Parables are stories. Jesus spoke in parables many times.Jesus is considered a good teacher by many in all walks of life. He was interactive in method and always received a reaction. His stories acted quickly, but they also continued to act long after they were told.But why are parables a good way to communicate stories?

Here are three essential ingredients that combine to make an effective parable.

It is true to life

An effective parable is believable. It could really have happened.Jesus speaks of everyday objects – a patch on a garment, a lamp on a stand. He refers to everyday events – a woman loses a coin, a tradesman looks for goods to sell, a traveller is found on a lonely road. He describes everyday activities – making bread, building a house, dressing up for a wedding, obtaining oil for a lamp.

He introduces everyday people – a sower, a landlord, a poor widow, a rich farmer, a manager and his laborers.

He notes the normal quirks of human nature: tenants don’t pay their rent, a judge is unjust, a son is wayward, a servant is lazy, a steward renders false accounts. These are situations that people really face.

They clarify a single issue

His parables are all sharply focused with a definite target in view. Each is designed to clarify a particular issue or teach a particular truth.He would make it simple. Some people, for example, "were confident that they were righteous, and treated others with contempt”, so for them he created the story of the Pharisee and the tax collector (Lk 18:9).When some called him Lord but did not do what he said, he told them about the two houses (Lk 6:46-49). When some said they needed more evidence before believing, he spoke of the rich man and Lazarus (Lk16:29).

It demands a response

Jesus never forced people to agree with him.Every parable in fact implies a reasonable question and demands an intelligent response. Sometimes indeed Jesus pauses, waiting for a reply. For example, after speaking about two sons, he asked, "Which of the two did the will of his father?” (Matt 21:31) or after describing three travellers on a dangerous road, he inquired, "Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell among thieves?”

After this parable of three travellers, a lawyer inquired "Who is my neighbor?” It was a question of definitions, the sort of question beloved by lawyers. In response Jesus introduced the good Samaritan and then told the man, "You go, and do likewise” (Lk 10:37). The lawyer had asked a fair question; Jesus had given a fair answer; the lawyer himself was now responsible to deal with the answer.

The purpose of every parable is to change people. Not to please the mind but to pierce the heart and precipitate a spiritual crisis and a decision.

The writer is Training Secretary, Groupes Bibliques Universitaires du RwandaEmail: ledamadaniel@gmail.com