CANCELED DEBT (part two)
Recap: What are improper responses to our canceled debt? We start accumulating more debt. People claim bankruptcy and then go right back to accumulating more debt. Why? Because they either don't care or they didn't learn the lesson that their poor choices got them into this mess. It can be the same way spiritually. Do we care about what Jesus did to cancel our debt? Do we see the need to live a different way? An improper response to having our spiritual debt canceled is to go right back to living how we always did. Are we appreciative? When Jesus healed the ten lepers only one came back to thank him. And Jesus rewarded him for it.
We need to show appreciation for our canceled debt. Appreciation is not going back into a life of sin. Appreciation is serving the cause of Christ. It's about understanding grace. An improper response to God's grace is to go back into a life of sin. An improper response to grace is to be unwilling to serve Jesus or serve him begrudgingly. When I appreciate I respond to God's grace by saying no to ungodliness and living a godly life, being eager to do good.
However, an improper response to canceled debt is when nothing changes. And if nothing changes things will get worse. When we've been forgiven we have an obligation-to replace the old with the new. It's not enough to stop sinning we must now replace the old thoughts and behaviors with spiritual ones. If we stop but don't replace it will just be a matter of time before we go back to our old ways. When we come out of that old life and start living the new life but are then enticed and drawn back to the old life, becoming entangled again to the point where we abandon the new life it's worse because we had the choice between godliness and sin and chose sin. Improper responses.
What do we do as a proper response to our canceled debt?
Cancel someone else's debt.
Matt. 18:21-35, "Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?” Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times. “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."
Think of what this man had to do and over how much time it took to accumulate such a massive amount of debt. Think of how patient the master was in allowing the servant plenty of time and plenty of chances to pay off the debt. But it just kept growing until it was far outside of the servant's ability to repay. The master was willing to cancel the debt but that doesn't mean no one had to pay. It was canceled for the servant but not the master-he ate it.
Then, you have a situation where the servant's friend owed a few dollars, probably a one-time transaction. Perhaps there was one encounter where he had asked for the money to be paid back. And we have the servant who had been shown much mercy extending none in return to his fellow man. How quickly the mercy extended to him had been forgotten. This would fall into the category of not appreciating the clean slate enough to pay it forward.
If this man had appreciated the canceled debt then he would've extended that grace to his fellow man. Likewise with us-one sure way to determine our level of gratitude for the massive debt cancelation is whether or not we are "canceling the debts" of our fellow man. Do we forgive as we have been forgiven? "Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors" as it says in the Our Father. If we are not willing to forgive then we are not recognizing the undeserved favor of God forgiving us.
But that can be part of the problem-perhaps we feel deserving of our debt cancelation for we didn't do anything that bad. But when it comes to the debt owed to us-the wrongs committed against us then that's a different story. You don't deserve my forgiveness. I'm completely justified in not giving it to you. I'm not saying forgiveness is an easy thing to do but it is a necessary thing to do.
And it can go beyond forgiveness into showing grace. Paul Leonard tells this story, "Paying my way through Ohio State University was demanding, but the benefit was worth the struggle. My father had died during my senior year in high school, and my mother had become blind. With her encouragement, however, I enrolled in the University on the eve of the Great Depression. By night I was a taxi driver, and during the lunch and dinner hours I waited on tables in a campus dining hall. I made enough to pay my expenses, but I had to always pinch pennies. At lunch one day I was serving a table where faculty members were seated.
As I returned to the table with my tray held high, the unthinkable happened! I slipped on a spot of gravy on the floor and watched helplessly as the plates slid off the tray, spilling onto an especially well dressed man, one of my professors. My heart sank. What could I do to atone? I grabbed a towel to clean up the food, but I only spread the mess over more of my professor's suit. He locked his eyes on me and asked, "Mr. Leonard, what are you going to do about this?" "I'm so sorry, sir. I'll pay to have your suit cleaned," I said. "I don't believe this suit can be dry cleaned, do you?" my professor countered. It was badly stained. I could tell that. And who was I to question his judgment? He had every right to be irritated. "Whatever it takes, sir," I answered. And for the moment we left the matter at that.
Later that afternoon the extend of the damage was even more obvious. I sat before the same professor in his engineering class as he did his best to present his normal lecture in something less than his usual splendor. When the bell rang I heard the dreaded words: "Paul Leonard, I'd like to speak to you for a moment." After everyone else had left, he said simply, "Mr. Leonard, I believe it is only fair that you buy me a new suit." "Yes, sir," I managed. With a knot in my stomach, I agreed to meet him at a downtown Columbus men's store the following day. I recognized the name of the store, an exclusive men's clothier specializing in custom tailored suits. I also knew that I could cover the expense only if I were able to make payments over several months of work and scrimping.
As I walked in the front door of the finely furnished store, I grew even more apprehensive. "Oh, there you are," the ever proper professor remarked. He had arrived early. He had already chosen the fabric, and the tailor had already taken measurements. My professor, a regular customer, had apparently vouched for my trustworthiness before the clerk, nonchalantly accepted the professor's remark, "Mr. Leonard will be responsible for the bill, as I have indicated."
More than a little disoriented, I turned to follow my professor out of the store. Then he stopped. "Are you sure you want to do this?" he asked. "Yes, sir," I responded. "It will take time, of course, but I..." He interrupted me with words directed to the clerk. "Let's see that Mr. Leonard is fitted for a suit just like mine. And put both of them on my bill." I learned about responsibility in that men's clothing shop in Ohio. Not only was my debt canceled, but I received what I did not deserve (actually, the opposite of what I deserved!) And my benefactor provided me with more than a suit and an indelible memory. He gave me an encounter with grace."
The professor not only didn't make the student pay for his suit, he went a step further and bought a suit for the student. Appreciating God's forgiveness and grace causes us to show it toward others. This is a proper response to our canceled debt.
Show lots of love.
Luke 7:36-50, "Now one of the Pharisees invited Jesus to have dinner with him, so he went to the Pharisee’s house and reclined at the table. When a woman who had lived a sinful life in that town learned that Jesus was eating at the Pharisee’s house, she brought an alabaster jar of perfume, and as she stood behind him at his feet weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears. Then she wiped them with her hair, kissed them and poured perfume on them.
When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would know who is touching him and what kind of woman she is—that she is a sinner.” Jesus answered him, “Simon, I have something to tell you.” “Tell me, teacher,” he said. “Two men owed money to a certain moneylender. One owed him five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. Neither of them had the money to pay him back, so he canceled the debts of both. Now which of them will love him more?” Simon replied, “I suppose the one who had the bigger debt canceled.” “You have judged correctly,” Jesus said.
Then he turned toward the woman and said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I came into your house. You did not give me any water for my feet, but she wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. You did not give me a kiss, but this woman, from the time I entered, has not stopped kissing my feet. You did not put oil on my head, but she has poured perfume on my feet. Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven—for she loved much. But he who has been forgiven little loves little.”
Then Jesus said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.” The other guests began to say among themselves, “Who is this who even forgives sins?” Jesus said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”
The Pharisee invited Jesus into his home and fed him but he really didn't show him love? Chances are Simon wouldn't have recognized his great need for Jesus. He also wouldn't have considered himself to need much forgiveness. Counter that with this woman who did recognize her need and who did recognize the amount of grace shown to her. How do we know that? She showed it. She wept at his feet showing recognition of her sin and her need for forgiveness. She kissed his feet which shows her humility and servitude. She poured costly perfume on his head which showed that she honored and valued Jesus above all.
But before all this she showed bravery and devotion. She was crashing the party. She was a sinful woman who dared enter a religious leader's house during an invitation only dinner. She was willing to endure the gasps, whisperings and embarrassment to be able to show how much she loved Jesus. She saw what Simon didn't see. She experienced what Simon failed to experience; not because he didn't have the opportunity to but because he didn't have the desire to.
And I don't think Jesus meant that there are those who are literally forgiven little and some who are forgiven much; it's that there are those that think they only need a little forgiveness and thus their love for Jesus is small. However, if I realize the magnitude of undeserved favor I've received, my response will be to show immense love toward my deliverer. How much love am I showing Jesus? How much of me does he have? How well do I love his people? How well do I honor his name?
Loving God is obeying God. Jesus said in John 14:15, "If you love me, you will obey what I command." How can I tell that I am having a proper response to my canceled debt? When I respond by not only hearing the word of God but obeying the word of God. When I don't just listen but I act on what I've learned. Obeying, serving and bearing fruit are outward expressions of gratitude toward God for canceling a debt we could never repay and giving us undeserved grace, mercy and forgiveness.
The one who has recognized that his canceled debt was great will be the one who will love greatly in return. The unmerciful servant had a big debt canceled but he was not loving in response. He failed to appreciate that a big debt had been canceled. Really, he failed to follow the two greatest commandments-love God with all your heart, soul, strength and mind and love your neighbor as yourself.
The mistreatment of his fellow man provoked an angry response from the master. When we mistreat our fellow man, when we fail to show love to our 'neighbor', we upset God. Loving others is respecting and honoring God because man is made in his image and God loves his creation. We need to show love to everyone because God shows love to everyone.
Eph. 5:1-2, Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God."
Jesus lived a self-sacrificing life of love and left us an example to imitate. When we choose God's will over ours we are loving God. When we put aside our wants for the sake of someone else's needs we're loving them. When we give of our time and resources to benefit someone else we are loving them.
A proper response to our canceled debt is to show love toward God and others. And part of our showing love toward others is to cancel their debts towards us.
