2025 Study of Matthew’s Gospel

FORGIVE YOUR BROTHER FROM YOUR HEART

Matthew 18:21-35

Key Verses 18:35

1. Why do you think Peter suggested forgiving “up to seven times” (21)? What does Jesus mean when he says, “not seven times, but seventy-seven times” (22)? How does Jesus’ teaching challenge your own limits in forgiving others?
2. In the parable, why do you think Jesus uses such a huge debt of ten thousand bags of gold (23-24)? What does the king’s decision to settle accounts with his servants show us about God’s justice (25)? How does the king’s compassion and cancellation of the servant’s debt reflect God’s heart toward us (26-27)?
3. What is the difference between the debt the fellow servant owed and the debt the first servant had owed the king (28a)? What is the contrast between how the king treated the first servant and how the servant treated his fellow servant (28b–30)? Why do you think the forgiven servant was so harsh, even after receiving mercy himself?
4. What does the other servants’ reaction show us about how unforgiveness affects a community (31)? What does the king’s anger reveal about God’s view of an unforgiving heart (32–34)? Why do you think Jesus ends the parable with such a strong warning (35)?
5. Who in your life do you find hardest to forgive right now? Why is forgiveness so important in relationships and in the church community? What step of forgiveness is God calling you to take this week—toward a person, in a relationship, in the church community?