church

INI
13th Sunday after Pentecost
September 11, 2011
Ascension Lutheran Church, Tacoma WA
Paul Naumann, Pastor

FORGIVENESS UNLIMITED
Matthew 18:21-35

To Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or
think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by
Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen. Today's text is
found in the Gospel of St. Matthew, chapter 18, beginning with the 21st verse,
as follows:

Then Peter came to Him and said, “Lord, how often shall my brother sin
against me, and I forgive him? Up to seven times?” 22 Jesus said to him, “I do
not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven. 23 Therefore
the kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who wanted to settle accounts with
his servants. 24 And when he had begun to settle accounts, one was brought to
him who owed him ten thousand talents. 25 But as he was not able to pay, his
master commanded that he be sold, with his wife and children and all that he
had, and that payment be made. 26 The servant therefore fell down before him,
saying, ‘Master, have patience with me, and I will pay you all.’ 27 Then the
master of that servant was moved with compassion, released him, and forgave
him the debt. 28 “But that servant went out and found one of his fellow
servants who owed him a hundred denarii; and he laid hands on him and took
him by the throat, saying, ‘Pay me what you owe!’ 29 So his fellow servant fell
down at his feet and begged him, saying, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay
you all.’ 30 And he would not, but went and threw him into prison till he should
pay the debt. 31 So when his fellow servants saw what had been done, they
were very grieved, and came and told their master all that had been done. 32
Then his master, after he had called him, said to him, ‘You wicked servant! I
forgave you all that debt because you begged me. 33 Should you not also have
had compassion on your fellow servant, just as I had pity on you?’ 34 And his
master was angry, and delivered him to the torturers until he should pay all that
was due to him. 35 “So My heavenly Father also will do to you if each of you,
from his heart, does not forgive his brother his trespasses.” This is the Word of
God.

In the Name of Jesus Christ, The Lord our Righteousness, Dear Fellow
Redeemed,

The biggest summer event in the Pacific Northwest is Seafair, and the biggest
attraction at Seafair is the Unlimited Hydroplane Races. Most of us find it
pretty thrilling to watch the fastest boats on earth compete against each other
on Lake Washington. By the way, did you ever wonder why they're called
"unlimited" hydroplanes? It's because, unlike other forms of boat racing, here
there are no limits on what kind of shape the boat is, what sort of fuel it can
use, or how big an engine it can have. As usual, however, unlimited doesn't
mean completely unlimited. Boats and motors still have to weigh above a
certain amount. Engines with more than eight cylinders can't have
turbochargers or use nitrous oxide, etc.

In fact, whether you're talking about hydroplanes or ducks or anything else in
this world, the word "unlimited' almost never means what it says. There are
always limits. With one exception, that is! The parable before us today proves
that God's grace toward us in Jesus Christ truly is, literally, unlimited. And it
also points out the spiritual and logical absurdity that obtains when we
Christians, who have this forgiveness from God, presume to place limits on our
own forgiveness toward others. That's why this morning's theme is,

FORGIVENESS UNLIMITED

I. Put limits on your forgiveness and you won't escape God's wrath.
II. Escape God's wrath and you won’t put limits on your forgiveness

This whole chapter of Matthew is about sin and forgiveness. In fact, the
section just prior to our text is a famous passage in which Jesus tells us the
correct way deal with a fellow-believer who has sinned. Do you know what that
is by the way? Here's a multiple choice: what's the first step you take when you
know that a fellow-Christian has sinned and you don't think he's repented of his
sin? A) Tell your best friend about the sin. B) Tell your pastor about the sin, or
C) Just keep quiet about the sin. Sorry, that was a trick question. The answer is
D) None of the above. Jesus says, "If your brother sins against you, go and tell
him his fault between you and him alone. If he hears you, you have gained your
brother." -- Mt 18:15.

But as I said before, nearly everything has limits. Peter wanted to know how far
a believer's expected to go in regard to forgiving people. Jewish Law said you
were required to forgive the same person three times if he sinned against you.
But Peter thought he could afford to be more generous than that: “Lord, how
often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Up to seven times?”
Wow! More than double the legal requirement! That seemed fair. But Peter's
question showed that he really didn't understand the concept of forgiveness at
all. He wasn't prepared for Jesus' response. Jesus said to him, “I do not say to
you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven. No Peter, God requires
you to forgive someone not three times, not seven times, but seventy times
seven - 490 times! In other words, the rule for believers is FORGIVENESS
UNLIMITED. And lest Peter and the other disciples misunderstand the
consequences of not forgiving one's neighbor, Jesus tells the Parable of the
Unmerciful Servant. Our Lord makes one thing very clear: if you put limits on
your forgiveness you won't escape God's wrath.

In the parable the master brought his servants before him to settle up accounts
with them. One servant was brought who owed his master an astronomical
amount of money, ten thousand talents of silver. A talent was 66 pounds, 16
ounces in a pound, silver's worth $43 an ounce. So that comes to about $450
million dollars in today's money. $450 million! Several orders of magnitude
greater than this servant could ever hope to pay. And against this enormous
debt, on the other side of the ledger was…nothing. He had nothing with which
to pay. Not one penny. So the servant therefore fell down before him, saying,
‘Master, have patience with me, and I will pay you all.’

And what did the master do? Something shocking. Then the master of that
servant was moved with compassion, released him, and forgave him the debt.
Just wrote it all off. The whole thing! "You don't owe me anything any more.
You're free to go."

The master's FORGIVENESS WAS UNLIMITED, but it turns out that his
servant's forgiveness was not. That servant went out and found one of his
fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii. I used to think that the
amount owed by fellow servant in this parable was a small sum, maybe a couple
of bucks. But it's not a small amount. A denarius was a day's wages for a
common worker. In today’s money 100 denarii might be $10,000, maybe more.
So in absolute terms, this wasn't a small thing. It's only small when you compare
it with the incredibly huge debt that the master forgave the first servant.
Compared to 10,000 talents, 100 denarii is microscopic. But still, he unmerciful
servant wouldn't let it go. and he laid hands on him and took him by the throat,
saying, ‘Pay me what you owe!’ 29 So his fellow servant fell down at his feet
and begged him, saying, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you all.’ 30 And
he would not, but went and threw him into prison till he should pay the debt.
Even though he had experienced his master's unlimited forgiveness, he put
limits on his own forgiveness toward others. And he was about to find out what
happens when you do that!

When his master heard about his cruel deed, he had the servant dragged back
before him. He told him, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt
because you begged me. 33 Should you not also have had compassion on your
fellow servant, just as I had pity on you?

It seems obvious to us. This guy is easy for us to condemn. We say, "How
could he ever do such a thing?" But my friends, the question we should be
asking ourselves this morning is, "How could I ever do such a thing?" We've all
experienced the forgiving love of God in Christ, and yet we've all held a grudge,
we've all nursed petty grievances in our hearts, we've all withheld forgiveness
toward someone whom we imagine has slighted us. Sometimes we find it hard
to forgive even once, much less the 490 times that Jesus requires! And
whenever we do that, consciously or unconsciously, we're being just like that
unmerciful servant. It may be gratifying at first to withhold forgiveness, to take
our neighbor by the throat and demand he pay us what he owes – to get even
with him – but you should know that there's a high cost associated with getting
even.

Andrew Carnegie once noted that the only animal a grizzly bear will allow to
eat with him is the skunk. Grizzlies have often been observed in Yellowstone
Park eating refuse and carrion, and the only animals that are routinely seen
eating with them are skunks. "Surely," Carnegie observed, "the grizzly resents
the skunk and could easily kill the little creature in any fight. No doubt the bear
would like to get even with him for his intrusion. But he doesn't. Why? Because
he knows the high cost of getting even. Most animals," Carnegie wrote, "are not
dumb!"

Animals may not be, but some people sure are. The wicked servant in our text
totally overlooked the high cost of getting even. Sometimes we do, too, and
what terrible danger we place ourselves in when we refuse to forgive! Holding a
grudge against your neighbor, refusing to forgive, cultivating bitter feelings in
your heart, retaliating for real or perceived injuries - this isn't just a bad idea. It
will bring real harm to you. It will poison your life. And make no mistake, Jesus
says, there's a price to pay when you don't forgive. This lack of forgiveness, if
left unrepented, will be eternally fatal. The wicked servant's punishment was
swift and terrifying: His master was angry, and delivered him to the torturers
until he should pay all that was due to him. 35 “So My heavenly Father also will
do to you if each of you, from his heart, does not forgive his brother his
trespasses.”

Jesus' warning is ominous and sobering. We need to know that, if we don't
forgive our neighbor, there is no way for us to escape the wrath of God. But
there is hope here, too. It is not too late to heed that warning! Our God is a just
God, but - as this parable so clearly reveals - He is also a merciful and
compassionate God. Let us repent of our hardness of heart and turn to Him for
forgiveness and healing. In Christ, He is FORGIVENESS UNLIMITED. He
has made a sure and certain way for us to escape the punishment our sins
deserved. And here's something interesting. Faith in God's mercy produces
fruits. Hearts overflowing with the Gospel can't help but respond. In fact, you'll
find that, when you've escaped God's wrath, it's pretty much impossible to put
limits on your forgiveness toward others!

To be forgiving to others, it helps a lot to understand just how completely the
Lord has forgiven you. You run into problems otherwise. There’s a story about
a Christian missionary in the Philippines who was haunted by a sin he had
committed many years before. He had confessed it long ago, but still it plagued
his conscience, giving him no peace. One day he was counseling a devout
woman of his parish who claimed that Jesus came to her in her dreams and
communicated with her. The pastor was skeptical. To test her he said, “The
next time you speak with Christ, I want you to ask him what sin your pastor
committed while he was in seminary.” The woman agreed. The following week,
when the pastor visited, he asked., “Well, did Christ visit you in your dreams?”
“Yes, he did,” she replied. “And did you ask Him what sin I committed in
seminary?” “Yes.” “Well, what did he say?” “He said, ‘I don’t remember’“

“I don’t remember.” Dear friend, if you ask your Lord about the sins of your
past He’ll say the same thing to you: “I don’t remember!” On your knees you
may thank your gracious Lord that His FORGIVENESS IS UNLIMITED. Not
only does your Heavenly Father forgive your sin, but for Jesus’ sake he forgets it
as well! People always say, ‘Forgive and forget,’ but that’s not very easy to do.
Forgiveness comes hard, and forgetting – for us humans – is often impossible.
But not for God. God, for Jesus’ sake, says to you, “ I, even I, am He who blots
out your transgressions for My own sake; and I will not remember your sins.”
–Is 43:25. Many times I’ve had to ask a believer whom I was counseling, “Why
do you keep tormenting yourself with this sin that you committed in your past?
Why keep remembering it? God doesn’t remember it! God has forgiven and
forgotten it in Jesus Christ!” The Bible promises us that “…as the heavens are
high above the earth, So great is His mercy toward those who fear Him; 12 As
far as the east is from the west, So far has He removed our transgressions from
us. 13 As a father pities his children, So the LORD pities those who fear Him.
–Ps 103:11-13.

So take a deep breath! With God it’s definitely FORGIVENESS
UNLIMITED. Your sins – your ten thousand talents’-worth of sins – have all
been remitted by God. Learn to let go of those sins of your past – God already
has. In fact the only one who wants you to remember them is the devil. Martin
Luther once dreamt that the devil came to him and unrolled a long scroll listing
all the sins he’d committed in his life. After the first scroll came a second and a
third long scroll listing all the sins of which he’d been guilty. When Satan was
done Luther cried out, “You’ve forgotten something! Write quickly on each one
of them, ‘The blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sins.’”

That puts things in perspective, doesn't it? The Holy Spirit, working through
God's Word is the power that cultivates faith in our hearts. It's the power that
produces good works in our lives, including the ability to forgive our neighbor.
To gladly and willingly comply with Paul's admonition in Ephesians: "And be
kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God in Christ
forgave you." -- 4:32. Is it always easy? No. Not all the sins people commit
against you are small. Some of them are "hundred denarius" sins - they really
hurt. They cause you real sorrow, real tears. But with the power of God you can
forgive. You'll find it's true - when you've escaped God's wrath - when your
Lord Jesus has rescued you from hell and delivered you to the gates of heaven -
then faith takes over. When God gives you faith to understand the 10,000
talents you've been forgiven by Him, then the debts others owe you (even the
100-denarius ones) won't seem nearly as important. Then the boundaries on
your mercy, the limits to your forgiveness, will start to fade and disappear.
Jesus' words to Peter are for us, as well: LET YOUR FORGIVENESS BE
UNLIMITED.

I read a story the other day about a husband and wife who found themselves
experiencing more than the usual number of marital disagreements So the wife
suggested a solution. For one month, instead criticizing each other verbally,
they would each write down their criticisms on slips of paper and put them in a
“fault box” – one for the husband and one for the wife. So they did. The wife
was diligent in her approach: “Leaving the jelly top off the jar,” she said. “Wet
towels on the shower floor,” “dirty socks not in hamper.” And day after day the
husband deposited his slips as well. Then one evening at the end of the month,
they sat down together to open the boxes. First the husband read all the slips
his wife had written, and soberly reflected on his shortcomings. Then the wife
opened her box and began reading. Only in her box the slips were all the same.
Each one said, “I love you.” As you can imagine, there didn’t seem much for
them to fight about after that. In this case it was the husband’s willingness to
forgive that healed the relationship. But even that heart-warming example is
really only the "hundred denarius" part of our parable, isn’t it? That’s the
common kind of debt. The kind of debt that you too will have many
opportunities, in your life, to forgive. The kind of debt that you can gladly and
spontaneously forgive as a fruit of your faith. But my fellow-Christians, don’t
lose sight of the uncommon debt. Don’t forget about the ten thousand talents
that your Heavenly Father has forgiven you in Christ. With God it is truly
FORGIVENESS UNLIMITED, because all your sins are atoned for, washed
away and forgotten in the blood of the Lamb. For you there is now no
judgment, no criticism, no condemnation. Because of Christ, when you open
your box from God all the slips of paper say “I love you.” AMEN.