6: PRAYER, MERCY, & FORGIVENESS

WHY PARABLES - Why SPEAK in STORIES?

Jesus taught in parables because stories stick.

WHAT ARE PARABLES?

DEFINE PARABLE:

Parables are everyday stories revealing eternal truths.

Last week we saw the importance of....

Responding to the Invitation to Follow Jesus

We talked about the Parable to Great Feast (Luke 14:15-24) where Jesus tells of a man sending out invitations to people for a great feast, but when it was time for the feast, the people

began making excuses.

When the servant returned to tell his master about all the excuses, the master was furious and told his servant to go and invite the people most viewed as less valuable.

And while the invitation to all is wonderful & gracious, the warning to all who heard Jesus’ voice should have been concerning. Those who made excuses rather than respond to the invitation would not be a part of the banquet at the end of time.

ETERNAL TRUTH: Responding to the invitation of Jesus should be our first priority, not put on the back burner.

There is coming a day that this invitation will no longer be extended. Guess what happens to those who aren’t a part of this banquet? They will be punished forever in a lake of fire.

Then we talked about the Cost of Being a Disciple of Jesus.

When Jesus said that our love for Him needed to be WAY BEYOND our love for own family. Jesus said...

Luke 14:26 (NLT)

“If you want to be my disciple, you must, by comparison, hate everyone else—your father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even your own life. Otherwise, you cannot be my disciple.

Like us, this large crowd was willing to follow Jesus when things were good. Who wouldn’t want to follow the greatest teacher and miracle worker or all time? But when persecution started coming, when Jesus gets crucified on a cross, when things got difficult, we must...

ETERNAL TRUTH: Love Jesus above anyone or anything.

Luke 14:27-28a (NLT)

And if you do not carry your own cross and follow Me, you cannot be my disciple. But don’t begin until you count the cost.

ETERNAL TRUTH: Love Jesus above anyone or anything.

DO YOU LOVE JESUS ABOVE ANYONE OR ANYTHING?

ARE YOU TREATING THE INVITATION OF JESUS LIKE IT’S FIRST PRIORITY OR BACK BURNER?

Tonight we learn about...

PRAYER, MERCY, & FORIVENESS

Luke 11:5–6 (NLT)

Then, teaching them more about prayer, He used this story: “Suppose you went to a friend’s house at midnight, wanting to borrow three loaves of bread. You say to him, ‘A friend of mine has just arrived for a visit, and I have nothing for him to eat.’

If this parable were spoken in our day Jesus might have talked about someone calling/texting/snapchatting you on the phone late at night, asking for help.

Luke 11:7-8 (NLT)

And suppose he calls out from his bedroom, ‘Don’t bother me. The door is locked for the night, and my family and I are all in bed. I can’t help you.’ But I tell you this—though he won’t do it for friendship’s sake, if you keep knocking long enough, he will get up and give you whatever you need because of your shameless persistence.

Luke 11:9–10 (NLT)

And so I tell you, keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.

Asking, Seeking, Knocking is the same essential thought repeated rhythmically.

What’s the point?

We can Ask in Faith - and know that God hears and WILL answer in His way.

Luke 11:11–13 (NLT)

You fathers—if your children ask for a fish, do you give them a snake instead? Or if they ask for an egg, do you give them a scorpion? Of course not! So if you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him.”

Do you see what Jesus is saying?

God doesn’t answer prayer because we’re a bother. God answers prayer because He’s our FATHER!

Half-way decent Dads care about providing food for their children. Our perfect heavenly Father isn’t LESS INTERESTED in caring for His kids than an imperfect human father is. God not only provides FOOD and temporary needs, but He also provides His Holy Spirit to those who seek Him. The Spirit brings love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, & self-control.

Jesus tells another parable about PRAYER.

Luke 18:1–3 (NLT)

One day Jesus told his disciples a story to show that they should always pray and never give up. “There was a judge in a certain city,” he said, “who neither feared God nor cared about people. A widow of that city came to him repeatedly, saying, ‘Give me justice in this dispute with my enemy.’

Luke 18:4–5 (NLT)

The judge ignored her for a while, but finally he said to himself, ‘I don’t fear God or care about people, but this woman is driving me crazy. I’m going to see that she gets justice, because she is wearing me out with her constant requests!’ ”

Luke 18:6–8 (NLT)

Then the Lord said, “Learn a lesson from this unjust judge. Even he rendered a just decision in the end. So don’t you think God will surely give justice to his chosen people who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? I tell you, He will grant justice to them quickly! But when the Son of Man returns, how many will he find on the earth who have faith?”

ETERNAL TRUTH: KEEP TRUSTING our FATHER andKEEP ASKING in PRAYER

Jesus tells some parables about MERCY & FORGIVENESS.

Luke 18:9–10 (NLT)

Then Jesus told this story to some who had great confidence in their own righteousness and scorned everyone else: “Two men went to the Temple to pray. One was a Pharisee, and the other was a despised tax collector.

If you would have asked anyone in that culture who the example to follow in this story would be, they would have all pointed to the Pharisee - the guy who knew and taught the Scriptures, and lived in purity. The tax collector was despised by other Jews, a thief who cheated his own people out of their hard earned money.

Luke 18:11-12 (NLT)

The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed this prayer: ‘I thank you, God, that I am not like other people—cheaters, sinners, adulterers. I’m certainly not like that tax collector! I fast twice a week, and I give you a tenth of my income.’

Was this man humble before God?

Who was he comparing himself to…the holiness of others or the holiness of GOD?

What was he putting his hope in - God’s mercy or his own goodness?

Is that true of you?

Luke 18:13–14 (NLT)

But the tax collector stood at a distance and dared not even lift his eyes to heaven as he prayed. Instead, he beat his chest in sorrow, saying, ‘O God, be merciful to me, for I am a sinner.’ I tell you, this sinner, not the Pharisee, returned home justified before God. For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”

ETERNAL TRUTH: HUMBLE SINNERS RECEIVE GOD’S MERCY.

- Prideful sinners DON’T.

Matthew 18:21–22 (NLT)

Then Peter came to him and asked, “Lord, how often should I forgive someone who sins against me? Seven times?” “No, not seven times,” Jesus replied, “but seventy times seven!

Matthew 18:23–25 (NLT)

Therefore, the Kingdom of Heaven can be compared to a king who decided to bring his accounts up to date with servants who had borrowed money from him. In the process, one of his debtors was brought in who owed him millions of dollars. He couldn’t pay, so his master ordered that he be sold—along with his wife, his children, and everything he owned—to pay the debt.

Matthew 18:26–28 (NLT)

But the man fell down before his master and begged him, ‘Please, be patient with me, and I will pay it all.’ Then his master was filled with pity for him, and he released him and forgave his debt. “But when the man left the king, he went to a fellow servant who owed him a few thousand dollars. He grabbed him by the throat and demanded instant payment.

Do you see the dilemma?

This man was just forgiven more than he could ever repay, yet - as of now - he is NOT willing to do what....? FORGIVE another who owes him much less.

Maybe he too will choose to be merciful...

Matthew 18:29–31 (NLT)

His fellow servant fell down before him and begged for a little more time. ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay it,’ he pleaded. But his creditor wouldn’t wait. He had the man arrested and put in prison until the debt could be paid in full. “When some of the other servants saw this, they were very upset. They went to the king and told him everything that had happened.

Matthew 18:32–35 (NLT)

Then the king called in the man he had forgiven and said, ‘You evil servant! I forgave you that tremendous debt because you pleaded with me. Shouldn’t you have mercy on your fellow servant, just as I had mercy on you?’ Then the angry king sent the man to prison to be tortured until he had paid his entire debt. “That’s what my heavenly Father will do to you if you refuse to forgive your brothers and sisters from your heart.”

ETERNAL TRUTH: FORGIVEN PEOPLE FORGIVE PEOPLE.

Forgiveness and trust are 2 different things. But we must be willing to forgiven anyone who asks for forgiveness.

FEET2FAITH

Set aside quiet time to pray everyday - write down THANKS and NEEDS.

Talk to God throughout the day. (You’ll be amazed how your relationship with God will change when you start acting like He is interested and involved in your life.)

Seek God’s forgiveness.Appreciate God’s forgiveness. Offer God’s forgiveness to others.

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Group Questions:

How often do you PRAY? How might your prayer life change IF YOU KNEW that God was listening and WANTED to answer?

What do the parables about prayer that we heard tonight tell us about HOW & WHY we should pray?

Give students about 3 minutes to WRITE DOWN their THANKS and NEEDS on their sheet and quietly pray about those on their own.

What are we to learn from the parable of the Pharisee & Tax Collector and the parable of the Unforgiving Servant?

Some of you might need to approach another person and ASK for forgiveness.

Some of you might need to approach another person and OFFER God’s forgiveness the same say God has offered forgiveness to you.

Do YOU know that YOU are forgiven? Have you turned from your sin and turned to Jesus? If you need to talk more about that, please stick around and talk with me.

Share prayer needs and pray together. Remind students that you are AVAILABLE to talk about any needs they have. Communicate your LOVE for them!

GOD’s GRACE: Laborers receive the same wages (Mt 20:1-16)

Religious vs Righteous: 2 Sons (Mt 21:28-32)

Marriage Feast (Mt 22:1-14)

Living Like Jesus is Returning, Preparing for Eternity: Faithful Servant (Mt 24:45-51), Ten Virgins (Mt 25:1-13), Investing the Master’s Stuff (Mt 25:14-30), The Rich Man and Lazarus (Luke 16:19-31)