The Lamp on the Stand - Redux

You might be tempted to skip this. The Lamp on the Stand is often taught as part of the Salt and Light parable from Matthew. But strip Matthew from the equation, focus only on Luke and Mark and you get a completely different take on the Parable of the Lamp on the Stand. Often, we try to harmonize texts across gospels. In this case, if you take that approach, you miss a LOT of what Luke and Mark are telling you.

Let's face it, we live in a distracted world.How often do you walk into a room, or a lecture, or sit down to a movie, and discover you can recall the last 30 minutes. Or you're a chapter into a book and you realize I have no idea what I just read. It happens to all of us. Even with the person who, in that moment, deserves your whole attention. Your mind is elsewhere. So let me put it a different way. If you were in the room with Jesus, and He was saying something to you, how closely would you be listening? Everybody hearing this is going to sit up straight — if they're listening — and say, of course! Well. Do you give that same attention to His spoken words?

This is how a parable can be a parable of a parable. It hides its meaning in plain sight, and the Lamp on the Stand is a parable exactly about that. Listening is to hearing what perceiving is to seeing. You can hear it, but are you listening. You can read the words on the page, but did you get it.

Confused yet? Welcome to parables. They are meant to be meditated upon. The lamp on the stand is way deeper than you think!

Episode Link:

https://www.rabbitholesandmeditations.com/the-lamp-on-the-stand-redux/