7/3/16-Matt. 18:21-35 Life in the Kingdom: Forgiveness and Freedom
This weekend we celebrate a Declaration of Independence. In Jesus Christ, we have a deeper freedom, because it is a freedom of our hearts from sin. We are freed from a kingdom of darkness into the Kingdom of God.
As citizens of His Kingdom, we are to live by its values and its truths. This is discipleship in a nutshell: “As God has done for us, so should we do for others”
We can see this not only in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, but also throughout the New Testament. When Paul, Peter, and John and others write, even those lengthy parts of complex doctrine,
…it is always written so that it will impact our daily lives as believers. As God has shown us mercy, love, and in this story, forgiveness, so should we show it to others.
And Jesus gives us a picture of what that looks like by explaining a really deep idea (sin) with something very easy to understand (debt).
Debt is something that affects most if not all of us, and it is really humiliating when we cannot pay it. This is was the position of this first servant.
He can never pay back what he owes the king, so all he really can do is be humble, and plead the king’s mercy.
YET this king is so gracious, he forgives the debt!! Although the king had to suffer the loss, his heart was still so good that he forgave the servant, freeing him.
As the debt was great, so the forgiveness was that much greater. Is this not also a picture of what it means to come to God?
He is the King, and like the servant, we too owed a debt that was impossible to pay: the debt was sin, selfishness, and when we wanted our own way at the expense of both God and our neighbor.
The only response of the servant was to cry out to the king for mercy, and our only response is to cry out to God for His mercy and say, “Please forgive me”.
The only way to walk into God’s kingdom is on our knees. And the amazing truth is His amazing grace sees us, loves us, and forgives us our sin!
When we repent, and turn from evil and turn to God, He forgives us! We know the debt is paid when we hear Jesus’ words from the cross: “It is finished”
The Lord took our debt and forgave us and we are free from sin. We all love that part, but it is not supposed to end there!
As God has done for us, so are we to do for others. And when He showed us grace, it compels us to ask the question, “What does grace require of me?”
When this servant was forgiven, he was not only given freedom, but an opportunity to put what had been done to him into practice.
When we become Christians, we not only have been given freedom from sin, but opportunities to put what had been done to us into practice too.
This servant also has a servant under him that owes debt (though not nearly as much! This would be comparing millions of dollars to maybe a few hundred at most!)
The King’s heart desire was for the servant to show grace just as he had been shown grace, but the servant went the exact opposite direction. He wanted to punish rather than forgive.
The forgiven servant looked like a hypocrite and the King would be dishonored. The King has the servant thrown into prison, but that was just a reflection of the prison of unforgiveness, bitterness, and anger the servant had locked himself into by not forgiving the debt.
True forgiveness does not ignore the hurt done to us. Forgiveness does not say “well that hurtful event was not all that bad”. Rather, true forgiveness says, “what was done to me was wrong, but I am going to choose to not collect what is owed to me”
If you or I have a hard time forgiving others and still struggling with the root of bitterness that has taken up in our hearts, look to Jesus, who prayed, “Father forgive them” (and “them” includes you and I).
If the Son of God who was perfect and had every right to collect the debt we owed Him still loved us enough to forgive us, then rest assured, He left us 1) the example, and 2) the Holy Spirit to give us the strength to forgive others. Even Paul said, “I can do all things through Him who strengthens me” (Phil 4:13).
Forgiving others may hurt at first, for you are taking on the debt they owe you. When we hurt like this, we understand what Jesus must have felt on the cross.
But…forgiveness also frees us, it frees us from bitterness and a quest for revenge. It frees us to live godly lives and brings honor to our king.
For what could show more proof of a miracle? What would give more evidence of Jesus Christ living in us? To take the natural fleshly way of revenge and further the endless cycle of violence and hate? Or to take the godly way of the Holy Spirit, and forgive others, so that we would be free to experience life God’s way.
As God has done for us so should we do for others. Forgiveness is not an easy choice to make, but when we do, we are freed.