Author: Ben Minson

The Prince and the Darkness

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Author’s note: Because Jesus’s parables used terms and concepts fitting the place and time in which He lived, I’ve attempted to follow the same practice with The Weekly Parable. However, I’ll admit that earlier in my life, I had a goal to become an author of epic fantasy novels, and I still enjoy the genre and related genres like mythology and legends. So this parable—more of an allegory—grew from that part of me when I wrote it in 2016. I’ve made only slight edits.

There was a king who ruled over an immense realm with both benevolence toward his subjects and the might to keep them safe. His eldest heir was in every way like his father: virtuous, strong, skilled, compassionate.

In the fringes of their kingdom lay a cavern where the richest treasure could be found. Any one of the gems contained therein was enough to make the possessor wealthy beyond imagining. These gems held many magical properties, such as the recovery of health and the extension of life. However, an ancient law lay over the cavern that dictated only one person at a time could remove a single gem. And such dangers lurked in the cave as to prevent only but the strongest, wisest, and most diligent from obtaining the prize. Long ago, the king himself had obtained one of the gems, and he lived continually enjoying its benefits.

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The Backwards Lesson

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A class of kindergartners came into their classroom one morning in the spring, some still talking excitedly as the bell rang. They settled down at their desks and gazed at their teacher as she came to the front of the class.

“Hi everybody! It’s great to be here another day! I’m really excited because now that you’ve all learned your numbers really well up to 20 this year, we’re going to start learning math. I promise you’re really going to have a great time with it.”

“My mom told me about math!” called out one of the girls in the front row. “She said we’ll be adding things to get bigger numbers, like apples or books!”

“Well,” replied the teacher with a smile, “we’re not going to start with addition, actually.”

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Chosen Because of Their Faith

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Not only did Jesus come into the world to bring life, to save and to rescue, He also seeks to enlist us in His cause. He ascended into heaven, but His purposes have not concluded.

He is represented in the Parable of the Sergeant by the lieutenant, who informed the troops under his command that others needed rescuing through a difficult mission. The sergeant represents His servants the prophets and apostles, but he could also be any one of us. We also can be among the members of the squad who stood with their leader, who because of their trust are willing to follow his lead.

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The Lost Representatives

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After having spent much of their lives growing a family business, a couple entering their sixties retired. Not about to spend the rest of their days sitting idle, they researched needs in third-world countries and founded a nonprofit organization to help pipe fresh water into towns and villages. Members of many small communities in these countries had to walk miles to rivers or springs and could bring back only what filled vessels they could carry.

Establishing the mission of the nonprofit was the easy part. To take the next step, the couple, as the directors of the organization, selected a country to start with and initiated communication through the embassy with the government. At the same time, they sent representatives into that country to travel, speak with community leaders, and identify needs for piping water.

Strangely, though the directors expected to hear from the representatives shortly after they arrived in the country, they received no communications of any kind. Not a single text message from a single employee. Nor did they respond to calls or messaging.

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On Loan from the Lord

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An individual accounting to the Lord after our mortal lives was depicted by Jesus in His parable of the talents. The landowner spoke with each servant individually and received a report of what each accomplished in his absence. The language in verses 20, 22, and 24 suggests that the landowner didn’t require each servant to report to him in front of the rest or any other type of larger audience.

In the Parable of the Silver Pitcher, we can see another individual trust, the response to that trust over time, and the final accounting. Sandra represents any one of us, and her mother represents the Lord. The pitcher itself could be any of a number of things that He has entrusted us with, such as our physical bodies, our spirits, the earth, each other.

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