“Once upon a time…” the words are barely spoken but the eyes of young and old light up in anticipation of the adventure that awaits. Storytelling is a huge part of humanity. Sure, dolphins can use sonar, monkeys can be taught sign language and wolves pee on trees. It isn’t uncommon for members of the animal kingdom to effectively communicate information to aid in the survival of the species. But we, the elite members of the human race are made in the image and likeness of God. God is love and so we have the ability to love, and one way that we express our love is through sharing beloved stories.
We use stories to project emotions or wisdom onto our listener. Think of that friend that we all have that loves to share stories about his/her glory days. “Remember when our team went to state and I…” or “Remember that party that I did blah blah blah and everybody laughed?” That poor soul is trying to conjure back up a time when they felt really loved because of what they did. They want to re-experience those feelings of pride. The rest of us groan in annoyance as we hear this same story for the hundredth time.
People will share stories of bravery to instill courage to timid ears. A creep might share a story to instill fear to manipulate a victim, and a loving parent might share an intimate story with their child to attempt to express their love in words.
Good ol’ Aesop was a former Greek slave who wrote hundreds of fables roughly 500BC. His stories are legendary and have been passed on from generation verbally for hundreds of years, and now in the written form for us to savor 2500 years later. They are used as entertainment, but also to impart a lesson or moral teaching.
Aesop was good, no doubt about that, but the best story-teller hands down was a God-man that lived over 2,000 years ago. All of His stories were infused with love as they taught scandalously counter-cultural moral standards that forever changed history. Although He was severely persecuted and eventually murdered for His Way, He had a unique way of speaking. Sometimes He spoke boldly and bluntly, but other times He told simple stories that veiled profound theological mysteries and insights.
His stories are timeless and are a gift of His love to us that might offer comfort, encouragement, repentance, conviction, hope, and while they are always filled with love, they can offer that warm hug that we might desperately need.
He crafted these stories for each individual person. He spoke His beautiful rhetoric to real people 2000 years ago, and he meant it for each one of them, BUT He came into this world for you, personally, here in the 21st century, so you better believe that when He spoke, He was talking directly to your heart. His words give you just what you need, exactly when you need it. He is outside of time… we will never be able to comprehend his magnificence, but we can be assured that the bible is His love letter written from the depths of His heart for me. For you. For every member of the human race.
These next few weeks we will be honoring these precious and beloved Parables of Jesus. Hang on, it’s going to be a wild ride!
Until next time my dear friends- your sister in Christ,
Leah