Parables

My group's parable was The Laborers in the Vineyard, which was about a vineyard owner paying all the workers the same amount, although some worked more than others and in harder working conditions. Working conditions were very tough in the morning and midday because of the intense heat. The modern-day interpretation my group and I created was Notre Dame Belmont (NDB) High School students all getting the same amount of NDB hours, even if one worked longer and hard than the others. This is similar to the parable because the interpretation evokes the same moral and lesson of the parable, which is “…last will be first, and the first will be last” (Matthew 20:16). Both the parable and the modern-day interpretation show the acts of kindness. Acts of kindness should be experienced by everyone because it can reflect on who you are as a person and can spread the idea of goodness to all.

Labeled for non-commercial reuse

In this image, the vineyard owner is giving the workers

the same amount of pay for their work from parable, 

The Laborers in the Vineyard. The image also helps demonstrate

the moral of the story, which is equality and acts of kindness.

 (Foster, Larry).

I also learned other parables like the Prodigal Son, The Rich Man and Lazarus, Parable of the Sower, and Parable of the Unforgiving Servant. The Prodigal Son was about a man who gave his money to both his two sons, with the younger son leaving, but coming back broke, while the older brother stayed with his father. The father celebrated his younger son's return, while his older brother was upset because he stayed loyal to his father. During this time, being loyal was important and leaving was an act of disobedience. The modern-day interpretation was an older sister lying to her parents about going somewhere, but went to another place instead and faced consequences. The younger sister also lied and went somewhere else, but was not punished because the parents were relieved she safely returned home. The parents felt guilty, so they forgave the younger child and was given a second chance. This parable shows that family is everything and safety and being with your family is much more important.

The parable, The Rich Man and Lazarus, is about two men and their lives in the afterlife. The poor man lived a good life, while the rich man lived a gluttonous life. When both men died, the poor man died, he went to heaven, while the rich man went to hell. The poor man wanted to warn his family to not live the way he lived as a bad and greedy person, but Lazarus declines because instructions on how to live are in the scriptures. This shows the relationship between life and death and how you live on earth interprets where you will be in the afterlife. The modern-day interpretation called for the same meaning because they both had consequences to each character's actions. The lesson of the parable is that every decision you make affects your life, even if the outcome and consequences are not immediate.

The disciples ask Jesus why he speaks in parables, and it is because He is trying to share the Word of God with them. The Parable of the Sower is about three people hearing God's message, and each having different reactions to them. One person lives the message, the second does not live it out, while the third person completely ignores the message. The modern-day interpretation of this parable is that a girl is trying to discover herself and her gifts in high school. At first, she failed in most sports, but she finds the right one and uses her gifts and talent to succeed. The moral of the story is that everyone should be open to hearing God's word and live it out. This connects to the modern-day interpretation because everyone should be open to new things to discover new gifts and apply those gifts to something you can succeed with.

The Parable of the Unforgiving Servant was about a servant owing his master money, but the owner lifted and forgave his debt. The servant goes to another servant who owes him money, but the other servant was not able to pay him back, so he was thrown in jail. The master of the servant was upset since he forgave him of his debt, but he cannot forgive the other servant of his debt. Since people were not used to forgiveness and judgment, punishment was a big thing. The modern-day interpretation was similar to the parable because they both show how if one gives or forgives to another person, the person should also forgive others. This is similar to the moral of The Laborers in the Vineyard which is the act kindness should be given to everyone, especially to those who experienced it.

The moral/lesson from all the parables in class that impacted me most was from The Rich Man and Lazarus, which was that every decision you make impacts your entire life. The decisions that are wrong may have consequences that are not immediate but can affect the future of your life or afterlife. Growing up, my parents taught me to always think before doing certain things or make decisions. I also was impacted by the moral of the Parable of the Unforgiving Servant, which was if someone does something good to you, then you should do something good for another person. I believe everyone should follow this moral because usually, everyone will be exposed and experience an act of goodness. This will spread the idea of kindness and goodness around the world, and can change people for the better.

  If Jesus was present in our society today, I believe Jesus would think everything is different from when He was physically in our world. Today's society has changed more compared to the past. Although some people act how Jesus wanted, another majority acts the opposite. Some people live out God's message and try to spread the Word of God, while others are not open to God's message. I believe Jesus would still try to spread the Word of God and have much more followers. Also, I believe many morals and lessons will be learned from Jesus' acts. I also believe children will grow up differently and follow Jesus' actions form His influence.

Works Cited

Foster, Larry. “The Parable of the Laborers.” The Conservative Christian Apologist, 2 July 2017, conservativechristianapologist.com/2017/07/02/the-parable-of-the-laborers/.

“Matthew 20:1-16 - - The Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard.” BibleGateway, Biblica, Inc, www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew+20:1-16.