Forgiven to Forgive (Matt 18:1-35)

Part I

Did your mother ever ban you from the kitchen with “those dirty shoes on?”  Rightly so and similarly sin is not so much an offense we get punished for but rather a privilege of entry we lose by walking in mud.  A very interesting situation arose at my cousin’s compound in India between him and one of his girls.  The young lady is the sweetest little darling you would ever come across.  She never crossed anyone but humbly epitomised what it is to be a good Christian.  With the other girls she entered daily into heavenly visions, sometimes twice a day.  Church life for her was literally out of this world, heavenly, joyful.  This young woman was enjoying life abundantly until one day it all abruptly stopped. 

My cousin told me that he said something jokingly from which the young woman took offense and that day her visions of heaven ceased. A week passed and she was beginning to get agitated and by ten days she came to him asking why all her efforts to enter in to the visions with the other girls came to no avail; why couldn’t she enter in?  My cousin said that no matter what he had done it was her unforgiveness that barred her entry into heaven. And so it was and as soon as she put her heart right and its love with him the abundant life of visions returned.  The young lady in this story allowed an offense to rob her of abundant life.

I have been speaking about a troubled heart for months now and how it can do harm.  Peace is the rightful occupier of the Christian heart; it belongs like a pea in a pod, like a bird in a nest, like a melody in a song.  If you lose God’s peace and the heart emits unloving signals.  Lose your peace and everyone feels it; even God I dare say.  It seems Matthew 18 is showing us once again that law cannot save us; what our Father in heaven is looking for is relationship.  The innocent lambs blood wasn’t meant to be continually covering up man’s tempestuous relationship with God but He would rather we didn’t cause Him offense.  

Jesus calls over a little child as an example.  What is interesting about a toddler is how sweet and inoffensive they are.  Now it’s a different story once they go to school and learn the ways of the world; how offensive they can be shouting, “You’re not my mum anymore!” and stamping the feet; or flinging themselves on the floor in the very public supermarket yelling, “How horrible as a parent you are!”  A little child is inoffensive and Jesus is imploring his disciples to be equally humble as a toddler and therefore great in the kingdom of heaven.  To be humble is to be as inoffensive as a crying, pooping, chuckling infant.  Yes to be God’s child, adopted an infant, is to be noisy but not abusive, messed and smelly but not hurling it around the universe, and when fed by God joyful and thankful.  So it’s okay to be a bit demanding when hungry, okay to make a few messes and mistakes, but also to be joyful and appreciative of God’s merciful provision and grace.  

So we have made ourselves right in God’s sight but how do we deal with those who are not right and making our lives difficult?  What do we do when our colleague causes offense?  Sin was previously referred to as trespass and it is a good definition.  We understand trespass as a voluntary wrongful act against the person or property of another, esp. unlawful entry to (or exit from) a person's land or property without their permission.  The elimination of trespass is of prime importance simply because it removes man from the presence with the Lord.  Adam and Eve had to leave the Garden of Eden because they acted upon the advice of other than God.  They trespassed in deed so God placed them in a physical zone which matched their spiritual alliance.  Israel trespassed in spirit and therefore God placed them captives in Babylon. 

Jesus paid the penalty for that trespass on Calvary’s cross that man might once again enter into the presence of God.  Forgiveness was then freely available to be given and accepted so mankind might enjoy heaven’s delights both immediately and in the future, on earth as it is in heaven.  God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believed in him shall have eternal life.  Eternal life is both beneficial now and later; it is eternal.  To say that eternal life is just for later, i.e. after we die, is to rob it of its power.  Life in God is timeless; pre-existing before conception and everlasting beyond our earthly existence; saving grace extends forever.

Here in this reading Jesus established an orderly manner of bringing the wandering sheep, the tantrum child as it were, back into fellowship with himself.  Saying to your creator, “You are not my Father anymore,” is really a bit silly isn’t it, because it doesn’t change a thing; your child is your child because it is your child.  Yet there is some truth in it when you think of who might well have spawned such a spiteful outburst.  Who actually is behind the words of our lips at times?  There is an element of evangelism here in this reading viewed from the Lord’s perspective visiting conviction on wayward children when he says, “If he hears you, you have gained a brother.”

Not one of us is perfect and the odd speeding ticket can bring a touch of authenticity to our false imaginings of righteousness.  God would do well and does likewise ticket us over misdemeanors from time to time to keep us in touch with the awful reality of judgement.  Judgement can come on genuine mistakes equally as it may come to deliberate errors.  We would do well to write ourselves a note and pin it to the dashboard of life saying, “Remember what it feels like to get an offense ticket.”  Remember if you will one time you were caught and let that remind you not to trespass out of God’s domain and into the enemy’s muddy territory.  Offenses will come but forgiveness is better than blame, for your own sake. 

It’s all about binding and loosing; those who don’t forgive bind themselves and the other. And those who do forgive loose themselves and the other.  It’s about not an eye for an eye but about being free and setting free; live and let live. The venom of unforgiveness belongs to the snake.

Part II

The book of Matthew has purpose and a goal.  No one chapter of this book may be interpreted in isolation to the whole.  On Tuesday morning I set about writing this sermon.  However nothing was coming so I rang my workmate and he had the need of my help.  On Wednesday morning I again set about writing the sermon.  I began with a line of thought but my mother soon interrupted on skype.  I lost my train of thought so I went outside and sat on the picnic table beneath the big tree.  There was a slight breeze from the north as I read Matthew 18 and as I pondered the thoughts about offenses one leaf of the New Testament as if magically stood up held and rolled over to chapter 16.

I had noticed chapter 18 seems to begin three verses before the chapter break with Jesus talking about offense.  Now in Chapter 16 my eyes were drawn to Peter rebuking Jesus concerning his crucifixion.  Here again we see Jesus rebuking not Peter but Satan for the offense of it.  It seemed that suddenly offense was written everywhere I was looking.  Suddenly I realized that all offence comes from Satan. 

In the three verses prior to chapter 18 we see a dialogue concerning the temple tax. Jesus then explains to Peter that they have no need of payment because they are sons of the kingdom.  Jesus says, “Nevertheless, lest we offend them, go to the sea, cast in a hook, and take the fish that comes up first.” Jesus makes it very clear that he has no need to pay a temple tax yet does not want to offend those who expect the temple tax and so by a miraculous event the exact amount for two is presented in the mouth of a fish.  Chapter 18 then proceeds to further discuss the issue of offences.

The greater benefit of forgiveness comes to the one who forgives rather than to the one forgiven.  Jesus makes it very clear that one who offends is the subject of the parable of the lost sheep.  Jesus also gives us a very clear process on how to recover the lost sheep.  Then in the parable of the unforgiving servant Jesus speaks to the offending and offensive brother.  We should listen very carefully to what Jesus says this parable.  My aim today is to free you from your own life threatening disease!  This is a terminal disease common in men.  Some people refer to this disease as “hardened heart.”   This is the natural or default state of mankind; the way he reacts by instinct.  I believe this is a fatal error and we must overcome it.

You will remember that Jesus said earlier in Ch 18 that unless you are converted and become his little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.  As I said little children are innocent and do not judge.  A little child, a toddler, would never think in its heart to do such as is in this parable.  This parable is about a servant with a hardened heart.  This servant does not understand what had been done for him when his master forgave him his debt.  The servant does not seem to accept that his 10,000 talents has been written off but rather seems to want to repay it still himself.  The servant goes out and tries to extract all that is owed to him from his fellow servants.  The servant has been shown mercy and freedom but does not respond towards it, throwing his fellow servant unable to pay into prison. You and I know very well who the King is in this parable; it is Jesus.  We represent the servant who has been forgiven all his debts.

 

Who has a grudge against another?  Who carries offense amongst us?  Who amongst us carries venom in their veins?  Did someone offend you?  Did a friend betray you?  Has a partner cheated on you?  Do you carry anger at a misdeed?  Did a child speak to you harshly?  Did a stranger stand on your foot?  Did a thief take your money or break into your house and steal your possessions?  Are you accepting the forgiveness of our Saviour while retaining your right to retain offense?  Do you call yourself a Christian yet retain the right to judge?  This is what this parable of the unforgiving servant is all about.

Romans 14:13 says, “Let’s not judge another but resolve to put before another no reason to trespass.”  I want to get something across here; I want us to understand where offense comes from.  When Peter rebuked the lord saying, “Far be it from you, lord; this shall not happen to you!” Jesus did not direct His rebuking towards Peter but rather to the spirit behind it.  Jesus knew Satan was trying to tempt him away from the will of his father.  If we could just recognise the source of the offensive words that issue forth from us we would be horrified that we had become a servant not of Christ, but rather of Satan.  How can this be, that we should be called by the name of Christ yet our lips reveal we are the servant of another?

The close of this parable tells us what the heavenly father will do to those who from their heart will not forgive his brother his trespasses.  The one who will not absolve sin will be given to a torturer until he should pay all that was owned to him.  Hell has always been defined as a place of torture in the gospels.  Hell is often depicted as a place of tremendous pain and regret.  Hell is a place of torture with no end.  It is interesting in the parable of the rich man and Lazarus that having died was buried and being in torments and hades he requested that Lazarus dip his finger in water to cool his tongue; as he was tormented in the flame.  Why the tongue?  One might conceive this rich man to have once been able to forgive many but held his tongue.  It seems poetic justice.

The concept of hell seems much maligned these days.  One might say that even heaven is held in contempt.  Jesus here makes it as sure as death in taxes there is torture awaiting him or her who will not forgive, why, because there is no love in his heart.  Love is the fulfilment of the law and the narrow path of the Christian?  How do we know they were followers of Jesus?  Because they love each other, then they will know.  So don’t sit on your high horse and look down on others, your heart hardened to them.  Rather be like a little child, innocent as if not understanding what’s happening around, yet all the time for the understanding the spirit behind the words.  Do not be a people of the darkness but rather a people of light, loving, joyful, peaceful, patient, kind, good, faithful, gentle and self-controlled.  Against such there is no law.

How often must we forgive?  Jesus says, “seventy times seven” (490 Jubilee?).  Perfect peace is a very precious commodity; no amount of gold can buy it and no amount of time can earn it.  Peace is a gift meted out only to those who are forgiven and who forgive.  Heaven is closed to those who will not forgive and hold unforgiveness in their hardened hearts. Repent therefore and be filled with God’s spirit; be baptised in the name of the Father and the Son and of the Holy Spirit.