Forgiveness • Matthew 18:21-35
By Joe McKeever
When I was pastoring, one day I visited the courtroom where one of my members sat as judge. To a defendant the judge said, “We’re going to retire this charge to the files and you may go. But if you are ever brought into this court again — I don’t care if it’s only for spitting on the sidewalk — this charge will be brought out of the files and you will pay for it.”
I left court that day thanking God that the sins He forgives are gone forever and cannot be brought back “out of the files” to hold against us.
Forgiveness: What a great concept! It means to release a charge against another person. To mark a debt as “paid in full.” To absorb the hurt and disown the pain. It’s what the Heavenly Father offers us through Jesus Christ and what He commands we extend to one another.
Our Lord told the Apostle Peter he was to forgive, not seven times, but seventy times seven. What He meant was “unlimited forgiveness.” That’s the kind He specializes in.
At a high school reunion, I spotted Dixie and her husband across the room. This was her first time back for a reunion. After we greeted each other, I said, “I need to talk with you in private.” I said to her, “Dixie, when we were in the seventh grade, I stole something from you.”
She said, “No! Not you! Anyone but you.”
I said, “You’re not making this any easier.” I told her how early in the seventh grade I ran with the wrong crowd, and how it happened that another boy and I took some money from her.
I said, “Dixie, please take this $20 bill. And I want you to forgive me.” When she protested, I said, “I need your forgiveness. Please take the money.” Later, she wrote that they had bought Bibles with it to give away in their ministry.
Forgiveness is such a wonderful thing.
Our Lord said, “Not seven times, but seventy times seven.”
That seems clear enough, but we must not rush past it.
I was 25 years old and in my second year of seminary. One day as I left the campus for the drive home, I decided to meditate on one Scripture all the way home. I randomly opened my Bible, read Matthew 18:21-22, and closed it.
At first I thought, “That’s pretty obvious.” But I was determined to meditate on this Scripture all the way home. Within five minutes, the Lord showed me something.
If He expected Peter (and us!) to forgive an unlimited number of times, He must be willing to do the same. And what a precious thought that was!
His forgiveness is unlimited.
I thought of all those times I had confessed, “Lord, it’s the same sins. You must be tired of me coming day after day with the same story.” Little by little, my pride was interfering with my praying. In time I knew I would quit confessing that sin at all.
The Lord’s forgiveness is infinite. His mercy is everlasting. His grace is all-sufficient. And how good is that!
We need to receive forgiveness; we need to extend forgiveness.
The Lord then told a parable to illustrate the principle He stated in Matthew 10:8. Freely you received; freely give (NASB).
We forgive by the same standard the Savior used in forgiving us: Completely, quickly, freely, liberally. And how complete is His forgiveness? Three Scriptures answer this in the same way: Jeremiah 31:34 and Hebrews 8:12 and 10:17. Their sins and iniquities I will remember no more (NASB). And how good is that!!
In the parable (18:23-35), the slave who was forgiven 10,000 talents was expected to offer the same grace to those indebted to him. When he did not, but was harsh and unloving, the king had him arrested and reversed the forgiveness he had given him. The man had to pay the full debt.
Question: What did Jesus mean when He said “the Heavenly Father will also do the same to you, if each of you does not forgive his brother from his heart”? (18:35 NASB). Does God take away our salvation when we are unforgiving?
First, we need to point out that this verse has been misused to pressure victims of abuse into returning to dangerous situations. It says nothing of the kind.
Second, the parable illustrates the line in the Lord’s Prayer that says, “Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors” (Matthew 6:12 NASB). Those who have received grace are expected to demonstrate grace.
A deacon once asked me to pray for his brother who for thirty years had held a grudge against the rest of the family. “No one knows why,” he said. “He will not take our phone calls and our letters are returned to us.”
I said, “I don’t know whether your brother is saved. But I can assure you he has not had a prayer answered in thirty years.”
And that is saddest thing ever.
McKeever is a member of First Baptist Church, Jackson.
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