Matthew 18:21-35

September 17, 2023

The Rev. Todd R. Goddard, Pastor

Rush United Methodist Church

Matthew 18:21-35

Then Peter came and said to him, “Lord, if another member of the church sins against me, how often should I forgive? As many as seven times?”

 Jesus said to him, “Not seven times, but, I tell you, seventy-seven times.

“For this reason the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his slaves. When he began the reckoning, one who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him; and, as he could not pay, his lord ordered him to be sold, together with his wife and children and all his possessions, and payment to be made. So the slave fell on his knees before him, saying, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything.’ And out of pity for him, the lord of that slave released him and forgave him the debt.

But that same slave, as he went out, came upon one of his fellow slaves who owed him a hundred denarii; and seizing him by the throat, he said, ‘Pay what you owe.’ Then his fellow slave fell down and pleaded with him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you.’ But he refused; then he went and threw him into prison until he would pay the debt.

When his fellow slaves saw what had happened, they were greatly distressed, and they went and reported to their lord all that had taken place.

Then his lord summoned him and said to him, ‘You wicked slave! I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me. Should you not have had mercy on your fellow slave, as I had mercy on you?’ And in anger his lord handed him over to be tortured until he would pay his entire debt.

So my heavenly Father will also do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother or sister from your heart.”

| Centering Prayer |

I. Matthew chapter 18 is a lesson:

Jesus teaches his disciples

how they can organize and get along

once he is absent.

St. Matthew recalls his personal experience.

He draws on the memorized oral tradition.

He referenced bits and pieces of written material circulating from the community of Mark’s followers.

St. Matthew puts it all together

to deliver Christ’s message

to disciples of Jesus,

to members of Matthew’s early church community, and

to us today.

Prior to this morning, Jesus taught

  1. To become humble like little children.

  2. Not to cause any little ones to stumble (remember the mill stone around the neck!).

  3. To cut off or pluck out the part of the body that causes you to sin (ouch).

  4. To go after the one who has gone astray, leaving the 99 behind (lost sheep).

  5. Last Sunday, instructions concerning conflict between yourself and someone else:

  a. First, go to the person alone. If that doesn’t work…

  b. Second, return to the person with 2 or 3 witnesses. If that doesn’t work…

  c. Third, take the person and the issue before the church. If that doesn’t work, the person cuts themself off from the church, then…

  d. Treat them as a Gentile and a tax collector. That is, constant vigilance and receptiveness to their return to the community.

…

II. Our Gospel lesson picks up the story here this morning.

Poor old Peter,

if only he would keep his big mouth shut!

If he had, we would be

much the poorer for it.

Peter asks the question,

in response to Jesus’ teaching about how to deal with internal conflict,

“what then, is the standard of mercy?”

“To what extent do we forgive?”

  a.  There is the Jewish standard:

God forgives 3 times, as recorded in Amos 1:3, 2:1.

The prophet Amos makes the case:

Man could not be more gracious than God.

  b. Peter asks,

how about twice the Jewish standard (2X3)

plus one for good measure? (2X3+1)

“How often should I forgive?

As many as seven times?” (18:21)

Perhaps he was thinking, “won’t Jesus think that I’m quite the compassionate guy?”

  c. Jesus: “Not seven times, but,

I tell you, seventy-seven times.”

Forget the prophetic standard.

Not 3.

Nope. Forget Peter’s standard.

Not 7.

What is Jesus’ standard?

Forgive 77 times.

In other words

The forgiveness that you grant to others should be ABSURDLY HUGE.

Forgiveness is not proportional.

Forgiveness is not mathematical.

I’d suggest

Jesus is hinting

Forgiveness should reflect the abundance of God’s grace.

Jesus’ provides a common financial illustration

To communicate his point.

He uses everyday finances,

Something everyone in his audience could relate to.

Talent

The King’s manager owed his King 10,000 talents.

Estimates vary regarding how much one talent was worth,

Anywhere between $1,000 and

20 years of wages for the common worker.

In today’s wages

The King’s manager owed his King

Between $10,000 and $1,200,000.

We are talking a lot of money!

10,000 talents is an unimaginable amount of debt,

Especially since it is owed to a

King with an army

Of collection agents!

Denarii

A denarius was a small silver Roman coin.

Think of it like a modern-day dime.

Roman soldiers were paid about 225 denarius per year.

1 Denarii = about 1 days wage.

In today’s wages

About $137.

In other words,

It takes many thousands of denarii to equal 1 Talent.

The slave owed the King’s manager 100 denarii,

Not even one tenth of a Talent.

He owed the manager pocket change.

Remember, the manager owed his King

(possibly) millions of dollars.

The contrast is huge!

Pocket change verses millions.

…

III. With this fictional story

Jesus redefines forgiveness.

The new standard for forgiveness is

Shock and awe.

Forgiveness should

Not be proportional.

Nothing even close.

Forgiveness must be

Like a dam that breaks,

A flood that gushes,

Like a collapsing and exploding black hole,

Like the depth and breadth of an ocean,

Like nuclear fission lighting up the night sky.

Overwhelming,

Incomprehensible,

Extravagant.

Impossibly huge.

Forgiveness should drown

both giver and receiver

in God’s abundant, amazing grace.

This is the magnitude of Christ’s forgiveness.

This then, is the standard of mercy that Jesus calls for:

forgive one another,

forgive without reservation,

forgive without end.

Remember the sins of others no more.

…

IV. There is a second measure of Good News in our Gospel lesson for today:

it lays in the illustration that Jesus tells,

as it relates to his previous teaching.

Last Sunday:

Jesus taught about

reconciling two conflicting members of the faith community.

Reconciliation = reunification of the whole.

Jesus’ illustration today nudges reconciliation one step further:

reconciliation is found through forgiveness.

Reconciliation

is dependent upon the King’s manager,

who, in turn,

is expected to forgive the Slave who owes him.

Forgiveness is for Jesus: the NEW DIVINE STANDARD.

  a. “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.” (5:7)

  b. “If anyone strikes you on the right cheek, turn the other also.” (5:39)

  c. “And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.” (6:12)

  d. “For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.(6:14)

  e. “Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful. Do not judge, and you will not be judged; do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven.” (Luke 6:36-37)

The contrast is clear:

Old Standard: Law, Judgement, Old Testament.

NEW DIVINE STANDARD: Forgiveness, Jesus, New Testament.

Christ’s new desired outcome is that forgiveness leads to reconciliation.

…

IV. Which brings us to the third gem in today’s Gospel lesson:

True forgiveness comes from the heart.

It must be Genuine,

not contrived,

not forced,

not an attempt to outdo the goodness of someone else.

Authentic forgiveness is about God’s grace.

Jesus’ teaching is not a story to be moralized.

Jesus’ teaching is about the TRUE EXPERIENCE OF GRACE.

God’s grace is absurdly huge!

  a. Like the King in His illustration, God’s grace is without limit or end.

  b. It is only dependent on one thing: our willingness to extend grace and forgiveness to someone else.

Just as God’s grace comes from the heart,

So, too, should be the way we treat others.

Jesus followers lead with the heart.

…

V. The joy of heavenly living is found in the act of forgiveness.

God uses the same standard of judgement with us,

when it comes to forgiveness,

that we are to employ with others.

This is Good News to some, but

Bad, very Bad News for others:

folks who carry a grudge,

the eternal chip on their shoulder;

folks who are always looking to find fault with someone else;

folks who are more concerned with rules than with relationships.

Therefore, vow to be absurd! …

to forgive others who have hurt us…

to forgive them as abundantly, as lavishly, as Jesus forgives us.

This is Christ’s invitation to you:

Lay down your burdens,

give up harboring those bad memories,

those past sins,

and go…

go to the one who has hurt you,

and with all your heart,

forgive them everything,

and remember their sin no more.

If they accept: wonderful!

If they don’t: wipe the dust off your feet and move on.

Harbor no ill will.

There will be sadness in their rejection.

There should be joy in the hope, anticipation, expectation

Of future reconciliation.

If you say that it can’t be done,

God’s limitless grace makes even the seemingly impossible truly possible.

This is the stuff that miracles are made from!

…

VI. Go, sisters and brothers, go.

Immerse yourself in God’s grace.

Forgive from the depth of your heart,

Wait for the miracle.

Be reconciled.

Thanks be to God.

Amen.