"Tell me a Story” is a simple and shorter way to reference Jesus' use of parables. A parable is a relatable way to share a moral or spiritual lesson. While some don’t like parables because they don’t get right to the point. Others love a good story because it forces us to think and question.
Like the story I read recently...
….Mazen Zahili, owner of Timothy’s World Coffee at the St. Clair Centre who began searching for a barista to replace a departing member. Last Monday, he conducted four interviews, none promising.
Later that day, while walking in the St. Clair Centre, he found a ladies’ wallet on the floor. In it, he found credit cards, a $20 bill, a local bank card, a social insurance card and more. Seeing that there was a bank card as well, he went to the bank in the Centre, and told the receptionist to find the lady’s contact information and let her know that he had her wallet.
She ran to Timothy’s with tears streaming down her cheeks. She thanked my father profusely for finding her wallet and attempting to contact her. As he handed her the wallet, he said, “Tell me, why do you carry your (SS) card with you? It’s your most valuable piece of ID.”
She told him she was applying for a job at Swiss Chalet down the street and needed her (SS) number for the application. But, it turned out there were no available positions.
He asked her what kind of job she was looking for and she replied, “Waitressing.” He asked her if she lived nearby. “Yes,” she responded. Without hesitation, my father said, “You’re hired! I’ve been looking for a barista for a while now and you seem like a nice person. If you’re interested, come tomorrow, bring your resume and we’ll chat.” She was flabbergasted. “You found my wallet and you’re giving me a job? This is the best day of my life! Do you believe this is the last $20 I have?! Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.” —Safana Zahili
The story provides us the joy of finding something valuable we once thought was lost.
Storytelling forges connections among people, between people and ideas, and they convey the culture, history, and values. You just have to love a well thought out short story. Jesus told 36 different short stories in the gospels.
Last week we focused on the last story in this section: the lost or the parable of prodigal. If you missed it, I encourage you to review it by heading to our facebook page or the forge chicago youtube page.
Today, I’d like to tell you a story you can find at the beginning of Luke 15. Jesus has been telling a number of stories to the everyday people who surround him, when the religious elite began to criticize him for the people he hung around with, so He decided to give them something to think about. The first story begins in Luke 15:3.
3 Then Jesus told them this parable: 4 “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn’t he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? 5 And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders 6 and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’ 7 I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.
Jesus knew his audience, This first story was aimed at the men in the crowd. Shepherding was a male dominated occupation.
The shepherd was responsible for each of the sheep; if one went missing, the shepherd had to pay for it unless he could prove that it was killed by a predator ( gen 31:38-39; ex 22:10-13). This explains why he would leave the other sheep and search for the missing one. Not to find the sheep would mean money out of his pocket and disgrace for being known as careless.
However, when a person finds a lost living creature, there is always joy. I think we all can envision being in a department store when an alert comes over the intercom asking if anyone had seen a lost boy. There were guards running around and finally a clerk came out to the main aisle holding a toddler who was crying. I imagine we all can see the young mother and father seeing the found child running towards the clerk. As they reach the clerk, the boy stops crying and the mother, overcome with emotion, begins to cry. Joy erupts. It’s quite a moment.
In the same way, when a person comes into a relationship with Jesus there is a four fold joy
The joy of the person
The joy of those nearby who know the significance
The joy in the heavenly angels
The joy of our Lord
The second story Jesus shares was directed at the ladies in the crowd. We pick it up in verse 8:
8 “Or suppose a woman has ten silver coins[b] and loses one. Doesn’t she light a lamp, sweep the house and search carefully until she finds it? 9 And when she finds it, she calls her friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost coin.’ 10 In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”
Back in the day, when a Jewish girl married, she began wearing a headband of ten silver coins signifying she was now a wife. It’s the Jewish version of the wedding ring and it would be considered a calamity for her to lose one of those coins. We could take this message even further and talk about the image of the ruler on the coin and how that ties into our ruler or leader but that would be reading too much into the story.
The stories help us understand the idea of being lost.
It means being out of place. Sheep belong with the flock. Coins belong on the chain.
It means being out of service. Lost sheep have no value. A lost coin can’t be spent.
It means losing the opportunity provided by the object. We can’t offer what we do not possess.
The most striking aspect of the story to the early audience was its assertion that God searches for those who have never established a relationship with Him. Just as evil prowls like a thief seeking to corrupt, kill and destroy. God has already invited everyone into a relationship with Him. His arms are open waiting for us to respond.
Jesus’ coming to earth is a love filled act of God’s willingness to redeem everyone via a relationship with himself.
The Pharisees couldn’t understand this.
They had forgotten that God had sought out Adam and Eve in the garden when they sinned and hid from Him (gen 3:8--9).
They had forgotten God was a father who longed for his kids to be with Him (Ps 103:8-14).
Our God is the God of Joy and love. All of Heaven rejoices with us in our relationship with God - no matter what we have done or failed to do in this life, the God who creates you, wants to redeem you and is looking to empower you to do His work in the places we live, work and play.
