Then Peter came to him and asked, “Lord, how often should I forgive someone who sins against me? Seven times?” “No, not seven times,” Jesus replied, “but seventy times seven!” (Matthew 18:21-22, NLT) The context: Notice the context of Matthew 18. It begins with Jesus talking about having to become like children, in order to be great in the kingdom of God, proceeds into the Parable of the Lost Sheep – which speaks about the importance of people who are separated from God, then enters into a discussion about how to raise issues with believers who ‘sin again you’, then concludes with an expression of how much people are to forgive each other. Teaching thought: Considering the context of this passage, it seems apparent that people who do the wrong thing, or people who hurt others, can never be simply discarded because of what they have done wrong. Instead, God’s heart is to seek them out (parable of the Lost Sheep) and to restore them back into relationship with others. The number 7 in biblical times was considered a special, or divine number. According to some teachers of Jesus day, to forgive 7 times was deemed to be forgiven enough – at which point those people were to be cast out, or excommunicated from the community. Here, Jesus is implying that while a person is sincerely seeking forgiveness we are to forgive them. Discuss: Why is forgiveness important? Who is forgiveness for? (the forgiver, or the forgivee)? Our Life Long Learner comment suggests that forgiveness breaks the cycle of un-grace. What do you understand by that? Are there any stories that you can share which demonstrate that? Using a piece of timber and a hammer, hit nails into the timber – indicating how people hurt each other. Then pull out the nails as a sign of being forgiveness. What do you notice about the piece of timber? What might the left over holes imply about forgiveness? Discuss the comment, “You know that you have forgiven someone when to remember the moment no longer hurts”. Do you agree or disagree? Additional Resources: Video with inspirational phrases about the journey of forgiveness News story about a woman who forgives her sons murderer – indeed, who now lives next door to them A Video about forgiveness with Mary Karen Read's last words in her journal entry before her death at the Virginia tech shooting Symbols Use one of the following pictures or symbols to explore what that picture might suggest about the topic.
Then Peter came to him and asked, “Lord, how often should I forgive someone who sins against me? Seven times?” “No, not seven times,” Jesus replied, “but seventy times seven!” (Matthew 18:21-22, NLT) The context: Notice the context of Matthew 18. It begins with Jesus talking about having to become like children, in order to be great in the kingdom of God, proceeds into the Parable of the Lost Sheep – which speaks about the importance of people who are separated from God, then enters into a discussion about how to raise issues with believers who ‘sin again you’, then concludes with an expression of how much people are to forgive each other. Teaching thought: Considering the context of this passage, it seems apparent that people who do the wrong thing, or people who hurt others, can never be simply discarded because of what they have done wrong. Instead, God’s heart is to seek them out (parable of the Lost Sheep) and to restore them back into relationship with others. The number 7 in biblical times was considered a special, or divine number. According to some teachers of Jesus day, to forgive 7 times was deemed to be forgiven enough – at which point those people were to be cast out, or excommunicated from the community. Here, Jesus is implying that while a person is sincerely seeking forgiveness we are to forgive them. Discuss: Why is forgiveness important? Who is forgiveness for? (the forgiver, or the forgivee)? Our Life Long Learner comment suggests that forgiveness breaks the cycle of un-grace. What do you understand by that? Are there any stories that you can share which demonstrate that? Using a piece of timber and a hammer, hit nails into the timber – indicating how people hurt each other. Then pull out the nails as a sign of being forgiveness. What do you notice about the piece of timber? What might the left over holes imply about forgiveness? Discuss the comment, “You know that you have forgiven someone when to remember the moment no longer hurts”. Do you agree or disagree? Additional Resources: Video with inspirational phrases about the journey of forgiveness News story about a woman who forgives her sons murderer – indeed, who now lives next door to them A Video about forgiveness with Mary Karen Read's last words in her journal entry before her death at the Virginia tech shooting Symbols Use one of the following pictures or symbols to explore what that picture might suggest about the topic.