Parables Remixed | Fuel your sermon on Luke 15:1-10

The following article is from our archive, essentially, from our first ever issue in 2014. Thankfully we can approach a parable like the one in Luke 15, for example, with fresh eyes, knowing that God’s Word is enduring and unchanging. How can you preach from familiar passages in a way that continues to reveal the glory of God?

Malcolm Pettit urges us to give a new twist to old truths.

A common criticism of the church is that we speak too much in old-fashioned language and in a style that doesn’t make a lot of sense in today’s world. Jesus taught using everyday situations he saw around him: lost sheep, lost treasures, the call and skill of shepherds. Preachers should look around their lives and worlds with some of the imagination Jesus used, perceive the truths and use them.

If Jesus was walking on earth today, in our particular corner, might his teaching not have sounded a bit like this?

‘When you make a cup of tea, don’t worry whether the kettle is old- fashioned and blackened by years of use over a stove, or whether it is a bright and shiny electric kettle – or even a simple camping kettle on a primus stove. First, you will need to be sure the water is clean and pure – free from anything that might spoil the taste when the tea is made. Take care that the cups are clean and the milk fresh. Above all, be sure that the water is really boiling. After all, nobody will thank you if the kettle is clean or modern if the tea is lukewarm and tastes awful. The kettle represents ordinary men and women. It is far better that the world shall judge you by the simple acts of goodness you do than by the house you own, the clothes you wear or the car you drive. It is what you do with your inner gifts and graces that matter.’

Inspiration for contemporary parables is all around us. Here are a few examples:

1. Car problems: Jesus lived among donkeys and camels. We deal with traffic and engine trouble.

2. Gardening: Jesus talked about farmers sewing seeds, storing up grain, harvesting weeds. Perhaps more of us would now relate to keeping the slugs off our sweet peas and the challenge of a maintaining a weed-free lawn.

3. Keeping fit: Health problems resulting from a sedentary life would have been unheard of in ancient Palestine. Now many people have gym memberships and belong to sports clubs.

4. New forms of communication: We are constantly in touch with each other by text, email and Twitter. Are we as well in touch with God?

As you read this list, you will see the possibilities are almost endless. Try and come up with some of your own ideas, and Jesus, Son of God, who is with us now and always, will guide you.

Malcolm Pettit: Malcolm Pettit was a local preacher from 1962 to 2013. He has lived all over the country, from London to Biggleswade to Wimboune. He is now retired and lives with his wife in Chichester. {correct at time of print November 2014]