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Bible Reading Plan

Reading Plan: Matthew 18:21-35

The Parable of the Unmerciful Servant

Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?”

Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.

“Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. As he began the settlement, a man who owed him ten thousand bags of gold was brought to him. Since he was not able to pay, the master ordered that he and his wife and his children and all that he had be sold to repay the debt.

“At this the servant fell on his knees before him. ‘Be patient with me,’ he begged, ‘and I will pay back everything.’ The servant’s master took pity on him, canceled the debt and let him go.

“But when that servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred silver coins. He grabbed him and began to choke him. ‘Pay back what you owe me!’ he demanded.

“His fellow servant fell to his knees and begged him, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay it back.’

“But he refused. Instead, he went off and had the man thrown into prison until he could pay the debt. When the other servants saw what had happened, they were outraged and went and told their master everything that had happened.

“Then the master called the servant in. ‘You wicked servant,’ he said, ‘I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?’ In anger his master handed him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed.

“This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother or sister from your heart.”

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Daily Devotional: Our Daily Portion Is Sufficient

Give us today our daily bread.

Matthew 6:11

Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

Matthew 6:34

Food, money, possessions, products. We all have something we hoard, whether consciously or not. We save and collect and store away. “Just in case…,” we say to justify it. For me, it’s sweets—chocolate, candy, cookies, pastries. My pantry is filled with them. Because heaven forbid I should run out and be left sugar-less. 

It’s ingrained in us to prepare for the future, for what we think we’ll need tomorrow. There is nothing inherently wrong with this mindset, so long as we don’t do it with an anxious heart but, instead, assured in God’s provision for our life. 

The Lord’s Prayer intentionally specifies giving us our daily bread. Not weekly bread; not monthly or yearly. Why? First, it highlights that we need God on a daily basis. Just like His mercies and steadfast love are new every morning (Lamentations 3:22-23), so are our challenges and hurts. We need to come to the feet of Jesus every day in order to make it through. 

Second, it’s a reminder that our faith walk is a lifelong journey broken up into daily segments. God is not asking to meet with us on some distant date in the future; He is inviting us into a relationship built on a foundation of daily rituals and habits meant to grow our intimacy with Him. If God gave us enough spiritual bread to last a month, perhaps we will find ourselves postponing prayer or Bible study by a few days and then by a week. Suddenly, our need for God is not as strong, and we begin relying on ourselves to fix the broken places of our lives.

And lastly, it’s a promise—a guarantee from God that He knows what we need and when we need it. We don’t have to worry about tomorrow; He’s already there. He provides enough for our daily portion that is sufficient. We can rest knowing He will supply what we presently need. Enough wisdom, enough strength, enough support. 

We often question God’s portion and feel it’s not enough. When this happens, perhaps we need to search our heart to find the veil the enemy has draped over our eyes to keep us from seeing the abundance of blessings before us. Because they are there—sometimes disguised as struggles, yet gracefully allowed by a loving God who wants to walk with us, day in and day out.

Next Steps

Reflect on what it is you tend to hoard. Begin to shift your focus from storing to surrendering and trust that God will provide what you need on a daily basis.