Matthew 18:21-35
The Parable of the Unmerciful Servant
21Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, "Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?"
22Jesus answered, "I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.
23"Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. 24As he began the settlement, a man who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him. 25Since 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.' 27The 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.[c] 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. 31When 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. 33Shouldn't you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?' 34In 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."
Peter asks Jesus a question about how many times we should forgive our brother...Peter thought seven would be sufficient... After all seven is a number that is special in the Bible...For example, God created the heavens and earth in seven days... Seven might be the right number...
When He tells Peter that it is seven times seventy, Jesus teaches us that forgiveness is unlimited... We should always be ready to forgive our neighbors...
In the parable the master forgives his servant's debt...Later the servant goes out and asks to be paid back by one who owes him debt...The servant who was forgiven, does not forgive his debtor...The master comes back and asks the servant now to repay him...The master has the wicked servant turned over to the jailer and tortured, until his money is paid back...
Jesus tells us that is how our heavenly Father will treat us like this, unless we forgive our neighbors and brothers from our hearts...
We learn three things in this parable...
One is our Father wants us to forgive others as many times as necessary...
Two, we are not to be judgmental and be judge like the servant...It was not right for the servant to judge his debtor and have him thrown in jail...God will judge those who have not paid their debts and have sinned...God will judge us all perfectly...
Three, our neighbors and brothers come in the most unexpected places and forms...In this parable our neighbors and brothers are the ones owing us money...We are to forgive our neighbors, even if he has a debt owed to us...We learn more about who our neighbors are in the Parable of the Good Samaritan...
So, when we meet people and are with people, in even the most unsuspecting circumstance, we must remember that they are our neighbors, not to judge them, and always to forgive them...