June 15th & June 19th, 2022
The Conversationalist
The Parable of the Unforgiving Debtor
15 “If another believer sins against you, go privately and point out the offense. If the other person listens and confesses it, you have won that person back.
16 But if you are unsuccessful, take one or two others with you and go back again, so that everything you say may be confirmed by two or three witnesses.
17 If the person still refuses to listen, take your case to the church. Then if he or she won’t accept the church’s decision, treat that person as a pagan or a corrupt tax collector.18 “I tell you the truth, whatever you forbid on earth will be forbidden in heaven, and whatever you permit on earth will be permitted in heaven. 19 “I also tell you this: If two of you agree here on earth concerning anything you ask, my Father in heaven will do it for you. 20 For where two or three gather together as my followers, I am there among them.”21 Then Peter came to him and asked, “Lord, how often should I forgive someone who sins against me? Seven times?”
—Matthew 18:15-21 NLT
FORGIVEN PEOPLE MAKE A CHOICE.
“No, not seven times,” Jesus replied, “but seventy times seven!
—Matthew 18:22 NLT
23 “Therefore, the Kingdom of Heaven can be compared to a king who decided to bring his accounts up to date with servants who had borrowed money from him. 24 In the process, one of his debtors was brought in who owed him millions of dollars.25 He couldn’t pay, so his master ordered that he be sold—along with his wife, his children, and everything he owned—to pay the debt.
26 “But the man fell down before his master and begged him, ‘Please, be patient with me, and I will pay it all.’ 27 Then his master was filled with pity for him, and he released him and forgave his debt.
28 “But when the man left the king, he went to a fellow servant who owed him a few thousand dollars. He grabbed him by the throat and demanded instant payment. 29 “His fellow servant fell down before him and begged for a little more time. ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay it,’ he pleaded.
—Matthew 18:23-29 NLT
30 But his creditor wouldn’t wait. He had the man arrested and put in prison until the debt could be paid in full. 31 “When some of the other servants saw this, they were very upset. They went to the king and told him everything that had happened. 32 Then the king called in the man he had forgiven and said, ‘You evil servant! I forgave you that tremendous debt because you pleaded with me. 33 Shouldn’t you have mercy on your fellow servant, just as I had mercy on you?’ 34 Then the angry king sent the man to prison to be tortured until he had paid his entire debt.
—Matthew 18:30-34 NLT
FORGIVEN PEOPLE FORGIVE PEOPLE.
That’s what my heavenly Father will do to you if you refuse to forgive your brothers and sisters from your heart.”
—Matthew 18:35 NLT
REASON 1 - I forgive because of the cross.
REASON 2 - I have no desire to live a life of bitterness!
REASON 3 - I know that God will give vengeance.
REASON 4 - I don’t need to justify any bad behavior.
Do not take revenge, dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath. For it is written, “Vengeance belongs to me. I will pay them back, declares the Lord.”
—Romans 12:19 ESV
FORGIVEN PEOPLE WORK THE PROCESS.
Therefore, the Kingdom of Heaven can be compared to a king who decided…
—Matthew 18:23 NLT
When you were dead in your trespasses and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our trespasses, having canceled the debt ascribed to us in the decrees that stood against us. He took it away, nailing it to the cross!
—Colossians 2:13,14 BSB
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Next Steps:
1. Today, I invited Jesus in my life to be forgiven and give my life to Him.
2. I desire to go through the process of forgiveness and cancel the debt.
3. I will remind myself I have decided to forgive completely and continually.
4. I would like to commit to 1 gathering a month in Early Childhood.