Our Need of Forgiveness
Notes
Transcript
Introduction:
Is there someone in your life that you are having a hard time forgiving? Maybe there is a friend or a family member that used to be close to you, but now you hardly ever speak.
Homecoming is a time for people to come together and celebrate the birthday of a particular church, but it’s also a time for people who have moved away to come back for a visit and catch up with old friends.
Sometimes, though, coming back home can be a hard thing to do. We see it in families and churches where something bad happened that caused a rift and people have a hard time forgiving.
Today, we are not only going to look at the need that we have to forgive others, but also what God had done to forgive us.
Let’s turn together to Matthew 18,
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.”
Pray
We have been looking at this teaching section in Matthew’s gospel for several weeks now and the theme of humility and forgiveness have been a hallmark of this teaching section.
We are called not to make much of ourselves, but to humble ourselves and come like a little child.
We are to be humble and put others before ourselves.
We are to go and tell the brother who offends us his wrong and seek to reconcile.
Now we come to a section where Jesus is going to teach us to forgive.
1. The Question: How Often Do I Need to Forgive? (v.21)
1. The Question: How Often Do I Need to Forgive? (v.21)
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?”
Rabbis 3 times, but not a fourth
Peter, 7 times - twice and a half (plus the number of perfection)
2. The Answer: As Often As Needed (v.22)
2. The Answer: As Often As Needed (v.22)
22 Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you seven times, but seventy-seven times.
Jesus is using hyperbole
Everything is exaggerated
70x7 is an figure of speech to say that there is no limit to forgive
Things to Keep in Mind
Forgiveness does not mean that there are not consequences
Example: Marriage broken from adultery
Forgiveness is not easy
Forgiveness sometimes is only possible with the aid of the Holy Spirit
3. The Illustration: The Parable of the Unforgiving Servant (vv. 23-35)
3. The Illustration: The Parable of the Unforgiving Servant (vv. 23-35)
3 scenes
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.
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.
Scene 1: The Servant Before His Master
Key Points
Jesus is using hyperbole (extreme exaggerations through the whole passage)
10,000 was the largest number and a talent was the largest unit of measurement
silver talents were worth about 6,000 days wages while gold talents were worth 30 times that
we could try to calculate this value out but and would come to around $800 million in today’s money
Key things to keep in mind
No servant could ever realistically accumulate that amount of money
The master allows the servant to try to come up with a plan to pay it back knowing that the servant can never pay it
The master did not release him to pay him back, but did the unthinkable and forgave the debt.
out of pity means out of compassion - same word used of Jesus when he looked on the people and the city
Douglas Sean O'Donnell in the Preach the Word Commentary writes:
With Jesus’ calculation, the implications are obvious. He puts to rest any notion of works-righteousness.
You’ll only balance it and bridge it by clinging to that old, rugged, and colossal cross! A cross deeper and wider and vaster than you can ever fathom. For if one person’s debt (one person!) is a zillion dollars, what is the debt for the sins of the whole world for which Christ pays?
Christ’s cry on the cross, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (27:46), was the cry of a zillion times a zillion sins laid on one man. Yes, the cross of Christ is deeper and wider and vaster than you can ever fathom. And that’s no exaggeration.
Old Hymn:
“He paid a debt He did not owe, I owed a debt I could not pay. I needed someone to wash my sins away. And now I sing a brand new song. Amazing Grace all day long, Christ Jesus paid a debt that I could never pay.”
Scene 2: The Servant with His Fellow Servant
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.
Key points:
In contrast, the servant doesn’t even take time to bask in the freedom that he has just been given
He immediately goes and finds a servant that owes him significantly less
He searched out the man
The amount the servant owed him would be equivalent to around $800
The debt is real and it is a significant amount
It isn’t near the amount that the first servant owed (chump change in comparison)
The servant shows no mercy to the one who owes him
The language used is similar to the same words that the first servant used before his master and would illicit the memory of his being forgiven, but it has no effect on him
He begins to choke him - he is violent with him
To be put in prison until he paid the debt would make this man eternally indebted - there is no opportunity for his debt to be forgiven
Scene 3: The Servant’s Judgment
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.”
Key points:
God knows everything that takes place (what we do and what we think)
There is a day of judgement coming
Some don’t care and will be sent away
Some will think they are saved and will be sent away
Some
