We’ve all been hurt at some point in our lives. I can imagine that’s why Peter asked Jesus how many times we should forgive others in Matthew 18. This question was answered by Jesus in a story that is known as “The Parable of the Unmerciful Servant”. When you hear the word “parable”, I want you to think “parallel”. Jesus shares these stories to show that Heaven is not just some place off in the distance, but actively involved (parallel) in your life today.
In this parable, Jesus tells a story about a servant who owed the king a debt of 10,000 talents. How much money is that? A single talent is worth 6,000 denarii (6,000 days’ wages). You can enter that in a calculator and quickly find that 10,000 talents is worth 60,000,000 days’ wages. You could take it a step further and find out how many years this debt would take to pay off, and you would find that it would take over 164,000 years! What’s the takeaway? This is a debt that this servant will NEVER be able to pay.
You’ll see in the reading for today that the king completely cancelled that debt, but then the servant went on to choke another servant that owed him 100 denarii (or, 100 days’ wages), and even put him in jail until he paid back all he owed.
The king was infuriated when he found out what this servant did and handed him over to the jailors to be tortured until he paid back all he owed.
Remember: when you hear “parable”, think “parallel”. What are the parallels of this story and how does it apply in your world today?
This story is about the forgiveness Jesus gave freely to us. He cancelled our debt (one we could never repay) when he took the nails on the cross. We’re just like the unmerciful servant when we hold a grudge against those who have hurt us, and Jesus shares clearly in this story that there is no room for unforgiveness in the kingdom of Heaven.
Holding a grudge is like taking the nails from the cross and driving them into our own chest. Grudges MIGHT hurt others by the way you treat them, but grudges will ALWAYS hurt you. It will not only cause the hurt to continue, but also leave us unforgiven in the process.
Grudges and gratitude are incompatible. We cannot be unforgiving in our hearts and expect God to forgive us. So how can we get rid of the “nails” of unforgiveness? There are 3 things you can do starting today so that one day you can be set free:
#1 - Pray that God would reveal any unforgiveness in your heart. Maybe you’re thinking to yourself, “I have forgiven”. Have you? Then be bold enough to pray that God would reveal the truth, one way or the other.
#2 - Pray for the desire to forgive. Maybe you know you need to forgive but are choosing to hold onto the 'nails'. As you read today’s parable, hopefully God will be laying it on your heart to lay down the 'nails'.
#3 - Pray for the means to forgive. Maybe you want to, but you don’t know how. Sometimes the hurt is too significant for us to forgive on our own. Even if it feels like it’s too much for you, it’s never too much for God. We have a loving Savior willing to rescue us, even from the unforgiveness in our hearts!
Because of Jesus, the 'nails' are no longer yours to bear.
Let's pray:
Father in Heaven, forgive me of any grudges I’ve held in my heart. I pray that you would reveal to me any unforgiveness in my life, and that you would give me the desire to forgive, as well as the means to forgive. Thank you for your forgiveness for me. You have completely cancelled my debt, and I pray that I can do the same for anyone that wronged me. In Jesus’ name, amen.
