Rating the Parables of Jesus for Stickiness
What makes an idea stick in our minds?
In Made to Stick, Chip Heath and Dan Heath identified six principles of successful ideas. Using those six principles as criteria, I am going to rate three of the parables of Jesus, as they appear in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke.
First, here are those six criteria. The following quotes are all taken from the introduction to Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die, by Chip Heath and Dan Heath, published in 2007 by Random House Publishing Group:
Simplicity — “To strip an idea down to its core, we must be masters of exclusion. We must relentlessly prioritize. Saying something short is not the mission — sound bites are not the ideal. Proverbs are the ideal. We must create ideas that are both simple and profound.”
Unexpectedness — “We can use surprise — an emotion whose function is to increase alertness and cause focus — to grab people’s attention. But surprise doesn’t last. For our idea to endure, we must generate interest and curiosity…We can engage people’s curiosity over a long period of time by systematically “opening gaps” in their knowledge — and then filling those gaps.”
Concreteness — “We must explain our ideas in terms of human actions, in terms of sensory information…because our brains are wired to remember concrete data.”
Credibility — “Sticky ideas have to carry their own credentials. We need ways to help people test our ideas for themselves — a “try before you buy” philosophy for the world of ideas.”
Emotions — “How do we get people to care about our ideas? We make them feel something… We are wired to feel things for people, not for abstractions.”
Stories — “How do we get people to act on our ideas? We tell stories…hearing stories acts as a kind of mental flight simulator, preparing us to respond more quickly and effectively.”
So, with that in mind, here are three of the parables of Jesus rated for stickiness.
1. The Workers in the Vineyard
For the kingdom of heaven is like a master of a house who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard. After agreeing with the laborers for a denarius a day, he sent them into his vineyard.
And going out about the third hour he saw others standing idle in the marketplace, and to them he said, “You go into the vineyard too, and whatever is right I will give you.” So they went.
Going out again about the sixth hour and the ninth hour, he did the same.
And about the eleventh hour he went out and found others standing. And he said to them, “Why do you stand here idle all day?” They said to him, “Because no one has hired us.” He said to them, “You go into the vineyard too.”
And when evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, “Call the laborers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last, up to the first.”
And when those hired about the eleventh hour came, each of them received a denarius. Now when those hired first came, they thought they would receive more, but each of them also received a denarius.
And on receiving it they grumbled at the master of the house, saying, “These last worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat.”
But he replied to one of them, “Friend, I am doing you no wrong. Did you not agree with me for a denarius? Take what belongs to you and go. I choose to give to this last worker as I give to you. Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me? Or do you begrudge my generosity?”
So the last will be first, and the first last.
(Matthew 20:1–16, ESV)
How Sticky Is It?
Simplicity: 7
It looks like it is going to get really complicated, as the vineyard owner must calculate what he is going to pay each one. But in the end, nothing is simpler than a denarius for everyone. So not only is it simple, it’s simple in an unexpected way.
Unexpectedness: 9
Not only is there a surprise, but we get to share it with the characters in the story. Some expected to get paid less, others more.
Concreteness: 7
The details are necessary, but they also take away from some of the simplicity of the story. Third hour, sixth hour, ninth hour, eleventh hour. It begins to look like some math might be required.
Better concreteness is provided by the workers who complain that they have “borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat.”
Credibility: 10
It is hard to rate the parables for credibility. On one hand, they rest on the authority of Jesus, who told them. If you accept that authority, they should all be rated a perfect 10. On the other hand, they are Jesus telling us what his kingdom is like, and it is different from our everyday experience.
But I give this one a 10 because of its logic. It is not realistic — no businessman would pay people a day’s wage for an hour of work. But the vineyard owner’s defense is unassailable: “Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me?” Of course he is. And if everything in the universe belongs to God, he has the same freedom.
Emotions: 9
The workers who worked all day go through a range of emotions: anticipation, disappointment, envy, rage. All of this is contrasted with the cool logic of the vineyard owner (who calls one of these workers “friend,” so he is not exactly emotionless either).
Stories: 10
It is a great story. Good dialogue. A great plot twist. And the vineyard owner is an intriguing character we want to know more about.
You might think all parables are stories, but in the Gospels, simple metaphors are also called parables. For example: faith is like a mustard seed. That is a good parable but not much of a story.
Overall Stickiness: 8.7
2. The Good Samaritan
A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who stripped him and beat him and departed, leaving him half dead.
Now by chance a priest was going down that road, and when he saw him he passed by on the other side.
So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side.
But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion. He went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he set him on his own animal and brought him to an inn and took care of him. And the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, “Take care of him, and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come back.”
Which of these three, do you think, proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?
(Luke 10:30–36)
How Sticky Is It?
Simplicity: 9
Man gets hurt. Man gets helped. Very simple.
Also, three kinds of people pass by: a priest, a Levite, and a Samaritan. (If they would just walk into a bar together, the joke would almost tell itself.)
Three is the perfect simple number.
Consider the first parable we looked at. How many times did the owner of the vineyard go out and hire workers?
Five times, but who remembers that?
Unexpectedness: 9
This is the whole point of the parable. The people we expect to help, don’t help. The person we don’t expect to help, helps. Take away the unexpectedness, and you don’t have much of a parable left.
Concreteness: 9
“…from Jerusalem to Jericho”, “…pouring on oil and wine”, “…two denarii”
Just the right amount of detail without slowing the story down.
And at the end of the story, when we can afford to slow down a little, we get the instructions of the Samaritan to the innkeeper, given as a quote. Hearing him talk makes him more real to us, and what he says makes us like him even more.
Credibility: 10
The danger of robbers and the hypocrisy of religious professionals were elements of the story that hearers in Jesus’ day could relate to. But so was the kindness of the Samaritan. And that is the power of the parable. It is credible in the same place that it is unexpected.
This is so true to life. Compassion and kindness can come from the most unexpected sources.
Emotions: 7
There is compassion for the man who was robbed. There is appreciation for the Samaritan. But I think the most common emotion this parable elicits is contempt for the priest and Levite.
Stories: 9
As a story, it’s actually kind of boring. But it gets a 9 because it created an archetype. It’s the archetype, the Good Samaritan himself, that is so incredibly sticky.
Overall Stickiness: 8.8
3. The Prodigal Son
There was a man who had two sons. And the younger of them said to his father, “Father, give me the share of property that is coming to me.” And he divided his property between them.
Not many days later, the younger son gathered all he had and took a journey into a far country, and there he squandered his property in reckless living. And when he had spent everything, a severe famine arose in that country, and he began to be in need.
So he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, who sent him into his fields to feed pigs. And he was longing to be fed with the pods that the pigs ate, and no one gave him anything.
But when he came to himself, he said, “How many of my father’s hired servants have more than enough bread, but I perish here with hunger! I will arise and go to my father, and I will say to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Treat me as one of your hired servants.’”
And he arose and came to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him.
And the son said to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.”
But the father said to his servants, “Bring quickly the best robe, and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet. And bring the fattened calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate. For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found.”
And they began to celebrate.
Now his older son was in the field, and as he came and drew near to the house, he heard music and dancing. And he called one of the servants and asked what these things meant. And he said to him, “Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fattened calf, because he has received him back safe and sound.”
But he was angry and refused to go in. His father came out and entreated him, but he answered his father, “Look, these many years I have served you, and I never disobeyed your command, yet you never gave me a young goat, that I might celebrate with my friends. But when this son of yours came, who has devoured your property with prostitutes, you killed the fattened calf for him!”
And he said to him, “Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours. It was fitting to celebrate and be glad, for this your brother was dead, and is alive; he was lost, and is found.”
(Luke 15:11–32, ESV)
How Sticky Is It?
Simplicity: 7
It’s not as simple as it is often made out to be. We often reduce it to a story about a runaway who came back home. That’s how it got the traditional name, “The Prodigal Son.”
But it is just as much about the other son, and his relationship with his father. In fact, it’s about a complicated three-way relationship between two brothers and their dad.
Unexpectedness: 10
The way the father welcomed his son back home was the opposite of what the son expected. This is the most powerful part of the parable. It’s no wonder that it gets the most attention.
But the reaction of the other brother is also unexpected. He refused to come to the party!
Concreteness: 9
It could have just said that the boy was hungry. Instead, we are told that he was feeding pigs and wished he could have some of the pig’s food for himself. That’s a great little piece of concreteness. That sticks.
The fattened calf also sticks. The father didn’t just throw a party for his son, he killed the fattened calf! It might not be the stickiest detail by itself, but it is mentioned three times, and every time, it is spoken by one of the characters in the story. Sticky!
Credibility: 9
I don’t know if a son would actually ask for his inheritance early, or if a father would actually give it. But the parable has a lot of emotional credibility. The characters are real.
It has logical credibility as well. The father represents God. If a father can have such love for his son, why wouldn’t we expect the same from the God who made us?
Emotions: 10
The sorrow of the son. The joy of the father. The resentment of the other son.
Stories: 10
It’s a great story. This is one of the stickiest of the parables of Jesus.
