Jesus’ use of the concrete
Jesus made extensive use of the concrete in teaching the abstract.
Consider the following:
| Concrete | Abstract |
| “Look at the birds” | Trust |
| “Consider the lilies” | Trust |
| “The wind blows” | The Spirit |
| “This little child” | True greatness |
| “The poor widow” | Sacrificial giving |
| “Show me a denarius” | Civic duty |
| “Who is my mother?” | Spiritual kinship |
| “Do you see this woman?” | True hospitality |
| “Two sparrows” | Providence |
| “The hairs of your head” | Providence |
| Foxes | Homelessness |
| Grapes and figs | Fruitful discipleship |
| “Fishers of men” | Personal evangelism |
| “The things you have seen and heard” | Data for John’s judgment |
| Ox in the ditch | Humaneness |
| Sheep in the pit | Humaneness |
| Camel and needle’s eye | Perils of wealth |
| The cursed fig tree | Penalty of hypocrisy |
| Log and speck | Large and small faults |
| “The narrow way” | The way to life |
| “The narrow gate” | The way to life |
| “Wolves in sheeps’ clothing” | False prophets |
| “Children of the bride-chamber” | Festal character of the Kingdom |
| “Lift up your eyes to the harvest” | Vision of human need |
| “Snakes” | Wisdom |
| “Doves” | Harmlessness |
| “Cup of cold water” | Service to fellow-disciples |
| “Reed shaken in the wind” | One view of John |
| “Light of the world” | ? |
| “Salt of the earth” | ? |
| “Candle on the candlestick” | ? |
| “My yoke” | ? |
| “The appearance of the sky” | ? |
| “The other cheek” | ? |
With minor modifications from Horne, Herman, Teaching Techniques of Jesus, p123f.