We are still teaching the parables of Jesus. And this week’s lesson will be from Matthew 18:23-34, the unmerciful Servant.

As a reminder, we firmly believe that the way to approach the Bible in general, is to ask four basic questions:

• Who is God?
• What has He done?
• How does that change my identity?
• How does that affect my life?

It has been an interesting journey, that ALL of the old testament is about question number one, and ANTICIPATES the answer to the second question.

During Jesus’ time on earth, the anticipation period was still in effect and through miracles, and particularly parables, Jesus answers the last two questions in a most definitive way.

In last week’s lesson about the master in the vineyard, the clear message was that God’s gift to the ones who put their faith in Jesus is FULL Son/Dauhgter-ship. (the gift of grace is not eternal life for some, and just a little bit of time with Jesus for others…). So this is the clear answer to the third question – those who are in Christ are FAMILY. Same was true for the stories of the lost coins, sheep, and the lost son from the week before that.

In this week’s lesson, Jesus seems to be addressing primarily question 4; those who become new in Christ have CHANGED LIVES. They are saved by grace (the free and undeserved gift of forgiveness), and therefore begin to live as agents of grace (forgiveness is an action that demonstrates the Spirit’s fruit in our lives).

Memory Verse:  Be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you. Ephesians 4:32

Handout: Forgiveness

Activity:  Forgiving fingers

Narrative:

One day, Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times should I forgive someone who sins against me? Seven times?”

“No, not seven times,” Jesus replied, “but seventy times seven!

Jesus told a story to illustrate:  “The Kingdom of Heaven is like a king who decided to bring his accounts up to date with servants who had borrowed money from him. In the process, a man was brought in who owed him millions of dollars.

[puppet stage: stack many many blocks to illustrate large debt]

He couldn’t pay, so his master ordered that he be sold—along with his wife, his children, and everything he owned—to pay the debt.

“But the man fell down before his master and begged him, ‘Please, be patient with me, and I will pay it all.’ Then his master was filled with pity for him, and he released him and forgave his debt.

“But when the man left the king, he went to a fellow servant who owed him a few thousand dollars.  He grabbed him by the throat and demanded instant payment.

[puppet stage: stack one small block to illustrate small debt]

“His fellow servant fell down before him and begged for a little more time. ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay it,’ he pleaded. But the man wouldn’t wait. Instead he had the man arrested and put in prison until the debt could be paid in full.

“When some of the other servants saw this, they were very upset. They went to the king and told him everything that had happened.

Then the king called in the man he had forgiven and said, ‘You evil servant! I forgave you that tremendous debt because you pleaded with me. Shouldn’t you have mercy on your fellow servant, just as I had mercy on you?’ Then the angry king sent the man to prison to be tortured until he had paid his entire debt.

“That’s what my heavenly Father will do to you if you refuse to forgive your brothers and sisters from your heart.”