Who can explain a parable

I read my first sermon on 5 parables of the kingdom of heaven last month, and I got so wrapped up trying to figure out what a parable was, I managed to write an article and a sermon. And as promised, here is the lesson I learned about the lesson.

At the start I thought I knew exactly what a parable was, namely that they were self-explanatory. But self-explanatory actually means unexplainable. Red is self-explanatory, and it turns our parables are just as complicated to explain as red. Most of us think that parables are similes, metaphors or possibly allegories.(*see note below) It turns out that parables are neither so limited nor so secret as any of these figures of speech.

Parables are meant to be understood. Unlike an allegory, where the author is trying to hide his meaning, usually to escape persecution, parables are meant to make the meaning clear, and in the language of the listener. So when Jesus was in the fields, he talked about seeds, and when he was by a lake, he spoke of fish. And he didn't say who was the fish or the seed to the listener, only, occasionally to the disciples when they didn't get it. He didn't have to, because the meaning of the parable is dependent upon the listener.

Just because they are meant to be easily understood doesn't mean they are to be easily dismissed. The parables all have twist that shake us up. Farmers may think they know everything about farming, but Jesus wasn't talking about the world we live in but the world we could live in if we step outside our usual way of doing things and our usual expectations. Parables are still meant to do this, and if they don't is is because we aren't farmers or we have heard them too many times. But knowing the words doesn't mean we know the meaning. We can change this by reading about first century Palestine, but we can also do it by reflecting on new parables.

The Parable of the Lottery Ticket

The kingdom of heaven is like a piece of trash blowing in an abandoned lot. Someone picked up the trash with a hard heart, complaining about litterbugs and urban decay. But before throwing it away, identified it, and seeing that it was a lottery ticket, complained bitterly about people who operate and indulge in lotteries. In a fit of peak, the person with a hard heart checked the lottery numbers and discovered the winning ticket. Suddenly, the scales were lifted from the heart of this person, and with great excitement, they used the lottery money to pay all the back taxes and purchase the abandoned lot.

What do you think it means?

Notes below-
*Similes are sentences that connect images with the words 'like' or 'as.'
*Metaphors are sentences where the subject is assigned characteristics directly, no like or as.
*Allegories are developed metaphors, multiple sentences, where each detail is important and a hidden or secret word for something else.