We are forgiven by God through Christ, therefore we ought to forgive others even as God has forgiven us. This is the heart of the Gospel. Growth in the spiritual life is often hindered because we often refuse to forgive others.

1. Forgiven to Forgive
Roadblock to growing in Christ
Designed by David Turner
www.BibleStudies-online.com

2. We have a debt to pay.
God forgave us our debt. In the
same way, we are to forgive
one another’s debt.

3. Matthew 18:21-35 (NET)
Then Peter came to him and said, “Lord,
how many times must I forgive my
brother who sins against me? As many as
seven times?” Jesus said to him, “Not
seven times, I tell you, but seventy-seven
times!

4. “For this reason, the kingdom of heaven is
like a king who wanted to settle accounts
with his slaves. As he began settling his
accounts, a man who owed ten thousand
talents was brought to him. Because he
was not able to repay it, the lord ordered
him to be sold, along with his wife,
children, and whatever he possessed, and
repayment to be made.

5. Then the slave threw himself to the
ground before him, saying, ‘Be patient
with me, and I will repay you everything.’
The lord had compassion on that slave
and released him, and forgave him the
debt.

6. After he went out, that same slave found
one of his fellow slaves who owed him
one hundred silver coins. So he grabbed
him by the throat and started to choke
him, saying, ‘Pay back what you owe me!’
Then his fellow slave threw himself down
and begged him, ‘Be patient with me, and
I will repay you.’ But he refused. Instead,
he went out and threw him in prison until
he repaid the debt.

7. When his fellow slaves saw what had
happened, they were very upset and went
and told their lord everything that had
taken place. Then his lord called the first
slave and said to him, ‘Evil slave! I forgave
you all that debt because you begged me!
Should you not have shown mercy to your
fellow slave, just as I showed it to you?’

8. And in anger his lord turned him over to
the prison guards to torture him until he
repaid all he owed. So also my heavenly
Father will do to you, if each of you does
not forgive your brother from your heart.”

9. Forgiveness is not an option.
 Forgiveness means to let it go – to release.
 Prerequisites for forgiving others:
 The perception that someone has taken something
from you, or has something that belongs to you.
 Financial
 Physical (injury)
 Emotional
 Honor or Pride
 The perception that the person owes you something
– there is a perception of a debt to be paid.

10. Forgiveness is not an option.
 It is “natural” for us to want payback or
compensation for wrongs committed
against us. Justice expects it.
 Mercy exceeds the natural.
 Jewish Rabi taught to forgive three times.
 Peter thought he was righteous beyond the
teachers of the law to forgive seven times.
Matthew 18:21
21 Then Peter came to
him and said, “Lord,
how many times must I
forgive my brother who
sins against me? As
many as seven times?”

11. Forgiveness is not an option.
 Jesus response: There is no limitation to
the number of times you forgive your
brother.
 Matthew 18:22
22 Jesus said to him, “Not seven times, I tell
you, but seventy-seven times!

12. Jesus knew that his request would shock his
disciples, so he explained it with a
parable: a spiritual truth with an earthly
illustration.
Why are we to forgive without limitation?

13. God forgives the whole debt.
 The king =
God.
 The slave =
believer.
 The slaves =
brothers (other
believers).
Matthew 18:23-27 23 “For this reason,
the kingdom of heaven is like a king who
wanted to settle accounts with his
slaves. 24 As he began settling his
accounts, a man who owed ten
thousand talents was brought to him. 25
Because he was not able to repay it, the
lord ordered him to be sold, along with
his wife, children, and whatever he
possessed, and repayment to be made.
26 Then the slave threw himself to the
ground before him, saying, ‘Be patient
with me, and I will repay you
everything.’ 27 The lord had compassion
on that slave and released him, and
forgave him the debt.
Matthew 18:21 Then Peter came to him and said, “Lord, how many times must
I forgive my brother who sins against me? As many as seven times?”
Matthew 18:35 So also my heavenly Father will do to you, if each of you does
not forgive your brother from your heart.”

14. God forgives the whole debt.
 The slave owed
more than he
could repay.
 10,000 talents is
today’s millions.
 He pleads for
time, but the king
releases him of
the entire debt.
Matthew 18:23-27 23 “For this reason,
the kingdom of heaven is like a king who
wanted to settle accounts with his
slaves. 24 As he began settling his
accounts, a man who owed ten
thousand talents was brought to him. 25
Because he was not able to repay it, the
lord ordered him to be sold, along with
his wife, children, and whatever he
possessed, and repayment to be made.
26 Then the slave threw himself to the
ground before him, saying, ‘Be patient
with me, and I will repay you
everything.’ 27 The lord had compassion
on that slave and released him, and
forgave him the debt.

15. God forgives the whole debt.
 At the cross Jesus paid our debt.
 We have been released from all that we owed
God.
 Time simply increases the debt, for time just
puts us deeper in debt.
 Two sins per day over 10 years = 7,300 sins, over
70 years it = 511,000 sins.

16. God forgives the whole debt.
 God’s justice demands repayment.
 In a legal system compensation is required.
 The slave did not appeal to his rights.
 Neither can we appeal to our rights before
God. The Law (justice) is in God’s favor.
Matthew 18:25 25 Because he was not able to repay it, the
lord ordered him to be sold, along with his wife, children,
and whatever he possessed, and repayment to be made.

17. God forgives the whole debt.
 Forgiveness is grounded in God’s mercy
(compassion).
 God’s mercy extends beyond our
expectations.
 He asked for time to repay, not forgiveness.
 The world did not ask God to release (forgive) the
debt. Mankind ignorantly thinks it can pay God off.
Matthew 18:26-27 (NET)
26 Then the slave threw himself to the ground before him, saying, ‘Be
patient with me, and I will repay you everything.’ 27 The lord had
compassion on that slave and released him, and forgave him the
debt.

18. God forgives the whole debt.
 God prefers to show compassion rather than
justice.
Isaiah 55:6-9
Seek the Lord while he makes himself available; call
to him while he is nearby! The wicked need to
abandon their lifestyle and sinful people their plans.
They should return to the Lord, and he will show
mercy to them, and to their God, for he will freely
forgive them. “Indeed, my plans are not like your
plans, and my deeds are not like your deeds, for just
as the sky is higher than the earth, so my deeds are
superior to your deeds and my plans superior to your
plans.

19. God forgives the whole debt.
 God forgave the slaves entire debt. He has
done the same for us.
“My sin, O the bliss of this glorious tho’t.
My sin, not in part, but the whole,
Is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no
more:
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my
soul!
Peace Like a River

20. God canceled all our debts.
So, what does he expect of us?

21. As God has forgiven us, so are we
to forgive each other.
 Our brother’s debt (sins against us) is a
fraction compared to the debt we have to
God.
 The man’s debt was about $20
 Compared to what we owed God, how much
do you think your brother owes you?
Matthew 18:28 (NET)
28 After he went out, that
same slave found one of his
fellow slaves who owed him
one hundred silver coins. So
he grabbed him by the
throat and started to choke
him, saying, ‘Pay back what
you owe me!’

22. As God has forgiven us, so are we
to forgive each other.
 Biblical examples of Super-natural
forgiveness.
 Joseph
Genesis 50:15-21 (NET)
15 When Joseph’s brothers saw that their father was
dead, they said, “What if Joseph bears a grudge and
wants to repay us in full for all the harm we did to
him?” 16 So they sent word to Joseph, saying, “Your
father gave these instructions before he died: 17 ‘Tell
Joseph this: Please forgive the sin of your brothers
and the wrong they did when they treated you so
badly.’ Now please forgive the sin of the servants of
the God of your father.” When this message was
reported to him, Joseph wept. 18 Then his brothers
also came and threw themselves down before him;
they said, “Here we are; we are your slaves.” 19 But
Joseph answered them, “Don’t be afraid. Am I in the
place of God? 20 As for you, you meant to harm me,
but God intended it for a good purpose, so he could
preserve the lives of many people, as you can see
this day. 21 So now, don’t be afraid. I will provide for
you and your little children.” Then he consoled them
and spoke kindly to them.

23. As God has forgiven us, so are we
to forgive each other.
 Biblical examples of Super-natural
forgiveness.
 Joseph
 Stephen
Acts 7:54-60 (NET)
54 When they heard these things, they became furious
and ground their teeth at him. 55 But Stephen, full of
the Holy Spirit, looked intently toward heaven and
saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right
hand of God. 56 “Look!” he said. “I see the heavens
opened, and the Son of Man standing at the right
hand of God!” 57 But they covered their ears, shouting
out with a loud voice, and rushed at him with one
intent. 58 When they had driven him out of the city,
they began to stone him, and the witnesses laid their
cloaks at the feet of a young man named Saul. 59
They continued to stone Stephen while he prayed,
“Lord Jesus, receive my spirit!” 60 Then he fell to his
knees and cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not
hold this sin against them!” When he had said this,
he died.

24. As God has forgiven us, so are we
to forgive each other.
 Biblical examples of Super-natural
forgiveness.
 Joseph
 Stephen
 Jesus
Luke 23:33-34 (NET)
33 So when they came to the place that is called “The
Skull,” they crucified him there, along with the
criminals, one on his right and one on his left. 34 [But
Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they don’t know
what they are doing.”]

25. As God has forgiven us, so are we
to forgive each other.
 If you can’t forgive for the debtor’s sake,
forgive for the sake of other believers.
 Matthew 18:31 When his fellow slaves saw
what had happened, they were very upset
and went and told their lord everything that
had taken place.

26. As God has forgiven us, so are we
to forgive each other.
 If we refuse to show mercy, God will
withdraw his mercy from us.
 It is the teaching of this parable.
 It is the teaching of the Lord’s prayer.
Matthew 18:32-35 32 Then his lord called the first slave and said
to him, ‘Evil slave! I forgave you all that debt because you
begged me! 33 Should you not have shown mercy to your fellow
slave, just as I showed it to you?’ 34 And in anger his lord turned
him over to the prison guards to torture him until he repaid all
he owed. 35 So also my heavenly Father will do to you, if each
of you does not forgive your brother from your heart.”
Matthew 6:14-15 (NET)
14 “For if you forgive others their sins, your
heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15 But if
you do not forgive others, your Father will not
forgive you your sins.

27. As God has forgiven us, so are we
to forgive each other.
 If we refuse to show mercy, God will
withdraw his mercy from us.
 It is the teaching of this parable.
 It is the teaching of the Lord’s prayer.
 Why does God withdraw his mercy?
 It is a slap in the face of God’s grace
 It is a bad testimony of God’s character to those
outside the community of servants.
 It disrupts the relationship between the servants

28. As God has forgiven us, so are we
to forgive each other.
 If we refuse to show mercy, God will withdraw
his mercy from us.
 When we don’t forgive we may experience torment.
 It maybe direct. God disciplines.
 It maybe indirect. Bitterness is it’s own torment.
 Physical: loose sleep, unable to concentrate, can cause actual
physical ailments.
 Emotional: depression, anxiety, anger.
 Social and relational: family, school, work, church.
 Spiritual: may lead us to other sins (gossip, causing factions,
exaggerations and lies , other), paralysis (our relationship with
God, our growth in Christian maturity – remain spiritual infant).

29. As God has forgiven us, so are we
to forgive each other.
 How can I forgive?
 Focus on God’s forgiveness of you.
 Ask God to help you see and love the person through
His eyes. Forgiveness is not natural, its supernatural.
 Has the person really sinned against me? Why am I
holding bitterness? Evaluate yourself.
 Does the person’s actions effect others?
 Sincerely, pray good for the person.
 Don’t let it fester.
 Go to the one that has offended you.
 Approach with a spirit of love.
Psalm 103:2-5 2 Praise the Lord, O my soul! Do not forget all his kind deeds! 3
He is the one who forgives all your sins, who heals all your diseases, 4 who
delivers your life from the Pit, who crowns you with his loyal love and
compassion, 5 who satisfies your life with good things, so your youth is
renewed like an eagle’s.
Psalm 103:10-12 10 He does not deal with us as our sins deserve; he does not
repay us as our misdeeds deserve. 11 For as the skies are high above the
earth, so his loyal love towers over his faithful followers. 12 As far as the
eastern horizon is from the west, so he removes the guilt of our rebellious
actions from us.
Matthew 5:23-24 23 So then, if you bring your gift to the
altar and there remember that your brother has something
against you, 24 leave your gift there in front of the altar.
First go and be reconciled to your brother and then come
and present your gift.
Ephesians 4:26-27 26
Be angry and do not
sin; do not let the sun
go down on the cause
of your anger. 27 Do
not give the devil an
opportunity.
Matthew 18:15-17
(NET)
15 “If your brother sins,
go and show him his
fault when the two of
you are alone. If he
listens to you, you have
regained your brother.
16 But if he does not
listen, take one or two
others with you, so that
at the testimony of
two or three
witnesses every
matter may be
established. 17 If he
refuses to listen to
them, tell it to the
church. If he refuses to
listen to the church,
treat him like a Gentile
or a tax collector.
1 Corinthians 13:4-7 (NET)
4 Love is patient, love is kind, it
is not envious. Love does not
brag, it is not puffed up. 5 It is
not rude, it is not self-serving, it
is not easily angered or
resentful. 6 It is not glad about
injustice, but rejoices in the
truth. 7 It bears all things,
believes all things, hopes all
things, endures all things.

30. To overlook an offense is wisdom
and glory.
Proverbs 19:11 A person’s wisdom makes
him slow to anger, and it is his glory to
overlook an offense.

31. John 15:11-13
11 I have told you these things so that my
joy may be in you, and your joy may be
complete. 12 My commandment is this – to
love one another just as I have loved you.
13 No one has greater love than this – that
one lays down his life for his friends.