“SALT” Exercise:
The Parables of Jesus
James Clardy Jr
NBTS 515: New Testament Orientation I
James Mann
September 9, 2025
SALT” Exercise: The Parables of Jesus
Contents
1. Summary
2. Application
3. Bibliography
Summary
Parables are the way Jesus communicated the message he wanted to teach to the
ordinary people. 1 “When we think of a parable, we usually view them as earthly stories with
1 Stacy, Robert Wayne. The Parables of Jesus. Accessed September 16, 2023.
https://canvas.liberty.edu/courses/517863/pages/watch-the-parables-of-jesus?
SALT” Exercise: The Parables of Jesus
heavenly meanings, but it doesn’t go quite far enough.” This view of a parable is true in a way
that it doesn’t fully show the depth and impact of a parable. With a parable, it is really a
different way to talk about a topic in terms of something else. The topic being talked about is
usually challenging to explain, so it might help to explain the topic using something familiar to
get the point across. Now, Jesus was a master of doing that, and with the methods of teaching
he used, he really helped bring his message of the kingdom of heaven to light. The way Jesus did
it was pretty straightforward, but it was very profound. By inviting his listeners into a scenario,
Jesus made them feel comfortable, and by doing that, he helped them see a complex topic be
turned into a lesson.
The way Jesus teaches the parables sets the hook into the common man. The hook
represents something life-changing in a way that the common man who was listening had a
different view of the world around them. It was different and went against all that they knew.
The power of the parable was really put on displace that way and the effectiveness that it had
on anyone who listened to him.
A great example of this is the Parable of the Sower. This parable is found in all three
synoptic gospels. With this parable, Jesus linked the Kingdom of God to a farmer who went out
and planted seeds. Now some of the seeds that fell on the path were eaten up by birds as they
came about. Some of the seeds fell into rocky soil and couldn’t take root, and when the
sunshine came, they withered away. Some of the seeds fell on thorny ground, and the thorny
ground choked the seeds out. The remaining seeds fell on good soil, and as they grew, they
produced well. Some people might listen to that and not really understand it, but the meaning
could be that it looks at first as a failure, but it really turns into something amazing. That is God’s
seed. Our main focus in life is to simply sow and let God work in his way to make everything
possible. This is a good parable to listen to, and Jesus really stressed the importance for
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SALT” Exercise: The Parables of Jesus
everyone to pay attention to it when he said, “Let anyone who has ears to hear listen.” (Mark
4:9, Christian Standard Bible)
Application
In the Gospel of Mark, Jesus teaches the Parable of the Lamp in Mark chapter four
verses 21 through 25. This parable shows Jesus speaking about how as Christians, our message
needs to be spread, and for that to happen we as Christians must first live out his message and
then proclaim our faith to everyone that they can see. This is layout nicely with what Mark
portrays Jesus as a Servant in his Gospel. Walter A. Elwell and Robert W. Yarbrough states:
2The Son of Man chose to be a servant (10:45). Mark highlights two aspects of Jesus’s
ministry of service. First, he portrays him as a teacherpreacher. There is nothing equivalent to
the Sermon on the Mount (Matt. 5– 7) or Jesus’s final discourses (John 14–17) in Mark, but it is
clear from what Mark says that Jesus is the proclaimer—he has come to teach what people
need to know about God (1:14–15, 21–27, 38; 2:2; 3:13–14; 4:1; 6:2, 6, 34; 8:31, etc.). Jesus is
called “Teacher” by his own followers (4:38; 9:38; 13:1), those in the crowd (5:35; 9:17), and
even his enemies (12:13–14).
With initial looks at this parable, it is clear that Jesus was a servant. He was trying to help
common men to understand better the importance of living out the way God wants us to live
and also to proclaim our faith into this world that is filled with darkness and sin. To the first
century audience, they would have recognized the way Jesus spoke about the lamp and how it
shows everything when it is lit. Back then, Oil lamps were very common within the household
and was primarily used to bring light to dark places. During the time in the Old Testament, light
was looked upon as knowledge and hope. The Jewish audience would recognize it that way as
2 Walter A. Elwell and Robert W. Yarbrough, Encountering the New Testament: A Historical and Theological Survey,
ed. Walter A. Elwell, Fourth Edition, Encountering Biblical Studies (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2022), 79–
80.
SALT” Exercise: The Parables of Jesus
well. Jesus stated “Is a lamp brought in to be put under a basket or under a bed? Isn’t it to be
put on a lampstand? For there is nothing hidden that will not be revealed, and nothing
concealed that will not be brought to light.” (Mark 4:21-22, Christian Standard Bible). When
someone lights a lamp, they bring light into a darken area to brighten it up not to hide the light.
The hook here comes during verse 24, when Jesus tells them if you have the light, let it shine
before man and move will be given to you. This stands in a different way that the pharisees lived
their lives. The pharisees would say on thing and then live another way. Jesus saw this and
called them hypocrites.
For today’s audience, the application and meaning of the parable would mostly be the
same. While in today’s world, it is full of sin and darkness, the light is unmistakably shown when
it is shown. The Christian’s lifestyle should be the light in the midst of any darkness. This is
shown in two different ways. First, it is shown in how Gods word gives light to sinful men (John
1:1-10) and also how good can work and been shown to man. The world needs to be able to see
the light of Jesus shining so bright through all his followers nowadays like it did during the first
century with those followers. Disciples should strive to embody our true identity: being salty in
a world that often feels like it's decaying and shining light in places that are dark. When we do
shine, let's make sure to give all the credit and praise to God.
Bibliography
- Stacy, Robert Wayne. The Parables of Jesus. Accessed September 16, 2023.
https://canvas.liberty.edu/courses/517863/pages/watch-theparables-of-jesus?
module_item_id=55695075
- Walter A. Elwell and Robert W. Yarbrough, Encountering the New
Testament: A Historical and Theological Survey, ed. Walter A. Elwell,
Fourth Edition, Encountering Biblical Studies (Grand Rapids, MI:
Baker Academic, 2022), 79–80.
