Matthew 18:21-35; Philippians 1:3-11; Malachi 6:6-8
In the Name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit.
Do you not find it ironic that your Lord tells Peter to forgive seventy times seven and then tells a parable about a king who forgives only once? What’s with that? You are to forgive endlessly, but God forgives only once? But then, this is a parable of the kingdom of heaven, which is not like the kingdoms of men.
In the kingdoms of men, you think you want justice, what is right, above all else. Therefore, you sympathize with Peter in his desire to limit forgiveness. A repeat offender deserves justice and punishment, you believe. However, when the king exacts such harsh punishment upon a servant who owes him an enormous debt, you sympathize with the servant. The punishment seems excessive, unjust. And when the king forgives the servant’s entire debt out of pity for him, don’t you feel that is unjust as well? No one is supposed to get something for nothing. There’s no such thing as a free lunch, after all. Do you see how twisted your thoughts about justice are? By what measure do you decide what is just, right, fair, and good?
Jesus knows this about you. He is a master storyteller, and He tells this parable to expose your hypocrisy and self-righteousness. The servant who has been mercifully forgiven his enormous debt then literally grabs another servant by the throat over a comparatively insignificant debt. Though the man pleads for more time, the unforgiving servant has him thrown into prison until he can repay every last cent. But in prison, he cannot earn the money to repay the debt. He will never get out.
How does this twist in the story affect your sense of justice? Are you not outraged that the servant who was forgiven so much refuses even to be merciful toward a servant who owes him so little? Do you not sympathize with the fellow servants who witness this wickedness and report it to their master? And from what high place do you stand in judgment? Did you not sympathize with this man before, and now you condemn him? Remember, this is a parable about the kingdom of heaven. What, then, is Jesus teaching you?
Consider what happened when the Prophet Nathan confronted King David over his murderous sin. Nathan told David a story about a rich man who took a poor man’s beloved ewe lamb and killed it. David burned with righteous indignation and declared that the man deserved to die. Then Nathan said to him, “You are the man!” When you hear Nathan’s story, when you hear Jesus’ parable, you are quick to judge, filled with self-righteous anger and ready to condemn. But what is truly exposed is the truth that you are the man.
You are the unforgiving servant. You have received the Lord’s mercy, yet you withhold mercy from others. You have been forgiven a debt you could never repay, yet you demand payment from those who sin against you. And you are also the fellow servants who want the wicked man exposed and punished. You want people to pay for the evil they do, not only in this life but eternally. You condemn them and want them to get what they deserve.
Then be careful what you ask for. If you demand a God who condemns others and exacts justice from them, you must also stand before that God yourself. If that is the sort of king you want, that is the sort of king you will have. You, too, will answer for your sins.
You are not unique. You, too, have sinned. You, too, have been forgiven much. You, too, have received God’s compassionate mercy. Therefore, humble yourself before the King, for He alone is righteous, and He alone is the greatest in the kingdom. Do not demand justice for everyone else while expecting mercy for yourself. Repent, and receive forgiveness. Then forgive as you have been forgiven. Give as you have been given to, and do not condemn, as you have not been condemned.
For Jesus’ sake, God has forgiven you. And here we must be clear: God’s forgiveness is once for all, not because He forgives you only once and then refuses to forgive you again, but because Jesus Christ has made the once-for-all sacrifice for the sins of the whole world. Nothing can be added to His finished work upon the cross. Your debt has been paid in full, not because you deserved it, not because you earned it, but solely because of God’s mercy in His Son. And this forgiveness is continually delivered to you through His Word and Sacraments, so that you might receive it by faith, again and again, throughout your life.
But Jesus’ parable also contains a serious warning. The servant who refuses to forgive reveals that he despises the mercy he has received. He wants the king’s forgiveness for himself but refuses to extend mercy to his neighbor. He wants forgiveness without repentance, mercy without mercy’s fruit, and the king’s generosity without living as one who has been forgiven.
So it is with you when you refuse to forgive. You cannot cling to Christ’s mercy for yourself while insisting that mercy be withheld from your neighbor. When you persist in an unforgiving heart, refusing to repent of your bitterness and your desire to condemn, you reject the very mercy upon which you depend. You turn away from the forgiveness Christ has won for you and place yourself under the judgment of the Law. This is no small matter, for faith that receives God’s mercy does not despise that mercy but bears its fruit in love toward the neighbor.
When you pray in the Lord’s Prayer, “Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us,” you confess that the forgiveness you receive from God cannot be separated from the forgiveness you extend to others. Your refusal to forgive is not a small matter. It places your own faith and salvation in jeopardy, because it is a rejection of the mercy of God.
But understand this: it is only through Jesus’ forgiveness that you are able to forgive others. You have neither the righteousness nor the strength to do so on your own. You need His mercy, His Word, and His Spirit. That is why Jesus tells you to forgive seventy times seven. There is no limit to the forgiveness you are to extend to your neighbor, just as there is no limit to the mercy God pours out upon you in Christ.
God’s forgiveness came at great cost: the cost of His only-begotten Son. Yet that sacrifice was necessary so that you might be justified through faith in Him. His forgiveness is yours freely, without any merit or worthiness in you. And when you forgive your neighbor, you are not losing something that belongs to you. You are bearing witness to the mercy you have received.
Do not imagine that you can earn God’s favor by forgiving others. You are forgiven for Jesus’ sake alone. Rather, because you have been forgiven, you are called to forgive. Faith receives the mercy of Christ, and that mercy bears fruit in love toward your neighbor.
As St. Paul writes to the Philippians, he is confident “that He who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.” The Lord who has called you to faith will continue His work in you through His Word and Sacraments. He will expose your sin, call you to repentance, renew your faith, and strengthen you to live in the mercy you have received.
Therefore, do not look to your own righteousness, your own sense of justice, or your own strength. Look to Jesus, whose wounds declare that your debt has been paid. Return continually to His Word and His gifts, where your forgiveness is proclaimed and your faith is sustained. There, the Holy Spirit works in you the mercy you cannot manufacture for yourself.
And so the words of the Prophet Micah are fulfilled in your life: “He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?”
May the Holy Spirit grant you such humility, such faith, and such mercy, that you forgive as you have been forgiven, for Jesus’ sake.
In the + Name of Jesus. Amen.
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