Ears to Hear

Matthew 13:3 And he told them many things in parables, saying . . . 9 He who has ears, [7] let him hear.” 10 Then the disciples came and said to him, “Why do you speak to them in parables?” 11 And he answered them, “To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given." . . . 13 This is why I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand. . . .15 For this people's heart has grown dull,and with their ears they can barely hear, and their eyes they have closed, lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears and understand with their heart and turn, and I would heal them.’
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I think Jesus' explanation of his use of parables is extremely troublesome. If the people are not supposed to understand him, why does he persist in telling the parables? The question treads heavily in the territory of sovereignty, but without getting too wordy, this is what I think is happening - I see Jesus telling stories. Stories are like Trojan horses. Common people, without much education or experience, still love a good story. It's why we flock to the movies. It's only human, to want to hear a story about other humans, dealing with human problems and beauties. Jesus knew this about us because he helped to create us. He told stories rather than straight up teaching because he knew that the stories would penetrate to the heart, like seeds. What was he planting? The Kingdom of God! Stories bypass the mind and go straight to the heart, unless of course you are engaged in the act of "criticism". The Pharisees were into that. But for us normal people, who enjoy a good story just for the humanity of it, Jesus was right on target. He would tell these little stories and then at the end he would say this funny sentence, "for those that have ears, hear". I think this is more than just a verily, verily, or 'pay attention guys' kind of moment. I think he is doing something in the spirit. It has the ring of a prayer actually. Consider his handling of a demonized man in the book of Luke. Jesus instruction to the demon was, “Be silent and come out of him!” I detect the same tone when he says, "For those who have ears, hear!" It's as if he has planted the parable seed in their hearts, and then, like creation, he commands them to grow. I still find it incredibly mysterious.