Mark 4:10-13 10 And when he was alone, those around him with the twelve asked him about the parables. 11 And he said to them, “To you has been given the secret of the kingdom of God, but for those outside everything is in parables, 12 so that “they may indeed see but not perceive, and may indeed hear but not understand, lest they should turn and be forgiven.” 13 And he said to them, “Do you not understand this parable? How then will you understand all the parables?

Parables have a dual purpose. They make some things obvious, but they hide others. The meaning of a parable like the Treasure hidden in a field is simple on one level. But on the level of knowing that Christ is the treasure, it is a hidden meaning that must be revealed. Jesus used parables to create two levels of communciation, and that revealed who had “ears to hear.”

Jim’s question: Can you name contemporary artists in the secular market who you think have a credible claim to being “Christian”? That’s not to say people in the stream of CCM, but if you show up at Cornerstone, I figure you at least give CCM a nod.

BTW- probably the worst thing to do to me is engage in any form of the “chronological heresy.” (See C.S. Lewis for explanation.) Now, if you would like to engage in “automatic suspicion of the contemporary,” I’ll drink and pay. (JN)