THE PARABLE OF THE UNFORGIVING SERVANT  (Matthew 18:21-35)

(Or, The Story of the Ungrateful and Unmerciful Debtor)

21 Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me?  Up to seven times?”
22 Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.[1]

23 “Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants.
24 As he began the settlement, a man who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him.
25 Since he was not able to pay, the master ordered that he and his wife and his children and all that he had be sold to repay the debt.
26 “The servant fell on his knees before him.  ‘Be patient with me,’ he begged, ‘and I will pay back everything.’
27 The servant’s master took pity on him, canceled the debt and let him go.

28 “But when that servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii.  He grabbed him and began to choke him.  ‘Pay back what you owe me!’ he demanded.
29 “His fellow servant fell to his knees and begged him, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you back.’
30 “But he refused.  Instead, he went off and had the man thrown into prison until he could pay the debt.

31 When the other servants saw what had happened, they were greatly distressed and went and told their master everything that had happened.
32 “Then the master called the servant in.  ‘You wicked servant,’ he said, ‘I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to.
33 Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?’
34 In anger his master turned him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed.
35 “This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother from your heart.”

 THE GOD OF GRACE IS WILLING TO FORGIVE US OUR DEBT OF SIN.

This parable, found only in Matthew, has an uncomfortable challenge: is there no forgiveness for the unforgiving?  Does God only forgive those who forgive?  The New Testament says the basis of salvation is grace and the means of salvation is faith.  “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith--and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God--not by works, so that no one can boast.” (Ephesians 2:8-9).  The words “kindness”, “love” and “mercy” are features of God’s grace. (Titus 3: 3-7).  God in his grace saves those who believe in Christ.  We cannot earn credit with God by good deeds.

In this story the generous and forgiving king is a symbol of God the Father (verse 35) who is “the God of all grace.” (1 Peter 5:10).  Debt in the New Testament is an image of sin.  We are all God’s debtors.  The heavily indebted servant’s statement “I will pay back everything” symbolizes our hopeless effort at salvation by works.  None of us can pay our debt to God and our only hope is free forgiveness.  God is willing to forgive us all our debt.  The servant’s faith in the king’s promise represents salvation by faith.

The huge size of the first debt illustrates the extent of human sin, and the cancellation of this debt represents the wonderful grace of God’s forgiveness.  The king’s compassion could not be earned: the servant is pardoned only because of the king’s undeserved mercy.  Like this servant, all of us have an unpayable debt to God and we deserve his punishment.  We all depend absolutely on the generous and forgiving grace of God for the forgiveness of our sin.

THE PARABLE ILLUSTRATES THE NECESSITY OF FORGIVENESS.

This parable occurs between the context of Jesus’ teaching on church discipline and the question of divorce and remarriage.  Both these issues involve forgiveness.  Jesus’ previous teaching on reconciliation prompted Peter’s question in verse 21.  This parable concerns forgiveness between brothers, or fellow-disciples, not between lost sinners and God (verses 15, 21).  The emphasis in this chapter is on forgiveness within the Christian community and the issue in this parable is repeated personal forgiveness.  In an age of lawsuits and demands for legal rights, Jesus’ teaching sounds almost impossible.

Jesus was not advising an automatic or casual forgiveness.  Christian love is not blind (Philippians 1:9-10).  The forgiveness Christ requires is based on the instructions of verses 15-20 in Matthew chapter 18.  In the parallel passage of Luke 17:3-4, the condition of forgiveness is “I repent.”  Forgiveness needs to be asked for with genuine repentance. 

The words “seven times in a day” (Luke 17:4) symbolize completeness, i.e. as often as it is required.  Jesus multiplied the numbers seven and ten, that symbolize completeness, and added another seven.  This is not a magic number for forgiveness.  Rather his use of symbolic numbers point to complete forgiveness and unlimited mercy, and reject a calculating approach to forgiveness.  Peter thought he was doing well by offering to forgive “seven times”.  However, the “seventy-seven times” of verse 22 not only put Peter’s “seven” in the shade, but gave a pointed answer to an ancient boast of revenge: “If Cain is avenged seven times, then Lamech seventy-seven times” (Genesis 4:24).  Lamech wanted unlimited revenge while Jesus taught unlimited forgiveness.  The two opposing attitudes of Lamech and Jesus are worlds apart, and are still alive today.

THE MAIN CHARACTER EXPERIENCED THREE STAGES.

1. He was a debtor (verses 24-27)
   Given the size of his debt, the servant was probably a highly placed official in the service of a king.  The man’s position was hopeless and desperate, except for the compassion of the king.  With limited resources and little hope, he begged for time and promised to pay everything back, which was impossible.  The unforgiving servant did not admit his helplessness to repay.  The king’s response was very unusual.  He was “heart-sorry” (Barclay) or “moved with compassion” (KJV) for the servant.  The heavily indebted servant did not deserve this forgiveness; it was simply an act of love and mercy on the part of the master who cancelled the whole amount at great cost to himself.  Similarly God’s mercy is boundless and undeserved.
   

2. He was a creditor (verses 28-30)
   The debtor then appeared as a creditor.  The second servant’s debt was insignificant compared to what the first servant had owed the king.  There are no exact equivalents in modern currency for the sums involved.  The servant owed the king 10,000 talents, an enormous amount that indicates an infinite debt.  The annual taxation of the provinces of Judea, Idumea and Samaria amounted to 200 talents while that of Galilee and Perea was 600 talents.[2]  The point is the unpayable nature of the debt.  The extent of the contrast is something like “two or three million dollars” and “two or three hundred dollars.”  The contrast is between the infinitely great and the infinitely small.
   
   Instead of sharing the joy of his own release, the servant brutally mistreated his fellow debtor and demanded immediate repayment.  The first servant had been forgiven all, and he in turn should have forgiven all.  The second debtor used the same approach as the first servant (cf verses 26 and 29).  But the first servant was unwilling to give to others what he wanted others to give him.  He had different standard for others other than the standard he set for himself.  While he had the legal right to throw the man in prison but he did not have the moral right to do so.  This was justice without mercy. 

3. He became a prisoner (verses 31-34)
   The man had a cruel, heartless, and unforgiving spirit.  He was still enjoying the king’s mercy when he ruthlessly demanded repayment of a debt that was, by comparison with his own, very small.  Forgiven himself, he should have forgiven another.  By putting his debtor in prison he denied the man the opportunity of repayment.  He gained a new debt by the offences of ingratitude and heartlessness.  Lack of mercy is evil (verse 32).
   
   The king revoked his former decision and called him “wicked”.  The story teaches that the debt may come back.  The king had originally delivered him from prison but the servant put himself back in prison from which he probably would never be released.  Again, this was justice without mercy.  The king did not try to persuade the ungrateful servant to be reasonable.  Instead, he gave him to the “torturers” (NKJV) or “tormentors” (KJV) who are “symbols of whatever agencies God employs in the work of righteous retribution: the stings of conscience, the scorn and reproach of men, whatever elements of suffering lie in the life beyond the grave.”[3] 

The choice for us is either our forgiveness of others in response to God’s mercy and love, or God’s condemnation.  The greatness of God’s mercy is the measure of God’s anger.  The prison sentence may have its counterpart not only in final condemnation but here and now, in the unmerciful servant’s self-chosen unforgiveness and bitterness.  Hell exists for eternity and is self-chosen.  Jesus saw nothing contradictory in the king’s (i.e. God’s) generous forgiveness and his ruthless punishment.

THE CHRISTIAN DUTY OF UNLIMITED FORGIVENESS

1. Those who are forgiven must forgive.  Jesus taught in the Lord’s Prayer, “Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.  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.” (Matthew 6:12-15)  Christ taught that forgiveness is a both a duty and the expected response to God’s love for us.

2. God’s forgiveness of us requires that we forgive others because God’s grace brings responsibility and obligation.  Paul wrote to the church at Ephesus, “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.” (4:32).  To the Colossian believers he wrote, “Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another.  Forgive as the Lord forgave you.” (3:13).

3. If God has forgiven us the debt we owe him, we are required to forgive our fellow men the debts they owe to us.  This does not mean that God’s grace is conditional.  Nothing people can do to us can in any way compare with what we have done to God.  In the light of God’s incalculable grace to us, it is ludicrous, as well as wicked, for us to refuse to forgive others.  Divine forgiveness and human forgiveness go hand in hand. 

4. God’s forgiveness of sin is not based on one’s forgiveness of others.  Legalism is contrary to God’s grace.  However, a Christian’s forgiveness of others is based on an understanding that he has been forgiven by God’s undeserved and unearned mercy.  Jesus warned that God cannot forgive us if we do not have humble and repentant hearts and we reveal the condition of our hearts by the way we treat others.

5. When our hearts are humble and appreciate God’s grace we gladly forgive others, but when we are proud and revengeful, there can be no true repentance; this means God cannot forgive us.  Those who are unforgiving show that they are unfitted to receive God’s forgiveness.  God will not treat an unforgiving spirit lightly and, as in this story, he is angry with the unforgiving.

6. Failure to forgive a fellow believer shows that a person has not understood God’s forgiveness.  We must not give forgiveness in a grudging spirit.  We must begin with the truth about ourselves.  We owe an infinite debt to God.  We have had all our sins forgiven by faith in Jesus Christ.  We have been forgiven a debt that is beyond all paying, for our sin brought about the death of God’s own Son. 

7. The world’s worst prison is the prison of an unforgiving heart.  If we refuse to forgive others, then we imprison ourselves and cause our own spiritual and emotional torment.[4]  The unmerciful servant had received forgiveness but he had not experienced forgiveness deep in his heart.  Therefore he could not share forgiveness with those who had wronged him.  If we would know close fellowship with God and peace of mind we must learn to forgive as he does.  How hard do we all find it to forgive others as God has forgiven us!
   
   
8. There is the duty of unlimited forgiveness.  There should be no measure to forgiveness.  Forgiveness must be “from the heart” (verse 35) i.e. sincere and without limit, not pretended, nor merely outward.  It must be practiced whenever occasion arises and should never be refused when sought with repentance.  We shall never manage to be as extravagantly generous as our Creditor!

FORGIVENESS AND RESTORATION REQUIRES THE CO-OPERATION OF BOTH PARTIES.

In Matthew chapter 18 Jesus taught that wrongs committed within the church should be confronted and resolved.  In the context of mercy and forgiveness, he gave a three-step procedure of reconciliation.  The intention is to “win your brother over”, and the restoration of broken relationships, not punishment.  Therefore the minimum of publicity must be used.

Jesus said that the offended party should first seek to bring the offender to repentance in private.  Jesus specifically said, “If your brother sins against you, go and show him his fault, just between the two of you.  If he listens to you, you have won your brother over.” (verse 15).  The offended party is expected to make a reasonable effort to win the offending party.  The next step involves witnesses.  Only if those steps fail is it necessary to involve “the church” or the local congregation.  Excommunication, or the exclusion of a member from the church, is only a last resort.

CONCLUSION

“This parable faces us with a decision: either we chose to live in the realm of grace, both receiving and offering forgiveness; or we opt for relationship based on law, demanding our dues from others but burdened by our own debt toward God.”[5]  Peter tried to justify his idea of limited forgiveness on the basis of law while Jesus emphasized God’s limitless forgiveness based on grace.  The story contrasts human meanness and stinginess with God’s boundless love and generous mercy.

Jesus not only taught forgiveness; he also practiced it.  The cross is central to the New Testament and Jesus forgave his executioners as he hung on the cross for the sins of all mankind.  His words, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” (Luke 23:24) revealed a love that is wholly undeserved.  Even though he was treated as a criminal and subjected to the humiliation and torture of the cross, he responded with forgiveness and set us an example.

FORGIVENESS IS THE CURE FOR RESENTMENT.

Some practical steps we should take to find healing from resentment.

1.      We need to face the pain and hurt done to us by the other person.

2.      We need to realize that we resent the other person.  You have to say, “I resent that person.  I am angry and upset about it.”

3.      We have to give up the desire for revenge (Romans 12:19; 1 Peter 2:21-23).  God has his own timing and his own way.

4.      We need to stop blaming others and take responsibility for our own behavior.

5.      We need to surrender the consequences of our forgiveness.  Perhaps there will be reconciliation; maybe there will not be reconciliation.  Part of forgiveness is saying, “God I forgive this person unconditionally.  I hand over the consequences to you.  Whatever happens in the future, I surrender it to you.”

6.      We need to realize that forgiveness is a process.  We cannot change our emotions simply by saying, “I will change my feelings about this matter.”  The best we can do is go to God and say, “Lord I am unable to change my feelings but I want you to change them.  If you give me a new set of feelings toward this person, I will accept them.”

7.      Resentment will not necessarily disappear at once.  Like grief, it can ambush you years after you think that you are over it.  Again and again you may have to say, “God, I will not hold onto these feelings.  I have given you my will on this matter and now I ask you to take care of the feelings.” 

8.      Forgiveness is an act of the will.  Emotions return and Satan brings condemnation.  But we choose not to hold on to resentment and there is no need to feel guilty if we have to repeat the process. 

9.      It is a sign of strength, not weakness, to get some help from someone else to help us heal painful memories.

FOR REFLECTION

• In Christ alone is salvation from sin and forgiveness.  It is solely on the ground of the finished work of Christ that God can forgive our debt of sin.
• Do we forgive as we have been forgiven?
• Why is it easy to ask God for forgiveness, but difficult to give it to others?
• Whenever we ask God to forgive us our sin, we should ask ourselves, “Have I forgiven the people who have wronged me?”
• We pay dearly for the luxury of carrying a grudge.  Is it worth it?
• As oil to an engine, so is forgiveness to a family or a church.  It reduces friction and makes it possible for people to “rub along” without seizing up.  It is not a luxury but an essential.
• The parable of the two debtors (Luke 7: 36-50) is a story of contrast between two debtors, (a respectable Pharisee and a disreputable woman), the forgiveness of their sins, and the differing gratitude of both.  Jesus taught that love is the proof that a person has received forgiveness, and the more people are forgiven, the more they will love.
• We find forgiveness difficult but we can and must learn to forgive.  When God’s great forgiveness of us is not reflected in our small acts of forgiveness towards one another, then we have not been touched by his love.

PRAYER

Gracious Father, may I have more than an intellectual understanding of your teaching on forgiveness.  Give me your grace that my forgiveness of others may be unlimited like that of Jesus.  Amen.

Jim Peacock MA (Hons), Diploma of Teaching.