June 28, 2010
Study Guide: Choose Forgiveness
Posted by Michael
Learn:
Matthew 18: 23 – 35
23"Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. 24As he began the settlement, a man who owed him ten thousand talents[g] was brought to him. 25Since he was not able to pay, the master ordered that he and his wife and his children and all that he had be sold to repay the debt.
26"The servant fell on his knees before him. ‘Be patient with me,’ he begged, ‘and I will pay back everything.’ 27The servant’s master took pity on him, canceled the debt and let him go.
28"But when that servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii. He grabbed him and began to choke him. ‘Pay back what you owe me!’ he demanded.
29"His fellow servant fell to his knees and begged him, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you back.’
30"But he refused. Instead, he went off and had the man thrown into prison until he could pay the debt. 31When the other servants saw what had happened, they were greatly distressed and went and told their master everything that had happened.
32"Then the master called the servant in. ‘You wicked servant,’ he said, ‘I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. 33Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?’ 34In anger his master turned him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed.
35"This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother from your heart."
Main Idea:
The concept or forgiveness is great when we talk about it as an “idea”. We all agree it’s a good thing, but it gets a lot harder to embrace when we actually have to do it. There may be someone in your life right now who you harbor bitter feelings towards. The idea of forgiving them repulses you. In Matthew 18, Jesus tells the story of a servant who owed a king 10,000 talents. This debt could never be paid back in a lifetime. The king forgave him. The king took the loss and absorbed the debt himself. Instead of being grateful, the servant turned around and jailed a fellow servant who owed him a much less significant sum of money. Sound familiar? We have all accumulated a mountain a moral debt that can never be paid back to God. Good deeds, no matter how numerous, will never cancel out sin. Never. Jesus took all our sins and absorbed God’s wrath on the cross. We are fully forgiven. How crazy would it be, then, to receive the free gift of forgiveness from Jesus and not offer the same thing to others? Until you forgive, there is a measure of God’s grace you are refusing.
Know What: We can choose to be bitter and angry toward those who wrong us, or we can move toward forgiveness.
So What: Because Jesus has set us free from our own sins by grace, He expects us to do the same for others.
Now What: Choose to abandon bitterness and anger and forgive others with the same amazing grace that Jesus has offered to you.
Discuss…
1. Is there anyone who you are currently nursing bitterness against? Is the idea of offering forgiveness to them repulsive to you? Why?
2. Why is it sometimes “fun” to have feelings of anger against someone? When are you most tempted to allow feelings of self-righteousness creep into your emotions? Have you experienced how bitterness and anger can eat you alive and leave you as a skeleton?
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3. Have you ever tried to “cancel out” sin in your life by doing good deeds? Did doing a good deed make your sin any less real? Why do we believe good deeds can cancel out sin when this concept doesn’t work in any other area of life?
4. What is your definition of forgiveness? Is it possible that your unwillingness to forgive is due to a misconception of what forgiveness is (i.e. thinking it has to lead to reconciliation, etc.)? Based on what was said in the sermon, has your definition of forgiveness changed? How so?
5. The parable of the unmerciful servant ends with a somber warning. What are the consequences of not offering forgiveness to others? How will it affect your relationship with God?
6. What steps can you take right now towards offering forgiveness towards others?
Pray
This week, think of someone who you need to forgive. First, thank Jesus for the gift of grace and for paying in full the debt you owe to God. Ask Him for the grace to forgive others, and to remove any anger or bitterness in your life. Then take the appropriate next steps to offer forgiveness to that person.
