The Parable of the unforgiving servant

Intro:

If you are new to the church we are in a series of messages on the parables of Jesus. Each week we are learning kingdom principles through the parables that Jesus taught in the gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke.

In our series we are seeing how Jesus used symbols from the realm of creation and human relationships to illustrate kingdom truth and principles.

I have shared with you how through basic observation we can find the interpretation and application of the parable.

Remember that when we study we do not make the bible say what we want it to say. We must take the time to learn what is actually being said, who does it speak about, who is being written to, what words are used, what time in history was it written, where was the message spoken, to what intent, and what was the preceeding and succeeding context.

Our goal is to learn to rightly divide the word of truth. Not adding to it or taking away from it. In doing so it will completely transform our lives.

Let me give a brief summary of our study on the parables, and their purpose.

Jesus spoke in parables to fulfill prophecy in Isaiah 6:9 and reveal kingdom truth and precepts. He used parables to reveal the nature of the kingdom of God, and how we are to live in relation to it.

The foundational parable is the parable of the sower. It revealed that all kingdom growth and potential are determined by the condition of the heart, and its ability to receive kingdom seed.

Kingdom Seed which is the word of God carries divine power to save your soul and produce great spiritual fruit. Jesus expects fruit in our lives.

God is good, but he is also just. In the end He will bring into account transgression and sin for those who have rejected the gift of salvation.

The word of the kingdom leads us to life. Its effect helps crucify the flesh and its lust, so that we can live alive towards God. Where we present our ourselves as instruments of righteousness to be sown into the world.

Growth and spiritual fruit takes time. Kingdom fruit in your life is meant to encourage and instruct others.

The Gospel is like leaven having small beginnings but increasing drastically in size. Christians are agents of change, slowly transforming the culture from within.

When we understand the critical component that Jesus found us before we found him it changes everything. We serve him with our lives because we get to not because we have to. It stems from a heart of gratitude for what He has done.

Jesus is the shepherd who goes after the one, the holy spirit is the one who lights the path, and the Father is waiting for the lost to come into his arms and to come home. Our job is to go into the world and represent Christ well.

Isn’t it amazing to see the picture of the Kingdom of heaven coming into focus. It is more than pray a prayer to get to heaven. It is about getting the nature of heaven back into us. Where through the supernatural seed of the word of God we become agents of change for the kingdom of God. Our love and the intensity of our pursuit is a direct reflection of our awareness of how good He is. He as the savior draws hearts, and lights the way. We stand ready to represent Him well.

Today, we are going to continue in our series by looking at the parable of the unforgiving servant. Until now the focus of the parables of have been God towards us and our response to Him. This parable takes a turn and shifts the focus to interpersonal. The principles of the kingdom not only affect how we live towards God, but also how we live in relation to one another.

Let me give you an example. 1 John 4:20 “If someone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen?”

Leading up to this parable on the unforgiving servant in Matthew 18 Jesus has warned about walking in offense, being hard hearted towards others, and how to deal with a sinning brother in the faith. His teaching provokes a question from Peter that then prompts a somewhat lengthy response from Christ. Matthew 18:21-35.

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Submit:

Turn with me to Matthew 18:21-35. (Read it)

Matthew 18:21-29 “Then Peter came to Him and said, “Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Up to seven times?” Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven. Therefore the kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. And when he had begun to settle accounts, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents.

But as he was not able to pay, his master commanded that he be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and that payment be made. The servant therefore fell down before him, saying, ‘Master, have patience with me, and I will pay you all.’ Then the master of that servant was moved with compassion, released him, and forgave him the debt. “But that servant went out and found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii; and he laid hands on him and took him by the throat, saying, ‘Pay me what you owe!’ So his fellow servant fell down at his feet and begged him, saying, Have patience with me, and I will pay you all.

Matthew 18:30-35 “And he would not, but went and threw him into prison till he should pay the debt. So when his fellow servants saw what had been done, they were very grieved, and came and told their master all that had been done. Then his master, after he had called him, said to him, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you begged me. Should you not also have had compassion on your fellow servant, just as I had pity on you?’ And his master was angry, and delivered him to the torturers until he should pay all that was due to him. “So My heavenly Father also will do to you if each of you, from his heart, does not forgive his brother his trespasses.””

As we dig into this parable I wan to first point out something in Peter’s initial question. He asks Jesus if He should forgive seven times? This is significant.

The standard of Jewish law at the time is that the person who did wrong should ask for forgiveness up to the three times. After which the person is no longer considered accountable for the wrongdoing. The general expectation is that the person wronged was expected to forgive the person. After the three request if the person didn’t forgive the sin was now on the wronged person for not forgiving. This practice was called Teshuvah.

Peter’s question to Christ shows that He was picking up on the nature of the kingdom vs. their tradition and practice. In an attempt to grasp its fullness he throws out seven times. Jesus responds to him with not 7 but 70x7= 490 times in a day. What Jesus is saying is that we are to continually walk in forgiveness.

In the parable Jesus uses a master settling accounts to illustrate a kingdom reality and expectation.

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Apply:

The central truth of the parable is that un-forgiveness is not tolerated by God.

A few key truths to recognize from the parable.

The master is settling accounts. (*we will all give an account of our lives to him). One of his slaves is brought to him who owes him ten thousand talents. Something to note is that the amount is un-payable. “ten thousand” is the largest numeral that exists in Greek, and a “talent” is the largest denomination of money. The money is an absurd amount used to make a point about the level of forgiveness on display by the master.

The only reasonable request of the servant to the debt is to ask for mercy. This request is met by the excessive mercy and compassion of the master. (In this we recognize that the master is God, we are the servant with a huge debt. God in His mercy has paid the debt that we could not through Jesus).

Mercy received is expected to be mercy given. The servant immediately sets out and finds a fellow slave who owes him a hundred denarii. The amount is microscopic in comparison to what he owed the master. The slave is violent, choking his fellow slave and demanding immediate repayment.

The slave who is now found owing has the same response as the earlier slave. He asks for mercy and time to repay. The request in this case is ignored resulting in imprisonment. The conduct of the servant is contrary to the conduct of the master.

The master is always aware of what is taking place. The conduct of the servant is relayed to the master resulting in a summons to give account of the situation. He declares the servant to be wicked, and reminds him that he should have also shown mercy.

The master repays the wicked servant according to his ways. He is handed over to “merciless jailers” until he can repay the amount he owed. The word here for the merciless jailers indicates the torture of the wicked slave, and the implication is an eternal punishment given the amount owed.

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Closing:

We each have a debt we could never repay. God in His mercy has forgiven us. Not only that he has gone so far as to wipe the handwriting of our guilt of the page Col 2:14. He expects us to do the same with the people in our lives.

In the Lord’s prayer in Matthew 6:9-15 Jesus teaches us how to pray. “In this manner, therefore, pray: Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, As we forgive our debtors. And do not lead us into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.

Matthew 6:14-15, “For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.”

This deserves more attention than we often give it. Numbers 23:19 says, “God is not a man, that He should lie, Nor a son of man, that He should repent. Has He said, and will He not do? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good?”

Un-forgiveness is not tolerated in the kingdom. Forgiveness doesn’t change injustice in our lives, it free’s us from the effects of it. Bitterness and offense turns many hearts away from the kingdom. Forgiveness does not hold the infraction over the head of the person. It does not hold onto the infraction to use as a weapon at a future opportune time.

The concept of forgiveness can be very volatile and difficult for people. The emotion, pain, or trauma tied to the event are real and often raw. The experiences we go through are traumatic or painful, and I want to make clear that abuses suffered are not condoned in any way.

Forgiveness doesn’t mean placing yourself back into abusive situations. It simply deals with our heart towards the person. Remember from the parable of the sower and how the condition of the heart is key to the kingdom. Holding the infraction over another person to control, punish, manipulate, or get even is ungodly.

Anger, wrath, malice, and hatred are not kingdom virtues. Colossians 3:8

“But now you yourselves are to put off all these: anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy language out of your mouth.” We must choose not to walk in them.

Forgiveness is not about what people deserve. It is about conforming to his image.

We are made in His image which means if we have the capacity to hurt so does He. Think for a moment of the extent of our disobedience and sin towards God.

How many times have our actions caused him hurt? I wonder how Jesus felt when He was unjustly nailed to a cross and everyone standing around sat there and mocked him? But what did He do? Father forgive them, why, because they don’t know what they are doing.

Most people in our lives are not looking to cause intentional pain or harm. In reality, most people don’t even know that they have hurt you. We have to learn to take on the nature of Christ and forgive. The same grace, mercy, and compassion God shows us He wants us to show them.

Its Matthew 10:7-8 “And as you go, preach, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’ Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons. Freely you have received, freely give.”

We have done nothing to earn the grace, mercy, and compassion of God. We have received it freely, we must learn to freely give away the same grace, mercy, and compassion that has been shown to us.

Let’s Pray.

Altar:

Walk people through prayers for forgiveness.

Salvation.