Group: Forgiveness from Matthew 18:21-22, talents, debts

Discussion Topic Material 

1. Review Matthew 18:21–22. What question did Peter ask the Savior about forgiving? How did the Savior respond?

He asked the Savior how many times should we forgive others and the Lord said until 7 times 70-

This is something I'm really grateful for in the repenting process. Because there are times where you want to start doing something better such as reading the scriptures daily or becoming better at something but you keep trying and failing. But then because the Lord teaches us to forgive others he will also forgive us. I think family is one of the greatest examples of forgiveness. Because when you are growing up there will usually always be little problems. Like in my family whenever the kids were at home alone we would watch lots of tv, and then when we had to do dishes there would usually be a bit of contention when someone wouldn't help. But always afterwards we would work it out and forgive each other, no matter how many times it would happen.

1. Review the parable the Savior told in Matthew 18:23–35. Then answer the following questions: [Note the difference between 10,000 talents and 100 pence or denarii. 10,000 talents is an incredibly large sum of money, equal to millions of work days; it is an impossible sum to pay back. See footnote a in v. 28 to find the worth of 100 pence. 10,000 talents is about 480,000 times as much as 100 pence.]

o   How much did the servant owe the king? 
He owed the king 10,000 talents

o   What was the proposed punishment? What was the servant’s desperate plea? What was the king’s response?
That he and his wife and children would all be sold, he pleaded with his Lord to have patience on him and he would repay him all. Then the Lord was with compassion and decided to completely forgive him of the debt.

o   What was the amount owed to the servant by a fellow servant? He was only owed an hundred pence

o   What was the fellow servant’s plea? What was the servant’s response?
He pleaded (the same plea) to have patience and he would pay, but the servant didn't care and threw him into prison.

o   How did the king change his mind when he found out what happened?
The king then was very angry and had the servant then have to pay the debt which would be an impossible sum to pay.

o   What do the principles found in Doctrine and Covenants 64:9–11 add to Matthew 18:22?
That we are required to forgive all men, but the Lord will forgive whom he shall forgive, also the principle about being judged the way we judge others. Meaning if we choose not to forgive others then the Lord will choose not to forgive us.

o   How does Matthew 6:14–15 relate to Matthew 18:35?

3. In what way is the debt the unmerciful servant owed the king similar to the debt each of us owes the Savior? What are the implications of this parable for how we are required to forgive? How does your view of these things change if the person you should forgive is not sorry and not trying to repair the damage he or she has caused?

The debt we owe to the Savior is unpayable by ourselves alone. It would be truly impossible for us to repent of all our sins. Therefore to be forgiven of all of our weaknesses and sins is truly a miracle and similar to the servant who couldn't in all his life pay off the debt. This shows that because the Lord is so willing to forgive us from everything then the tiny insignificant mistakes other people make against us should be easily and quickly forgiven. because if we should not to forgive someone for the smallest thing then the Lord will recognize that we are being unjust and therefore will not be able to have our own forgiveness. If someone isn't sorry it could be hard and hurt us but we need to recognize that we aren't perfect either and we can choose on our own to forgive them.

Example: 

when I had a hard time forgiving my friend, and then made my mom cry and really wanted forgiveness and then realized I hadn't forgiven my friend.