Matthew 18:6-35
Matthew 18:6-35 (New Living Translation)
6But if you cause one of these little ones who trusts in me to fall into sin, it would be better for you to have a large millstone tied around your neck and be drowned in the depths of the sea. 7 “What sorrow awaits the world, because it tempts people to sin. Temptations are inevitable, but what sorrow awaits the person who does the tempting. 8 So if your hand or foot causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It’s better to enter eternal life with only one hand or one foot than to be thrown into eternal fire with both of your hands and feet. 9 And if your eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It’s better to enter eternal life with only one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into the fire of hell. 10 “Beware that you don’t look down on any of these little ones. For I tell you that in heaven their angels are always in the presence of my heavenly Father.
Parable of the Lost Sheep
12 “If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them wanders away, what will he do? Won’t he leave the ninety-nine others on the hills and go out to search for the one that is lost? 13 And if he finds it, I tell you the truth, he will rejoice over it more than over the ninety-nine that didn’t wander away! 14 In the same way, it is not my heavenly Father’s will that even one of these little ones should perish.
Correcting Another Believer
15 “If another believer sins against you, go privately and point out the offense. If the other person listens and confesses it, you have won that person back. 16 But if you are unsuccessful, take one or two others with you and go back again, so that everything you say may be confirmed by two or three witnesses. 17 If the person still refuses to listen, take your case to the church. Then if he or she won’t accept the church’s decision, treat that person as a pagan or a corrupt tax collector. 18 “I tell you the truth, whatever you forbid on earth will be forbidden in heaven, and whatever you permit on earth will be permitted in heaven. 19 “I also tell you this: If two of you agree here on earth concerning anything you ask, my Father in heaven will do it for you. 20 For where two or three gather together as my followers, I am there among them.”
Parable of the Unforgiving Debtor
21 Then Peter came to him and asked, “Lord, how often should I forgive someone who sins against me? Seven times?” 22 “No, not seven times,” Jesus replied, “but seventy times seven! 23 “Therefore, the Kingdom of Heaven can be compared to a king who decided to bring his accounts up to date with servants who had borrowed money from him. 24 In the process, one of his debtors was brought in who owed him millions of dollars. 25 He couldn’t pay, so his master ordered that he be sold—along with his wife, his children, and everything he owned—to pay the debt. 26 “But the man fell down before his master and begged him, ‘Please, be patient with me, and I will pay it all.’ 27 Then his master was filled with pity for him, and he released him and forgave his debt. 28 “But when the man left the king, he went to a fellow servant who owed him a few thousand dollars. He grabbed him by the throat and demanded instant payment. 29 “His
fellow servant fell down before him and begged for a little more time. ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay it,’ he pleaded. 30 But his creditor wouldn’t wait. He had the man arrested and put in prison until the debt could be paid in full. 31 “When some of the other servants saw this, they were very upset. They went to the king and told him everything that had happened. 32 Then the king called in the man he had forgiven and said, ‘You evil servant! I forgave you that tremendous debt because you pleaded with me. 33 Shouldn’t you have mercy on your fellow servant, just as I had mercy on you?’ 34 Then the angry king sent the man to prison to be tortured until he had paid his entire debt. 35 “That’s what my heavenly Father will do to you if you refuse to forgive your brothers and sistersfrom your heart.”
Devotional (by Marty Bennett): The Importance of Forgiveness
How significant is forgiveness of sins in our lives as Christians? It is absolutely vital. When I read over these passages what strikes me is just how important forgiveness is. With the recent Easter season just passed, we remember the price Jesus paid, the ultimate sacrifice, by bearing all our sins past, present & future, we through believing in Him can receive eternal life. In much the same way, God asks us to forgive others as He has forgiven us. The story of the unforgiving debtor is a powerful one. In this scenario, the king (representing God) forgives the debtor (us) of his debt (sin). This forgiveness is what God wants us, in return, to pass along to those who have done us wrong. In this story, the debtor, who has had his debts erased by the king, does not pass this model of forgiveness along to his servants who have debts with him. Instead, he punishes a man who has debts with him because he couldn’t pay. When the king found
out of this he severely punished the man who had been forgiven of his debts earlier. God wants us to forgive our “brothers and sisters from the heart.”
Like at the Jar, we are an accepting community. We know we are all sinners, we all have spiritual debts or deficits. God forgives us of these debts/sins, but does not want us to stay where we are. He wants us to become better people, to be more like Christ in our behavior toward others. We welcome people in, and want to see them achieve their full God-given potential. That is why God sent his son to earth so that all of us could reach higher than we’d be able to on our own.
Prayer:
Dear God, thank you for sending your only son to bear all our burdens and sins, and lead us to a life full with your presence. Please give us the humility and strength to forgive those who have sinned against us (and you) from our hearts. We pray in Jesus’ name, Amen.
6But if you cause one of these little ones who trusts in me to fall into sin, it would be better for you to have a large millstone tied around your neck and be drowned in the depths of the sea. 7 “What sorrow awaits the world, because it tempts people to sin. Temptations are inevitable, but what sorrow awaits the person who does the tempting. 8 So if your hand or foot causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It’s better to enter eternal life with only one hand or one foot than to be thrown into eternal fire with both of your hands and feet. 9 And if your eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It’s better to enter eternal life with only one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into the fire of hell. 10 “Beware that you don’t look down on any of these little ones. For I tell you that in heaven their angels are always in the presence of my heavenly Father.
Parable of the Lost Sheep
12 “If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them wanders away, what will he do? Won’t he leave the ninety-nine others on the hills and go out to search for the one that is lost? 13 And if he finds it, I tell you the truth, he will rejoice over it more than over the ninety-nine that didn’t wander away! 14 In the same way, it is not my heavenly Father’s will that even one of these little ones should perish.
Correcting Another Believer
15 “If another believer sins against you, go privately and point out the offense. If the other person listens and confesses it, you have won that person back. 16 But if you are unsuccessful, take one or two others with you and go back again, so that everything you say may be confirmed by two or three witnesses. 17 If the person still refuses to listen, take your case to the church. Then if he or she won’t accept the church’s decision, treat that person as a pagan or a corrupt tax collector. 18 “I tell you the truth, whatever you forbid on earth will be forbidden in heaven, and whatever you permit on earth will be permitted in heaven. 19 “I also tell you this: If two of you agree here on earth concerning anything you ask, my Father in heaven will do it for you. 20 For where two or three gather together as my followers, I am there among them.”
Parable of the Unforgiving Debtor
21 Then Peter came to him and asked, “Lord, how often should I forgive someone who sins against me? Seven times?” 22 “No, not seven times,” Jesus replied, “but seventy times seven! 23 “Therefore, the Kingdom of Heaven can be compared to a king who decided to bring his accounts up to date with servants who had borrowed money from him. 24 In the process, one of his debtors was brought in who owed him millions of dollars. 25 He couldn’t pay, so his master ordered that he be sold—along with his wife, his children, and everything he owned—to pay the debt. 26 “But the man fell down before his master and begged him, ‘Please, be patient with me, and I will pay it all.’ 27 Then his master was filled with pity for him, and he released him and forgave his debt. 28 “But when the man left the king, he went to a fellow servant who owed him a few thousand dollars. He grabbed him by the throat and demanded instant payment. 29 “His
fellow servant fell down before him and begged for a little more time. ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay it,’ he pleaded. 30 But his creditor wouldn’t wait. He had the man arrested and put in prison until the debt could be paid in full. 31 “When some of the other servants saw this, they were very upset. They went to the king and told him everything that had happened. 32 Then the king called in the man he had forgiven and said, ‘You evil servant! I forgave you that tremendous debt because you pleaded with me. 33 Shouldn’t you have mercy on your fellow servant, just as I had mercy on you?’ 34 Then the angry king sent the man to prison to be tortured until he had paid his entire debt. 35 “That’s what my heavenly Father will do to you if you refuse to forgive your brothers and sistersfrom your heart.”
Devotional (by Marty Bennett): The Importance of Forgiveness
How significant is forgiveness of sins in our lives as Christians? It is absolutely vital. When I read over these passages what strikes me is just how important forgiveness is. With the recent Easter season just passed, we remember the price Jesus paid, the ultimate sacrifice, by bearing all our sins past, present & future, we through believing in Him can receive eternal life. In much the same way, God asks us to forgive others as He has forgiven us. The story of the unforgiving debtor is a powerful one. In this scenario, the king (representing God) forgives the debtor (us) of his debt (sin). This forgiveness is what God wants us, in return, to pass along to those who have done us wrong. In this story, the debtor, who has had his debts erased by the king, does not pass this model of forgiveness along to his servants who have debts with him. Instead, he punishes a man who has debts with him because he couldn’t pay. When the king found
out of this he severely punished the man who had been forgiven of his debts earlier. God wants us to forgive our “brothers and sisters from the heart.”
Like at the Jar, we are an accepting community. We know we are all sinners, we all have spiritual debts or deficits. God forgives us of these debts/sins, but does not want us to stay where we are. He wants us to become better people, to be more like Christ in our behavior toward others. We welcome people in, and want to see them achieve their full God-given potential. That is why God sent his son to earth so that all of us could reach higher than we’d be able to on our own.
Prayer:
Dear God, thank you for sending your only son to bear all our burdens and sins, and lead us to a life full with your presence. Please give us the humility and strength to forgive those who have sinned against us (and you) from our hearts. We pray in Jesus’ name, Amen.
posted by Mikey | 9:45 AM
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