Tuesday, June 1, 2010

Talk Tuesday-Me, The Unmerciful Servant?!

Last week I learned a very humbling lesson.


I was mad at someone-very mad. I was right, they were wrong, they hurt my feelings and I was indignant. As I heard their, 'I'm sorry', I immediately said to myself, 'That's not good enough!' The minute I thought that, the parable of the Unmerciful Servant popped into my mind.

"Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. As he began the settlement, a man who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him. Since he was not able to pay, the master ordered that he and his wife and his children and all that he had be sold to repay the debt.
"The servant fell on his knees before him. 'Be patient with me,' he begged, 'and I will pay back everything.' The servant's master took pity on him, canceled the debt and let him go.
"But when that servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii. He grabbed him and began to choke him. 'Pay back what you owe me!' he demanded.
"His fellow servant fell to his knees and begged him, 'Be patient with me, and I will pay you back.'
"But he refused. Instead, he went off and had the man thrown into prison until he could pay the debt. When the other servants saw what had happened, they were greatly distressed and went and told their master everything that had happened.
"Then the master called the servant in. 'You wicked servant,' he said, 'I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. Shouldn't you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?' In anger his master turned him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed.
"This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother from your heart." Matthew 18:23-35

I had not meditated on that scripture for a very, very long time. I even forgot it was in there, in the Bible (yes, it's true). So imagine my shock when the Holy Spirit brought it to the forefront of my mind at that very moment. There I was, being the Unmerciful Servant. I humbled myself in the sight of my own sin. My attitude changed. I sincerely forgave and my actions reflected my change of heart.

Why is forgiveness so important in our walk with the Lord? Do you struggle with being able to forgive others? Why is our pride so important anyways?

God bless,
Natasha





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8 comments:

Anonymous said...

What an important topic to touch on. I struggle with disappointment and being hurt by others. Holding grudges and not forgiving eventually leads to more animosity. It's hard to forgive a peson especially if there is no acknowledgment or remorse by that person. Thank you for the bible reference. It's made me re-think how I approach the topic of forgiveness.

Germaine Pointer said...

Excellent insight. I am amazed how quickly the Holy Spirit will correct us if we are receptive.

Anonymous said...

Wow. So timely. Thank you Natasha. God used your word (and my own quiet time today) to speak to me and confirm what I SHOULD be feeling. Yesterday, I left work. I got home only to find out that someone at work had dented my new 2009 vehicle's rear fender, trying to pull out at work. I know it happened at work. I can't remember who parked behind me either. I was so mad. I was telling my neighbors yesterday how peeved off I was. So often, God will speak to me the next day or days after a situation. I'm sure he does this because he knows that at that moment I'm not in the right frame of mind, nor am I teachable. I asked myself the question this morning: do my prayers really matter? Do they really accomplish anything? I prayed yesterday (as I do everyday), I prayed for my company (I do everyday) and for my specific team members (I pray for them everyday) and then this!! Then, I 'happened' to be reading in Amos 2 this morning. God was mad with with various nations because of injustices and sins they committed against other peoples and he was saying that he would hold them accountable for it. What I saw was, God allowed the poor to suffer injustice. He allowed uncompassionate acts to happen to others. There was quite a list in this chapter and in chapter 1. I made the observation that God didn't stop those things from happening. He could have but he didn't. Why? Because God allows man to have free-will. My prayers do make a difference. The important thing for me is to now invite God into my 'dented fender' situation. He didn't promise that my fenders would not be dented in life unjustly!!... but he did promise to help me get it fixed! Now, as per the great reminder Natasha gave us, I must remember that I too have dented other peoples cars by accident in life and to stop being like that unmerciful, self-righteous servant in the parable. I think it really please God when we make heart changes like the ones Natasha made! God is with us!

Natasha said...

Amen! Yes, GOD is with us! Thank you for reminding us of that Anonymous #2.

Anonymous #1 re: holding onto grudges and not forgiving...you know, I was really struggling with understanding why my pride is so important to me. I have been tempted MANY times to hold onto the hurts as well. When I feel that urge rising up, I BEG for grace. We are all a work in progress, this process of sanctification. God is faithful and merciful.

@Souther District-yup, I agree! I love how the Holy Spirit speaks to our hearts. Truth is, I was tempted to ignore this correction and revel in my indignation! God is merciful though. Thank GOD for Jesus!

Anonymous said...

Thank you, that was extremely valuable and interesting...I will be back again to read more on this topic.

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