Unforgiving Servant | Matthew 18:21-35

Scripture: Matthew 18:21-35

Key Takeaways:

+ Forgiveness is a lifetime pursuit

+ Forgiveness is the cancellation of a debt

-       Forgiveness doesn’t mean removing healthy boundaries

-       Forgiveness does not exempt us from justice

+ Forgiveness must be experienced

-       Luke 7:36-50

+ Experienced forgiveness allows us to extend forgiveness

 “Forgiveness is granted before it is felt.” – Tim Keller

+ Forgiveness reflects the Gospel

The Treasure and the Pearl | Matthew 13:44-46

Scripture: Matthew 13:44-46

Key Takeaways:

— Finding

— Assessing

— Selling

— Rejoicing

— Buying

+ Jesus is the one thing worth losing all things just to have

+ This is how we become a Christian

— Jesus is not your Savior unless He is your Treasure

“How sweet all at once it was for me to be rid of those fruitless joys which I had once feared to lose… You drove them from me, you who are the true, the sovereign joy. You drove them from me and took their place, you who are sweeter than all pleasure… you who outshine all light… you who surpass all honor…O Lord my God, my Light, my Wealth, and my Salvation.” – Confessions, IX, 1.

— Philippians 3:4-11

+ This is how we live as a Christian

— Philippians 3:7-8

+ This is how we overcome temptation

— Hebrews 11:24-26

The Growth and Advance of the Kingdom | Matthew 13:31-33

Scripture: Matthew 13:31-33

Key Takeaways:

+ The Kingdom of God is humble in its start and unstoppable in its spread.

Acts 6:7

Acts 12:24

Acts 19:20

+ A Global Dimension  

Ezekiel 17:22-24

Matthew 24:14

+ A Societal Dimension  

“I call myself a cultural Christian. I’m not a believer, but there is a distinction between believing in something and being steeped in the culture of it.” – Richard Dawkins, Atheist 

“You cannot take the fruit of Christianity and then say you don’t want the tree.” – Douglas Murray, Atheist Cultural Critic 

+ A Personal Dimension

Philippians 1:6