Reflections
Parable of the unforgiving servant
September 11, 2011, 8:00am
MANILA, Philippines — Mattew 18:21-35
Peter approached Jesus and asked Him, “Lord, if my brother sins against me, how often must I forgive him? As many as seven times?” Jesus answered, “I say to you, not seven times but seventy-seven times. That is why the kingdom of heaven may be likened to a king who decided to settle accounts with his servants. When he began the accounting, a debtor was brought before him who owed him a huge amount. Since he had no way of paying it back, his master ordered him to be sold, along with his wife, his children, and all his property, in payment of the debt. At that, the servant fell down, did him homage, and said, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you back in full.’ Moved with compassion the master of that servant let him go and forgave him the loan. When that servant had left, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a much smaller amount. He seized him and started to choke him, demanding, ‘Pay back what you owe.’
Peter approached Jesus and asked Him, “Lord, if my brother sins against me, how often must I forgive him? As many as seven times?” Jesus answered, “I say to you, not seven times but seventy-seven times. That is why the kingdom of heaven may be likened to a king who decided to settle accounts with his servants. When he began the accounting, a debtor was brought before him who owed him a huge amount. Since he had no way of paying it back, his master ordered him to be sold, along with his wife, his children, and all his property, in payment of the debt. At that, the servant fell down, did him homage, and said, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you back in full.’ Moved with compassion the master of that servant let him go and forgave him the loan. When that servant had left, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a much smaller amount. He seized him and started to choke him, demanding, ‘Pay back what you owe.’
Falling to his knees, his fellow servant begged him, ‘Be patient
with me, and I will pay you back.’
But he refused. Instead, he had him
put in prison until he paid back the debt. Now when his fellow servants
saw what had happened, they were deeply disturbed, and went to their
master and reported the whole affair. His master summoned him and said
to him, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you your entire debt because you
begged me to. Should you not have had pity on your fellow servant, as I
had pity on you?’ Then in anger his master handed him over to the
torturers until he should pay back the whole debt. So will my heavenly
Father do to you, unless each of you forgives his brother from his
heart.”
Reflection
Seventy-seven times. The question, I believe, is not how many times
we should forgive our brother, but how we forgive. Let me offer three
simple ways, though there must be 70 x 7 ways.
1. Do not think that you are the only one hurt. You have hurt the
other party as well. You, too, need to be forgiven. All the servants in
the parable are hurt. That is why they know what forgiveness demands.
2. Do not take yourself too seriously. We are mere servants. Only the
unforgiving servant takes himself seriously, and that brings about his
fall from grace.
3. Forgive – just do it and get it over with, and then enjoy the peace and lightness.
A wife caught his husband having an affair. She forgave him and took
him back. But the husband wondered why the wife kept reminding him of
his past sin. This troubled him and he asked her why the constant
reminder when she had already forgiven him. The wife replied: “Of
course, I have forgiven you. But I don’t want you to forget that I have
once forgiven you!”
List your next steps to forgiveness, from number 4 to 70 x 7.
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