Luke 17:3 Be careful. If your brother sins against you, rebuke him. If he repents, forgive him. 4 If he sins against you seven times in the day, and seven times returns, saying, ‘I repent,’ you shall forgive him.”
5 The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith.”
6 The Lord said, “If you had faith like a grain of mustard seed, you would tell this sycamore tree, ‘Be uprooted, and be planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you. 7 But who is there among you, having a servant plowing or keeping sheep, that will say when he comes in from the field, ‘Come immediately and sit down at the table,’ 8 and will not rather tell him, ‘Prepare my supper, clothe yourself properly, and serve me, while I eat and drink. Afterward you shall eat and drink’? 9 Does he thank that servant because he did the things that were commanded? I think not. 10 Even so you also, when you have done all the things that are commanded you, say, ‘We are unworthy servants. We have done our duty.’”
Christ taught his disciples about reconciliation. Reconciliation can be a tricky business.
If your brother or sister sins against you, rebuke them; and if they repent, forgive them. 4 Even if they sin against you seven times in a day and seven times come back to you saying ‘I repent,’ you must forgive them.
Hearing this, the disciples objected. What Christ was asking was too difficult. How could they forgive someone seven times in one day? This was unfair. What if they didn’t feel like forgiving the one who had offended them? So that they could be obedient and make forgiveness possible, they asked Christ to “increase our faith.” Requesting more faith sounds like a reasonable and appropriately religious request. However, Christ brushed off their request as an excuse that they had come up with to justify their refusal to forgive.
In response, he replied, “If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it will obey you.” Luke 17:5-6 Christ is telling his disciples that the problem is not a lack of faith: a tiny amount of faith is all they need. Christ then told his disciples a parable illustrating his point.
“Suppose one of you has a servant plowing or looking after the sheep. Will he say to the servant when he comes in from the field, ‘Come along now and sit down to eat’? 8 Won’t he rather say, ‘Prepare my supper, get yourself ready and wait on me while I eat and drink; after that you may eat and drink’?” Luke 17:7-8
A servant has worked in the fields all day. He comes home tired and hungry. But instead of being offered food he is told to do even more work. He must prepare and serve supper to his master.
Christ then drops the hammer by asking the disciples a question. “Will he thank the servant because he did what he was told to do?” No. The servant is just doing what he was hired to do. “So you also, when you have done everything you were told to do, should say, ‘We are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty.’” Luke 17:9-10
Granting forgiveness is not a matter of faith or feelings. Granting forgiveness is a matter of duty. We are never to resort to manufacturing rationalizations to excuse ourselves from our duty to forgive others.
Interestingly, going back to Christ’s example in Luke 16:18, it is the unwillingness of couples to forgive the offenses, failings, and slights of their spouses that lead to many modern divorces, even within the church. God instructs couples, Do not keep an account of wrongs suffered, 1 Corinthians 13:5 and do not go to bed angry. Ephesians 4:26 Rather than confessing sins and extending forgiveness, how many couples keep score, keeping a ledger in their minds of wrongs suffered? How many couples take this ledger to bed and stew over it through sleepless nights? Does this sinful behavior strengthen the marriage bonds or encourage feelings of victimhood, as the offended builds rationalizations for revenge and divorce?
God’s design for marriage is actually a picture of his love for us. Husbands are to unconditionally love their wives as Christ unconditionally loved the Church, giving his life for her. No matter how great our sin, we should all be thankful that Christ does not keep account of our sins against him!
Conversely wives are to honor their husbands as Christ honored the wishes of God the Father in emptying himself of all of his claims to Heaven, coming to earth to rescue the Church. Philippians 2:7-11
Of course, that such a thought is foreign, to even the ears of Christians, is a testimony to how, like the Pharisees, we are quick to adopt the wisdom of the world, putting our fallen subjective feelings over and above the objective Word of God.
Luke 17:11 As he was on his way to Jerusalem, he was passing along the borders of Samaria and Galilee. 12 As he entered into a certain village, ten men who were lepers met him, who stood at a distance. 13 They lifted up their voices, saying, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!”
14 When he saw them, he said to them, “Go and show yourselves to the priests.” As they went, they were cleansed. 15 One of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, glorifying God with a loud voice. 16 He fell on his face at Jesus’ feet, giving him thanks; and he was a Samaritan. 17 Jesus answered, “Weren’t the ten cleansed? But where are the nine? 18 Were there none found who returned to give glory to God, except this foreigner?” 19 Then he said to him, “Get up, and go your way. Your faith has healed you.”
How frequently do you take the blessings that God has showered on you for granted while, in turn, complaining and grousing about life?
When Christ came upon ten outcasts, lepers who were quarantined from the general population, they begged him for mercy. Christ immediately cleansed all ten from their terminal disease, however, only one man, a Samaritan, thanked Christ, glorifying God and falling at Christ’s feet. Ten were healed, but only one glorified God for his unexpected blessing which prompted Jesus to ask, “Weren’t the ten cleansed? But where are the other nine? Were there none found who returned to give glory to God, except this foreigner?”
Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy, who satisfies you with good so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.
Psalm 103:2-5
We are, like the Samaritan, to live lives of gratitude, never forgetting the Lord’s blessings.
Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all ye lands.
Serve the Lord with gladness: come before his presence with singing.
Know that the Lord he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.
Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name.
For the Lord is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endures to all generations. Psalm 100