Matthew 18:21-35 NIV
21 Then Peter came to Jesus
and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins
against me? Up to seven times?”
22 Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven
times, but seventy-seven times.
23 “Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is
like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. 24 As he began the settlement,
a man who owed him ten thousand bags of gold was brought to him. 25 Since he was not able to
pay, the master ordered that he and his wife and his children and all that
he had be sold to repay the debt.
26 “At this the servant fell on his knees
before him. ‘Be patient with me,’ he begged, ‘and I will pay back
everything.’ 27 The servant’s master took pity on him,
canceled the debt and let him go.
28 “But when that servant went out, he
found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred silver coins. He
grabbed him and began to choke him. ‘Pay back what you owe me!’ he demanded.
29 “His fellow servant fell to his knees
and begged him, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay it back.’
30 “But he refused. Instead, he went off
and had the man thrown into prison until he could pay the debt. 31 When the other servants saw
what had happened, they were outraged and went and told their master everything
that had happened.
32 “Then the master called the servant
in. ‘You wicked servant,’ he said, ‘I canceled all that debt of yours because
you begged me to. 33 Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your
fellow servant just as I had on you?’ 34 In anger his master handed
him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed.
35 “This is how my heavenly Father will
treat each of you unless you forgive your brother or sister from your heart.”
Mercy Hug!
Can you measure
forgiveness? Does it have a number? What is forgiveness? When does forgiveness
run out? Who decides the beginning and end of forgiveness? Is my ability to
forgive someone else, power that I hold over and above that other person? Is
the forgiveness I ask for, something I can control? How many times should I
forgive someone? Are there some sins that are just beyond forgiveness?
This gets tough, at
least in my mind. Jesus seems to be saying that forgiveness can’t be counted,
or that it is infinite. Really! How can that be? It seems, to me, that there is
a limit to some of this. But then when I’m the one in need of forgiveness, all
things seem to change.
I go to God each and
every night, think back on my day, pray and acknowledge before God all of those
times, that I can see, where I need to be forgiven. And that doesn’t even count
the times that I’m not aware of, as to how I have offended another person, and
harmed them in some way that I don’t even recall? Well, for me, if there were a
counter keeping track, well then, I’m in deep doo-doo! So, yea, for me, before
God in prayer, please forgive me over and over and over and over…
So, here Peter wants
a bit of a different clarification. How many times should we forgive someone
who has offended us, or sinned against us? We want to limit that, after all!
This can’t just go on and on. This behavior must STOP! STOP NOW!
And that cycles my
thinking back to one of my initial questions… Do I hold the power over
forgiveness? Is it mine to decide when, how, or even how many times to forgive?
I like to think so, but when I turn forgiveness around, not so much.
My sin is so great,
I could never repay God for all of it. So, now what do I do? If I look to
justice, my sin brings death, or at a minimum, a prison sentence.
I can only go on
with God’s mercy. Sure, I’m accountable before God. I can’t get away with, “The
devil made me do it stuff, like Flip Wilson used to say, I think on the
“Laugh-in” show of the 70s. Nope, maybe the devil talked me into it, however, I
did do it! My sin is too much for me. I stand in the presence of God “guilty.”
Therefore, on my own, the Kingdom of God is out of reach for me.
Yet, as I stand in
the presence of God, He gives me His grace and love, and forgives me. Why? I’m
really not sure why, but I’m assured, through Jesus that I am forgiven. And in
this grace is a life transformed, or free, to live anew IN the Kingdom of God.
How? Certainly NOT by what I have done, BUT by what God does FOR, and TO, me.
I can’t settle the
account of my sin, by extracting the payment from my brother, sister, mother,
father, or neighbor, either. This is MY doing, and nothing from them can undo
what I have done. So, turning to this world, this people, my family, or
anything else to pay the debt that I owe God, is just false, and cruel to the
people I love. This is all on me. Yes, I am a slave to my sin, and cannot free
myself.
To many this “Slave
to sin and cannot free myself,” will sound familiar. This is part of the weekly
corporate confession before God, and all God’s people, each Sunday. To admit
this IS very important. If we don’t admit, confess, or even announce our
weakness to sin before God, and one another, we just may think that we can,
with our own efforts be validated before God and receive His grace, because of
things we have done. It doesn’t work that way. I could never do enough to earn
my salvation, no prayer, no good work, no confession, no anything that I do,
earns me the ticket into the Kingdom of God. NOTHING that I do!
I need God to jump
in to all of this FOR me!
So, I see how cruel
it would be for me to play God with someone who has sinned against me to
collect, in my favor, the payment my neighbor owes me for his sins against me.
That’s just silly pride, silly ego, and just plain silly, for me to hold
someone else’s sin over their heads, when my sin is before God, in His
presence.
But look what God
did with my sin! When I fall at His feet, He forgives me! Wow!
So, I see, as God
forgave me my great debt of sin, I too must forgive my neighbor who sins
against me. That’s my response to God’s grace! My response is to freely, and
willingly, forgive the debts of others who sin against me. And do it joyfully!
Why? Well, look at what God has done for me, or you, or anyone else! Forgive
one another, people!
If not! Then be
willing to stand and account for your sinfulness, on your own, and receive what
you really deserve before God. This parable ends with the reality of death, in
the face of God, if you think you can be saved on your own, through your own
actions. You CAN’T! Harsh, but honest, words from Jesus, to draw us in love, to,
and for, one another, as we live together in this sinful, evil, world, in our
sinful, evil, lives.
A tough message that
is FILLED with the Grace of God!
Look at Matthew
18:35 once again….
“That is how My heavenly Father will treat each of you
unless you forgive your brother from your heart.”
What is the “THAT”
here? It’s the anger of God! So, take heed, forgive one another over and over
and over and over again… again and again and again and again!
Remember?
“Forgive us our
trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.”
What does this mean?
(Luther’s Explanation)
We ask in this
prayer that our Father in heaven would not hold our sins against us, and
because of them, refuse to hear our prayer, and we pray that He would give us
everything by Grace, for we sin every day, and deserve nothing but punishment.
So, we, on our part will heartily forgive, and gladly do good, to those who sin
against us.
Mull over that a
while. Reread the passage and the parable from Matthew. Let it sink in…
Lord, let me NOT
assume that I stand in Your place, regarding forgiveness. I see my sin, I see
my neighbor’s sin, yet I see how You forgive. I see how you teach me in prayer
to forgive, AS I TOO, have been forgiven. Let me never turn from this, or even
turn this AGAINST my neighbor. I ask
that You would NOT hold my sin against me, but rather be gracious to me, for I
see and know my sin every day. And likewise respond to Your gracious
forgiveness, TO forgive those who sin against me. Over and over and over again…
Father, I rejoice in
Your compassion and grace, especially in the face of my sinful self. Give me a
heart of compassion and grace towards all those who sin, and have sinned
against me. Why do I ask this? So that together with You, in Your glorious
Kingdom, we may have fellowship and love, with one another.
Lord, lead me and
guide me away from standing in self-righteous judgment, over my brother or
sister in this world. Teach me to be compassionate, and graceful, and
forgiving. We’re all in the same boat, as the expression goes; and we need you
to forgive us daily from sin.
What to make of this
week’s study of this passage? First, I think of the humility as discussed in
recent past posts. I’m humbled in the presence of God, and I’m also humbled in
the presence of my neighbor. I can’t “Lord” anything over anyone else. I may
have committed different sins than my neighbor has, but they aren’t any
different in the long run. Both myself and my neighbor fall to sin. So, in the
presence of God, WE NEED, forgiveness. Forgiveness over and over and over
again.
I’m thankful, when
God or neighbor point out my sinfulness. I don’t like it. Who would? But I need
just that. I need God AND neighbor to spin me around and show me my sin. That’s
NOT easy stuff. It seems harder to take in, when my neighbor points out my sin.
Pride gets in my way. But somehow, someway, I must depend on God to humble me
in the presence of my family, neighbor, brother, sister, whomever, to fall at
their feet and seek forgiveness. And that’s NOT the confession part. That’s the
realization part that I NEED help!
The Confession part
comes when I, in the presence of God, or neighbor, turn for help. I confess
that I NEED help! I confess that, in my sin, I’m a lost and condemned person. I
confess that my sin, and the destruction it has caused, is BEYOND my own
fixing. I confess that I NEED a Savior.
And that’s where, I
am so, so, glad that Jesus comes to me and offers His mercy, His love, His
forgiveness. How can I not be drawn to Jesus’ own words from the cross…
Luke 23:34 NIV
34 Then Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they
do.”
That says it all. I
don’t realize the impact of my sin. Yet, as Jesus was on that cross, He forgave
us. Kind of hard to understand. And that’s the love of God, prepared for all
mankind, BEFORE the creation. Fireworks explode and my mind is blown!
So, as I see how God
has chosen to forgive me, I TOO, shall follow in that forgiveness for my
neighbor. It’s hard stuff here. It’s hard to do, in the presence of my sinful
hatred, my BIG false ego, my greed, and need for power, over and above the
other. Yep, even in the presence of my neighbor’s request for my forgiveness,
for a sin that he committed against me… I AM HUMBLED! And in that humility, God
calls me to forgive… over and over and over again. May I heed that call, and be
obedient to God, in the presence of my neighbor, AND, FORGIVE… today… tomorrow…
and forever. --- Thanks be to God for His forgiveness, grace, and mercy!
I was led to
confession this week --- May this piece of music inspire you… “Forgive Me,
Lord, for I Have Sinned”
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