Jesus and the Power of Storytelling
A series of devotionals, podcasts, and videos about the parables of Jesus and how they made God attractive and accessible.
“Jesus’ disciples came to him and asked, “Why do you use nothing but stories when you speak to the people?” Jesus answered: I have explained the secrets about the kingdom of heaven to you, but not to others. Everyone who has something will be given more. But people who don’t have anything will lose even what little they have. I use stories when I speak to them because when they look, they cannot see, and when they listen, they cannot hear or understand.”
Matthew 13:10-13
Contemporary English Version
Anyone with a favorite movie or book understands the power of storytelling, and how the best stories can stick with us years after we heard them.
Jesus is a masterful storyteller; his stories help us connect with and understand God in ways we never would have been able to otherwise.
Stories make things personal. They help us develop empathy and make others more real to us, which is why we tend to have such a deep attachment to the characters in our favorite books and movies.
So it should come as no surprise that Jesus uses stories to teach us about God. Jesus’s stories (or parables) are simple, yet profound. In just a few short sentences, he can tell a story that helps his audience make God real and personal.
Listen to the podcast
Russ and Mike break down the new parable series and discuss how there’s something for everyone in Jesus’ masterful works.
Follow our Deep Spirituality Podcast Network to meet all your spiritual podcasting needs. Join our Editor-in-Chief Russ Ewell and guests as they have candid discussions on spiritual topics ranging from faith to anxiety to vulnerability, or check out our narrative podcasts for an immersive storytelling experience of biblical stories. You could also listen to our scripture playlists to learn more about God and yourself as you go about your week.
Check out our book “He’s Not Who You Think He Is: Dropping Your Assumptions and Discovering God for Yourself” at https://deepspirituality.com/book.
We are very excited about the launch of our new “Parables of Jesus” series. As RT Kendall says in his book, The Parables of Jesus, a parable can be described as a “simple story that illustrates a profound truth. Telling parables was Jesus’ main way of helping his followers grasp spiritual truth. He was building a bridge from the natural to the spiritual.” Understanding complex and deep spiritual concepts—let alone putting them into practice—can feel challenging. But Jesus gives us access to insight we could never fathom on our own through storytelling.
Anyone with a favorite movie or book understands the power of storytelling and how the best stories can stick with us years after we heard them. Jesus was the best storyteller and can help us connect with and understand God in ways we never could before.
With this series, we will explore twelve of Jesus’ many parables, using devotionals, podcasts, and videos to best understand and dive into these stories. We hope that we will all come out better thinkers, listeners, and friends to God and others in doing so. Join Russ and Mike as they discuss our newest parable series.
Follow along at https://deepspirituality.com/parables
References
- Matthew 13:10-13 CEV Jesus' disciples came to him and asked, “Why do you use nothing but stories when you speak to the people?” [11] Jesus answered: I have explained the secrets about the kingdom of heaven to you, but not to others. [12] Everyone who has something will be given more. But people who don’t have anything will lose even what little they have. [13] I use stories when I speak to them because when they look, they cannot see, and when they listen, they cannot hear or understand.
- The Parables of Jesus by RT Kendall – “A parable may be defined as a simple story that illustrates a profound truth, telling parables was jesus’ main way of helping his followers grasp spiritual truth. He was building a bridge from the natural to the spiritual. It was Jesus' way of helping people to make the transition that each of us must make every day of our life to move from the natural level of life to the spiritual level of life. Jesus revealed these insights through parables so that those for whom the truth was intended might know the meaning but those for whom it was not intended would not understand.”
- Nacho Libre
- Persecution and the Art of Writing by Leo Strauss
- Esther
- Dune
- <a href='https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Ma
It’s very easy to overcomplicate our relationship with God, but that’s not how Jesus did or does it. Jesus’s parables make spirituality very accessible. They are also fun to read, full of unexpected plot twists and eye-opening insights. We have spent many hours in awe of all the ways each short story changes our view of God.
If you’re new to reading the Bible, the parables of Jesus are a great place to start. These stories will help you understand God and what he values, in an entertaining and clear way.
If you’ve been reading the Bible for decades, take some time to slow down and appreciate the deep spiritual truths found in Jesus’s simple stories. No matter how many times you read them, you will find something new that will help you build a closer relationship with God.
About the series
In this series, we will explore twelve of Jesus’ many parables, using devotionals, podcasts, and videos to best understand and dive into these stories. We hope that in doing so, we will all come out better thinkers, listeners, and friends to God and others.
You can go through each of the 12 parables in sequence or jump to the topic that you find most relevant or helpful.
The Parables
Series introduction
Jesus gives us access to insight we could never fathom on our own through storytelling.
Get inspired about how much can happen when we read and remember Scripture
01 Parable of the Sower
Our heart condition affects our relationship with God a lot. If we don’t understand ourselves, we will misunderstand God.
In the Parable of the Sower, Jesus makes it clear that a relationship with him is about understanding.
02 Parable of the Builders
Understanding the way we handle the storms of life can help us recognize what we’re building our lives on, and learn how to trust God and his way instead.
Jesus tells a story that teaches us how to have the internal strength to handle life’s storms.
03 Parable of the Persistent Friend
When we learn to make God a personal friend, he will become real to us, and in doing so teach us how to become a “true friend” to others.
What the Parable of the Persistent Friend teaches us about how to think about God and prayer.
04 Parable of the Prodigal Son
In this devotional, we will ask ourselves a few questions to reflect on how we view God so we can understand who he really is.
The moment we change our view of God is the moment we will see the hope, forgiveness, and connection that come with having a relationship with him.
05 Parable of the Two Sons
God wants honesty and closeness; he doesn’t just want to hear the right answers.
In the Parable of the Two Sons, Jesus tells a story to help us learn why we should say what we really think.
06 Parable of the Talents
Learn to believe in God’s purpose for us by reading the Parable of the Talents and asking ourselves three questions.
We can learn from this story that when we see how much God trusts and believes in us, we’ll trust him too.
07 Parable of the Lost Coin
This parable will help us understand what it feels like to be lost and how God responds to that feeling by always trying to bring us home.
This Mini Quiet Time about the Parable of the Lost Coin can help us understand God's heart toward us when we've lost our way.
08 Parable of the Great Banquet
When we reach out for and find God, we'll discover that life with him is incredible.
What the Parable of the Great Banquet teaches us about God’s invitation is to be part of his Kingdom.
09 Parable of the Forgiven Debt
In this devotional, we’ll learn to focus on connection instead of criticism, being grateful instead of being good, and letting God teach us to love.
Join Amy, Jynette, and Michele as they discuss this incredible parable and how we can respond to God’s love too.
10 Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector
Because God has unlimited mercy, we can feel confident that anything we bring up to him will be met with compassion, understanding, and forgiveness.
What the Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector can teach us about talking to God when we feel guilty.
11 Parable of the Rich Young Ruler
Jesus loved the rich young ruler enough to offer him a way out of rule-following by asking him to make a decision to be close to him.
Jesus can teach us how to break free from a frustrating, unsatisfying, and rule-dominated experience of Christianity to find a real relationship with God.
12 Parable of the Good Samaritan
When we love God with all of our hearts, we will have the capacity to love people wholeheartedly and live out the exciting destiny God has for each of us.
