Unforgiving Servant

Unforgiving Servant

Matthew 18:23–35

Opening: A Mountain Forgiven, A Pebble Owed
Peter asked, “How often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him?” Jesus answered with a number that refuses to keep count and then told a kingdom story. A king settled accounts. One servant owed a sum beyond a lifetime’s power to repay—ten thousand talents. The king listened to a plea for patience and released the debt. That same servant then found a fellow servant who owed about a hundred denarii and throttled him for payment. News reached the king; justice fell. Jesus closed with a sentence that lands on the conscience: “So My heavenly Father also will do to you if each of you, from his heart, does not forgive his brother his trespasses.” The king’s mercy sets the pattern. The forgiven become forgivers.

The Numbers Preach
Jesus chose figures that teach without footnotes. Ten thousand talents tower like a mountain; a hundred denarii sit in the hand. The gap is the point. No neighbor will ever owe me more than I owed in the court of heaven. My ledger toward God carried a debt I could never settle. The king in the parable wiped it clean. When I seize a peer over a small account, I deny the record that was erased for me.

The King’s Face in the Story
The king pictures Jesus, the One with authority to settle all accounts. He receives pleas for mercy and cancels what cannot be repaid. Scripture speaks this way: “Forgive us our debts” (Matthew 6:12). The gospel announces remission of sins by the blood of the covenant (Matthew 26:28). God “forgave you all trespasses, having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us” and “taken it out of the way” at the cross (Colossians 2:13–14). The parable places that truth before our eyes. A servant stands before a king; the king removes an impossible weight. Every refusal to forgive a brother disregards that scene.

Obedience According to the Lord’s Pattern
Jesus ties entrance into the kingdom to submission: “He who does the will of My Father” (Matthew 7:21). Hebrews says He is “the author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him” (Hebrews 5:9). Forgiving a brother is not optional counsel; it is the will of the King. He requires forgiveness “from the heart” (Matthew 18:35). Words without release do not meet that standard. The Lord looks for a will that lets go of personal vengeance and seeks a brother’s good.

Context: Family Life in the Kingdom
Matthew 18 describes life together among disciples. Jesus warns against despising “little ones,” pictures the shepherd who pursues a stray, and lays out the steps for addressing sin between brethren—private conversation, witnesses if needed, and congregational involvement when a heart refuses correction (Matthew 18:1–20). The parable does not erase accountability; it governs the spirit of it. We correct with a forgiving disposition. We pursue restoration while we refuse the chokehold of personal revenge.

The Servant’s Failure—And What It Reveals
The first servant begged; the king released. The same servant grabbed; the fellow servant begged; the plea was rejected. The king called that choice wicked because it ignored mercy received. The gospel exposes the same drift in us. When injury comes, memory shortens. We recount what others owe and forget what was erased for us. Jesus’ story restores perspective: no one’s debt to me surpasses my debt to Him.

Practicing Forgiveness in Real Time
Forgiveness releases a personal claim to collect. It refuses to rehearse the wrong to injure. It prays for the offender and seeks reconciliation by the Lord’s pattern (Matthew 18:15–17). It keeps the circle small and the goal clear—win your brother. It acts promptly; delay hardens the will. When trust has been damaged, forgiveness opens the door and then walks through it with wise steps and time. Throughout, the servant’s logic guides the heart: the mountain was removed; this pebble will not be kept.

Warnings We Must Hear
Jesus describes the end of the unforgiving servant with severe language: delivered to the jailers “until he should pay all that was due” (Matthew 18:34). That day never comes. The picture communicates misery that follows a hard heart. The Lord’s warning—“so will My heavenly Father do to you”—removes every excuse. He has already spoken elsewhere with equal clarity: “If you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses” (Matthew 6:15). The King’s mercy remains our hope; the King’s command remains our duty.

Conclusion: Remember Your Ledger and Settle Accounts Today
The king in Jesus’ story settled accounts. He still does. Some of us need to plead for mercy. Some need to release a brother or sister from a personal debt. Some need to take the first step toward reconciliation. The mountain has been removed. Do not keep the pebble.

Exhaustive Sermon Outline

• Opening: A Mountain Forgiven, A Pebble Owed

  • Peter’s question and Jesus’ answer (Matthew 18:21–22)

  • Kingdom story summarized (Matthew 18:23–35)

  • Thesis: The forgiven become forgivers

• The Numbers Preach

  • Ten thousand talents vs. one hundred denarii—scale and purpose

  • No one’s debt to me surpasses my forgiven debt to the King

• The King’s Face in the Story

  • The king as a picture of Jesus’ authority to cancel debts

  • Debt language in Scripture: Matthew 6:12; Matthew 26:28; Colossians 2:13–14

  • Refusing forgiveness disregards the cancelation we received

• Obedience According to the Lord’s Pattern

  • Matthew 7:21—doing the Father’s will

  • Hebrews 5:9—eternal salvation and obedience

  • “From the heart” as the required depth of forgiveness (Matthew 18:35)

• Context: Family Life in the Kingdom (Matthew 18:1–20)

  • Value of the “little ones”

  • Pursuit of the stray

  • Brother-to-brother process (vv. 15–17)

  • Forgiving disposition within faithful correction

• The Servant’s Failure

  • Mercy received, mercy refused

  • The king’s verdict: “Wicked servant” (Matthew 18:32)

  • The moral: never forget what was erased for you

• Practicing Forgiveness in Real Time

  • Release personal claims; stop rehearsing the injury (Romans 12:19; Proverbs 10:12)

  • Pray for the offender; pursue reconciliation (Matthew 5:44; 18:15–17)

  • Keep the circle small; act promptly (Mark 11:25; Hebrews 3:13)

  • Rebuild trust with wise steps and time (Philemon 17–21)

• Warnings We Must Hear

  • The jailers and the unending debt (Matthew 18:34–35)

  • The link between forgiving and being forgiven (Matthew 6:14–15)

• Conclusion: Remember Your Ledger

  • Appeal to plead for mercy and extend mercy today

Call to Action
Write two names. First, the person you need to forgive; second, the person you need to ask for forgiveness. Pray honestly about each. Release the personal debt you hold. Go to your brother or sister this week, following Matthew 18:15. Speak plainly and kindly. Let the mountain that was removed for you decide what you do with the pebble.

Scripture Reference List

• Matthew 18:21–35 — Full parable, “from the heart,” king’s verdict

• Matthew 18:1–20 — Value of brethren, pursuit, restoration pattern

• Matthew 7:21 — Doing the Father’s will and entrance into the kingdom

• Hebrews 5:9 — Eternal salvation and obedience

• Matthew 6:12, 14–15 — Forgive our debts; the link between forgiving and being forgiven

• Matthew 26:28 — Blood of the covenant for remission of sins

• Colossians 2:13–14 — Record of debt removed at the cross

• Romans 12:19 — Leave room for the wrath of God; refuse personal vengeance

• Proverbs 10:12 — Love covers offenses

• Matthew 5:44 — Pray for those who wrong you

• Matthew 18:15–17 — Steps toward reconciliation

• Mark 11:25 — Forgive when you pray

• Hebrews 3:13 — Exhort one another; beware hardening

• Philemon 17–21 — Receive a brother; rebuild fellowship

Prepared by David Hersey of the church of Christ at Granby, MO