THE PARABLES BY THE SEA (Matthew 13)
Toward the end of the Lord's second year of public preaching, He "...sat by the sea" and told some parables about the nature of His coming kingdom (Mt. 13:1ff). The previous year of teaching was one of obscurity. No one hardly knew this great Man of Galilee. His second year of public life was one of great popularity, primarily because of all the signs He performed. Such miracles got the people's attention, and made them ripe for hearing what the Lord really had in mind for them - the specialness of God's will for their lives and how such greatness could be accomplished (Mt. 4:23-25).
By the time He tells these seven little stories on the shore, much has already been done to establish the nature of this coming spiritual realm. Jesus has already called His helpers, telling them to start "catching men" (Mt. 4:18-22). Later, He would appoint the 12 as apostles (Mt. 10:2-4). In His travels over the past 1½ years, Jesus has traveled all over Judea, Samaria, and Galilee teaching the gospel. When the Bible reader reaches the narrative recorded in Mt. 13, Jesus is back again in Galilee (His home territory) to spread the message of His kingdom and how it was to grow in the hearts of men.
Because the people were busy looking for this kingdom, it was necessary to expound upon its true nature. Yes, the Jews knew of the centuries-old prophecies that declared the kingdom of God. But their nationalism led them to search for a physical kingdom that would return political glory and great wealth to Jerusalem. No doubt, the Pharisees and chief priests were the ringleaders in such a movement (cp. Jn. 11:47-53). This is what Jesus had to dispel, and He used these 7 parables to defend the kingdom.
Why parables? Because, as we have already shown, there was an element of hidden truth re: God's kingdom. The use of parables would only reveal this truth to those who were earnestly seeking it. To all others, it would remain a mystery (Mt. 13:10-17).
May we be such "earnest seekers" as we examine these Galilean gems.
