I wrote in an earlier post, Seventy Times Seven, about Peter asking Jesus how many times he should forgive someone.  Not only does Jesus give the short answer of seventy times seven (or seventy-seven, depending on the translation), He goes on to tell a parable to illustrate why we ought to forgive and show mercy.

As you read this familiar parable, ask God to help you see accurately where you are in it.  In Matthew 18:23-34, Jesus says;

“Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants.  As he began the settlement, a man who owed him ten thousand bags of gold was brought to him.  Since 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.
The servant fell on his knees before him.  ‘Be patient with me,’ he begged, ‘and I will pay back everything.’  The servant’s master took pity on him, canceled the debt and let him go.
But when that servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred silver coins.  He grabbed him and began to choke him.  ‘Pay back what you owe me!’ he demanded.
His fellow servant fell to his knees and begged him, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you back.’
But he refused.  Instead, he went off and had the man thrown into prison until he could pay the debt.  When the other servants saw what had happened, they were greatly distressed and went and told their master everything that had happened.
Then the master called the servant in.  ‘You wicked servant,’ he said, ‘I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to.  Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?’  In anger his master handed him over to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed.”

We read the account of that servant and we think, “What a jerk!”  His enormous debt was canceled and he goes straight out of his master’s presence and demands justice be served on a fellow servant who owed him a minute fraction of what he had just been forgiven of.  This servant had received mercy of a magnitude that is really hard to imagine.  In an American culture and equivalent, this debt that was forgiven could be approaching the five billion dollar mark (see note below).  I can almost hear Peter and the others who may have been listening, gasp when Jesus first brings up the amount of this servant’s debt.  It would have been clear to them that there was no way this debt would be re-payed — ever!  I can also imagine the surprise, and the relief — Jesus had said this story was about the kingdom of heaven — when the master took pity and canceled the debt.  Wow!  Who would have thought such a debt would ever be forgiven? 

That is why the second part of the story had to come as such a shock.  Here is a man who you would think would be filled with joy and gratitude.  A man that should have such an immense feeling of relief and freedom.  And yet we see this man go out and immediately abuse, threaten, and take to court a fellow servant who owed him much, much less than he had just been forgiven of.  Again, our American culture equivalent could approach ten thousand dollars (see note below).  Obviously not an insignificant amount — at least not until you compare it to the first servant’s debt.  I’m sure that nearly everyone who hears this story for the first time has the same response that the rest of the fellow servants of these two men had — they were outraged.  How could someone who had been forgiven so much treat another human being with such contempt?  The unfairness of it all took the fellow servants to the master to report all that had happened.  The result is predictable.  The master becomes angry that the first servant had not shown mercy on his fellow servant in the way that it had been shown to him.  The punishment is declared and swiftly carried out.  The man is thrown in jail to be tortured until he should pay back his debt — a debt so large it seems beyond repayment.

It is a nice, challenging story that we can walk away from thinking, “Good story.  Serves him right.  That guy deserves an extreme punishment.”  At least we could if it wasn’t for verse 35 where Jesus makes the application to us.  He says, “This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive a brother or sister from your heart.” 

So, where do you see yourself in the story?  We are all there — at least in the beginning.  It is a story about the kingdom of heaven.  We are all that first servant who has accumulated a debt that we can never repay.  As Christians, we have received mercy from God.  He has paid the debt Himself and canceled our obligation to the penalty of sin.  So, what is our response?  How do we treat other people, even fellow Christians, who “owe us”?  What is our reaction when a fellow servant sins against us? . . .  A servant of the same Master who has forgiven us our sin against Him.  How often do we abuse, threaten, and take to court a fellow Christian whose wrong pales in comparison to the sin God has forgiven us of?  Paul says this shouldn’t be.  Jesus says, “Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?” 

You and I have received much mercy.  Our response needs to be a giving of much mercy. Just as the unmerciful servant was handed over to be tortured for eternity — until he could pay back an un-payable debt — Jesus says God will treat us in the same way if we do not show mercy.  May you and I be mercy givers because we have been mercy receivers.

         — note:  Here is my math.  The commentary I looked at listed a talent as 20 years of a day laborer’s wages.  To use round numbers, I used a figure of $25,000 a year for a laborer times 20 years is a half million dollars per talent.  10,000 talents times .5 million dollars is 5,000 million dollars, or 5 billion dollars.  The same commentary lists a denarius, or silver coin, as the daily wage of a laborer.  Using the same annual figure and a 5 day work week, I come up with $100 a day, or denarius.  100 dollars times 100 coins equals 10,000 dollars.  At least that is the way my math works with the information I have. 🙂