The Unforgiving Slave

I. INTRODUCTION

A. In Matthew 18:21, Peter came to Jesus with this question: "Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me and I forgive him? Up to seven times?"

1. Peter knew it was necessary to forgive a brother, but he did not know the limits of forgiveness.

2. Perhaps Peter believed that forgiving a brother seven times a day was quite generous.

B. The Lord's answer far exceeded Peter's expectations.

1. First, Jesus said, "I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven" (Matt. 18:22). The effective meaning of Christ's words is that there should be no limit to how often one brother should forgive another.

2. Then Jesus powerfully demonstrated the reason behind His answer with a parable. Let us consider that parable now in Matthew 18:23-35.

II. THE PARABLE OF THE UNFORGIVING SLAVE

A. This parable is a story of a king who sought to settle accounts with his slaves and one slave who could not repay the king (Matt. 18:23-25).

1. These slaves were stewards who were entrusted by the king with a portion of his estate for management (compare to the parable of the talents -- Matt. 25:14, 19).

2. When the slaves were called to settle their accounts, it was necessary for them to return at least as much as the king had given them if not more.

3. One of the king's slaves owed 10,000 talents and could not repay.

a. As we learned in the previous lesson, a talent was a unit of measure for money that varied in different states according to the laws regulating currency. A talent of silver in Israel weighed about 100 pounds, and a talent of gold weighed about 200 pounds.

b. Consider the immense debt owed by this slave. If these 10,000 talents were of silver, then his debt was 1,000,000 pounds of silver. At today's rates (March, 2013), this would amount to $448 million!

c. This was a debt that was impossible for the slave to repay. For this reason, the king ordered the sale of the slave along with his wife, children, and property. The proceeds of their sale would not fully repay the debt, but it was the most the king could recover.

B. When the slave begged for patience from the king, he was forgiven of the debt (Matt. 18:26-27).

1. Prostrate before the king, the slave begged, "Have patience with me and I will repay you everything." Notice that the slave was not asking for forgiveness, but rather he requested patience from the king while he worked to repay the debt. As noted before, it was impossible for the slave to repay his tremendous debt.

2. The king exceeded the slave's request by having compassion on the slave and forgiving him of the entire debt. There was no expectation by the king of any repayment at all, and the slave was completely relieved of his burden.

C. When this same slave was asked to have patience by his fellow slave, he refused to have mercy (Matt. 18:28-30).

1. The forgiven slave now found himself in the position of a creditor in which he could make demands of his debtor to be repaid.

2. His debtor was a fellow slave who owed him 100 denarii, which amounted to a little more than three months' wages. This was not an insurmountable debt.

3. His fellow slave made the same request as he had made earlier to the king: "Have patience with me and I will repay you." It was a reasonable request, and the slave would likely be able to repay.

4. Unlike the king, this slave had no compassion on his debtor but instead threw him in prison.

D. When the king heard of the slaves refusal to show mercy, he revoked his forgiveness (Matt. 18:31-34).

1. Other slaves saw these events, were grieved over them, and reported them to the king.

2. The king called his slave to him and said:

"You wicked slave, I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me. Should you not also have had mercy on your fellow slave, in the same way that I had mercy on you?"

3. The slave's actions provoked the anger of the king, and the king had him delivered to the torturers until his debt was repaid.

a. Notice that there was no monetary value for the king in the torture of the slave.

i. The repaying of the debt in this way would not be by money, but rather it was by atonement for wrongdoing.

ii. Whereas before the king had ordered the sale of the slave along with his wife, children, and property in order to recover part of the lost money, now the king ordered the slave's torture, which was a personal punishment for his wickedness.

b. How long the slave must have suffered for his great debt and his lack of compassion.

III. LESSONS FROM THE PARABLE

A. The great lesson of the parable of the unforgiving slave was given by Jesus in Matthew 18:35 -- "My heavenly Father will also do the same to you, if each of you does not forgive his brother from your heart."

1. The debt of sin that we owe to God is immeasurable. It is represented by the 10,000 talents owed by the slave, which could never be repaid.

2. For God to forgive us of such debt that we could never repay ourselves is an amazing exercise of mercy, compassion, and grace.

3. In contrast, any offenses committed against us by our fellow men are relatively small debts. Nothing that man does to sin against his fellow man compares to the great offense of sin against God. David recognized this when he said to the Lord, "Against You, You only, I have sinned and done what is evil in Your sight, so that You are justified when You speak and blameless when You judge" (Ps. 51:4).

4. Even so, we often hold grudges against our brethren, refusing to forgive the relatively minor offenses committed against us.

5. If indeed we have no compassion and refuse to forgive our brethren, then this parable teaches us that we cannot expect compassion or forgiveness from our Father in heaven. Our own lack of compassion and mercy will disqualify us from receiving God's compassion and mercy.

6. Like the mercy of God, our mercy must also be abundant. If this requires us to forgive a brother "seventy times seven" times a day, then we must do so to receive the same measure of mercy.

B. Consider the abundance of passages that teach this common theme in the New Testament.

1. Matthew 5:7 -- "Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy."

2. Matthew 6:12 -- "And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors."

3. Mark 11:25-26 -- "Whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone, so that your Father who is in heaven will also forgive you your transgressions. But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father who is in heaven forgive your transgressions."

4. Luke 17:3-4 -- "Be on your guard! If your brother sins, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him. And if he sins against you seven times a day, and returns to you seven times, saying, 'I repent,' forgive him."

5. Ephesians 4:32 -- Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you.

6. Colossians 3:12-13 -- So, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience; bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone; just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you.

C. The Lord's demand for consistency in the matter of forgiveness applies to other matters as well.

1. In Matthew 7:1-2, Jesus said, "Do not judge so that you will not be judged. For in the way you judge, you will be judged; and by your standard of measure, it will be measured to you."

2. Whether in mercy, judgment, or any other matter, Christ teaches us to be sympathetic to others. We are to extend to others that which we would have them extend to us if we were in their positions. Likewise, we must not hold others to a standard that we ourselves will not keep.

3. Essentially, this is the Lord's "golden rule," which He stated in Luke 6:31, saying, "Treat others the same way you want them to treat you" (Luke 6:31; see also Matt. 7:12).

D. Consider also what this parable reveals concerning the idea of "once-saved-always-saved."

1. The slave was initially forgiven by the king of his entire debt. However, when the slave was unmerciful to his fellow slave, he forfeited the king's forgiveness and was punished.

2. Likewise, God completely forgives us of our sins at the moment we obey the gospel. However, if we are unforgiving to our brethren or behave in any other wicked way, then we will also forfeit God's forgiveness and incur His wrath.