Dear saints, we consider this morning how often we must forgive our fellow brother or sister before we may retain the sins committed against us. Our Gospel lesson begins with St. Peter asking our Lord, “Lord, how often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?” He thinks this is a large number, for the rabbis of the day said you only needed to forgive the same sin three times. Imagine, therefore, Peter’s surprise when Jesus replies, “I do not say to you seven times, but seventy times seven.”
Our Lord uses the question to launch into our parable for this morning. It concerns a king who decides to settle the accounts with his servants. As he settles them, a servant is brought before him who owes 10,000 talents, which means he owed about 20 years’ worth of wages to his king. It was an insurmountable debt and could never be repaid. 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.
From our perspective, and considering the customs of the first century, we might understand selling the man into slavery. It’s like what used to be ‘debtors’ prison.’ Selling his things, like today when items are repossessed when a loan defaults, makes sense. But the wife and children? That seems harsh. But under the law of the time, the wife and children would be considered part of the man’s property, and thus, part of his possessions. Do not impose our current day law and morality on a parable making a point while using the customs of the day.
So the servant fell on his knees, imploring him, “Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything.” The man’s plea brings pity and compassion to the king, and he does have mercy on the man. The full debt of the man is forgiven, and he is sent on his way, reconciled to his king. He has no burden of debt, large or small, regarding his king.
You would think this act of mercy would have a profound impact on him. You would think that, if anyone owed him anything, he would reciprocate the mercy. Or, at the very least, not require full payment immediately. But we see the hard-heartedness of the servant immediately.
But when that same servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii, 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.
It is a shocking response. Even the worldly among us would bristle at such an action. It is not surprising that the news of this gets out quickly. And it is less surprising that the king is told quickly. Now, imagine the dread the forgiven servant feels when he is again summoned before the king. And the horror he feels when he hears the judgment: “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?”
It doesn’t end there. It gets worse for the wicked servant because this isn’t just a chastisement. For in his anger his master delivered him to the jailers, until he should pay all his debts. The jailers here aren’t the jailers we think of today. They aren’t just making sure you don’t escape. These jailers are oppressive and often torture those they have as a prisoner. In fact, their job is to exact torture and pain. And this man will be under them until all – every cent – of his debt is repaid. Said another way, they will oppress him forever. He will never get out.
It is important to remember that, when looking at parables, we should look for the shocking thing. And when we find the shocking thing, it is nearly always the work that God is doing. Here, the shocking thing is the king simply waving away billions of dollars in debt as if it were nothing. And so, we find ourselves God’s debtor. Our debt is sin. We constantly and continually wrack up our debt of sin. A debt that we are hopeless to pay a single one of them back.
We began the Divine Service today with a verse we also found in the Introit: “If you, O Lord, should mark iniquities, O Lord, who could stand?” It is a fearful thing to stand before the Holy God. Especially when you know the debt you owe to Him. Yet we continue saying, “But with you there is forgiveness, that you may be feared.”
God has mercy and pity upon you and forgives your sins. The whole of your debt is canceled. You may stand before Him guiltless and go your way in peace. It is, after all, what we come here for. We hear His absolution. We hear His Word read. We receive His gifts in the Holy Supper. And we hear His benediction, sending us out in peace.
Because of all this, we are mindful of the mercy shown upon us when our brother or sister, our fellow servant, sins against us. In a few minutes, we will pray, “forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.” Luther writes of this petition, “We pray in this petition that our Father in heaven would not look at our sins, or deny our prayer because of them. We are neither worthy of the things for which we pray, nor have we deserved them, but we ask that He would give them all to us by grace, for we daily sin much and surely deserve nothing but punishment. So we too will sincerely forgive and gladly do good to those who sin against us.”
Our forgiving the sins that are committed against us is part of bearing fruit in keeping with repentance. If we refuse, we do not bear the good fruit of a good tree, but the bad fruit of the diseased tree. Such a bad tree is cut down and thrown into the fire. Or, in the words of our parable, the hard-hearted servant who has no mercy on his fellow-servant, is given to the torturer for eternity.
We forgive because we have been forgiven. We have been forgiven of more sin than could ever be committed against us. Therefore, we may look to our persecuted martyred brothers and sisters when they forgave those sinning against them. At Joseph, whose brothers committed sins against him, and he returned their evil with good. For Stephen, who asks that God forgive those murdering him even as stones reigned down upon him.
And we look to Jesus, who took on your flesh and died for you. On account of Him, you do not receive the just punishment you deserve because He has already suffered it. Rather, you get to show the mercy you have received to others. And each other. It is why you freely forgive and do good for those who sin against you. And why, as we prayed, our faithful Lord grants that what we ask in faith, we obtain. Amen.
Rev. Brent Keller
Peace Lutheran Church
Alcester, SD
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