Matthew 18: 21-35 How Often Shall I Forgive My Brother?
by Mia
Posted on 14-05-2022 01:54 AM
Now let’s be practical for a minute.
When a family member does something that hurts our feelings a couple of times, it may not feel like a big deal to forgive them. What if they do it ten times? fifty times? now it is a different story. You may remember that jesus’ disciples asked him about this. “then peter came up and said to him, ‘lord, how often will my brother sin against me, and i forgive him? as many as seven times?’ jesus said to him, ‘i do not say to you seven times, but seventy-seven times’†(matthew 18:21–22). Peter thought that forgiving his brother seven times for something was quite generous. Jesus blasted that out of the water when he called peter to forgive seventy-seven times. This, of course, was not meant to be a literal number. Seventy-five, seventy-six, almost there! it was a call to a lifetime and lifestyle of forgiveness.
By t. O. Banso “then peter came to him and said, ‘lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and i forgive him? up to seven times?’†(matthew 18:21 new king james version). Unforgiveness is one of the commonest sins human beings are guilty of. It is also one of the commonest destroyers of relationships whether marital, social, or business. As long as you have relationships with other people, there will be reasons for unforgiveness. The closer the relationships, the more opportunities for unforgiveness.
“then peter came to jesus and asked, “lord, how many times shall i forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? up to seven times?†jesus answered, “i tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times. †matthew 18:21-22 (niv).
Forgive seven times? illustration of the unmerciful slave peter has heard jesus’ advice on how to handle a difficulty between brothers by trying to settle it one-on-one. Yet, peter seems to want to quantify the number of times one should make such an effort. Peter asks: “lord, how many times is my brother to sin against me and am i to forgive him? up to seven times?†some religious leaders teach that one should grant forgiveness up to three times. So peter may feel that he would be very generous if he forgave a brother “up to seven times. â€â€‹â€” matthew 18:21.
Today’s daily bible reading is from matthew 18:21-35. In this scripture, peter asks jesus how many times he should forgive his brother who sinned against him. How about seven times? jesus answers peter, “no; you should forgive him seventy times seven. †how many times have you forgiven someone who wronged you?.
Sermon for the seventeenth sunday after pentecost the text: matthew 18:21-35 21 then peter came up and said to him, “lord, how often will my brother sin against me, and i forgive him? as many as seven times?†22 jesus said to him, “i do not say to you seven times, but seventy-seven times.
Matthew 18:21-35 Then came Peter to him, and said, Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? till seven times?
This is what jesus teaches us though this answer to his disciple peter's question.
Sep 13, 2020 in today’s gospel, peter asks the question to jesus: lord, how often should i forgive? how many times do i have to forgive my best gifts for brother anything for a brother in need things to get for your brother ? is it seven times? that question says a lot when you read between the lines. Maybe we ask the same question: how often should i forgive someone? or how often should i forgive myself? why do i have to forgive? what is the benefit to forgive? today we are going to talk and reflect about forgiveness.
Then peter came up and said to him, “lord, how often will my brother sin against me, and i forgive him? as many as seven times?†jesus said to him, “i do not say to you seven times, but seventy times seven. “therefore the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his servants. When he began to settle, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents. And since he could not pay, his master ordered him to be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and payment to be made.
“peter came to jesus and asked, ‘lord, how many times shall i forgive my brother when he sins against me? up to seven times?’ jesus answered, ‘i tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times’†(matt. 18:21-22, niv). Imagine that someone in the church has hurt your feelings, and the person says “sorry. †and he or she does it again, and says “sorry. †and it happens again, and again you hear “sorry. †and again, and again, and again. At what point are you going to say, “i don’t think you’re really sorry?†maybe the person isn’t sorry, but jesus says to forgive them anyway, even 77 times. Try saying “i forgive you†that many times! it might be good therapy.
21then peter came and said to him, “lord, if another member of the church sins against me, how often should i forgive? as many as seven times?” 22jesus said to him, “not seven times, but, i tell you, seventy-seven times. 23“for this reason the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his slaves. 24when he began the reckoning, one who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him; 25and, as he could not pay, his lord ordered him to be sold, together with his wife and children and all his possessions, and payment to be made. 26so the slave fell on his knees before him, saying, ‘have patience with me, and i will pay you everything. ’ 27and out of pity for him, the lord of that slave released him and forgave him the debt. 28but that same slave, as he went out, came upon one of his fellow slaves who owed him a hundred denarii; and seizing him by the throat, he said, ‘pay what you owe. ’ 29then his fellow slave fell down and pleaded with him, ‘have patience with me, and i will pay you. ’ 30but he refused; then he went and threw him into prison until he would pay the debt. 31when his fellow slaves saw what had happened, they were greatly distressed, and they went and reported to their lord all that had taken place. 32then his lord summoned him and said to him, ‘you wicked slave! i forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me. 33should you not have had mercy on your fellow slave, as i had mercy on you?’ 34and in anger his lord handed him over to be tortured until he would pay his entire debt. 35so my heavenly father will also do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother or sister from your heart. ”.
Daily devotions thursday, april 23rd then peter came to jesus and asked, “lord, how many times shall i forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? up to seven times?†jesus answered, “i tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times. 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. At this 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 it back. ’.
19 “again, truly i tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything they ask for, it will be done for them by my father in heaven. 20 for where two or three gather in my name, there am i with them. â€21 then peter came to jesus and asked, “lord, how many times shall i forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? up to seven times?â€.
22 Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times seven.
Today we're going to look at the subject of forgiveness from matthew 18:21‑22: "then came peter to him [jesus], and said, lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and i forgive him? till seven times? jesus saith unto him, i say not unto thee, until seven times: but, until seventy times seven" (brackets mine). I think peter thought he was being very generous to ask how many times he should forgive someone who sinned against him, "seven times in a day, do you think?" jesus said, "peter, not seven but seventy times seven. " that's 490 times, but it doesn't mean that after 490 times you don't have to forgive. What jesus said was an impossible number of offenses that would happen to an individual in a day. He was saying forgiveness should be continual, that it should go on and on. Forgiveness should be the real attitude of a christian. Jesus said in luke 23:34, "father forgive them; for they know not what they do.
Why we need to forgive in these cases
Matthew 18:15-35 key verse: 18:35 "this is how my heavenly father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother or sister from your heart. "in last sunday's passage jesus taught about life in the christian community. We learned that causing little ones to stumble is a very serious matter. In today's passage jesus continues to teach about life in the christian community. Just as causing little ones to stumble is serious, so also sinning against brothers and sisters is very serious. Wherever people gather together, conflicts will arise and people hurt each other. The same is true in the christian fellowship. It is because our mindset and lifestyle are still influenced by the power of sin. Even though we become christians, we don't become perfect immediately. John calvin compared the sin in believers to a many headed hydra, whose heads need to be cut off one by one. We have to fight against the sin within us persistently. Otherwise sin damages us and others through us. Sin breaks relationships between fellow believers. However, these days many do not recognize sin as sin. They try to understand everything in terms of psychology, sociology or culture. Their view of people lacks a very important element: that people are sinners. In many cases, their attempts to solve problems are little more than escapism and irresponsibility. In actuality, sin has power to destroy relationships, people's character, families and the society. This is why, in spite of all the advances in technology, medicine and social policy, we have not found a way to establish healthy communities. Some of the most advanced nations have the most dysfunctional families. What is the solution to this? in today's passage jesus shows us how to solve this problem. First jesus teaches us that sin between people in a christian community is very serious and must be dealt with appropriately. But this must be done in a spirit of forgiveness. Jesus emphasizes this through the parable of god's mercy and an unmerciful servant. Forgiveness is the only way to solve the sin problem between people and to establish a healthy christian community. Let's learn to forgive brothers and sisters from our hearts.
When we do not forgive
Introduction: ill: true story. When fran was doing dishes one morning, she began to fume and stew over a friend who had done her wrong. She thought: “why should i pray for that no-gooder?†at that moment, a potted fern that was hanging over the sink came crashing down on her head, cracking the clay pot and spilling dirt all over the sink. As she shook off the dirt and rubbed her head, fran said: “okay, lord, i’ll forgive her. Thanks for planting the idea in my head. â€.
Background text: romans 10:8d-10 devotional text: luke 23:34 this week, we celebrate the resurrection of jesus, the christ. In so doing, we look at his words from the cross in luke 23:34, as he called out, “father forgive them, for they know not what they do!†and they cast lots to divide his clothes.
1. How do you define forgiveness? when we get hurt, we form a bond with the offender and the offense. Forgiveness is the process of cutting the link created by harm, thus setting us free. 2. What is the relationship between love and forgiveness? we create bonds when we love and when we get hurt. While love creates good feelings, hurts create fear and stress. They are mutually exclusive. When we forgive, we severe the bondage to the hurt and make us available for love. When we do not forgive, we diminish our capacity for love. Our heart hardens.
Email click here to purchase this as a booklet. For you, lord, are good, and ready to forgive, and abundant in lovingkindness to all who call upon you. -ps. 86:5 i know a young man (we'll call him jim) who believes he was mistreated by a fellow christian several years ago. There was a dispute about who was wrong in the incident. Jim brought the matter to the elders of his church for resolution. The elders attempted to investigate the matter but ultimately concluded there was insufficient evidence to determine who was at fault. It was one person's word against the other's, with no other witnesses. The elders finally advised both jim and the other party to forgive one another and put the dispute behind them.
21 then peter came to jesus and asked, “lord, when my fellow believer sins against me, how many times must i forgive him? should i forgive him as many as seven times?†22 jesus answered, “i tell you, you must forgive him more than seven times. You must forgive him even if he wrongs you seventy times seven.
The ambiguity comes from a difference between the hebrew old testament and the septuagint (a greek translation). Jesus is teaching to forgive by reversing the statement of lamech in genesis 4. Gen 4:24 "if cain is avenged sevenfold, then lamech seventy-sevenfold. " (nasb) the nasb follows the hebrew which has ש×Ö´×‘Ö°×¢Ö´×™× ×•Ö°×©×ִבְעָֽה (shib'iym wshib'ah), which means "seventy-seven. ".
Active default jesus’ listeners would have seen that this parable is dealing not with local events but with the practices of the roman empire. Everything in the story is exaggerated to make the point that forgiveness and mercy alone can save the world. The king discovers that one of his servants owes him 10,000 talents, or one hundred million denarii. The king’s decision is cruel: sell the servant and his family. This was forbidden by jewish law, nor will it get him his money back, but it will send out a warning to others. Yet when the servant pleads for mercy the king wipes out the whole debt and restores him to his service.
How to ask for forgiveness
“for he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. â€because of god’s forgiveness, we are redeemed. When we forgive others, we give that person the chance to be redeemed. This means they have a chance to turn from their sinful ways and have access to the father because of our choice to forgive. That’s the gospel in action.
Gathered together on this page are a number of example prayers and resources for asking god for forgiveness and for forgiving others who have wronged us. You may like to begin by reading the short article further down on " how to ask god for forgiveness " and then pray the " prayer for the forgiveness of sins " or the traditional anglican prayer. There is also a short prayer for strength to help with overcoming whatever sin or difficulty you are experiencing.
17:4 if he sin against thee seven times in a day, and seven times in a day return, saying, i repent - that is, if he give sufficient proof that he does really repent, after having sinned ever so often, receive him just as if he had never sinned against thee. But this forgiveness is due only to real penitents. In a lower sense we are to forgive all, penitent or impenitent; (so as to bear them the sincerest good will, and to do them all the good we can;) and that not seven times only, but seventy times seven.
1. Unforgiveness stands between you and god. Why? because we are all sinners, and through grace god has forgiven us and sees us as righteous. If god can forgive us all the awful things we’ve done, we can forgive others. For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly father will also forgive you. 15 but if you do not forgive others their sins, your father will not forgive your sins. Matthew 6:14-15.
There’s probably no subject more fraught than the question of forgiveness in a situation where you feel deeply wronged or betrayed. It’s especially true when the question is asked in regard to a mother whose cardinal responsibility was to love and take care of you, and who failed you in ways that matter, the effects of which stay with you from childhood into adulthood. “to err is human, to forgive divine,†wrote alexander pope, and that's essentially a cultural trope: the ability to forgive, particularly in the wake of egregious hurt or violation, is usually understood as a marker of moral and spiritual evolution, endowed with specific authority by its inclusion in the judeo-christian tradition, specifically in the lord’s prayer.
Many people who struggle with forgiveness have been given the advice that they need to “accept†what’s happened and move on. The problem is, terms like “acceptance†are fuzzy and mean different things to different people. Many people hear the word “accept†and assume that it implies endorsement, that you’re somehow okay with what happened or justifying it.
For many, the saying, “forgive and forget,†comes to mind, but forgiveness doesn’t always require forgetting. If we’re lied to, stolen from, treated with indifference, subjected to angry outbursts, or in some other way hurt, forgetting the past and letting our guard down completely is probably not the wisest course. That sort of forgiveness may come across as an invitation: “i’m a doormat. Walk on me!â€.
Forgiveness in the Bible
The answer to the first question is a resounding yes. Not only do i believe it’s possible and that humans are capable of true forgiveness, according to the bible, it’s also commanded. It’s required of christians who have surrendered their hearts and lives to jesus. Biblical forgiveness is not just limited to other believers or to people who have apologized or to those who have received “justice†according to the world. It is not limited to those who “deserve†forgiveness. Biblical forgiveness requires us to forgive even the most heinous of offenses, which may be difficult for some of us to hear.
Needed: bibles, bible trivia questions , forgiveness vs. Judgment cards.
What does the bible say about forgiveness resource – new international version bible, the holy bible, new international version®, niv® copyright© 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by biblca, inc. ™.
But does the bible really teach that god’s forgiveness of us is somehow linked to our forgiveness of others? yes, indeed it does. Let’s go back to the words of jesus. The 5th petition is in verse 12. Now drop down two verses. The lord’s prayer is over but jesus is still speaking.
Jesus Our Example for Forgiveness
Every year of mankind’s fallen history witnesses countless sins, large and small. When they are committed against us, it raises the question of forgiveness, since jesus made it clear that we must be willing to forgive. The prior two years witnessed particularly heinous crimes. The year 2001 saw the terrorist attacks, and 2002 saw the priestly sexual abuse scandal. In the wake of both of them, people were pondering the subject of forgiveness.
I was reading an excellent resource for worship planners put out by our national church body, the wisconsin evangelical lutheran synod , when i came across this: forgiveness must be learned, and peter thought he had figured it out. From the elders of the jews peter had heard: “if a man transgresses one time, forgive him. If a man transgresses two times, forgive him. If a man transgresses three times, forgive him. If a man transgresses four times, do not forgive him. †three times, the elders said, was the limit of forgiveness for a good jew. Peter, however, was willing to go much further; not three times, but seven times, peter thought with a smile. Until jesus said….
Meditation: does mercy overlook justice? justice demands that everyone be given their due. So when is it right to show mercy and pardon to those who have acted unjustly or wrongly? the prophet amos speaks of god forgiving transgression three times, but warns that god may not revoke punishment for the fourth (see amos 1:3-13; 2:1-6). When peter posed the question of forgiveness, he characteristically offered an answer he thought jesus would be pleased with. Why not forgive seven times! how unthinkable for jesus to counter with the proposition that one must forgive seventy times that.
Peter might have heard the teachings of jesus about forgiveness many times, and this doubt had been troubling him, about the maximum number of times forgiveness should be offered. But he asked the right person! jesus considered his question and explained it with a story. Here we go! note: if you already know the story, then skip this and go right ahead with the next section.
September 14, 2014 peter was an impetuous disciple who, in deserting and denying even knowing jesus, experienced his own deep need for forgiveness. But one day he audaciously asked jesus, “how many times shall i forgive my brother when he sins against me? as many as seven times?†here we pause. What actually is peter asking? if somebody does me wrong why would i need to forgive them seven times? i mean, what’s the point? either you forgive a person…once…or not at all. Why would i need to forgive a person seven times for one offense? ah, but maybe peter isn’t asking about one offense. Maybe he’s asking about a person who has sinned against him seven times. This raises the stakes considerable. Consider this: at work a colleague comes in every morning and greets you with a blatantly sexist remark. One, two, three, four, five, six, seven days in a row he insults you. Do you forgive him today for the same thing he did yesterday? let’s make it worse. Behind the scenes your colleague lies about you to your boss so that when it’s time for a promotion you get passed over. And over the course of time she does this seven times. Seven promotions down the drain. Yet, are you expected to forgive her all seven times?.
The Word of God
Jesus, ( greek : ἰησοῦς, romanized: iÄ“soûs, likely from hebrew/aramaic: יֵש×וּעַ‎, romanized: yÄ“Å¡Å«a) also known as jesus christ, was a jewish teacher and reformer of religion who has become the main and central figure of christianity. Christians follow the example of jesus, accept his words to be true, and worship him as the jewish messiah and incarnation of god. He is one of the most famous, most recognized, and most influential persons in the world's history.
sin is the dark inheritance of every human being. I came to this world to forgive sins so that you could be reconciled with my heavenly father and partake of his divinity and of the glories of the kingdom of heaven. In my prayer to the father i have taught you to say �forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. � in other words, your forgiveness is guaranteed so long as you forgive those who upset you and sin against you.
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