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The Parable of the Forgiving King and the Unforgiving Servant

June 26, 2016 Preacher: Series: For the Life of the Church, For the Life of the World

Scripture: Matthew 18:21–35

Key Truth: In the family of God, we are to grant unlimited forgiveness to our brothers and sisters for their menial debts against us given that our incalculable debt has been forgiven by our gracious Father.

 

Introduction:

 

Q: What best evidences that we truly love one another as Christ has loved us?

“And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.”

Matthew 6:12

 

Unlimited Forgiveness:

Matthew 18:21-22

“Jesus is not concerned with a petty forgiveness that calculates how many offenses can be disregarded before retaliation becomes acceptable. For him forgiveness is wholehearted and constant….It is a way of saying that for Jesus’ followers forgiveness is to be unlimited. For them forgiveness is a way of life. Bearing in mind what they have been forgiven, they cannot withhold forgiveness from any who sin against them.”

Leon Morris, The Gospel According to Matthew

 

Q: Do you struggle with thinking through scenarios that could contradict Jesus’ command to forgive lavishly (i.e. “But what about….?”)? Are there any sins that you struggle with repeating?

 

 

The Forgiving King and Unmerited Grace:

Matthew 18:23-27

“The anthropological realities of the gospel – deep debt and human inability to pay it – are met now by the theological realities of the gospel – a deep forgiveness of all indebtedness by a gracious king.”

Frederick Dale Bruner, Matthew: A Commentary: Volume 2: The Churchbook

 

Q: Do you understand the gravity and size of your debt to God? Do you celebrate the even greater height, breadth, width, and depth of your unmerited forgiveness in Christ?

 

 

The Unforgiving Servant and Deserved Judgment:

Matthew 18:28-35

“…it is precisely because he is a God of such compassion and mercy that he cannot possibly accept as his those devoid of compassion and mercy.”

D.A. Carson, “Matthew” in The Expositor’s Bible Commentary

 

 

Q: Is there anyone that you are struggling to forgive? How can we help you navigate this to the glory of the Lord?

 

Matthew 18:21-35 teaches us that:

-we are to be unlimited in our forgiveness within the family of God

-God granted us unmerited forgiveness for our incalculable debt and set us free in Christ

-we evidence our faith and status as a child of God through our forgiveness of others

“The opening exhortation to forgive without limit…is undergirded by a parable which compares God’s forgiveness to our; it is because there is no limit to God’s generosity to his undeserving people that they in their turn cannot claim the right to withhold forgiveness from their fellow disciples. A community of the forgiven must be a forgiving community.”

R. T. France, The Gospel According to Matthew

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