MATTHEW 18:21-35 Then Peter came up and said to him, “Lord, how often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?” 22 Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you seven times, but seventy-seven times. 23 “Therefore the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his servants. 24 When he be-gan to settle, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents. 25 And since he could not pay, his master ordered him to be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and payment to be made. 26 So the servant fell on his knees, im-ploring him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything.’ 27 And out of pity for him, the master of that servant released him and forgave him the debt. 28 But when that same servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hun-dred denarii, and seizing him, he began to choke him, saying, ‘Pay what you owe.’ 29 So his fellow servant fell down and pleaded with him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you.’ 30 He refused and went and put him in prison until he should pay the debt. 31 When his fellow servants saw what had taken place, they were greatly distressed, and they went and reported to their master all that had taken place. 32 Then his mas-ter summoned him and said to him, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me. 33 And should not you have had mercy on your fellow servant, as I had mercy on you?’ 34 And in anger his master delivered him to the jailers, until he should pay all his debt. 35 So also my heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother from your heart.”
I. We have a
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II. God gives us
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III. God
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Quotes
• “I am a ten-thousand-talents debtor to God and have not a penny with which to discharge it, and therefore unless His sovereign grace takes pity upon me and gives me everything for nothing, there is no hope whatever for me.” - A.W. Pink
• “This parable warns us that a lack of forgiveness is a deadly sin, closing the door to God’s mercy.” – C.H. Spurgeon
• “The punishment of the unforgiving servant teaches us that God’s mercy does not excuse us from the obligation to show mercy ourselves.” – Origen of Alexandria
• “In the end, those who refuse to forgive will find themselves bound by their own chains of unforgiveness” - John Owen
• “God’s forgiveness towards us demands that we forgive others; otherwise, we remain in our own prison of bitterness.” - C.S. Lewis
Discussion Questions:
1. How does the Parable of the Unforgiving Servant resonate with you personally? What lessons do you take from it?
2. How does the king’s act of forgiving his servant’s debt illus-trate God’s mercy toward us?
3. Share a time when someone wronged you and you struggled to forgive them. How did you handle it, and what helped you move toward forgiveness?
4. Do you believe there should be a limit to forgiveness? Why or why not?
5. What are the spiritual and emotional consequences of har-boring unforgiveness?
6. What does it mean to you that forever forgiven people are to be forever forgiving people?
7. Who do you need to forgive today?