The Unforgiving Servant: Part 3 (Matthew 18:31-34)

Hello All,

Just to recap on the sequence of events which have unfolded in this parable:

·         The servant could not repay his debt to the king and was about to face the penalty of defaultment.

·         So the servant pleaded for mercy and the king forgave him and cancelled all of his debts out of compassion.    

·         However, the servant refused to forgive a fellow servant who owed him some money but imprisoned him until the debt was fully paid.

The Unforgiving Servant: Part 3 (Matthew 18:31-34)

By Joanne Liaw Sook Ling (15^th September 2012)

When the other servants saw what had taken place

They were greatly distressed and utterly amazed

At the servant’s unwillingness to forgive

His debtor after the great pardon he had received

The servants reported to the king their concern

The king was greatly displeased and his anger burned

Against the servant who refused to learn

That forgiveness is grace that cannot be earned

The king summoned the servant before him

And rebuked him harshly for his wicked sin

Of continual refusal to show mercy

After his own debts were cancelled so freely

The king ordered for him to be delivered

To prison in the hands of the jailers

His length of incarceration had been set

Until he should pay all of his debt

TO BE CONTINUED…..

Matthew 6:14-15

For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.

Points for Reflection:

·         A person who has truly experienced God’s forgiveness will be able to forgive others or at least make an effort to do so with the help of the Holy Spirit. Continual refusal to forgive shows that a person has not truly experienced God’s grace and is therefore not saved.

·         Are you unwilling to forgive some people who have grieved you in the past? Those people might have hurt you deeply and it might even seem reasonable to hold their sin against them. But if God was willing to forgive us for our innumerable sins, shouldn’t we attempt to do likewise with the enablement of the Holy Spirit? Pray to God for a forgiving heart.