Matthew 18.15-35 and Psalm 103.8-12
We continue our summer study of the Parables of Jesus, and today we come to the Parable of the Unmerciful Servant. In this parable, Jesus addresses a question asked by Peter. Jesus has just instructed his disciples about how to respond when a brother sins against them, and as Peter turns this over in him mind, a question begins to trouble him. He begins to wonder, “What if my brother keeps sinning against me, how often must I forgive him?” So Peter asks of Jesus, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?” No doubt Peter thinks this to be very generous. But Jesus replies with a stunning answer, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.” Jesus is not saying Peter should count up to seventy-seven times, then on the seventy-eighth time say, “That’s it! You’ve run out of chances." Rather, Jesus is disposing of the notion of calculating a limit on forgiveness and grace. To drive this home, Jesus tells this parable of the Unmerciful Servant. In the parable Jesus speaks of receiving and granting forgiveness by portraying the immensity of the forgiveness we receive from God, and how we should therefore be ready to forgive the sins of others against us which, by comparison, are trivial. The lesson is simple, yet profound. The way to dispense forgiveness to others is by realizing the enormity of God’s mercy and grace to us in Jesus Christ who, on the cross, has paid our debt in full.