Matthew 18:21-35 Forgiveness

Then Peter came and said to Him, "Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me and I forgive him? Up to seven times?" Jesus said to him, "I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven.   "For this reason the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his slaves.  When he had begun to settle them, one who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him.  But since he did not have the means to repay, his Lord commanded him to be sold, along with his wife and children and all that he had, and repayment to be made.  So the slave fell to the ground and prostrated himself before him, saying, 'Have patience with me and I will repay you everything.'  And the Lord of that slave felt compassion and released him and forgave him the debt.  But that slave went out and found one of his fellow slaves who owed him a hundred denarii; and he seized him and began to choke him, saying, 'Pay back what you owe.'  So his fellow slave fell to the ground and began to plead with him, saying, 'Have patience with me and I will repay you.'  But he was unwilling and went and threw him in prison until he should pay back what was owed.  So when his fellow slaves saw what had happened, they were deeply grieved and came and reported to their Lord all that had happened.  Then summoning him, his Lord said to him, '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?'  And his Lord, moved with anger, handed him over to the torturers until he should repay all that was owed him.  My heavenly Father will also do the same to you, if each of you does not forgive his brother from your heart." [Matthew 18:21‭-‬35 NASB]

The point of Jesus's words, "seventy time seven" isn't to keep score and stop forgiving at the 491st offence, but to say, "As many times as your brother sins against you, forgive him." He then tells a parable to illustrate forgiveness in the kingdom of God.

For a little perspective, the first slave owed 10,000 talents. One talent was worth about 15 years wages for a laborer. In other words, this was a debt that could never be repaid. But his Lord forgave him that debt. The second slave owed one hundred denarii. One denarius was worth about a days wages.

The meaning is clear. Because of our sin, we owe a debt that we can never repay. There are not enough good works in the world to cancel out the debt that we owe.

Yet God sent His Son in the flesh to die on the cross, shedding His blood as the one and only pure and true sacrifice to pay off our debt. If only we believe in Him, our debt is forgiven.

In comparison to the debt that God has forgiven us, there is no debt that a brother can owe that compares. It's like comparing the 150,000 years of wages that we owe God to the 100 days wages that we are owed.

Since God has forgiven us, we are compelled to forgive one another.

What happens if we refuse to forgive? Jesus said, "For if you forgive others for their transgressions, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others, then your Father will not forgive your transgressions." [Matthew 6:14-15 NASB]

Paul tells us, "be angry , and  yet  do not sin ; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and do not give the devil an opportunity." [Ephesians 4:26‭-‬27 NASB] First, let's put away the notion that he's commanding us to get angry. I have actually heard people justify their temper with this verse. He is simply recognizing that in our humanity, we will sometimes feel anger. When that happens, don't let it lead to sin - forgive one another so that the anger is stopped in its tracks. 

He says, "Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you." [Ephesians 4:31-32 NASB]