Seven Times?

Then Peter approached him and asked, “Lord, how many times must I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? As many as seven times?” —Matthew 18:21 CSB

Jewish rabbis taught that 3x was the magic number.
Peter thought he was showing great faith and love when he offered to forgive at least seven times.

70 x 7

“I tell you, not as many as seven,” Jesus replied, “but seventy times seven. —Matthew 18:22 CSB

Jesus tells Peter and the rest of the His disciples that they should forgive continuously and without limit.

This is normal forgiveness.

Unforgiving Servant

“For this reason, the kingdom of heaven can be compared to a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. When he began to settle accounts, one who owed ten thousand talents was brought before him. Since he did not have the money to pay it back, his master commanded that he, his wife, his children, and everything he had be sold to pay the debt. —Matthew 18:23–25 CSB

To help you wrap your mind around this… The servant owes roughly 150,000 years’ worth of wages — an absurdly insurmountable debt.

“At this, the servant fell facedown before him and said, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you everything.’ Then the master of that servant had compassion, released him, and forgave him the loan. —Matthew 18:26–27 CSB

In a moment, the master completely erases a 150,000 year debt.
The debt has been completely forgiven.

“That servant went out and found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii. He grabbed him, started choking him, and said, ‘Pay what you owe!’ —Matthew 18:28 CSB

A hundred denarii = 100 days’ wages — Not insignificant, but a paltry sum in comparison to the servant’s debt.

You’d expect the servant who has already received a far greater pardon, to readily extend forgiveness to his fellow man.

“At this, his fellow servant fell down and began begging him, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you back.’ But he wasn’t willing. Instead, he went and threw him into prison until he could pay what was owed. When the other servants saw what had taken place, they were deeply distressed and went and reported to their master everything that had happened. Then, after he had summoned him, his master said to him, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you begged me. Shouldn’t you also have had mercy on your fellow servant, as I had mercy on you?’ And because he was angry, his master handed him over to the jailers to be tortured until he could pay everything that was owed. So also my heavenly Father will do to you unless every one of you forgives his brother or sister from your heart.” —Matthew 18:29–35 CSB

Normal Forgiveness

It’s easy to assume we’re the servant who owes 100 denarii and not the servant who owe 10,000 talents.

For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. —Romans 6:23 CSB

The wage you earned because of your sin is death.
You are the servant who owes 10,000 talents.

This is the point / heart of the parable — Shouldn’t you forgive and have mercy on other, as God has had mercy on you?

Prison of Offense

The world’s worst prison is the prison of an unforgiving heart.

When we refuse to forgive others, then we are only imprisoning ourselves and causing our own torment.

Forgiveness Defined

Forgiveness does not mean what they did was okay.
Forgiveness does not mean you have to remain best friends.
Forgiveness does not mean you don’t put up some healthy boundaries to protect you and your family.
Forgiveness means… they don’t owe you AND you don’t owe them.

Experiencing Forgiveness

If we live only according to justice, always seeking to get what is ours, we will put ourselves into prison.

But if we live according to forgiveness, sharing with others what God has freely shared with us, then we will enjoy freedom and joy.

And be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving one another, just as God also forgave you in Christ. —Ephesians 4:32 CSB

bearing with one another and forgiving one another if anyone has a grievance against another. Just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you are also to forgive. —Colossians 3:13 CSB

This is what normal forgiveness looks like. It shouldn’t be considered radical to live this way.

“Therefore, you should pray like this: Our Father in heaven, your name be honored as holy. Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And do not bring us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. “For if you forgive others their offenses, your heavenly Father will forgive you as well. But if you don’t forgive others, your Father will not forgive your offenses. —Matthew 6:9–15 CSB

Jesus says, if you have truly experienced God’s forgiveness, then you ought to have a readiness to forgive others.