Word of Salvation – Vol.51 No.35 - July 2006

 

Forgiven and Forgiving

 

A Sermon by Rev Allan Quak on Matthew 18:21-35

Scripture Reading:  Matthew 6:9-15

Suggested Hymns: BoW 22A; 416; 498

 

Brothers and sisters in the Lord.

Has it ever struck you how often Peter over-estimates his ability to understand the ways of the Lord? Just think about it for a moment.

Who stepped out of the boat to walk to the Lord, only to sink into the sea?

Peter.

Who said he would never deny Christ?

Peter.

Of whom did Jesus say, 'Get behind me Satan'?

Peter.

On so many occasions he just assumes far too much.

And the same is happening in this text. When it comes to the issue of forgiveness, Peter assumes that to forgive seven times is enough. After all, the spiritual leaders of Israel would not forgive a man when he came back a fourth time for forgiveness for the same offence. Peter is sure seven times is ample, otherwise people are just going to walk all over you. That is the sort of thinking Peter has in mind. But Jesus comes and he ups the ante ... not seven times, but seventy seven times. Or, as your Bible footnote points out, it could also be translated "seventy times seven" which is 490 times. Either way, the essence of Jesus' answer is clear.

In contrast to Peter, Jesus makes it clear that you can never forgive enough ... our forgiveness must be total. That is a difficult ask, isn't it? Especially when you start to list some reasons why you shouldn't forgive.

If someone is so bad that they sin against you 77 times a day ... shouldn't you try and straighten them out a bit first?

Can a person be serious about their faith if they sin against you so much?

Wouldn't it be better to be tough and not forgive until they showed signs of change?

If someone has sinned against you ... don't they have obligations as well?

Aren't I just setting myself up to be continually hurt if I continually forgive in this way?

Imagine if you were placed in this situation. Called to extend forgiveness to one who sins against you more than seven times a day. Would you to continue extend forgiveness indefinitely, just as Jesus requires? How would you react to such a person?

Along with Peter we can find many reasons not to forgive, or to give conditional forgiveness. But that becomes a real problem for people who regularly say the Lord's Prayer.

In the Lord's Prayer these are the words Jesus taught us to pray:

Forgive us our debts as we also have forgiven our debtors (Mt 6:12).

But, in the same context, we are also told by Jesus why we pray such words:

For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins (Mt 6:14-15).

So we are put into this dilemma since the regularity which comes with praying the Lord's Prayer is a regularity which reminds us of our ongoing need to be determined to forgive our neighbour as evidence of the grace which has been shown to us.

How many times shall I forgive my brother? This is not a simple academic question. It is a question that gets to the very heart of our understanding of the grace of the Lord in our own lives. It is also a question that has significant implications for our prayer life. Because if we can't forgive ... something about our relationship to Jesus is being indicated.

Jesus realises all of this, and he wants to teach his disciples ... so he uses a very memorable parable to answer the question. It starts with a man who has an almost infinite debt ... in monetary terms it is a debt of 10,000 talents. Is that a lot of money? Well a labourer, like a grape-picker, received one denarii for a day's work. It took 6000 denarii to make 1 talent ... which means this servant has a debt of 60 million denarii, or 60 million days of work. That is about 165,000 years of non stop work. The payment for this huge debt is impossible.

But Jesus didn't tell the parable so that He could point to monetary debt - the focus here is the magnitude of our debt to God. We have an infinite debt of sin. We are born in sin. Our minds are tuned to sinning. We are always tempted by it. We often surrender to it. We cannot avoid it. This is not an exaggeration - this is the reality of sin in our lives. But the saddest fact of all is that this sin is directed against God. Every time we sin it's as if we are throwing sand into the face of God and saying, "Your ways are not good enough for me. I have chosen to follow an alternative answer to my questions".

And how does the Father respond to all this sin? He does not hold our sin against us. He does not treat us as we deserve. Instead, because of the blood of Christ, He takes us and justifies us through faith in Christ. We are the ones who incurred the debt. We are the miserable sinners who gave up perfection for the sake of a piece of fruit. We were enticed by the prince of darkness. Yet God takes the necessary steps to keep hold of us and forgive our debt through Christ.

And as God forgives he also makes a two-fold promise.

Firstly, God promises that He will not remember those things which He has forgiven. He will not continue to bring them before us. He will not continue to treat us as sinners. Rather, He sees us as we are in Christ: perfect, redeemed, righteous and holy. That is what justification is all about. Just as if I had never sinned, nor been a sinner.

Secondly God promises to accept us as we are. We are the struggling redeemed ... yet God accepts us. For we are not just sinners, we are sinners who have received the riches of God's grace through the blood of Christ. God does not see us as people who gather numerous demerit points each day. Rather, God sees us as holy, righteous and blameless. Believers who have been forgiven through the blood of Christ.

God in His grace shows pity. He is the master in the parable who forgave that huge debt. Our debt is so great it cannot even be given a monetary value. But, when we plead for patience from God, we have hope. God has infinitely more mercy then we have debt. Forgiveness is ours for God is boundless in grace. The servant in this parable has received this incredible grace.

But look at what the servant does with that grace. As soon as he has been released he goes and finds a fellow servant who owes 100 denarii - 100 days wages. And what a spectacle he makes. He is so full of anger that he begins the encounter by grabbing his fellow servant around the neck and choking him. "Pay back what you owe me." If you compare verses 26 and 29 you will notice that the pleas for forgiveness of both men are almost identical. Be patient with me and I will pay you back. Does this plea refresh the mind of the servant who, moments before used the same words before his master? Does this servant intend to forgive just as his master had? Far from it! The one who had so much forgiven is unable to forgive so little.

No wonder those who witnessed this situation are greatly distressed. The text literally says, "They were grieved". It is a grief which comes when one witnesses injustice. It would have taken the first servant 165,000 years to remove his debt. It would take 3 1/2 months for the second servant to do the same. The inconsistency in this parable is that one who has been forgiven so much is unable to forgive so little. He didn't really appreciate the forgiving love of the master, which means he couldn't show that same grace to others.

And here we are today. We are people who have been hurt by others ... they have sinned against us. Maybe it was a verbal attack. Or an emotional attack. Maybe we have been betrayed. Or at the receiving end of a deceitful scheme. Whatever the case, it was unwarranted; unfair; unnecessary. What's been your reaction in such a situation? Do you kick yourself for not retaliating when you had the chance? Do you remember the insignificant things the person has done to you, and magnify these hurts? Do you begin to plan your response for any future attacks by that person? Is that what we do? Or do we take our cue from the Scriptures? The challenge for us is to be willing to have the Lord forgive us our debts in the same way that we have forgiven our debtors.

It is a huge call isn't it, especially when you remember the qualifying words of Jesus. If you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins. We are forgiving people because God has forgiven us. If we can't be forgiving people, then we have to begin to wonder if we have understood God's forgiveness to us. That is what happens in this parable. Very soon this servant will be facing his master - only this time compassion will be far from the master's heart. Before, the master had pity; now he is angry. Before, the master let the servant go; now he is to be jailed and tortured. Before, the debt was removed; now every part of that debt is expected to be repaid - despite the fact that it will be a never ending job. Mercy has turned into justice. And why? The servant did not act in a way consistent with the actions that had been shown to him. Clearly the servant was never grateful for the forgiveness he received. Or else he, too, would have forgiven the sin of those who were in debt to him.

We pray the prayer, "Forgive us as we also have forgiven others". We also need to live the prayer. A forgiven person is always a forgiving person. That is the foundation. And what happens when we remember and build on this foundation? It's quite simple really. We forgive in the same way that the Lord forgave us. We follow the pattern set by the Lord Jesus Christ Himself. When Christ forgives, the sin exists no more. It's as if there is a clean slate. In Christ we are forgiven and restored. In gratitude our forgiveness to others reflects this approach. When Christ forgives He treats us as a friend, not as an enemy. He will go to any length to protect and uphold our name. In gratitude our forgiveness to others reflects this approach. When Christ forgives he doesn't look for a way to retaliate and even the score. He doesn't broad over the offence. He forgives and works towards building a stronger relationship with us. In gratitude our forgiveness to others reflects this approach.

True forgiveness is the type of forgiveness which God shows. God does not remember those things for which we have sought forgiveness. He does not treat us as if we still live according to our sinful nature. Our forgiveness toward one another needs to be the same. So when we forgive, we are actually making a promise to those who have hurt us; a promise to help them. When people are seeking to overcome their sin they need nurture and love, not condemnation. When people are seeking to be more Christ-like they need you to pray for them, they don't need you to have pity on yourself.

Your promise to forgive means you treat those who sin against you as God does. They are not people who have struck out against you. They are not people who have committed any wrong against you. Rather they are people whom you should trust. For they are people who have sought your forgiveness. Forgiveness is not easy. Our sinful nature lures us away from our responsibilities. We are easily tempted to find excuses for not forgiving. We have a tendency to break the promises we make when we extend forgiveness.

The next time you need to forgive, but find it difficult, think of this picture. See a man, who is the Son of God, walking along the road. He has been beaten so severely that his face is distorted - a man of sorrows from whom people are turning away in disgust. This man, the King of the universe, has a crown of thorns pressed deeply into His skull. And the blood which is pouring from the punctures mixes with His sweat as he struggles under the burden of a heavy cross. Now picture yourself going to this man - the man upon whom sin ... your sin ... has been laid. The man who will know first hand what it means to be crushed under the wrath of God. You go to Him. He looks at you. With all his compassion, mercy and love He says to you, "I'm doing this so that you may be forgiven".

Forgive in the same way the Lord forgave you. This is our attitude of gratitude in response to God's grace. Every time we pray the Lord's Prayer it's a commitment we make. But how hard it is to walk on this path of gratitude! If you find yourself starting to have the "yes-but" mentality, look to the cross. For there you will see a picture of forgiveness in its fullest glory. And, compared to this act, how insignificant and easy your forgiveness to others should become.

Amen.