September 1, 2026
Tuesday, September 1
What is forgiveness? Yesterday, we said it’s not the same thing as “Grandma eyes,” in which we can’t see anything negative in the other person. When Peter asked Jesus how many times he was required to forgive someone who’d hurt him, Jesus told him “seventy-seven times,” by which He meant, “Your forgiveness must be limitless.” But why? What right does God have to ask such a thing? Jesus explains further with a story: Matthew 18:21-35.
The King’s servant in this story owes a debt of ten thousand talents. To give you an idea of how much that is, a single talent was a measurement of weight that was equivalent to 95 pounds. Think about that. Even 95 pounds of nickels is a LOT of money. Now imagine ten thousand 95 pound sacks of gold. (By the way, ten thousand was the largest number that the Greek language had a name for).
This is the equivalent of billions of dollars. No human in the ancient world could pay such a debt. In fact, it was an amount so large, it would destabilize an entire nation. The King’s logical next step would be to sell the man and his family into slavery. That’s what happened to debtors in those days. By using such a massive number in His story, Jesus is showing us just how great our sin debt is before God. This isn’t a broken flowerpot at Grandma’s house. This is an amount so large that the man could never pay it off, even if he had a thousand lifetimes to save.
The second man in the story owes a not-insignificant amount. A denarius was a typical daily wage for a laborer. So the 100 denarii he owes is between a quarter and a third of an average man’s annual salary. Still, it doesn’t come close to what the first man owed the King.
The story ends with the first man in worse condition than he was before. Instead of being sold into slavery, now he’ll be tortured for the rest of his life. Jesus says, “That’s what my Father will do to you, if you don’t forgive.” How terrifying is that? Is Jesus saying that if we have any unforgiveness in our hearts when we die, we go to Hell? No, the Word is clear on this. All of our sins, including our stubborn unforgiveness, are atoned for through the blood of Jesus. Otherwise, we’re earning our own forgiveness by forgiving others. No, Jesus isn’t saying that we’re forgiven by forgiving others; He’s saying forgiving others is what saved people do.
“Father, it’s good for me to be reminded how massive my sin debt was. Forgive me for the ways I minimize my own sinfulness, and focus on the sinfulness of others. Humble me, and teach me to see others the way you see me. In Jesus’ name, amen.”
Senior Pastor
First Baptist Conroe
More from Pastor Jeff at his website: jeffbergerwriting.com
