OceanSide church of Christ

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A GIFT RECEIVED; A GIFT WITHHELD; A GIFT FORFEITED

Matthew 18:23-35

Victor M. Eskew

 

INTRODUCTION

 

A.    Real events:

1.      He did not choose his father’s profession, so his father has nothing to do with him.

2.      The mother rebuked his sinful lifestyle, so her son refuses to be part of the family.

3.      A friend revealed to her parents that she was on drugs.  They are not friends now.

4.      A neighbor built his fence 8 inches on his property line.  They have not talked in 5 years.

5.      The boss chose another person for the position.  The employee is suing the company.

6.      The church let the preacher go for no apparent reason.  He split the church.

7.      The elders did not make the right decision.  He now attends only the a.m. worship.

 

B.      Things like this happen every day in the lives of all of us.

1.      Sometimes we are on the giving end; sometimes we are on the receiving end.

2.      Oftentimes, molehills become mountains in our relationships with others.

 

C.     The title of our lesson this morning is:  “A Gift Received; A Gift Withheld; A Gift Forfeited.”  The text for our lesson is found in Matthew 18:23-35.

 

I.                   A GIFT RECEIVED (Matt. 18:23-27)

 

A.    The Reckoning (Matt. 18:23)

 

Therefore is the kingdom of heaven likened unto a certain king, which would take account of his servants.

 

1.      Jesus begins a parable.

a.      We know this because he likens the kingdom unto something.

b.      He takes an earthly story and likens it unto spiritual things.

2.      The comparison begins with a king who takes account of his servants.

a.      Kings are over their subjects.

b.      The servants are subject unto laws and responsibilities.

c.       A good king must hold his subjects accountable.

3.      LESSON:  The lesson is simple for us.  Jesus is the King of kings.  He will hold His subjects accountable for their actions.

 

B.      The Reporting (Matt. 18:24)

 

And when he had begun to reckon, one was brought unto him which owned him ten thousand talents.

 

1.      A day of reckoning will eventually come. 

a.      As the old hymn says:  “There’s A Great Day Coming.”

b.      II Peter 2:9

 

The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of tempations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished.

 

2.      Each one of us will present a report at that time.

a.      Notice the words “one was brought unto him.”

b.      Reckoning finally comes down to a “one-on-one” situation.

c.       Romans 14:12

 

So then every one of us shall give account of himself to God.

 

3.      His debt was great.

a.      He owed the king ten thousand talents. 

b.      One said that a talent was worth 750 ounces of silver.  Silver is presently running about $14.50 an ounce.  Ten thousand talents would amount to $108,750,000.

c.       LESSON:  The sins that we bring before God are astronomical.  They are a debt too big for us to really be able to comprehend.

 

C.     The Ruling (Matt. 18:25)

 

But forasmuch as he had not to pay, his lord commanded him to be sold, and his wife, and children, and all that he had, and payment to be made.

 

1.      The servant did not have the funds necessary to pay the debt.

2.      The law required the debt to be paid or punishment was required.

3.      Thus, his lord commanded him to be sold and his wife and children until the debt was paid off.

4.      LESSON:  We, too, cannot pay the debt for our sins.  It is too great.  As debtors, we stand condemned before our King.

 

D.    The Request (Matt. 18:26)

 

The servant therefore fell down, and worshipped him, saying, Lord, have patience with me, and I will pay thee all.

 

1.      The servant took a very humble position before the king. 

2.      He pled for mercy to be shown him. 

3.      He promised that if patience was rendered, he would pay the debt back.

4.      The servant is helpless.  He has only his cries to save him.  He does not want to lose his family and his freedom.

 

E.      The Reception (Matt. 18:27)

 

Then the lord of that servant was moved with compassion, and loosed him, and forgave all the debt.

 

1.      This king had a character trait that is much needed by all, compassion.

a.      The word compassion literally means:  “to suffer with.”

b.      When the king saw this man pleading for his life, his family, and his freedom, he suffered with the man.  He hurt with the man.

2.      His compassion led him to loose the man and forgive him.

a.      This was the gift that was received.  Oh what a gift it was.

b.      The man no longer owed the debt.  It was completely wiped off the books.

c.       Notice the little word “all.”  He forgave ALL the debt.

d.      LESSON:  In like manner also, the Lord has forgiven us.  There is not one sin that He holds against us.  It is a huge debt that has been removed.

 

 

 

II.                A GIFT WITHHELD (Matt. 18:28-31)

 

A.    The Ruthlessness (Matt. 18:28)

 

But the same servant went out, and found one of his fellow servants, which owed him a hundred pence:  and he laid hands on him, and took him by the throat, saying, Pay me that thou owest.

 

1.      The story takes an abrupt change.  The SAME servant went out.

a.      The same servant who was held accountable.

b.      The same servant that had owed a huge debt.

c.       The same servant that was sentenced to be sold.

d.      The same servant who pled for his life.

e.       The same servant who experienced compassion from a king.

f.        The same servant who had been completely forgiven of his debt.

2.      This servant was owed money by a fellow servant.

a.      A hundred pence.  Barnes says that is would amount to about $15.00.

b.      It was a very small sum of money.

3.      He was ruthless in his treatment of this individual. 

a.      Took him by the throat.

b.      Demanded that payment be made in full.

 

B.      The Request (Matt. 18:29)

 

And his fellow servant fell down at his feet, and besought him, saying, Have patience with me, and I will pay thee all.

 

1.      This is the second time we have read the words “fellow servant.”  He was a man just like this ruthless servant.

2.      He assumed the same position the ruthless man had assumed before the king. 

3.      He said exactly the same words the ruthless man said to the king.

4.      He could not pay the debt immediately.  Thus, he pled for his life and freedom.

 

C.     The Remand (Matt. 18:30)

 

And he would not:  but went and cast him into prison, till he should pay the debt.

 

1.      He did not see the humility.  He did not hear the words.  He did not feel the pain.  Thus, he would not have patience.

2.      The servant withheld a gift he could have given to his fellow servant, forgiveness.

3.      He remanded the man into prison.  From thence, he would have no opportunity to work to make money and pay the debt.

 

D.    The Recounting (Matt. 18:31)

 

So when his fellow servants saw what was done, they were very sorry, and came and told unto their lord all that was done.

 

1.      Ruthlessness, harshness, and the display of evil never bring joy.

2.      When others saw what this servant had done to a fellow servant, they were “very sorry.”

3.      Immediately, they reported the incident to the king.

4.      LESSON:  Our Lord does not have to receive a report from others about how we are treating our fellow man.  He is well aware of displays of compassion and evil.

 

III.             A GIFT FORFEITED (Matt. 18:32-35)

 

A.    The Reprimand (Matt. 18:32)

 

Then his lord, after that he had called him, said unto him, O thou wicked servant, I forgave thee all the debt, because thou desiredst me.

 

1.      The king was not going to let this incident slide.  He called the servant back into his presence.

2.      He reprimanded the man with the words:  “O thou wicked servant.”

3.      He reminded the man of what had been done for him in the recent past.

4.      LESSON:  We need to be constantly reminded of our forgiveness.  Could it be this is one of the reasons the Lord authorized the Lord’s Supper every first day of the week (Acts 20:7)?

 

B.      The Responsibility (Matt. 18:33)

 

Shouldest not thou also have had compassion on thy fellow servant, even as I had pity on thee?

 

1.      With all blessings come responsibilities. 

2.      With forgiveness from God comes the responsibility of forgiving others. 

3.      Note that our forgiving others involves developing the quality of compassion in our lives.  Our main incentive for doing this is so we can be like our Lord and Savior.

 

C.     The Reversal (Matt. 18:34)

 

And his lord was wroth, and delivered him to the tormentors, till he should pay all that was due unto him.

 

1.      The king was deeply angry and rightfully so.

2.      He no longer forgave the servant’s debt. 

3.      Instead, he delivered him to the tormentors, till “all” was paid.

4.      NOTE:  The gift that he had received was now forfeited.  Can you imagine how he servant must have felt to know forgiveness had been his, but he lost it.

 

D.    The Relevance (Matt. 18:35)

 

So likewise shall my heavenly Father do also unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses.

 

1.      We have been given the gift of divine forgiveness.

2.      We should not withhold our forgiveness from others.

3.      If we do, we will forfeit the forgiveness God has given us.

 

CONCLUSION

 

A.    As humans in relationships with others, we are sinned against.

 

B.      We mentioned some examples at the first of this lesson.

C.     When it happens, we are angry and we just seem like we cannot find it in our hearts to forgive.

 

D.    When we reach this point,

1.      Remember the magnitude of the sins that we have committed against God.

2.      Remember that He had compassion on us and forgave the debt.

3.      Remember that the trespasses of others against us are insignificant to those we have committed against God.

4.      Remember, other people are our “fellow servants,” they are like we are.

5.      Remember our cries for mercy.

6.      Remember that unless we forgive, we will not be forgiven.