By LARRY TIMM

Pastor, Peabody Bible Church

If you have ever told a story to illustrate a point, you spoke a parable.

It’s a good thing to use stories to communicate a deeper truth. Stories that create a mental image help the listener stay interested. A mental picture is, after all, worth a thousand words. A parable invites the listener to stay on board until you arrive at the destination, or point, to which you are taking them.

Jesus was a master storyteller. His parables from earthly life had a heavenly meaning. Sometimes the meaning was buried deep and other times it was found just below the surface. They challenge us, change us, and invite us to look heavenward to the God who loves us beyond measure.

Whether it’s a lost sheep that is found by a caring shepherd and returned to the fold or a valuable coin that is searched for in the dark corners by a concerned owner or a rebellious son who comes back home and is restored by a loving father, the point of each one is this: there is joy in heaven when one sinner repents (turns around) and comes back to God. See Luke 15. God made the devoted effort to find us when we were lost and heaven rejoices when we respond to His gracious offer and are found. That is how valuable you are to Him and that is why Jesus came to die on the cross — “to seek and save that which was lost.” Luke 19:10.