About the Text
(21) Is there something special about the number seven?
Why did Peter and Jesus use this numher discussing forgiveness? In Scripture, the number
seven indicates completeness. In the Old Testament, for example, the last day of a
complete week is called the Sabbath, meaning both a "rest day" and "seventh
day." In Gen. 4:24, God gave Cain the full punishment that he deserved and called it
"seven times," but in contrast would give Lamech limitless punishment and called
it "seventy-seven times."
Therefore, Peter is asking if he should forgive an offending brother as
many times as he deserves ("seven times"). Jesus, on the other hand, means that
we should grant limitless forgiveness, as indicated by the term "seventy-seven
times."
(23) Who does this king symbolize - Jesus or God the Father? Both. The
king is Jesus, since every occurrence of the word "master" in this passage is
the translation of the original Greek "kurios," which ordinarily is translated
as "Lord." But verse 35 indicates that the king is also God the Father.
(24) How much was "ten thousand talents"? Millions of dollars
today.
(24) Why is a "servant" dealing with such a large sum of money?
The servant was probably not a slave, but a governor or official in subordination to his
supreme authority. In verse 27, the original Greek word for "debt" indicates
that this man took out a loan which he couldn't repay. Therefore, this man was not a slave
who had stolen some petty cash from his master, but rather a foolish official in financial
disaster.
(25) Why would the master sell the debtor's wife and children? It was the
custom of ancient times to sell a debtor's family into slavery if a man could not pay back
a large debt.
(35) Will God take away His forgiveness if we neglect to forgive one person? Yes and no. Yes, you will not receive forgiveness if you are an unbeliever. An unbeliever has not fully understood God's mercy, perhaps because he does not understand his own enormous debt of sin, or God's extreme mercy as shown by Jesus Christ's death sacrifice on the cross for us. He has not been by impressed nor moved by the mercy of God, he gives no mercy to others, and therefore such an unbeliever receives no mercy from God.
Some unbelievers can be found in the church. They claim to be "believers." They say they have "accepted Jesus into their heart." They may have been baptized, become members of a church, made many friends in church, are active in the affairs of the church, and may even try very hard to act like a Christian. Yet their religion may be based on sheer emotions, sentimentality (e.g. "I miss going to church"), or a fear of hell, rather than based upon a true understanding of Christ's merciful and loving sacrifice of His life on the cross for our sins. Such unbelievers do not receive the gift of salvation from God.
But if you are a believer, then no, you will not "lose" your forgiveness from God. Believers are marked by their firm belief that God loved them so much that He sent His Son Jesus Christ to die on the cross to take upon Himself the enormous punishment we deserved for our sinfulness (cf. Rom. 5:8). Such a believer is so impressed with God's mercy shown to him, that he cannot help but to desire to be merciful and forgiving to others. There will be times when he'll stumble and neglect to forgive. Yet a true believer nevertheless has a growing desire to be merciful like Jesus Christ, and therefore, he will never lose his salvation.
Believers, when you neglect to forgive your brother, find comfort in these words: If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness... if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense -- Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world. (1 John 1:9 - 2:2).
Insights
The Bottom Line
Forgive others, as Christ forgave you.
Key Memory Verse
Then 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." -- Matthew
18:21- 22