EXPLORE THE TEXT
We can know that God is compassionate and willing to forgive.
23 “For this reason, the kingdom of heaven can be compared to
a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants.
24 When he began to settle accounts,
one who owed ten thousand talents was brought before him.25 Since he did not have the money to pay it back,
his master commanded that
he, his wife, his children, and everything he had be sold to pay the debt.
26 At this, the servant fell facedown before him and said,
‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you everything.’
27 Then the master of that servant had compassion,
released him, and forgave him the loan.”
Pack item 13 (Handout: Interpreting Parables).
Give an overview of the information
and encourage them to read and reflect on it during the week
in light of the many parables Jesus taught.
King, King’s Servant, and Other Servant.
Identify characteristics of the king and his servant in verses 23-27.
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23 a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants.
24 one servant who owed ten thousand talents was brought before him.
25 his master commanded that
he, his wife, his children, and everything he had be sold to pay the debt.
26 the servant fell facedown before him
‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you everything.’
27 the master of that servant had compassion,
released him, and forgave him the loan.”
Emphasize the servant’s desperate situation:
As this king began to settle accounts with his servants,
he came across a servant who owed him an enormous sum of money-
ten thousand talents. .This would have been an inordinate amount of money in the Roman and Hebrew monetary system.
While various scholars have sought to estimate the debt of this man as being in the millions of US dollars,
Jesus was not attempting to set an exact amount. .
Jesus’s point is that the man owed an enormous amount that he would never be able to repay.
For the king, the only remedy
was that the man, his family, and all his possessions be seized and sold to pay the debt.
Such actions were not uncommon in that day and time.
Keep in mind that Jesus was moving to a conclusion
to Peter’s question, showing that those who follow Christ
have a huge debt that we cannot pay-
the debt of our sin against God. (PSG, p. 48)
Mercy and compassion
are the only reasons the servant wasn’t punished;
in no way did he earn it or deserve it.
As humans, we deserve to suffer the consequences of our debt to God,
but He made a way for us to find forgiveness through Jesus.
As Jesus would soon show, that forgiveness should transform our lives.