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Matthew 18:21-35

²¹ Then Peter came up and said to him, “Lord, how often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?” ²² Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you seven times, but seventy-seven times.

²³ “Therefore the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his servants. ²⁴ When he began to settle, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents. ²⁵ 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. ²⁶ So the servant fell on his knees, imploring him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything.’ ²⁷ And out of pity for him, the master of that servant released him and forgave him the debt. ²⁸ 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.’ ²⁹ So his fellow servant fell down and pleaded with him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you.’ ³⁰ He refused and went and put him in prison until he should pay the debt. ³¹ When his fellow servants saw what had taken place, they were greatly distressed, and they went and reported to their master all that had taken place. ³² Then his master summoned him and said to him, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me. ³³ And should not you have had mercy on your fellow servant, as I had mercy on you?’ ³⁴ And in anger his master delivered him to the jailers, until he should pay all his debt. ³⁵ So also my heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother from your heart.”

In the name of Jesus. Amen.

Today, our Lord Jesus wants us to consider forgiveness – both the forgiveness we receive and the forgiveness we extend. Slow down and consider the first four verses of the parable (v. 23-26).

A king wishes to settle accounts with his servants. In other words, the king wants his books to be clean, so all the servants who owe him money are brought in. Picture them standing in a line to appear before the king one-by-one. In this line is a particular servant. Let’s give him a name, shall we? We’ll call him Owen (pun intended). Owen knows why he is there. He patiently awaits his turn and slowly moves forward as the other servants have their audience with the king. Finally, it’s Owen’s turn. The bookkeeper asks for his name, turns a few pages, and announces, “Your highness, this is Owen who owes you ten thousand talents.”

Now this is an absurd amount of debt. One talent is equivalent to twenty-years’ pay. Owen owes two-hundred-thousand years’ wages. “Your highness, this is Owen who owes you ten thousand talents.” All eyes turn to him, but Owen doesn’t fall to his knees to beg or plead yet. The picture Jesus gives in the parable is that Owen simply says, “Yeah, I don’t have it.” The parable simply states, “he could not pay.” No kidding! He couldn’t pay? Of course he couldn’t pay!

So, the king orders that Owen be sold. He will no longer be the king’s problem. Sell off Owen, his wife, his children, and everything that Owen has will belong to the king. Then, and only then, does Owen fall to his knees and beg.

Why wasn’t Owen begging from the moment he was brought into the room? Did he think that the king didn’t mind about all that debt? Was Owen unaware of how much he owed the king? If this parable were about money, there is no question that Owen would have at least had an idea about the enormity of his debt. But remember, dear saints, this parable is about forgiveness. In the end, this debt of Owen isn’t about money; it is about sin.

Stop and consider this. When we remember the fact that the debt in this parable is sin, we can see how this kind of debt is possible, and we start to get a bit of a handle on our own sinful condition and indebtedness before God. So, buckle up and consider this for a moment:

Children are a gift from God, but we daily take them for granted, ignore them, and snap at them out of irritation. God does not want it to be that way.

Ponder how you spend your time at work. When you aren’t concentrated on your tasks, you aren’t just robbing your boss or the company. Your coworkers know that you are a Christian, and they see how you dishonor God’s name by loafing.

Think about the number of times you have come into this sanctuary and dropped a $20 bill into the offering plate.  God knows your income. He knows your priorities and how you have spent what He has given you on vehicles, clothes, cell phones, and travel to kids’ sporting tournaments.

Kids, listen up. Think about how you act at school. Do you give your best effort on your assignments? Do you say hurtful things to your classmates? Do you not help and befriend the kids who are being bullied? Do you try to get attention by using language or jokes that you wouldn’t dare use in front of your parents? Think about how rudely and disrespectfully you talk to your parents or your attitude toward them when they ask you to do something. Think about how you don’t recognize or acknowledge how much they have done and sacrificed for you.

Everyone, think about the times you have told your friends about the mistakes of others. Or, maybe you have been hurt by someone, and you think it will make you feel better to tell other people about it. You see something on Facebook or Twitter, and your response there will do nothing more than stir up strife. But you do it anyway.

Remember the times you were on vacation and you thought it wouldn’t hurt to skip church that Sunday morning. It did hurt. It hurt God. He wanted you to hear again how He loves you and sent Jesus to pay the price for your soul. When you aren’t in church, you lose something, your children lose something, and God loses something.

Think about the other night. You were watching that show. Men, that woman wasn’t your wife; she was sitting next to you. But God knew your lusts. Women, that handsome, considerate, compassionate character wasn’t your husband. You know what? That’s lust too.

Or think about the time you had sex outside of marriage. Nothing came of it – no pregnancy, no infections or diseases – you weren’t “caught.” But you did get caught. God knew about it. And it hurt the other person.

Think about all the times God has given you a golden opportunity to invite someone to church and receive the forgiveness of sins in the Absolution and Lord’s Supper. They are hurting and lonely because of their sins, and we have the fellowship and community here to heal them. But you were too embarrassed to bring them with you.

Think about that little comment that embarrassed your spouse or your friend. Or think about that time you got something new for your house, but you didn’t thank God for it. Think of how you lost your temper watching the game or the news. Your kids saw that, but even if they didn’t, God did.

Think too, about how each of these sins harms your neighbor. Your neighbor, hurt by that sin, goes and harms someone else. While you aren’t directly responsible for their actions, you end up being an accomplice to their sin.

We could go on and on all day like this. And, maybe, you think this is all nit-picking. The point of all this is to recognize that it isn’t just those particular sins that bother your conscience that rack up a debt of sin. All these little things count toward your debt. It all accumulates. Your sin grows and multiplies and expands. Yet, we go on day after day blissfully unaware of the debt we have racked up.

Remember David? After his sin with Bathsheba – Uriah is dead, his child doesn’t survive, his kingdom is torn to pieces, and there is all sorts of carnage left in the wake of that sin – David rightly confesses to God in Ps. 51:4, “Against You, You only, have I sinned, and done what is evil in Your sight.” Repent. Repent, and see the mercy of God.

Back to the parable. Maybe Owen was so casual about his audit because he figured the king didn’t mind the debt. Or that there aren’t jailors or punishment or a day of reckoning or that his family isn’t harmed by his debt. He only begs after the sentence is read. Owen’s debt has cost him and those closest to him. Only when he sees that does Owen plead with the king.

But, to see the greatness of God’s mercy, notice what Owen begs for. He doesn’t beg for mercy. He begs for time. “Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything.” But the king, God, out of pity doesn’t give Owen what he asks for. No, the king is more merciful than that. He releases Owen and forgives him the debt.

The first verses of Scripture in our service today from Ps. 130[:3-4, 1-2, 7-8] are so beautiful. Hear them again, “If you, O Lord, should mark iniquities, O Lord, who could stand? But with you there is forgiveness, that you may be feared. O Lord, hear my voice! Let your ears be attentive to the voice of my pleas for mercy! [W]ith the Lord there is steadfast love, and with him is plentiful redemption. And he will redeem Israel from all his iniquities.”

Dear saints, God’s ears are more attentive in mercy to forgive your sins than your tongue is willing to confess. Because of Christ and what He has done for you on the cross, God erases your entire debt, completely and absolutely. Today, come to this altar and receive Christ’s forgiveness in this Sacrament. Then, go from here as God’s children ready to forgive the inexcusable in others because He has forgiven the inexcusable in you. Amen.

The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.