“Therefore the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a
king who wished to settle accounts with his servants. When he began to settle,
one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents. 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. So the servant fell on his knees,
imploring him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything.’ And out of pity for him, the master of that
servant released him and forgave him the debt. 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.’ So his fellow servant fell down and pleaded
with him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you.’ He refused and went and put him in prison until
he should pay the debt. 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. Then his master summoned him and said to him,
‘You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with
me. And should not you have had mercy on
your fellow servant, as I had mercy on you?’
And in anger his master delivered him to the jailers, until he should
pay all his debt. So also my heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you
do not forgive your brother from your heart.”[2]
In settling His accounts with us, our Lord acts not with anger, but with compassion. He does not imprison us as we deserve, but He forgives all our debts and releases us (Matthew 18:23–27). Therefore, our Lord bids each of us to have “mercy on your fellow servant” and “forgive your brother from your heart.” (Matthew 18:33,35). By the Lord’s forgiveness of our sins, we are free to forgive those who sin against us, because He has been handed over to the jailers in our stead, and He has paid our entire debt with His lifeblood.
Why scorekeeping does not work.
Not reconciliation but retaliation is
the operating principle in the world these days. Jesus flatly contradicts the
world’s procedure and lays down a better principle. By means of the parable
found in this morning’s Gospel He says to us; “Make forgiveness your aim.”
I. Our forgiveness is empowered by the Father’s forgiveness.
A. The debt the King forgave was great. “There was brought to him one who owed him ten thousand talents.” - Matthew 18:24
We might get lost in the
translation so Jesus wastes little time making His point. A “talent” was considered about twenty
year’s wages. While a denarius; was
considered a day’s pay.
So how much debt are we comparing? About
three month’s worth of expenses; (for those of you who listen to Dave Ramsey –
your emergency fund) and 200,000 years worth of pay for the other.
Each had debts which neither could pay.
And it was the king who loaned out his money in the first place. This is a
story of your Father’s amazing grace!
This king is both rich and reckless. He is rich in
mercy. He is dripping in love. He offers
plenteous redemption. He is reckless in His compassion. He bestows kindness to
those who are certainly undeserving.
Your debt of sin includes not only trespasses
and transgressions – sins of commission – which can be seen and noticed by all.
There are also sins of omission. That, which we should have done, but failed to
do. Not doing what is right or failing to do as instructed are serious wrongs
for our omission is simply willful disobedience.
Not noticing the lonely person, not
speaking an encouraging word, not helping a neighbor in need are just as
serious and dangerous as James has taught, “to
one who knows the right thing to do and does not do it, to him it is sin.”
James 4:17
And as St. John writes, “whoever has the world’s goods and sees his
brother in need and closes his heart against him, how does the love of God
abide in him? Little children, let us not love with word or with tongue, but in
deed and truth.” 1 John 3:17-18
This debt -you cannot pay. "The slave therefore falling down, prostrated
himself before him, saying, 'Have patience with me, and I will repay you
everything.' -v 26
This fellow could have worked every
minute of every hour of every day for the rest of his life and still he could
not work off his debt. 200,000 years he owed the King.
This is exactly the point the Savior is
making. Good intentions will not suffice. Your best efforts won’t remove your
guilt. The load’s too heavy. It weighs too much.
B.
Yet, this King
moved with compassion forgave at a great cost.
Our debt to God had to be paid. Jesus
paid it all, down to the past penny. “He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross
that we might die to sin and live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were
healed.” - 1 Peter 2:24
The Father forgives for Jesus’ sake. So says the prophet Micah - “Who is a God like Thee, who pardons iniquity
and passes over the rebellious act of the remnant of His possession? He does
not retain His anger forever, because He delights in unchanging love.” -
7:18 It is only when you experience God’s forgiveness that forgiveness can now
be your aim.
His greatest act of love was something
no parable could properly express, only the clear words of the Gospel. Jesus gave His life for yours, taking all
your sins away as His own on the cross.
His empty tomb heals you in full through the forgiveness of sins.
II.
Our forgiveness now is an imitating of God’s
forgiveness.
You forgive from the heart. - "So shall My heavenly Father also do to you,
if each of you does not forgive his brother from your heart." -
Matthew 18:35
This does not mean that you can always
forget the offense. The memory of it may still disturb you at times. It does
mean that you do not allow the evil, which was done to separate you from that
other person.
How can this happen? With God all things
are possible. That is why Christ comes to you through the Gospel. When you
learn to know and understand the message of forgiveness; which only Jesus can
afford – He helps you to forgive as Stephen did when he prayed, “Lord do not hold this sin against them!”
Acts 7:60
This servant set a limit. - "But that slave went out and found one of his
fellow slaves who owed him a hundred denarii; and he seized him and began to
choke him saying, 'Pay back what you owe.' -v28
Peter wanted to set a limit also. - “Then
Peter came and said to Him, "Lord, how often shall my brother sin against
me and I forgive him? Up to seven times?" – v 21
Peter was being gracious. The Rabbis taught that if
your neighbor sins against you in one day you are to forgive three times. Peter
offers seven. Twice the legal limit plus one more for good measure. Yet Jesus
replies, “Not seven but seventy times!”
v.22 Christ’s forgiveness is beyond measure.
He’s your Good Shepherd. Content to leave behind
ninety-nine of His herd in safety. Who will risk all. To save just one, that is
lost.
We too stand accused of setting a limit.
On our time. On our commitments. And yes, at times, on our forgiveness. Yet if
we are to imitate the Father’s forgiveness – this Merciful Master – this
uncontrolled King the spirit of vengeance cannot be permitted to rise.
B.
You reflect the
love of this reckless King. The unforgiving servant reflected hate, not love. -
"He was unwilling however, but went and
threw him in prison until he should pay back what was owed.” – Vv.28-30
The tragedy of this unforgiving servant
is that he had to keep score. He believed he had it within himself to settle
his debts if only he were given enough time to work it off. He considered the
King to be cruel and impatient.
And being relieved of his debt immediately he goes
after another; demanding that he settle up. That’s the problem when you attempt
to keep score. Scorekeeping inhibits
your ability to empathize. It threatens to foster resentment in your
relationships. Because scorekeeping is biased. You cannot win. Those numbers you’re
watching. That score you’re keeping. Are always stacked against you.
You child are difference. You reflect
the Father’s love to the meanest and the worst. The worst that can be done to
you is still only a pinprick compared to what we have done to Christ. By
forgiving you beget love rather than breeding retaliation.
[2] The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
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