Christ Church

New Testament

A Crown by Faith (Christ Church)

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INTRODUCTION

In the triumphal entry of Christ into Jerusalem, we see that the cross is very much in view. At the same time, it is still appropriate to call it a triumphal entry because the resurrection is equally central. We might even say that the death of Christ is surrounded by resurrection.

THE TEXT

“On the next day much people that were come to the feast, when they heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, took branches of palm trees, and went forth to meet him, and cried, Hosanna: Blessed is the King of Israel that cometh in the name of the Lord. And Jesus, when he had found a young ass, sat thereon; as it is written, Fear not, daughter of Sion: behold, thy King cometh, sitting on an ass’s colt. These things understood not his disciples at the first: but when Jesus was glorified, then remembered they that these things were written of him, and that they had done these things unto him. The people therefore that was with him when he called Lazarus out of his grave, and raised him from the dead, bare record. For this cause the people also met him, for that they heard that he had done this miracle. The Pharisees therefore said among themselves, Perceive ye how ye prevail nothing? behold, the world is gone after him” (John 12:12–19).

SUMMARY OF THE TEXT

In the previous chapter, Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead (11:44). This caused many to believe in Him, and His enemies began plotting His death (11:49-53). But six days before the Passover, Jesus had come back to visit the man He had raised (12:1-3). This caused an enormous stir, and a big crowd gathered in order to see Jesus—not to mention Lazarus (v. 9). The chief priests were so worked up by this that they even started plotting on how they could kill Lazarus (v. 10). But many believed in Jesus, and dispersed (v. 11). This is what created the huge crowd that welcomed Jesus into Jerusalem (vv. 12-13). There is no indication in the Scriptures that this was a fickle crowd, easily turned. This is not the same crowd that a short time later was calling for Christ to be crucified. It was no weather vane church. This was the true church in embryo.

PALM BRANCHES 

Psalm 118 is rich in messianic allusion, and these people picked a really appropriate psalm. It is a triumphant declaration of life— “I shall not die, but live . . . he has not given men over to death” (vv. 17-18). Jesus was entering Jerusalem, and the psalm says, “open to me the gates of righteousness . . . this gate of the Lord, into which the righteous shall enter” (vv. 19-20). Then comes the passage about the stone the builders rejected, which of course refers to Christ (1 Pet. 2:7; Acts 4:11; Luke 20:17; Mk. 12:10-11; Matt. 21:42). Then there is the cry, “Save now, I beseech thee, O Lord” (v. 25), which is what Hosanna means. Then comes the verse which the crowd cried out—“Blessed be he that cometh in the name of the Lord.” The psalm explains a great deal, including the palm branches. According to at least three translations, v. 27 speaks of the festal procession as carrying branches to the altar.

ANSWERING THE PSALM 

Jesus answers the crowd’s appeal to Psalm 118 with a reference to Zechariah (9:9-11). The rejoicing that met Jesus there was righteous and appropriate. Rejoice greatly, the prophet had said. Jesus identifies with this by bringing salvation into Jerusalem, and He does so as a lowly

King. But His humility does not diminish the glory of His kingdom, because His dominion will be from the river to the ends of the earth (v.10).

The central thing here is that Jesus is entering Jerusalem by faith. He is receiving the garland before the race. He is crowned before the conquest. He comes in a great act of faith, and liberates prisoners from the waterless pit, and He does so by means of the blood of the covenant (v.11).

LATER ON….

The disciples did not understand how important all this was at the time. But later on, after Jesus had been glorified, it all came together for them. They recalled what the Scriptures said, and they recalled what the multitude had done (v. 16). Who testifies that Palm Sunday happened this way? Who is qualified to speak to it?

John says something fascinating here. “The people therefore that was with him when he called Lazarus out of his grave, and raised him from the dead, bare record” (v. 17). And this is the reason why the crowd was there in the first place—they had heard about Lazarus. “For this cause the people also met him, for that they heard that he had done this miracle” (v. 18).

Everyone there was involved in that glorious event because of a raising from the dead. This was a great testimony—by faith—to the reality of resurrection.

THE WHOLE WORLD HAS GONE AFTER HIM 

The impact of this entry into Jerusalem was profound. Moreover, the triumph was not imaginary, or illusory. The events that the next few days would manifest are the means that God chose to bring salvation, not only to Jerusalem, but also from the river to the ends of the earth. The crucifixion of the Christ was an apparent defeat only; this is how God chose to overcome the wickedness of our grubby little world. What a glorious reversal!

And this is why the Pharisees, just like Caiaphas in the previous chapter, spoke far more wisely than they knew. “The Pharisees therefore said among themselves, Perceive ye how ye prevail nothing? behold, the world is gone after him” (v. 19).

And glory to God, why yes . . . yes, it has.

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Preparing for the Kingdom (Christ the Redeemer)

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INTRODUCTION

Culturally we have a relatively strong liturgy for Christmas but a weak liturgy for Easter. This is an area where recovery and reformation are needed. That reformation must start in the church. One way to begin this is to become very familiar with the story itself. Just as you should read and re-read the Christmas story, read and re-read the account of Christ’s final days on earth. Scripture spends significantly more time on the final week of Christ’s life, leading to his death and resurrection, than on his birth and life as a child. So naturally we should do the same with our time spent reading this story.

THE TEXT

Luke 19:11-28 – “And as they heard these things, he added and spake a parable, because he was nigh to Jerusalem, and because they thought that the kingdom of God should immediately appear. He said therefore, A certain nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom, and to return. And he called his ten servants, and delivered them ten pounds, and said unto them, Occupy till I come. But his citizens hated him, and sent a message after him, saying, We will not have this man to reign over us. And it came to pass, that when he was returned, having received the kingdom, then he commanded these servants to be called unto him, to whom he had given the money, that he might know how much every man had gained by trading. Then came the first, saying, Lord, thy pound hath gained ten pounds. And he said unto him, Well, thou good servant: because thou hast been faithful in a very little, have thou authority over ten cities. And the second came, saying, Lord, thy pound hath gained five pounds. And he said likewise to him, Be thou also over five cities. And another came, saying, Lord, behold, here is thy pound, which I have kept laid up in a napkin: for I feared thee, because thou art an austere man: thou takest up that thou layedst not down, and realest that thou didst not sow. And he saith unto him, Out of thine own mouth will I judge thee, thou wicked servant. Thou knewest that I was an austere man, taking up that I laid not down, and reaping that I did not sow: wherefore then gavest not thou my money into the bank, that at my coming I might have required mine own with usury? And he said unto them that stood by, Take from him the pound, and give it to him that hath ten pounds. (And they said unto him, Lord, he hath ten pounds.) For I say unto you, That unto every one which hath shall be given; and from him that hath not, even that he hath shall be taken away from him. But those mine enemies, which would not that I should reign over them, bring hither, and slay them before me. And when he had thus spoken, he went before, ascending up to Jerusalem.”

SURVEY OF THE TEXT

In verse 11 we see that Jesus is nearing Jerusalem and He sees that the people expect him to bring the kingdom of God immediately. They think that he will bring political deliverance in Jerusalem and so he tells them this parable: There was a certain nobleman who went away to secure the kingdom (vs 12). Before he left, he charged his servants with engaging in business until his return and gave them each a mina which is about 3 months salary (v13). We see there is an antithesis in the kingdom for his citizens hated him and sent a delegation to try and stop him from receiving the kingdom (v14). This delegation fails for in verse 15 he returns having received the kingdom and calls his servants to account for their work while he was gone. The first servant had faithfully earned 10X interest and he is rewarded with authority over 10 cities (v16-17). The second servant faithfully earned 5X interest and his is rewarded with authority over 5 cities (v18-19). But the third servant comes making excuses. He has his one mina, but he did not earn anything with what he was given. His excuse is that he knew his master was harsh expecting to take more than he had given and so he was afraid to lose the money he was given (v20-21). The master condemns the wicked servant and uses the servant’s own words to convict him. He knew what was expected of him, he knew his master’s standards and he did nothing (v22). He could have at least placed his money in the bank to receive some interest. That little would have been acceptable, but instead he did nothing (v23). The master takes his pound and gives it to the one who made 10X interest (v24). This causes an outburst of surprise from the others. Why give it to the one who has the most, why not give to the one who has less? (v25) But the king declares that to those who have been faithful will be given even more. And to those who have made nothing, even what they have will be taken away (v26). And lastly those enemies of the king who did not want his kingdom to come are brought before the king and killed (v27). After saying this parable Jesus went on ahead to Jerusalem (v28).

INTERPRETATION OF THE PARABLE

So how do we interpret this parable? Jesus is the nobleman who is going away to the Father to receive His inheritance. He has given gifts to men and commanded them to use those gifts to bear fruit. Those who bear fruit will be rewarded but those who bear no fruit will be condemned. The wicked citizens who hated the nobleman are those men in the dark who reject the light of the gospel and reject the kingdom of God. They will be judged on the last day with eternal death.

APPLICATION OF THE PARABLE 

The context of the parable is important for its interpretation. We are told Jesus gave the people this parable because they expected the kingdom to come immediately. The point of the parable is then a proper understanding of the kingdom and the proper response to such a kingdom. Like the crowd we are not to expect the kingdom to come instantly. It was not to come in a political coup. But likewise, it would be just as wrong to assume that there is no kingdom or that you will never see it. Jesus is on his way to Jerusalem where He will enter as the true king. The king whose kingdom is not just over Israel but over all of creation.

CONCLUSION

We are all servants of the true king, and our lives are to be marked with diligence in bearing fruit. This involves investment, education, hard work and in all of it faith to see the race to the end. Our king came humbly on a donkey and went as a servant to the cross. How much more are we the servants of such a king to serve others?

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Biblical Counsel vs. Psychology (Practical Christianity #6) (King’s Cross)

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INTRODUCTION

We live in a therapeutic age, and we must acknowledge that humanistic therapies and psychologies have become in large part rival religions to Christianity. While the Dominion Mandate certainly includes studying the

science of the brain, there have been antagonistic philosophies at work in much of the secular therapy world. There are many trials in this life, but God has given us His sure word to comfort our hearts (Rom. 15:4).

The Text: “And he spake this parable unto certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others: Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican…” (Lk. 18:9-14).

SUMMARY OF THE TEXT

This parable is for those who trust in themselves, think they are right, and thereby, whether they know it or not, despise others (Lk. 19:9). Jesus chose for the parable a man from one of the most respected classes (Pharisees) and a man from one of the most despised classes (tax collectors) (Lk. 18:10). The Pharisee prays in the temple with a lot of gratitude, and he is thankful that he hasn’t fallen into many different sins, and for the spiritual disciplines of fasting and tithing (Lk. 18:11-12). The tax collector, on the other hand, stood in the back, and refusing to even look up, simply begged God for mercy (Lk. 18:13). And Jesus says that the beggar went home made right, but the other was not because God exalts the humble and humiliates the proud (Lk. 18:14).

THERAPEUTIC FAILURE 

Much like the Pharisees, the medical profession has been one of the most respected classes in our modern world because of their (often) selfless service in saving and protecting life. But where there is much good, there is also often a temptation to arrogance and pride, and right after that, much evil (think abortion, trans-surgeries, COVID madness). It is often assumed that if someone has good intentions and wants to “help people,” they must be virtuous and doing some good. But we really ought to have a bit more biblical cynicism. Thoreau once said, “If I knew for a certainty that a man was coming to my house with the conscious design of doing me good, I should run for my life.” Good intentions are not enough.

Since the explosion of humanistic therapies over the last century, one wonders what good it has done us. As one commentator put it, “Despite the creation of a virtual army of psychiatrists, psychologists, psychometrists, counselors, and social workers, there has been no letup in the rate of mental illness, suicide, alcoholism, drug addiction, child abuse, divorce, murder, and general mayhem. Contrary to what one might expect in a society so carefully analyzed and attended to by mental health experts, there has been an increase in all these categories.” Like the woman in the gospels, we have suffered many things from many physicians, and we have only gotten worse (Mk. 5:26). It is also striking that while therapies have increased, Biblical preaching and counseling has largely cratered, with a great deal of it simply echoing therapeutic mantras.

SELF-ESTEEM VS. DIGNITY OF GUILT

At the very center of the problem with many therapies is an anti-Christian anthropology (doctrine of man). The assumption of much humanistic psychology is that people are basically good and bad feelings and habits are a result of their environment (e.g. what has been done to them, chemicals in their brain, genes, deprivation, weather, poverty, etc.). But Scripture teaches that despite the real challenges in our fallen environments, every human being is born in sin, inclined to sin, and morally culpable for their actions and reactions to their environments (Rom. 3). This is the dignity of guilt. The humanist wants to absolve humans of guilt and so destroys human agency: “it isn’t your fault, it was your dad, your mom, your brain, the weather, the economy…” But by blaming everything else, the humanist destroys the individual’s meaning and value. Some of God’s kindest words in Genesis 3 are “because you have done this…”

And this brings us back to the parable. Humanistic psychology often preaches a gospel of pride and self-esteem: talk about how good you are, how valuable you are, all your accomplishments, think positive. But Jesus says that is the path to humiliation and shame: everyone that exalts himself will be (the Greek word is literally) “depressed” (Lk. 18:14). People are often depressed because they are constantly trying to lift themselves up, prove themselves, have high self-esteem. But the gospel, the “good news” of Jesus Christ, begins with the dignity of guilt: “All have sinned.” And the first step towards healing is bowing your head in true humility and pleading with God: “Be merciful to me a sinner.” And Jesus says, that is the path to healing. Taking humble responsibility for our own sin is the path to being lifted up (cf. 1 Pet. 5:5-7).

APPLICATIONS

Are we saying that all therapists and psychologists and their treatments are evil and worthless? Not at all. We are saying beware. Be careful. Be on guard. Some Pharisees were good men, but Jesus said, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees. Beware of the leaven of the humanistic therapists.

Many modern “psychological disorders” are simply the result of unconfessed sin, sinful lifestyles, and sinful habits. Even when it comes to true medical matters, the Bible teaches that we ought to consider whether we have any unconfessed sin (Js. 5:14-16). When it comes to our thoughts and feelings, we ought to do so even more since the Bible explicitly teaches that unconfessed sin results in feeling awful and loss of joy (Ps. 32).

Just as some medical conditions having nothing to do with personal sin, so too, some psychological disorders are true medical conditions that are simply the result of the Fall (Jn. 9:2-3). And sometimes there is a challenging mixture of both.

Many humanist therapies arrogantly teach that it is “abusive” to tell people that they have sinned, that they are wrong, or to correct them in any way – especially victims of other sins/crimes or certain classes of people (often women) because correction makes people “feel bad.” But that is like refusing surgery on cancer because it will be painful. But this is the sin of empathy, and in the name of compassion despises people.

This same arrogance often calls biblical spanking of children abusive. But the Bible is extremely clear: “Whoever spares the rod hates his son, but he who loves him is diligent to discipline him” (Prov. 13:24 ESV, cf. 22:15, 23:13-14). And God disciplines us as His children because He loves us and He wants us to become holy like Him (Heb. 12:5-11). Some trials are God’s fatherly discipline that we are called to endure patiently and joyfully. We do not have some “right” to always feel good.

Humility recognizes that we don’t always understand the connections between the mind and the body, but humility trusts God’s Word above all other words. And humility looks to Christ.

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The Primitive Gospel (Acts of the Apostles #26) (Christ Church)

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INTRODUCTION

As we continue to work our way through the book of Acts, we are not going to spend very much time on the retelling in verses 4-14. But we are not setting this repetition aside as unimportant because Luke obviously intends to emphasize it. He wants us to note it. He tells the story in chapter 10, and then repeats it in detail in chapter 11. Then there is a strong reference to this episode at the Jerusalem Council later (Acts 15:7-11). This incident was a significant event.

We can note a few additional details we learn in this recounting. We learn that six Jews accompanied Peter from Joppa (v. 12). We learn that the angel told Cornelius that the message that Peter would bring would be words of salvation (v. 14). And Peter tells us here that the Spirit fell on them near the beginning of his talk (v. 15). So we will begin our exposition at verse 16.

THE TEXT

“And the apostles and brethren that were in Judaea heard that the Gentiles had also received the word of God. And when Peter was come up to Jerusalem, they that were of the circumcision contended with him, Saying, Thou wentest in to men uncircumcised, and didst eat with them. But Peter rehearsed the matter from the beginning, and expounded it by order unto them, saying .. .” (Acts 11:1–30).

SUMMARY OF THE TEXT

So the apostles and brothers of Judea heard that the Gentiles had received the Word of God (v. 1). So when Peter arrived back in Jerusalem, the circumcision party there challenged him (v. 2). The charge was that Peter had gone in with Gentiles, and had shared table fellowship (v. 3). The eating appears to have been the central problem. So Peter tells the story over again (vv. 7-15), including the fact that “these” six men here saw it all.

Peter remembered the Lord’s statement that John baptized with water, but that His followers would be baptized with the Holy Spirit (v. 16). So if God gave Gentiles the Spirit in the same way that He had done for the Jews on Pentecost, who was Peter to fight God (v. 17)? Now this satisfied them and they glorified God (v. 18), saying that God had granted Gentiles repentance unto life. But this resolution was only temporary.

Those who had scattered because of the persecution after Stephen’s death preached the word to Jews only, but doing so in Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Cyrene (v. 19). Phoenicia was along the coast of the eastern Mediterranean, Cyprus was an island about sixty miles out, and Cyrene was in modern day Libya, on the north coast of Africa. Some of these men from Cyprus and Cyrene came to (Syrian) Antioch and began preaching the Lord Jesus to Greeks (v. 20). The hand of the Lord was with them, and many believed and turned to the Lord (v. 21). The church at Jerusalem heard about this, and so they sent Barnabas to Antioch to check it out (v. 22). He got there, saw the grace of God, was glad, and exhorted them to cling to the Lord with resolute and steadfast hearts (v. 23). He was a good man, full of the Spirit and faith, and many more people were converted (v. 24). So Barnabas went to Tarsus to enlist the help of Saul (v. 25). This was about 80 miles away, as the crow flies. They came back to Antioch and taught a lot of people there for a year (v. 26). The name Christian was first applied to believers there in that city (v. 26).

During that time, prophets came from Jerusalem to Antioch (v. 27), and one of them named Agabus prophesied that there would be a great famine throughout the empire (oikoumene), which then happened during the reign of Claudius Caesar (v. 28). Claudius reigned from 41 A.D. to 54 A.D. The believers there in Antioch, each according to capacity, decided to send a famine relief gift to Judea (v. 29). They did this, and sent it to the elders there by the hands of Saul and Barnabas (v. 30).

THE FIRST PAULINE EPISTLE

One of the things we should want to do is integrate the timeline of the epistles into the history of Acts. Our first opportunity to do this comes with Galatians, which I take to be Paul’s earliest letter in the canon. But to do this we have to answer the question, “Who were the Galatians exactly?” There was ethnic Galatia up north—think rural Celtic tribes—and there was the Roman province of Galatia down south. Think of the difference between the Dakota Indian tribe, and South Dakota.

If Paul is writing to the Galatians of the Roman province, then this places his book in the chronology of Acts. If he is writing to the ethnic Galatians up north, then we don’t quite know how and when Paul got acquainted with them. This is important for several reasons. One is that the “south Galatian” understanding gives us an early date for Galatians, and a mature statement of justification by faith alone very early on in the history of the church. It was not a late “add on,” not a Pauline afterthought. Second, the details in Galatians blend very nicely with Acts on this view. For example, the “famine relief visit” (Acts 11:28-29) is the visit that was in response to a revelation (Gal. 2:2). And third, it explains why Paul didn’t appeal to the decision of the Jerusalem council in a letter dedicated to the very same controversy. He didn’t appeal to it because it had not yet happened. It also explains the heat of Galatians.

The mission to the province of Galatia happened in the neighborhood of 47-48 A.D. and the Jerusalem Council somewhere near 48-49 A.D. Thus the best date for the writing of Galatians would be right before the Council, probably in 48 A.D., during the reign of Claudius.

THE GOSPEL AT GROUND ZERO

In the book of Galatians, we see a fully-formed and robust articulation of justification by faith alone, apart from works of the law. With an early date for Galatians, we can see just exactly how Paul was instructing the early Christians—what he was teaching them. We also see how this proclaimed gospel was causing an inchoate church to form, making the gospel the seed of the church, and not the other way around. We also see how this plain gospel was senior to the church, and to her officers, and senior to angelic messengers. If we or an angel from heaven, preach a different gospel than the one that was first preached to you, then let that messenger be accursed and damned (Gal. 1:8).

And what is that gospel? That Christ, the eternal Son of God, was made man for our sakes. He lived a perfect, sinless life, was crucified, buried, raised, and ascended, and all of His perfections are imputed, gratis, to anyone who looks to Him in faith. That is the Word that establishes the church, and that is the Word that builds a new world.

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The Duty of Forgiveness (Practical Christianity #5) (King’s Cross)

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INTRODUCTION

The Christian duty of forgiveness is a difficult one, but it is also a very freeing one. This is the center of Christian joy and peace: being forgiven and releasing those who have wronged us.

The Text: “Then came Peter to him, and said, Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? till seven times? Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times seven” (Mt. 18:21-35).

SUMMARY OF THE TEXT

When Peter asked how often Christians must forgive their brothers, Jesus said, seventy times seven (Mt. 18:21-22). Jesus then told a parable to explain why He said that: a story about a servant who owed 10,000 talents to his King, and was granted mercy and the debt was forgiven (Mt. 18:23-27). But when that same servant was owed 100 pence, he refused to have compassion, and had the fellow servant thrown into prison until he paid his debt (Mt. 18:28-30). When the King was told, he confronted the forgiven servant in great wrath and commanded him to be delivered to tormentors until he paid, and Jesus explains that this is what His Father will do with us if we do not forgive our brothers from our hearts (Mt. 18:31-35).

LET’S DO SOME MATH

In the New Testament a denarius (what the KJV translates “pence”) was a silver coin that was considered one day’s wage for an unskilled worker. So if you use our US minimum wage ($7.25 @ 8hr), you’d get an approximate equivalent value of $58 for a denarius. A “talent” was not a coin proper but the total weight of 60 minas and 1 mina was 100 denarii. So one talent (of silver coins) would be about 6,000 coins or approximately $348,000. This means that ten thousand talents would have probably been the equivalent of 3-4 billion dollars in modern currency. The King forgave the servant a vast sum of money, and that servant went out and demanded 100 pence (100 x $58), almost $6,000 in modern currency from his fellow servant, which is nothing close to what he was forgiven, but is still nothing to sneeze at (about 4 months of wages). And if a year’s worth of wages was around 300 denarii or 3 minas, it would have taken 20 years to make one talent, and about 200,000 years to make (pay off) ten thousand talents.

SEVENTY TIMES SEVEN

These numbers are not merely large numbers, they are loaded with symbolic significance going back to creation and the Sabbath. God created the world in six days and rested on the seventh, establishing a six and seven day rhythm to human economics. Six days of labor and one day of rest is the foundation of economic fruitfulness and faithfulness. But the Sabbath laws specifically required that this rest be given to everyone around us: “thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates” (Ex. 20:10).

This principle was extended to every seventh year, where the people were required to give rest to the land (and therefore the workers of the land) and forgive debts and release Hebrew slaves (Dt. 15), and every seven seven-year cycle was an additional sabbath year (the 50 th year) called “Jubilee,” the year of release, when all debts were forgiven and Hebrew slaves released (Lev. 25). When Judah was conquered by Babylon, it says they were carried away into exile “until the land had enjoyed her sabbaths: for as long as she lay desolate she kept sabbath, to fulfill threescore and ten years” (2 Chron. 36:21). And if you do that math, that would suggest that they had failed to keep 70 sabbath years, or 70 7s, or 490 years’ worth of Sabbath breaking, nearly 500 years.

So “70 times 7” isn’t just a big number, it is the number of Judah’s hard-hearted sin against God. “70 times 7” is the number of Israel’s refusal to forgive, release, and give rest. It’s the number of their exile; and so it is also the number of God’s forgiveness of Israel. Jesus is not just pulling that number out of the air; He’s taking it from Old Testament history. In other words, Israel is the servant in the parable who was forgiven billions of dollars. This was initially the forgiveness/release of the Exodus from Egypt, but then also the forgiveness and return from the Babylonian exile for their refusal to practice Sabbath forgiveness. The logic of the gospel was proclaimed from the Exodus: You were slaves in Egypt, therefore, release your slaves. You were in hard labor in Egypt, therefore give rest to your people. You were redeemed from Egypt, therefore, forgive debts. You have been forgiven; so forgive.

APPLICATIONS

This brings us to the duty of forgiveness. It is what we pray week after week: “forgive us our trespasses (or debts) as we forgive those who trespass against us (our debtors).” And Jesus teaches that this is basic: “And if [thy brother] trespass against thee seven times in a day, and seven times in a day turn again to thee, saying, I repent; thou shalt forgive him. And the apostles said unto the Lord, Increase our faith” (Lk. 17:3-5).

What is forgiveness? It is a promise not to hold any offense against you for the sake of Christ. Which means that forgiveness is not a feeling, although Jesus says that we must disciple our feelings so that we forgive “from the heart” (Mt. 18:35). But forgiveness is a promise that the sin will not come between you and your brother as far as Christian fellowship is concerned.

Forgiveness is not the same thing as trust. And forgiveness does not require the restoration of privileges (job, office, marriage). Forgiveness means no animosity, no rage, no bitterness, no careful accounting of wrongs.

The differences between the King and the servant are striking: the initial plan of the King is to “sell” the servant and his family, presumably into debt slavery, where he could actually work towards paying the debt (a little mercy!). The servant, on the other hand, ordered the fellow servant thrown into “prison” until he would pay – which would seem to be never. This is bitterness: putting a fellow image bearer into a prison (if only in your heart) in which you say they can pay it off but nothing would ever really be enough because your pain and wrath are too great.

This underlines a crucial aspect of the gospel: if you think about it, we can never pay for any of our sin. Even what we consider “small sin” is against the infinite goodness and majesty of a Holy God and against our fellow servants who bear the image of that Holy God.

This is why Christ suffered torture in our place and for sin. This is why He had to be both God and man. What we (and your dad, mom, sister, son) could never pay, Christ paid in His own body on the tree. When we “forgive” we are not actually taking away anyone’s sins. We are only agreeing with God that Christ has paid all our debts, and so, they are free.

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