Dear Friends and members of Grace Baptist Church,

A few reminders before sharing our scripture text and theme for tomorrow’s sermon.

Last Sunday we had a wonderful pot-luck breakfast. This Sunday, discipleship opportunities for all ages begin at 9:30 a.m. Also, as mentioned above we have our fall congregational meeting after our worship service tomorrow.

Last week, we began our Fall sermon series on the Christian Church’s Purposes, which are summarized in Acts 2:42-47. We began with the purpose of Fellowship. Tomorrow, we will focus on the purpose of Discipleship. What does it mean to be a disciple, a follower of Jesus? At the end of Matthew’s Gospel Jesus instructs his disciples to “Go and make disciples of all nations.” What are the “marks” of a disciple? What characteristics reveal that someone is a Jesus’ follower?

We are going to consider some of these questions tomorrow and focus on one attribute which reflects the image of God, as revealed in Jesus. Our scripture passage is from Matthew 18:21-35. This passage follows last week’s which taught us about community, accountability, and fellowship. In this passage, Peter asks Jesus about the limits of forgiveness. Jesus answers Peter and then tells a parable that is often titled, “The unmerciful servant.” I often give it the title, “the unmerciful servants and king.” We’ll seek to listen to this parable and what it teaches us about forgiveness and being Jesus’ disciple in today’s world.

See you tomorrow,

Pastor David