Matthew 18:17-27

17 If he still won't listen, tell the church. If he won't listen to the church, you'll have to start over from scratch, confront him with the need for repentance, and offer again God's forgiving love.
18 "Take this most seriously: A yes on earth is yes in heaven; a no on earth is no in heaven. What you say to one another is eternal. I mean this.
19 When two of you get together on anything at all on earth and make a prayer of it, my Father in heaven goes into action.
20 And when two or three of you are together because of me, you can be sure that I'll be there."
21 At that point Peter got up the nerve to ask, "Master, how many times do I forgive a brother or sister who hurts me? Seven?"
22 Jesus replied, "Seven! Hardly. Try seventy times seven.
23 "The kingdom of God is like a king who decided to square accounts with his servants.
24 As he got under way, one servant was brought before him who had run up a debt of a hundred thousand dollars.
25 He couldn't pay up, so the king ordered the man, along with his wife, children, and goods, to be auctioned off at the slave market.
26 "The poor wretch threw himself at the king's feet and begged, 'Give me a chance and I'll pay it all back.'
27 Touched by his plea, the king let him off, erasing the debt.

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Published by permission. Originally published by NavPress in English as THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright 2002 by Eugene Peterson. All rights reserved.