Pentecost 13: The Kingdom Ethic of Forgiveness

Good morning and welcome. Today, we are continuing our look into what I would dub “Kingdom Ethics,” or the way we as Christians should live as dictated by the Word of God.

In my research, I found this delightful piece by Phil Calloway in his book, Golfing with the Master. Any golfers out there? I’m a golfer and happy to say a casual one at best, so I found this amusing. Calloway writes:

I'm so thankful that God says,"You'll never measure up, so accept the gift of grace from One who did. It's the one key that will unlock heaven's door." Listen to these liberating words of grace: "Because of the sacrifice of the Messiah, his blood poured out on the altar of the Cross, we're a free people—free of penalties and punishments chalked up by all our misdeeds. And not just barely free, either. Abundantly free!" (Ephesians 1:7-8 MSG).

Have you ever wondered what would happen if certain Bible characters sent letters of application for ministry positions in a church? Would the Thursday night search committee meeting sound something like this?

"Let's talk about this Adam."

"Well, he seems like a good man, but he takes bad directions from his wife. And you don't even want to know what he wears in the woods."

"How about Noah?"

"He's prone to taking on huge building projects without a permit. He's a pessimist too."

"What about Joseph?"

"Brags too much. Has a prison record. He's even been accused of adultery."

"And Moses?"

"Are you kidding? He's a lousy communicator. He stutters and stammers. He has a bad temper and has been known to hit things with a stick."

"So he's a golfer then?"

"That's another of his shortcomings."

"What do you know about Job?"

"Well, he's loaded, so he won't need a salary. But he's pretty gloomy. He complains too much."

"David looks like he has promise."

"Yes, but his kids are out of control, and his wives are a handful. To make matters worse, he's a strong proponent of instrumental music in worship."

"Tell me about Solomon."

"Well, he has a good head on his shoulders, but he's got problems when it comes to building projects. It took him seven years to complete the temple and thirteen years to build his palace. I guess he was trying to please all those wives."

"What about Elijah?"

"No way. Prone to depression. Collapses under pressure. Spends too much time by himself in the wilderness."

"And Samson?"

"Hair's too long."

"Jonah?"

"Good runner, but he makes up big fish tales. Has been disobedient to God."

"Matthew?"

"Not a chance. Works for the IRS."

"What about this John the Baptist?"

"He sure doesn't dress like a Baptist. Strange diet. Makes the Pharisees mad."

"And Peter?"

"Bad temper. Curses sometimes. Claims to have visions."

"Paul?"

"Powerful preacher and a good leader. But he's short on tact and has been known to preach all night. Puts people to sleep. Controversial on women's issues. He's single, too."

"What about these others on the list?"

"Lazarus is dead."

"Zacchaeus is too short."

"Timothy is way too young."

"Methusaleh is too old."

"Sarah laughed too much."

"What about Judas?"

"Well, let's talk about him. He comes with good character references. Good connections. He's conservative, so he won't rock the boat. Handles money well. Maybe he's the one." 

Aren't you glad God in His mercy chose to use the likes of these? They literally shaped the course of human history. And He will do it again through you.

All of us have sinned. But we don't have to live with the guilt. When we truly repent, God forgives and restores us to favour. (Divine Mulligans, Phil Callaway, Golfing with the Master. Eugene, Oregon: Harvest House Publishers, 2006, p. 170-173.)

Our Gospel passage today hammers home the important Christian ethic of forgiveness. According to research, in the Gospel of Matthew there are five great discourses of Jesus: the Sermon on the Mount (ch. 5-7); the commissioning of the disciples (ch. 10); the parables of the kingdom (ch. 13); life in the church (ch. 18); and the end of the age (ch. 24-25).

The passage for this study on forgiveness is a part of the teaching of Jesus in Matthew 18 on life in the church. The chapter begins with a discussion of who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven (vv. 1-9), followed by the parable of the lost sheep (vv. 10-14) which underscores the truth that in God's eyes even "one of these little ones" has such immense value that the shepherd leaves the ninety-nine sheep and goes after the one that has wandered off. This is followed by last week’s instructions to the church on how to deal with a brother who has sinned (vv. 15-20).

It is in this context that Peter asks how often he must forgive an offending brother (vv. 21-22). In answer, Jesus tells the parable of the unmerciful servant (vv. 23-34), followed by a final warning (v. 35). Recall here that Peter knows the importance of forgiveness. He knows that if someone has sinned against us, we must forgive, but how often?

Jewish tradition limited forgiveness to three times, perhaps based on Amos 1:3, 6, 9 and Job 33:29-30 (note Luke 17:4). Peter thought his willingness to forgive seven times was much more generous than Jewish tradition and thus surpassing the righteousness of Pharisees and teachers of the law (Matthew 5:20).

Jesus' answer was that the Christian must forgive seventy times seven. In other words, there is no limit for forgiveness. To help Peter gain further insight, Jesus tells the parable of the unmerciful servant. It’s the story of a servant who went out and dealt mercilessly with a fellow servant who owed him a debt that was a minute fraction of what he himself had owed. For his mercilessness, this first servant was condemned.

To truly drive the point home, the parable points out how much the first servant owed his master....his debt was more than the total budget of the ordinary province....like one person trying to pay off the debt of the entire Province of Manitoba. In comparison, the fellow servant owed the first servant considerably less...100 denarii or about one - five thousandth of the first servant’s debt.

The contrasts between the debts are staggering. The point then is that there is nothing that another can do to us that can in any way compare with what we have done to God----recall that Jesus was put to death after the cries of the crowd---“Crucify Him, crucify Him!” We are the ones who deserve death, but Jesus took upon Himself the sins of all of us.

Now, if God has forgiven us the debt we owe to Him, we must forgive others the debts they owe to us. What is it the Lord Himself taught us to pray, “forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.” How do we do that? On our own, this can seem an impossibility, but with the grace and help of the Holy Spirit, we can forgive, we are compelled to do so.

Isn’t it interesting this is one of the key ethics or values we try to instil in our youngsters at an early age? I ran across an interesting story that hammers this home more for us. There is no author’s name attached. The author, a mom, writes:

One rainy afternoon I was driving along one of the main streets of town, taking those extra precautions necessary when the roads are wet and slick.

Suddenly, my son Matthew spoke up from his relaxed position in the front seat. "Mom, I'm thinking of something." This announcement usually meant he had been pondering some fact for a while and was now ready to expound all that his seven-year-old mind had discovered. I was eager to hear.

"What are you thinking?" I asked.

"The rain," he began, "is like sin. And the windshield wipers are like God, wiping our sins away."

After the chill bumps raced up my arms, I was able to respond, "That's really good, Matthew." Then my curiosity broke in. How far would this little boy take this revelation? So I asked, "Do you notice how the rain keeps on coming?

What does that tell you?"

Matthew didn't hesitate one moment with his answer. "We keep on sinning and God just keeps on forgiving us." (http://www.sermonillustrator.org/illustrator/sermon1a/windshie.htm)

A great teaching...we keep on sinning and God just keeps on forgiving us. What was it Paul asked “Should I continue to sin so that grace can abound?” His answer... “By no means”. This teaching is not a blueprint or permission to allow sin to continue or to condone behaviour that is wrong. Rather, it is to hold up the essential truth of the Gospel, that we are to forgive as we are forgiven.

Here are some other questions for you to ponder and I leave them with you:

1. What is the most difficult situation you have been called upon to forgive? How did you feel and do you still feel about trying to forgive that offense against you? 
2. In Romans 12:21, Paul says, "Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good." Do you know of an instance where someone overcame evil with good?
3. This parable seems to link an unforgiving spirit with ingratitude. What connection, if any, is there between forgiveness and gratitude?
4. Peter's question concerns a "brother." Must we forgive a non-Christian enemy or is our obligation to forgive limited to fellow Christians? Does forgiveness mean you don't sue someone who wrongs you or press charges against someone who assaults you?
5. Are Christians to forgive and forget? If you forgive someone, can you nevertheless remain cool and distant? Can you limit your contact with that other person for fear they may hurt you again?
6. Sometimes it is said that a person is "too proud" to forgive. What relationship do you find between pride and the unwillingness to forgive? (http://www.tritebuttrue.com/blog/archives/2007/06/forgiveness_the.html

Let us pray. Dear Heavenly Father, we give you thanks that you have taught us that when two or three gather there you are in the midst of them. Thank you for your presence here today and for your grace and mercy. Teach us to have the same mercy and to rely upon your grace when we have sinned or when others sin against us. Thank you for teaching us to forgive and that forgiveness has no limit. This we pray in Jesus name.