II. Jesus The Greatest Storyteller of All Time Jesus passionately communicated compelling spiritual truth through storytelling. Jesus used powerful stories to illustrate the heart of the Father, and to explain the Kingdom of Heaven to His listeners. When the great American storyteller Mark Twain was asked who he thought was the best storyteller that ever lived, he said Jesus Christ. Then asked which story is the greatest story every told, He replied, “The story of the Prodigal Son.” All Jesus did that day was tell stories—a long storytelling afternoon. His storytelling fulfilled the prophecy: I will open my mouth and tell stories; I will bring out into the open things hidden since the world’s first day. Matt. 13:34-­‐35 Message Jesus revealed God the Father through stories. I. Knowing The Importance of The Story Wherever He went He taught through stories and parables correcting the religious scholars of His day and exposed their misunderstanding of Scripture and the power of God. Storytelling is the ancient art of conveying events in words, images, and sounds often by improvisation or embellishment. Stories or narratives have been shared in every culture and in every land as a means of entertainment, education, preservation: of culture and in order to instill moral values. The truth revealed through stories does three things. 1. Challenges us. 2. Charges us. Storytelling has existed as long as humanity has had language. Every culture has its stories and legends, just as every culture has its storytellers and often revered figures with the magic of the tale in their voices and minds. 3. Changes us.
III. Understanding Your Role in the Story We should all be well able to share His story. Traditionally, oral stories were passed from generation to generation, and survived solely by memory. W ith written m edia, this has become less common. Conversely, in m odern times, the vast entertainment industry is built upon a foundation of sophisticated m ultimedia storytelling. Telling His story is just telling people what God the Father is really like. Followers of Jesus have b een telling his story for centuries. Sometimes, in the church today, we want people to “Come and s ee” when the instructions of our Lord have always been, “Go and tell!” "The sound of story is the d ominant sound of our lives.” -­‐ Reynolds P rice Now the man from whom the demons had departed begged Him that he might be with Him. But Jesus sent h im away, saying, “Return to your own house, and tell what great things God has done for you.” And he went his way and proclaimed throughout the whole city what great things Jesus had done for him. Luke 8:38-­‐39 Four things stories do. 1. Stories connect people. 2. Stories entertain people. Our stories show God working in ordinary people, in extraordinary ways. People need to hear from those who have been personally changed by Him and know Him. 3. Stories touch people. 4. Stories share wisdom with people. Core Point: All of history is a timeline of the stories of those who lived their lives and made their contribution to history in their unique way. People are compelled to listen to stories and hear the truth of what is being told. Core Statement: As I understand the truth of His story and see the power of how it changes lives. I will begin to realize how important it is that I become one who can share the story and convey the truth it contains.