Parables

[Craig]

Ray,

THANK YOU so much for sharing God's truths - I am slowing reading the articles on your web site.
While reading your Lake of Fire series you said...

A simple example: "Another parable spoke He unto them; The kingdom of heaven is like unto leaven, which a woman took, and hid in three measures of meal, till the whole was leavened." Jesus didn’t explain this parable, so what does it mean? Most certainly understand that leaven (like yeast) put into dough will cause the dough to rise through fermentation. But what is the spiritual application of this parable? Paul tells us that, "Know ye not that a little leaven leavens the whole lump" (I Cor. 5:6). But who believes this parable? According to Jesus, the kingdom of God is like this parable of the leaven and the lump. The kingdom of God moves and works throughout the entirety of the universe until the WHOLE of God’s creation is brought under its influence. But who believes it?

The time comes when Jesus Christ will turn over the kingdom of God to His Father: "Then comes the end, when He shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when He shall have put down all rule and all authority and power … that GOD MAY BE ALL IN ALL" (I Cor. 15:24 & 28b). Then the whole lump will be leavened with God! Everyone ALL.

My question is about several other scriptures that give leaven a 'negative' connotation....

Lazarus and the Rich Man Matt 16:6
6    Then Jesus said unto them, Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees.
(KJV)

Matt 16:11
11    How is it that ye do not understand that I spake it not to you concerning bread, that ye should beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees?
(KJV)

1 Cor 5:8
8    Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.
(KJV)

How do they relate to the parable?

again - Thank you - I'm starting to 'remember' all the things you share.... Praise God
THANKS,
Paul



Dear Paul:

There are many lessons that can be gleened from the parables, but as I covered in one

of our Bible Conferences, they are also all the same in certain ways.

The parable of the wheat and the tares shows us two aspects of humanity. Those who

have value and those who are not useful.  This is also the case with the dragnet. Good

fish and bad fish--keep the good throw away the bad. Etc.

And so the parables represent the good and the bad. Sometimes they emphasize the good

and sometimes they emphasize the bad, sometimes they just mention both, and sometimes there

is only one thing mentioned that REPRESENTS BOTH. This is the case with the leaven: if good,

it will leaven a whole lump to be used for something very holy and good as in Lev. 23:17, but it

can also be bad leaven used to leaven a whole lump for bad as in I Cor. 5:6. 

God be with you,

Ray