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Matthew 18:15-35 – Be Forgiven And Forgive

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This passage is as follows:

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“If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother.  But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every charge may be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses.  If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector.  Truly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.  Again I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven.  For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.”

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Then Peter came up and said to him, “Lord, how often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?”  Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you seven times, but seventy-seven times (seventy times seven).

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“Therefore the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his servants.  When he began to settle, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents (about 200,000 years wages).  And since he could not pay, his master ordered him to be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and payment to be made.  So the servant fell on his knees, imploring him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything.’  And out of pity for him, the master of that servant released him and forgave him the debt.  But when that same servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii (100 days wages), and seizing him, he began to choke him, saying, ‘Pay what you owe.’  So his fellow servant fell down and pleaded with him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you.’  He refused and went and put him in prison until he should pay the debt.  When his fellow servants saw what had taken place, they were greatly distressed, and they went and reported to their master all that had taken place.  Then his master summoned him and said to him, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me.  And should not you have had mercy on your fellow servant, as I had mercy on you?’  And in anger his master delivered him to the jailers (torturers), until he should pay all his debt.  So also my heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother from your heart.”

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(End of passage)

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This passage is a continuation of Jesus’ speech after he rebukes his disciples for asking, “who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”  Chapter 18 is the 4th of Jesus’ 5 discourses in the book of Matthew.  Remember that Matthew was a tax collector, so he had to have a supply of pens and paper to keep track of who paid what in taxes.  Matthew uses the events of the gospel to show that Jesus is the promised Messiah.  Matthew uses the teachings of Jesus to not only prove that Jesus is the Messiah, but also that Jesus’ teachings are a continuation of the ethics found in the Old Testament.  Matthew delivers these teaching in detail.  We saw how that he was more detailed about the Sermon on the Mount and the beatitudes than the other gospels.

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In the first half of this chapter, Jesus rebukes the disciples for asking who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.  Jesus says that they won’t even get there unless they humble themselves like a little child.  The disciples lost the correct emphasis.  They were worried about brownie points, and they lost sight of the mission to reach the lost.  Thus, Jesus ends with a parable about seeking a lost sheep to show how the emphasis should be on reaching the lost.

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Jesus moves on to some other topics from here.  Some of these topics are prompted by more questions asked by the disciples.  Somehow, the topic leads into what should be done if a brother sins against you.

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Verses 15-20,

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“If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother.  But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every charge may be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses.  If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector.  Truly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.  Again I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven.  For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.”

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What are the 3 stages of dealing with sin between Christians?

1. One on one confrontation.

2. Small group confrontation.

3. Congregational confrontation.

 

What is the Old Testament parallel to verses 15-20?

 

We find a parallel in Deuteronomy 19:15-19,

 

“A single witness shall not suffice against a person for any crime or for any wrong in connection with any offense that he has committed. Only on the evidence of two witnesses or of three witnesses shall a charge be established.  If a malicious witness arises to accuse a person of wrongdoing, then both parties to the dispute shall appear before the Lord, before the priests and the judges who are in office in those days.  The judges shall inquire diligently, and if the witness is a false witness and has accused his brother falsely, then you shall do to him as he had meant to do to his brother. So you shall purge the evil from your midst.”

 

Jesus is adhering to the same ethics as the Old Testament here, but he is establishing a new authority.  The authority no longer comes from a priesthood, but from the body of believers.

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Jesus said the same thing to Peter when he made his confession that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God.  Jesus said, “Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”  Now, Jesus shows that this not only applies to Peter, but to the whole body of believers.  There is no special authority for Peter only.  This applies to the whole body of believers.  They all have the authority to make things right among themselves, and they have the responsibility of spreading the gospel.

 

Imagine you have taken your bat and ball outside, gathered some friends together, and everyone is having fun playing baseball. Then, you are up to bat, you connect with the ball – a good hit and it goes right through the neighbor’s big picture window. It breaks a lamp in the living room and smashes into a priceless work of art hanging on the wall. Wow, you are in trouble and it looks as if you will be working a long time to pay for all the damage.

 

How would you feel if the neighbor said to you, “Don’t worry, it was an accident. I understand and forgive you. I’ll take care of getting everything repaired and replaced.”

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It seems as if you would feel relieved and grateful.

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Now, what if, when you came back from the neighbor’s house, your friends told you that while you were gone one of the kids hit your baseball into the lake – the ball is gone and furthermore, with that hit, he broke your bat. How would you feel about the kid that destroyed your bat and ball? Could you be as forgiving as the neighbor was to you?

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Now imagine that you apply what Jesus said here about deciding disputes between Christians.  You go to the church and you bring them to the person that broke your bat and threw your ball in the lake.  They decide that it was only an accident, and you should just forgive your friend.  Would you forgive your friend?  Think back when you were a child.  How many times exactly did a ball get lost, a Frisbee stuck on the roof, or a toy broken?  Do you remember?  Probably not because you just forgave people for thing like this that happened.  Do you golf?  Do remember how many balls you lost while golfing?  Probably too many to count and you forgave yourself for losing them too… after saying a few choice words.  I have a golf bag and one of the pockets is for extra balls.  It is the biggest pocket!  I always make sure it is full when I go golfing.

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Peter addresses the next thing we might think of when we talk about forgiveness. 

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Verses 21-22,

 

“Then Peter came up and said to him, “Lord, how often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?” 

Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you seven times, but seventy-seven times (seventy times seven).”

 

Some translators translate this last number, not as seventy-seven, but as seventy times seven.  That’s four hundred and ninety times! 

 

That is a lot of golf balls to carry with you on the course.

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Is it really possible to forgive someone that sins against you that many times?

 

Does this forgiveness negate any restitution for a sin committed?

 

No, restitution and discipline is a separate matter.  Regardless of this, we should still forgive our brothers for sinning against us and bring them into fellowship.

 

Why should we keep forgiving?

 

Jesus gives us a parable to give us an example of why we should forgive.

 

Verses 23-35,

 

“Therefore the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his servants.  When he began to settle, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents (about 200,000 years wages).  And since he could not pay, his master ordered him to be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and payment to be made.  So the servant fell on his knees, imploring him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything.’  And out of pity for him, the master of that servant released him and forgave him the debt.  But when that same servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii (about 100 days wages), and seizing him, he began to choke him, saying, ‘Pay what you owe.’  So his fellow servant fell down and pleaded with him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you.’  He refused and went and put him in prison until he should pay the debt.  When his fellow servants saw what had taken place, they were greatly distressed, and they went and reported to their master all that had taken place.  Then his master summoned him and said to him, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me.  And should not you have had mercy on your fellow servant, as I had mercy on you?’  And in anger his master delivered him to the jailers, until he should pay all his debt.  So also my heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother from your heart.”

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First it should be mentioned what some of the words in this passage mean and their significance.  The word for servant here is bondservant.  It connotates a person that is a servant by will to earn money or pay off a debt.  A talent equals 20 years wages.  A denarius equals a day’s wages.  This makes the first servant owing 200,000 wages.  The word for jailer is more accurately translated “torturers.”

Why does Jesus say that the first servant owed 200,000 wages?

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Jesus is comparing his parable to the kingdom of heaven.  By using such a high debt, Jesus shows that the debt that we owe to God is more than we could ever pay off.  By the way, the most that king Herod ever collected in taxes was 382 talents.

Did the unforgiving servant lived in prison?

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Most likely, the unforgiving servant did not stay in prison.  How would he work off his debt?  That is why he was turned over to torturers.  This way he could be punished till he worked off his debt.

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Does passage mean that offenders get off scot free?

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No.  This does not take the place of civil justice.  Read the last phrase, “Forgive your brother from your heart.”  This is not cheap grace. Jesus isn’t suggesting that we regard offenses as unimportant. Nor is he suggesting that we wink at sin. He is calling us to take sin seriously—and then to take forgiveness equally seriously.  Remember back in verses 7-9 that Jesus says that it is better to go through life without some body parts so you won’t sin rather than be thrown into hell.  In verses 15 to 20, Jesus tells us that the body of Christians should decide what to be done to a brother that sins.  If they were to get off scot free, there would be no need of the church to meet about the offense.

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In verse 35, Jesus is no longer telling a story about a distant king but is speaking directly to his disciples—and to us. He repeats the warning that he issued earlier in his Sermon on the Mount. There he taught us to ask God to forgive our trespasses, but warned, “But if you don’t forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses” (6:15).

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Now he says that we must forgive from our hearts—not superficially or half-heartedly. That is the kind of forgiveness exudes warmth—that is likely to end in an embrace—that celebrates the end of the rift. There is nothing stingy about this forgiveness.

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How can we manage to forgive like that, especially when we have suffered a grievous injury at the hands of the offender? Forgiveness from the heart is possible only by the grace of God. First, we need to understand at a deep level how God has forgiven us. Second, we need to pray for God to imbue us with his grace so that we can forgive the person who has sinned against us.

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If we forgive our brother or sister from our heart, how can we keep tabs to justify getting even later?

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If we forgive our brother or sister from the heart, how can we claim to forgive but not forget?

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If we forgive our brother or sister from the heart, how can we demand recompense for that which we have forgiven?

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If we forgive our brother or sister from the heart, how can we do anything other than to love them and to find pleasure in the reconciliation that our forgiveness has made possible?

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A major purpose served by this radical requirement for forgiveness is harmony within the church. In verses 15-20, Jesus required us to seek out any Christian brother or sister with whom we had issues in an attempt to resolve those issues. Now he requires us to forgive our Christian brothers and sisters over and over and over again. Just imagine how frequently the cause of Christ is set back by our grudges and resentments. Just imagine how much more effective the church’s witness would be if we Christians practiced these two disciplines—seeking to resolve issues with fellow Christians and forgiving fellow Christians. Wouldn’t it be a wonderful world if we would do that!

What was wrong with Peter’s question?

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By asking how many times he should forgive his brother that sinned against him, Peter shows that he wasn’t thinking of forgiving from his heart.  Counting forgiveness means that he would be anticipating the time when he no longer had to forgive.  This animosity would be held in his heart.  This is why Jesus shows how important it is to forgive and says that God requires us to forgive from the heart.

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