The Unforgiving Servant, Ears to Hear, pt. 7
Hello everyone. Welcome to worship this morning! Whether this past week was great, rough, or something in between, it is good for us to be together again to thank God for his forgiveness and grace.
God’s forgiveness is one of the themes we’ll be emphasizing this morning, especially during the sermon time. As we continue this series dealing with selected parables of Jesus, we will spend our time today in Matthew 18 where Jesus answers Peter’s question about forgiveness with a parable.
Forgiveness is one of those topics that can really frustrate us. We all want to be forgiven both by God and the people around us, but we know from experience how challenging it can be to forgive others. Our pride can get in the way. The hurt we’ve experienced can still be present and unresolved. We might feel like we’re being used or taken advantage of already, and the idea of not holding people accountable for their sins against us can feel really risky. Still, Jesus tells us we have to move past judgment and forgive.
As you hear the sermon today, I challenge you to do so with someone specific in mind: think about someone in your life who you find hard to forgive. I understand that this is uncomfortable, and I’m not trying to trigger any distress in you. I’m simply trying to help us work through this topic in a way that hears the teaching of Jesus and acts on it in ways that honor God. He never gives us a task without giving us the strength and resources to accomplish it. May his will be done in our lives as it is in heaven.
— Patrick Barber, preaching minister
The Unforgiving Servant
Digging Deeper:
- What are some of the things that make it hard for us to forgive one another?
- Why does the way we practice forgiveness have anything to do with God forgiving us?
- Who is someone in your life that could use your forgiveness, whether they deserve it or not?
- How can we prepare our hearts to authentically forgive one another?
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