Because We’ve Been Forgiven

Recap

We’ve been walking through this discourse where Jesus is emphasizing how we are to treat our brothers and sisters in Christ! They are, we are, the little one’s Jesus talks about in 18:1-4. They are the ones we are instructed not to tempt to sin in verses 5-6.

We learn how His little ones are instructed to deal with our sin and temptation.

We are taught the importance and value of the individual believer.

We are shown a clear set of guidelines on how to handle a brother or sister who sins against us and how it is Jesus hope, as it should be ours, to see that brother or sister restored as they repent and turn back to Jesus. Ultimately one lesson builds off the other but we would be wrong to stop at excommunicating the unrepentant believer as we agree with 2-3 believers on the matter. There is something left undone in our own hearts if we stop there.

That’s what we are going to discuss tonight. Tonight’s passage starts with Peter coming to Jesus and asking him how many times a brother should be forgiven.

70 x 7

Matthew 18:21–22 ESV

21 Then Peter came up and said to him, “Lord, how often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?” 22 Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you seven times, but seventy-seven times.

So, Peter approaches Jesus, and we have to remember that this is on the heals of Jesus talking about 2 or 3 gathering together, praying in the name of Jesus, and agreeing on the situation where a brother or sister is unrepentant to the point of excommunication. Rabbinical tradition was to forgive someone 3 times max because if they hadn’t repented by then than you should stop forgiving them. They don’t deserve it. Peter, imagining that he is being very gracious in offering to forgive someone 7 times. Jesus response does have a number tied to it, but it still doesn’t mean to calculate how many times up to 490 that you’ve forgiven them and then cut them off at the 491st time.

What Jesus is suggesting to his disciples is for there to be no end to the number of times we will forgive someone. Bring that back to the unrepentant individual that has been excommunicated. God still desires and calls us to forgive them. This in and of itself is one of the most difficult concepts to wrap our minds around. At the same time, its what we are called to do, what will give us peace in the long run, and it’s what might be what brings the unrepentant believer back around.

The King Settles Up

Matthew 18:23–24 ESV

23 “Therefore the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his servants. 24 When he began to settle, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents.

So, Jesus begins with painting a picture for everyone who’s listening that the kingdom of heaven being compared to a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants.

Deuteronomy 32:4 ESV

4 “The Rock, his work is perfect, for all his ways are justice. A God of faithfulness and without iniquity, just and upright is he.

Isaiah 30:18 ESV

18 Therefore the Lord waits to be gracious to you, and therefore he exalts himself to show mercy to you. For the Lord is a God of justice; blessed are all those who wait for him.

Who wanted to settle accounts with his servants: The king in this parable expected his servants to be faithful and honorable in the way they conducted his business. Therefore, one day he examined their work and would settle accounts with them.

This word Talent that is used here in verse 24 might get lost in translation if we don’t look into what that actually means to us. 1 talent constitutes 20 years of wages and this guy owed 10,000 talents, or 200,000 years wages.

So, if you make $50K, for easy math, it would be like you having to come up with $10 billion dollars on the spot today to pay your debt. In other words, even if you won the biggest lottery ever, you wouldn’t be able to pay this off in one day. It’s an impossible debt to pay, so, what is the king’s response?

The King Has Pity

Matthew 18:25–27 ESV

25 And since he could not pay, his master ordered him to be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and payment to be made. 26 So the servant fell on his knees, imploring him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything.’ 27 And out of pity for him, the master of that servant released him and forgave him the debt.

His master commanded that he be sold: Of course, the man was not able to pay. Therefore the master commanded to sell the debtor, his family, and all he had. This would not satisfy the debt; slaves at their top price were sold at a talent each (and usually sold for much less). Yet it would bring some measure of justice.

Romans 3:23 ESV

23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,

What is the servants response, realizing this will cost him his life and his family’s lives and everything he owned? He falls to his knees begging him, “Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything”. Now, stop for a second and think about how crazy that is. He knows how much he owes. He knows he can’t possibly pay it, but now that he realizes it’s going to cost him everything, he’s pleading the impossible. I will pay you everything.

Isn’t it interesting that sometimes when we realize the depth of what we’ve done that we still think that there is something that we can do to make it right? Like we can actually do something that would suffice as payment when we owe so much to Jesus! As if to say, God if you would just have patience with me I’ll be able to do enough good deeds in order to offset my bad deeds. Just be patient with me! Knowing all along that we’ll never be able to pay that price.

“Many a poor sinner is very rich in resolutions. This servant-debtor thought he only needed patience; but indeed he needed forgiveness!” (Spurgeon)

What is the King’s response to the servant? He has pity on him, some translations say he was moved with compassion towards the servant. The outcome of this was the King released the servant and forgave him his debt.

Romans 6:23 ESV

23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

2 Corinthians 5:21 ESV

21 For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

The Servant Forgets His Forgiveness

Matthew 18:28–30 ESV

28 But when that same servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii, and seizing him, he began to choke him, saying, ‘Pay what you owe.’ 29 So his fellow servant fell down and pleaded with him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you.’ 30 He refused and went and put him in prison until he should pay the debt.

A Denarii equalled 100 days wage in that day. This servant missed what the king had done for him. He had been forgiven an insurmountable debt out of pity and his immediate response is to go out and choke one of his fellow servants over something that could be paid. His fellow servant fell down just like he did, pled with the same words he had and promised the same thing he had promised yet there was no pity.

What is wrong with a person with no pity? It’s a hard heart.

The Greek word for hard heartedness is “sklērokardia” - sklay-rok-ar-dee'-ah - means “hardness of heart” which is better understood to mean, “destitution of (spiritual) perception”

The problem with the believer that has a hard heart is they have the Holy Spirit in them. Before becoming a believer they were destitute (completely unable) of perceiving spiritual things. To have the spirit means we have the ability to perceive spiritual things but you are unwilling to perceive what you should perceive in order to come to God’s conclusion on the situation because of your hardness of heart. Because you’ve chosen to quench the spirit and not listen to Him. That’s the only way you come to the conclusion that someone that has been forgiven wouldn’t be willing to forgive someone else.

1 Thessalonians 5:14–22 ESV

14 And we urge you, brothers, admonish the idle, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with them all. 15 See that no one repays anyone evil for evil, but always seek to do good to one another and to everyone. 16 Rejoice always, 17 pray without ceasing, 18 give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. 19 Do not quench the Spirit. 20 Do not despise prophecies, 21 but test everything; hold fast what is good. 22 Abstain from every form of evil.

That second to the last verse there. Verse 21, “but test everything; hold fast to what is good”. The problem in quenching the spirit is we don’t even want to hear what the Holy Spirit of God, the 3rd person of the trinity, is saying to us about the situation. About us and our hearts, about others and their hearts, about HIS heart, the heart of GOD, and what HE wants us to do in light of what HIS heart is.

So many times we go in to pray and ask God for guidance and our hearts are not aligned with His. We go in half cocked, ticked off, resentful, selfish, hurt, sad, whatever the emotion and we don’t stop to ask if our hearts are aligned with His. If our will is submitted to His. How in the world can we think that we will hear HIM when we are being driven by our emotions and not guarding our hearts with all diligence.

The King Finds Out

Matthew 18:31–35 ESV

31 When his fellow servants saw what had taken place, they were greatly distressed, and they went and reported to their master all that had taken place. 32 Then his master summoned him and said to him, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me. 33 And should not you have had mercy on your fellow servant, as I had mercy on you?’ 34 And in anger his master delivered him to the jailers, until he should pay all his debt. 35 So also my heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother from your heart.”

The first thing I see in verse 31 is the fellow servants hold the unforgiving accountable.

When the master heard of this, he was understandably angry. It was just wrong for a man who has been forgiven so much to then be so unforgiving. He then gave the first servant what he deserved — justice instead of mercy.

So My heavenly Father also will do to you: The principle is clear. God has forgiven such a great debt, that any debt owed to us is absolutely insignificant in comparison.

No man can possibly offend me to the extent that my sins have offended God.

“We incur greater wrath by refusing to forgive than by all the rest of our indebtedness.” (Spurgeon)

Since we have been forgiven so much, we have no right to withhold forgiveness from others. We are the debtor forgiven almost an infinite debt; will we hold on to the small debts others owe to us? If anyone had the right to withhold forgiveness it is God — and He forgives more freely and more completely than anyone we know. What possible right do we have to hold on to our unforgiveness?

When we remember the punishment of the unforgiving man in the parable of Jesus: the master delivered him to the torturers, remember that there are many poor souls who are tortured by their own unforgiveness toward others.

1 Peter 1:13–25 ESV

13 Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 14 As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, 15 but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, 16 since it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.” 17 And if you call on him as Father who judges impartially according to each one’s deeds, conduct yourselves with fear throughout the time of your exile, 18 knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, 19 but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot. 20 He was foreknown before the foundation of the world but was made manifest in the last times for the sake of you 21 who through him are believers in God, who raised him from the dead and gave him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God. 22 Having purified your souls by your obedience to the truth for a sincere brotherly love, love one another earnestly from a pure heart, 23 since you have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding word of God; 24 for “All flesh is like grass and all its glory like the flower of grass. The grass withers, and the flower falls, 25 but the word of the Lord remains forever.” And this word is the good news that was preached to you.