Forgiving as you have been forgiven

Prayer

Today we are going to talk abut something huge. Something super important that the Bible says for us to do. Does anyone have any guesses what this could be?

Well lets ask this question, what is something super important that God does for us when we sin and go to him for help or something that we are to do when someone does us wrong?

Forgiveness! Now I have taught this to you guys in the past, but I’m sharing a new light to it.

How do you want God to forgive you? Do you want him to keep reminding you of the sin? Do you want him to keep a record of the number of times you have asked for forgiveness? No, we want God to forgive completely and give us a clean slate on which to start all over again. This is the way we should forgive others.

Now, we are moving on to another thing Jesus said to the disciples.

Matthew 18:21–35 “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! “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. “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. “His fellow servant fell down before him and begged for a little more time. ‘Be patient with me, and I …”

Now, what did we see happen here?

A king who asked a servant to pay what he owed. The servant begged to have mercy on him and the king did. But what did that servant turn around and do? He interrogated another servant and told him to pay up! That servant said the same thing, but then the servant that the king had pitty on did not show pity on the other servant so he threw him in prison!

Now, what is a verse I remind you guys of often that goes with this? Do unto others as you would have them do to you! Did this servant follow that and do what he was supposed to do? No! So what should the servant had done?

So what happened to that servant?

In the kings anger, he got thrown in prison and tortured until he could pay up.

And the last part Matthew 18:35 ““That’s what my heavenly Father will do to you if you refuse to forgive your brothers and sisters from your heart.””

From the heart, can someone explain that to me? It means forgive, to love, to let go. Dont hold a grudge towards them! If theyve asked for forgiveness forgive them! Forgive one another, no matter what, just as God has forgiven you…with a clean slate.