Forgiveness and reconciliation

"Therefore the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his servants.  When he began to settle, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents.  And since he could not pay, his master ordered him to be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and payment to be made.  So the servant fell on his knees, imploring him, 'Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything.'  And out of pity for him, the master of that servant released him and forgave him the debt.  But when that same servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii, and seizing him, he began to choke him, saying, 'Pay what you owe.'  So his fellow servant fell down and pleaded with him, 'Have patience with me, and I will pay you.'  He refused and went and put him in prison until he should pay the debt.  When his fellow servants saw what had taken place, they were greatly distressed, and they went and reported to their master all that had taken place.  Then his master summoned him and said to him, 'You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me.  And should not you have had mercy on your fellow servant, as I had mercy on you?'  And in anger his master delivered him to the jailers, until he should pay all his debt.  So also my heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother from your heart." - Matthew 18:23‭-‬35 ESV

Russ Whitfield

There's a show called The Undercover Boss. The CEO is disguised with mustaches, wigs, and makeup. They then go to work in their company. Then the boss is revealed at the end. The employees are then rewarded or punished for their actions. 

Jesus is our Undercover Boss. He is disguised in the world. We will also be there at the final episode when Jesus calls us all to account. Whether to reward or judgement.

The comfort in God's judgement

Jesus will come again... As judge. He will sit on his throne, not as a meek lamb, but as a King upon the throne.

"As I looked, thrones were placed, and the Ancient of Days took his seat; his clothing was white as snow, and the hair of his head like pure wool; his throne was fiery flames; its wheels were burning fire. A stream of fire issued and came out from before him; a thousand thousands served him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him; the court sat in judgment, and the books were opened. "I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him. And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed.

Daniel 7:9‭-‬10‭, ‬13‭-‬14 ESV

The kingdom of Israel was living under the oppression of the Roman empire. This nation was looking forward to God's judgement. How is this so? Why do we fear judgement in this day and age? The people of the ancient world understood that justice and judgement were two sides of the same coin. Judgement meant that God cares about the poor, the oppressed.  They lived within corrupt systems. The judges would only be heard if bribes were given. And the poor cannot afford the bribe, so their case will never be heard. We don't have to deal with that in this day and age. If we live lives in relative prosperity and comfort, we don't see the need for judgement. It is felt most by those who have witnessed horrible vile evil. Those who have been oppressed and violated... They long for judgement... For justice.

The challenge in God's judgement

God separates the sheep from the goats. They are admitted or excluded based on how they treated Jesus. The surprise was that Jesus was disguised among the poorest and neediest of the disciples. Jesus is so close to those who follow Him that he takes their treatment personally. How you treat your friend... Is how you treat Jesus. How you treat your spouse is how you treat Jesus..  How you treat the covenant children of the church is how you've treated Jesus. These are simple things. Giving water, food, clothing. These are sins of omission... Simple good neighborly love undone. 

So then, what shall we do? Try harder? We look more like goats than sheep. Jesus is our sheep. He lived the perfect life as a sheep for us. Then he transforms us to be more like his sheep. Then we will see our brother as Jesus. We will see the stranger in our midst as Jesus. Jesus takes our treatment of our neighbors, especially fellow believers, personally. 

So then we should wake up each day not thinking of what we need to do. But rather what who we will become... Are we treating those around us with the love that God calls for? This is the evidence of a life touched by grace. If we cannot find Jesus in the poor man by the church door, we certainly won't find him in the cup inside the church.

The Urgency of Reconciliation

"When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne.  Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.  And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left.  Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.  For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me,  I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.'  Then the righteous will answer him, saying, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink?  And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you?  And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?'  And the King will answer them, 'Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.'  "Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.  For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink,  I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.'  Then they also will answer, saying, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to you?'  Then he will answer them, saying, 'Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.'  And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life." - Matthew 25:31‭-‬46 ESV

Rev. Russ Whitfield

Everyone has debt. Maybe not student loans, maybe not credit card debt, maybe not a mortgage... but we all owe a debt of sin to God. Very similar to the federal debt forgiveness program for student loans, God has a debt forgiveness program as well.

Kingdom principle of forgiveness

Right before our current passage, Jesus is describing how relationships handle sin. There must be a confrontation, then forgiveness. Hence why Peter's question. Jesus says 77 times of forgiveness. Why 77? There's a story of lemek from the old testament, a descendent of Cain who spoke of vengeance. He killed for someone striking him. He murdered multiple people in return for a killing. It was the idea is unlimited vengeance. Jesus replaced that idea with unlimited forgiveness. 

Then the story was of the servant of 10,000 talents. A talent is the largest sum we could imagine. 10,000 is the largest number that was namable in the Roman language. This is hyperbole. The amount is basically incalculable, astronomical. This amount was larger than all the money in circulation at the time. The servant pleads for more time. But it was clear that there was no way this servant could repay, even given several lifetimes. The King forgave his debt. The King had to take the loss. 

So it is of us. The cross tells us of our great debt of sin. It also speaks of God's grace, love, and forgiveness of our debts. 

Saint Augustine: "I want you to be forgiven because I've caught you begging for pardon. Before the end of the day, you will be in need of forgiveness."

The servant who was forgiven goes and does the unspeakable. He goes to another servant and chokes him for some denari. This is a small sum. The fellow servant repeats the same thing the servant had spoken to the King. But the servant was thrown in jail for his small debt. 

The King has rewritten the life of his servant with the forgiveness. But the servant condemned his fellow to the fate that the King's forgiveness had spared him. The servant acted as if the King's life changing act of forgiveness had never happened.

Kingdom practice of forgiveness

Jesus taught that unforgiveness was heretical. Christians are more likely to practice unforgiveness rather than forgiving. How was the wicked servant busted? The other servants were watching. So it is with Christians now. The ungracious, impatient, & judgmental behavior of those within the church tells others what the King, God, is like. Does the way you relate to others speak of God's tenderness, graciousness, patience, & mercy.

Application

Stop nursing minor injuries, resentment, grievances, and grudges. It will grow our bitterness to full maturity.

Jesus calls this servant... Wicked. He doesn't use that word often. This is despicable behavior.

We need to practice this at home with our spouses, family, kids, and roommates. We need to practice confession and repentance. This prepares is to forgive others. We need to recognize the flow of the need for pardon... So then we can present it to those around us.

We need to name the tender mercies of God. 

We need to forgive as an event. Then we need to forgive as the sin comes back into our hearts and minds. We need to daily resist the sinful desire for revenge.

Forgiveness is not about self care. It is not man centered. It is God centered. Today's culture sees forgiveness as weakness. It is counter cultural. 

A different kind of authority

And they went into Capernaum, and immediately on the Sabbath he entered the synagogue and was teaching. And they were astonished at his teaching, for he taught them as one who had authority, and not as the scribes. And immediately there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit. And he cried out, "What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are—the Holy One of God." But Jesus rebuked him, saying, "Be silent, and come out of him!"  And the unclean spirit, convulsing him and crying out with a loud voice, came out of him. And they were all amazed, so that they questioned among themselves, saying, "What is this? A new teaching with authority! He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him." And at once his fame spread everywhere throughout all the surrounding region of Galilee. And immediately he left the synagogue and entered the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John. Now Simon's mother-in-law lay ill with a fever, and immediately they told him about her. And he came and took her by the hand and lifted her up, and the fever left her, and she began to serve them. That evening at sundown they brought to him all who were sick or oppressed by demons. And the whole city was gathered together at the door. And he healed many who were sick with various diseases, and cast out many demons. And he would not permit the demons to speak, because they knew him. - Mark 1:21‭-‬34 ESV

Rev. Ryan Egli

Mark is a very action packed gospel. Like Die Hard, Fast and the Furious, or other action movies, things are happening to quick succession. 

3 scenes and a postscript... All pointing to the authority of Jesus. It is a different kind of authority

Teaches with authority

Jesus goes to this little town called Capernaum. It's a blue collar town. You can smell the fish, the sea and birds. It's just 20 miles from Jesus' hometown, Galilee. He's a local boy. We don't know what he taught, but we know how the locals reacted. They were astonished. Jesus taught differently from the scribes. The scribes were educated and considered the religious leaders of the town. Locals depended on the scribes to show them how to behave and think about God. Most of the local scribes taught based on the authority of other more prominent teachers. Much like how today's preacher's refer to John Piper, Tim Keller, and such... That is how most scribes taught. But Jesus did no such thing, He taught as one who knew more than these scribes and prominent teachers. He taught as one who understood the word.

Casts out demons with authority

Jesus meets a demon-possessed man. The demon recognizes Jesus. Demon speaks truth about Jesus. He is from Nazareth. He had the power to destroy demons. Jesus tells the demon to be silent and to come out of this man. The demon has no option other than to do as Jesus commands. We can be distracted by the main point. We can be demon possessed? How do we do exorcisms? How does possession happen? But the main point is that Jesus has power of a different caliber. Jesus' fame spreads through the area.

Heals with authority

Jesus meets a woman ill with a fever. The fisherman was commanded to follow Jesus earlier. They are pulled into this frenzy of activity. The reaction of the locals and the rising fame of the rabbi. So one of these disciples suggests they go to his home and rest for a bit. Maybe he forgot his mother in law was sick. He brings them over and Jesus goes to her. He lifts her by the hand and she's healed. Simon Peter's mother in law was well again and immediately begins to serve Jesus. 

Postscript and key takeaways

After Jesus has done these things, the Sabbath had ended. And because it was over, the locals grabbed their sick and brought them to Simon Peter's home. And Jesus healed them. So what are we to do with this? 

We have a Savior who has power over sickness. We have a Messiah who knows the way to life. Jesus controls even demons. The authority of Jesus should encourage and humble us. He is very God and very human. He had great power and authority, but he instead of abusing it, he used it on our behalf. 

If you know Jesus, then we are sent out. Because of Jesus' power and authority, we are sent to meet the sick, the afflicted, and downtrodden. Our homes should be like Simon Peter's house in Capernaum. They should be a place where people can meet Jesus and find healing, forgiveness, and encouragement.

The King, His Kingdom, and His Call

Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the gospel of God, and saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel."  Passing alongside the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and Andrew the brother of Simon casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen. And Jesus said to them, "Follow me, and I will make you become fishers of men."  And immediately they left their nets and followed him. And going on a little farther, he saw James the son of Zebedee and John his brother, who were in their boat mending the nets. And immediately he called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired servants and followed him. - Mark 1:14‭-‬20 ESV

Rev. Dwight Yoo

We started the book of Mark with the ministry of John the Baptist. He's seen as a strange figure... Wearing camel hair, living in the wilderness. But John wasn't looking for attention, he was trying to highlight Jesus.

The kingdom of God

Often when we hear of the kingdom, we think of the future. Perfect fellowship with God, a perfect world, perfect peace among all people. The fully restored world of the future. Jesus says in this passage that the kingdom is here. The kingdom of God came with Jesus. So which one are we to think of? Biblically, we believe it's both. The kingdom of God is both already and not yet. Here, the world is being restored. Healing is happening. Dead people resurrected. But not completely. Not all was restored. The kingdom is in the works.

This should bring us to work towards change. Sin has been defeated. The hope for change is real, even though it will not be fully accomplished till Jesus returns. We fight injustice knowing that Jesus will bring justice.

Knowing the kingdom is not yet, it should make us approach change in our lives with hopeful realism. We are free from sin. We know that sin is not part of who we are. Change happens very slowly. We are not slaves to sin, but it's presence is definitely felt in our lives. 

So what does hopeful realism look like? We should think of it as a person walking up stairs with a yo-yo. The rollercoaster of conviction and failures/setbacks are real. We definitely have highs and lows, but the trajectory is progress.

The call is the King

To enter the kingdom of God is repent and believe the good news. Acknowledge our sin, believe Jesus' life,  death, and resurrection, and accept. More than just mental acceptance, we are following a person. It is more than just lip service. It is a relationship with the person of Jesus.

Three attitudes of Jesus followers

1) They followed when He called. This is total submission and true recognition of Jesus as King.

2) They followed no matter the cost. These people were fishermen by trade. They had a solid job. They were not poor.

3) They followed wherever He would lead. No plan, no details. He called, they came. Jesus doesn't give a game plan. So then, why? Because they trusted in Jesus.

The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit

In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. And when he came up out of the water, immediately he saw the heavens being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove. And a voice came from heaven, "You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased." The Spirit immediately drove him out into the wilderness. And he was in the wilderness forty days, being tempted by Satan. And he was with the wild animals, and the angels were ministering to him. - Mark 1:9‭-‬13 ESV

Rev. Travis Drake

The announcing of the Son

God is announcing the son. This seems like a very private event. Jesus hears the voice. We don't know if others heard it. Jesus saw the heavens torn. We don't know if anyone else heard it. But Mark is proclaiming it to us. It started as a private event, but was meant to be spread. This is the fulfillment of God's promises 700 years ago. This was a coming of the promises from the mouth of Isiah. The coming salvation and redeemer. 

"There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch from his roots shall bear fruit. And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord . And his delight shall be in the fear of the Lord . He shall not judge by what his eyes see, or decide disputes by what his ears hear, but with righteousness he shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the earth; and he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked. Righteousness shall be the belt of his waist, and faithfulness the belt of his loins. The wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the young goat, and the calf and the lion and the fattened calf together; and a little child shall lead them. The cow and the bear shall graze; their young shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. The nursing child shall play over the hole of the cobra, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the adder's den. They shall not hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain; for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea." - Isaiah 11:1‭-‬9 ESV

This coming Savior will come from the family line of Jesse, the father of David. The kingdom of Israel did become a stump; the family of David was cut off. But why should we be concerned about this random royalty? Why is this any more interesting than the current news of prince Harry and princess Meghan? Because of what this King is. This King will blow away the wicked with merely any effort...a breath. He will upend the entire natural order of animals as we know it. He will bring justice for those who have no one to defend & fight for them. But not just justice for a season, not just for a decade or two, but justice forever.

The equiping of the Son

How does this translate from an announcement to reality? 

I have a baptism to be baptized with, and how great is my distress until it is accomplished! - Luke 12:50 ESV

Jesus speaks of a second baptism. This is after John had already baptised Him. The only earth shaking event after Jesus' baptism that we can point to is Jesus' death and resurrection. Sin is not washed away in a river, but rather by Jesus death on a cross. It is washed away by His blood. It is done. There is nothing to be added to it. Our redeeming has been accomplished already. We are already accepted by God the Father. We are to obey not because we need to earn it, but we obey because we are already accepted. Only the children of God will fight the temptation of sin. The affirmation and love of God is already ours in Christ before the temptations come. 

The sending of the Son

The King of Kings is sent out to meet the King of this world and the wild beasts. Immediately after Christ is affirmed by God, He is immediately dragged out to fight with the enemy. Jesus does not delay. There's another story of Lazarus. Lazarus was dying and Jesus delayed in that case because it was better. It was better for Jesus to resurrect Lazarus after he'd already died. God does not delay to deliver unless it is better. Jesus is presented immediately; His life and ministry on earth is a foretaste of what is to come. What is to come us nothing like what we have here and now...

Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill be made low; the uneven ground shall become level, and the rough places a plain. - Isaiah 40:4 ESV

Receive

Accept Jesus and the good news of the Gospel.

God will do all these good things because Jesus was given.

Rely

These promises are for you, Christian.

Yes, it is forgiveness, it is beautiful. 

The Christian Life is not about needing God less, but learning to lean on God more.

Look

God is ready to act when the time is right. Don't hope in what you see, but look at what God promises.

The Beginning Gospel

The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. As it is written in Isaiah the prophet, "Behold, I send my messenger before your face, who will prepare your way, the voice of one crying in the wilderness: 'Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight,'" John appeared, baptizing in the wilderness and proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. And all the country of Judea and all Jerusalem were going out to him and were being baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins. Now John was clothed with camel's hair and wore a leather belt around his waist and ate locusts and wild honey. And he preached, saying, "After me comes he who is mightier than I, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie. I have baptized you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit."- Mark 1:1‭-‬8 ESV

Rev. Dan Whang

Mark is the shortest of the gospels. It is an active and concise narrative. He was mainly targeting gentiles and getting the message out.

Fresh beginnings

There is anticipation and excitement with beginnings. Mark is writing about a life changing beginning. The gospel, good news, was being proclaimed. Jesus, the Christ, was Messiah and King. He had come to save us from our sins. Through Him, we could be right with God, no matter what we had done. 

With the arrival of Jesus and His earthly ministry, we have a new beginning. This is our reboot, reformatting, restart of our lives. Many of us may be looking back on the past year, 22 days into the new year. We may carry regrets, disappointment, and remorse for the past. This is the effect that sin has on us. It separates us from God and others. Jesus takes these and gives us a fresh start.

Repentance in the wilderness

John the Baptist is declaring Jesus as the Messiah. Why wilderness? There wilderness in those times was most likely a desert. It was a place of thirst and survival was impossible. Wilderness was where people met God. People in the desert needed God to survive. Wilderness is where we find the end of our self reliance and abilities.

Repentance is when we come to our senses in our sins and turn to God. We turn from our evil deeds, intentions, and motivations... Towards God. We need to do this daily. To fight against the sin in our lives. Have we become complacent with sin? Perhaps this is why God has brought us into the wilderness. God wants to show us our hearts/brokenness and meet us there to set us free.

Magnifying Christ

After God sets us free, he does not leave us there. It is not about a better you. It is not about being better people. John knew his place in history. He was pointing to the Messiah. He was the opening act for the main show. He was the groomsman for the bride and groom. He wasn't there for the spotlight and self glorification. John knew the humanity and divinity of Jesus. The sandals of whom he was not worthy to untie was the humanity. The baptism by the Spirit was pointing to Jesus' divine nature.

So the question for us is this... Can we serve to be forgotten? Can we live to be forgotten? Only those who have the gospel at work in their lives. They can serve without recognition, without human gratitude, without gathering power, pride, or glory. God sees and will reward us, even if there is nothing for us from following God in this life.

The Incarnation: The Wonder of Christ's Glory

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. He came as a witness, to bear witness about the light, that all might believe through him. He was not the light, but came to bear witness about the light. The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God. And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. (John bore witness about him, and cried out, "This was he of whom I said, 'He who comes after me ranks before me, because he was before me.'") For from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father's side, he has made him known.

John 1:1‭-‬18 ESV

Rev. Charles Han

What's the best present that a child could receive for Christmas?

Their dad, in the flesh, present with them. That is what we celebrate at Christmas. In Christ, God came in the flesh and was present with us.

Grace, truth, and glory came. The son of God became flesh so that these things would not be just abstractions. They would be real, substantive, touchable and knowable in Christ.

John refers to Jesus as "the word." Out of all the things Jesus could've been called, John chooses this. Words reveal our character, dreams, personality. Jesus is God's intimate outreaching to us. God's ways are higher than ours. But God stooped down and spoke in human terms. Not only that, but he came down in human form. 

Jesus came to his people and was rejected. God, the father, who holds us up and sustains us... gets slapped in the face. The only reason that sinners can slap God is because he gets close enough for them to do so. Jesus is grace. Not some abstract thing, but He himself is grace.

In Jesus we see the full glory of God

Moses asked to see God's face. God turned him down, because that would've liked Moses. So instead Moses saw the back of God's glory... his face shown from that and long after he came back down from the mountain. Jesus is God's grace manifest. He is what Moses longed to see. We see it in full with eyes of faith.

We are innate glory seekers. But we fall short and play with little glories rather than the incomparable glory of Jesus. But what makes Jesus above all the others? Jesus is a combination of holiness & love, truth & grace, transcendent & immenent. He is a paradoxical meeting of seeming absolutes. God's glory is seen most in the shame and humility of the cross. Jesus is the truth that sets us free. Jesus is the grace who bought us life.