looking for fine pearls, and the Fishing Net catching both good and bad fish to be sorted.

In this second set of parables, we discover the big themes that God’s kingdom is best viewed from God’s perspective, that God’s kingdom is willing to wade through a lot of inferior things in order to find that which it sees as valuable, and that God’s kingdom sacrifices in order to gain what it desires.

Within the parables of the treasure, the pearl, and the fishing net, we might be tempted to take these parables and read them from our perspective, believing we are the ones who are searching for treasure, seeking pearls, and sorting bad and good things from our lives. While none of these things are bad to do, these parables should be viewed as being from God’s perspective, since the clear explanation of the parable of the fishing net is given from God’s perspective and all three of these parables are explanations of the kingdom of heaven.

With God’s perspective, we discover how valuable we really are in His eyes, leading us to the other two big themes found in this second set of parables.

When looking at all three parables, we discover God’s kingdom is willing to wade through a lot of inferior things in order to find that which is valuable. While a case can be made for the parable of the hidden treasure and the pearl as being less about pulling everything together and sorting, these first two parables in our set have the element of patience included.

In the man’s case, while he might have not expected to find hidden treasure, he had a plan when he discovered it. There was a lot of dirt that was worthless in this man’s eyes, but one mound of dirt had a treasure, and when he discovered what mound of dirt that was, he was going to purchase it no matter what.

In the next parable in this set, the merchant was used to seeing, evaluating, buying, and selling products. The parable of the Merchant has a stronger theme of filtering because a good merchant is a salesman who only purchases items he believes he can sell, and he has learned this skill from experience and from wading through a lot of inferior items. When the exceptional pearl came past this merchant, he immediately knew its value, and he would not stop selling until he had enough to purchase it.

The parable of the fishing net has a clear theme of filtering and sorting, because that is what the fishermen do with what is caught in their nets.

Our final big theme for the last three parables is that when the valuable item appeared, God’s kingdom gives up everything to acquire it. The man with the treasure sold everything he had, similar to the merchant selling all that he had as well. In the parable of the fishing net, the time is spent collecting everything and making sure all the valuable fish were saved.

This big set of 6 parables begins with a parable about sorting wheat and weeds, which Jesus describes as a judgment scene, and these 6 parables end with a parable describing sorting good and bad fish in a judgment scene. In the middle point of these parables, Jesus gives the big explanation of the first parable that God’s kingdom will allow the good and bad to grow and live together until the point of the judgment. Up until the fishing net collected all the fish to sort out the fish, both the good and bad fish lived together. God’s kingdom will ultimately sort out the bad from the good when the judgment happens.

The second and fifth parables have a similar but also significant focus, and this shared theme is that the size of an item does not dictate its value. Whether the kingdom is small like a seed or a pearl, God sees what it can be, not what it is right now. The seed is capable of becoming a great tree, and the pearl can become the focal point of an exceptional necklace. God measures our value through our potential, not through our current circumstances.

The third and fourth parables have a hidden and internal focus, because God’s kingdom is something that lives inside of us and when God’s kingdom is alive within us, it shines through us blessing those God brings into our lives.

I believe Matthew arranged these parables with a very structured and logical thought when he wrote his gospel record, and I believe Jesus shared these parables because He was leading the disciples towards better understanding God’s kingdom truth!

As we come to the end of another podcast episode, here are the challenges I will leave you with:

As always, continue to seek God first in your life and let God teach you about His kingdom as you move closer to Him each and every day letting His kingdom enter your heart and mind. Be sure to place your faith, hope, trust, and belief in Jesus knowing that Jesus is the way to experience God’s kingdom in our lives today as we are preparing for eternity.

Also, intentionally and regularly pray and study the Bible for yourself to keep your personal connection with God strong. Never let anyone else get between you and God’s Word or between you and living out God’s mission for your life! Live each day for God’s kingdom grounded in the truth of God’s Word and blessing others with God’s love!

And as I end every set of challenges by saying in one way or another, never stop short of, back away from, chicken out of, or abandon where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!

As we continue moving through John’s gospel, we come to one of the most fascinating events in the entire Bible record. This event is fascinating not just because of what is described that happened, but because there is controversy over whether this event was actually included in the original copies of John’s gospel or not.

If you pick up any modern translation of the Bible and look up our passage for this event, you will likely find a footnote, or perhaps a more visible note about many or most of the oldest manuscripts not including this event.

However, that is only part of the story. As I researched this event not too long ago, I discovered that while this event likely wasn’t included in the original copy of John’s gospel, there is no doubt that it is a very old story. Sometimes, this event is written in the margin of John’s gospel, while other times this event is included at the end of John’s gospel as one additional event that happened during Jesus’ life.

As I have studied the origins of this event, I am left to conclude that either what we are about to read happened, and that God preserved it even though John didn’t include it in His original, or that this event didn’t happen, but perhaps something similar did happen and that is how this story came to be.

Regardless of the origins of this event, when we open our Bibles and read this event, there is no escaping the clear picture of Jesus’ love for sinners. This theme is one that is included in so many of the gospels that we can easily assume that even if this event didn’t happen the way we are about to read, if a situation like this did happen, Jesus would have responded in an equally loving way!

With that said, let’s read our passage for this episode, and discover what we can learn from this event. Our passage is found in John’s gospel, at the beginning of chapter 8, however we will begin by looking at the last verse in chapter 7. Reading from the Contemporary English Version, John tells us that:

⁵³ Everyone else went home, ^8:1 but Jesus walked out to the Mount of Olives. ² Then early the next morning he went to the temple. The people came to him, and he sat down and started teaching them.

³ The Pharisees and the teachers of the Law of Moses brought in a woman who had been caught in bed with a man who wasn’t her husband. They made her stand in the middle of the crowd. ⁴ Then they said, “Teacher, this woman was caught sleeping with a man who isn’t her husband. ⁵ The Law of Moses teaches that a woman like this should be stoned to death! What do you say?”

⁶ They asked Jesus this question, because they wanted to test him and bring some charge against him. But Jesus simply bent over and started writing on the ground with his finger.

⁷ They kept on asking Jesus about the woman. Finally, he stood up and said, “If any of you have never sinned, then go ahead and throw the first stone at her!” ⁸ Once again he bent over and began writing on the ground. ⁹ The people left one by one, beginning with the oldest. Finally, Jesus and the woman were there alone.

¹⁰ Jesus stood up and asked her, “Where is everyone? Isn’t there anyone left to accuse you?”

¹¹ “No sir,” the woman answered.

Then Jesus told her, “I am not going to accuse you either. You may go now, but don’t sin anymore.”

In this event, I am always amazed at how Jesus takes the focus off of the sinner and on to those judging. While some traditions say that Jesus was writing the sins of the woman’s accusers in the sand, nothing I see in this event prompts me to think this directly. Part of me suspects that Jesus simply chose a portion of the law that emphasized mercy, or some other relevant topic to this situation, and began writing it.

With Jesus emphasizing the demands of the law, mixed with the heart of the law, then His statement about those lacking any sin should be the first to throw the stones makes sense. I doubt that Jesus would clearly expose the religious leaders’ exact list of sins, because I don’t believe this happens anywhere else in the scripture. If you can think of a place in the gospels where one person is exposed for specific sins and specific events, then definitely let me know in the comments. It’s possible I’m forgetting an event that would set a precedent.

Instead, in other cases, it seemed like Jesus preferred challenging the religious leaders with parables that describe their behavior without calling out specific instances of sin.

With this framework, Jesus could have been writing a parable in the sand that hit at the heart of this situation. However, a story or a parable written in the sand, would likely have been remembered, copied, and ultimately preserved.

The most probable conclusion in my mind would be that Jesus began writing some Old Testament scripture, prophecy, or law, and this served as a reminder to all the accusers how their lives, attitudes, and actions were unfit to cast judgment on this woman, even if they began this event feeling fully justified.

Also, I find this event fascinating because if I’m not mistaken, this is the only time anywhere in the gospel record where I see Jesus writing anything. Jesus quotes what is written, and Jesus taught scriptures on a regular basis, but I don’t see anything recorded about Jesus personally writing anything outside of this event.

If this was the only time Jesus wrote in His entire ministry, and Jesus wrote it in the sand, making it easily removable or erasable, because Jesus chose this as His medium, we can understand several huge truths in the Bible: God’s love covers a multitude of sins. Jesus forgives us when we repent and turn to Him after we have sinned. We are invited to come to Jesus, let Him wash us, and make us as white as snow!

As we come to the end of another podcast episode, here are the challenges I will leave you with:

As I always challenge you to do, intentionally seek God first in your life and choose to accept the gift Jesus offers to us through what He accomplished for us on the cross. Accept Jesus’ forgiveness and His offer to wash us and make us as white as snow.

Also, continue to pray and study the Bible for yourself to learn and grow closer to God each and every day. Through the pages of the Bible, discover a God who loves us more than we can even imagine, and a God who was willing to be tortured by those He loved in order to redeem those who choose to accept His gift of redemption.

And as I end every set of challenges by saying in one way or another, never stop short of, back away from, chicken out of, or doubt yourself out of where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!