A lot of commentaries (especially Calvinistic Commentaries) tell us what this parable does not teach, but give little support for what it does teach, so what is it teaching us?
The parable is a deeper lesson about salvation - the doctrine of suffering in service. We who receive the baptism of Christ (Luke 3:16, Luke 12:50), live by endurance to survive the day of judgement (1 Peter 4:17, 1 Corinthians 3:13).
Since this is a Kingdom parable could it be talking about a time prior to Christ going to the cross?
Yes, The Kingdom definitively began with John the Baptist's ministry (Luke 16:16).
The first debtor (man/servant) has to be a sinner, but could this be a saved Christian (servant) and/or just any unbeliever?
Any person having been convicted of their sin and having received God's forgiveness, should read this as applicable to them.
The “debt” is huge 10,000 bags of Gold (5+ billion dollars) or 10,000 bags of silver (100 million dollars) no matter, either is way above what could be paid back by a servant. Gold or silver, this is virtually an impossible amount for one person to ever owe in the first century and everyone Jesus was addressing would have realized this. Spiritually this debt would represent each of our debts created by our sinning against God and Jesus said: “The man was not able to pay”?
The servant did not just slip into this huge debt over night, but would have had to take years or a life time to get so deeply in debt, so he is not coming to the master unaware. To be trusted by the Master with such a huge amount of money; suggest the servant understood economics and the value of the money or would have learned about it over time.
Not necessarily. Gamblers get stuck in a cycle of behaviour, even from a $20 starting point, where they are unable to stop themselves. In a real-life application, look at those Christians who receive a mission to evangelise, and being tempted by pride etc, begin speaking presumptuously on God's behalf (eg, Jeremiah 23:16-22). They have become the lost one of Matthew 18:12 and were causing much mahem by running amock in God's name, until they were found and brought to realise their error.
The servant asks ‘Give me time,’ he begged. ‘I’ll pay everything back.’ Is this a lie to the master or how could he not know he could not pay it back? Was the Master so stupid as to entrust a stupid servant with this much money?
Would/could the Master have felt the servant could pay this back over time?
This master is not stupid. It is by wisdom that He reigns. The overall point of the story, is that the servant is unable to ever be disloyal again.
Could the servant have felt: “he got away with something by asking for more time”, “the master is gullible”, “he still owes master but gave him more time”, “the master must like him”?
Proverbs 15:3, Psalms 14:1.
Matt.18:28 “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. This sounds like: the first servant immediate went out and found a fellow servant of the Master with little time elapsing, so is he unloving to a servant of the master?
I understand it to be like Romans 14:4. What I have noticed, is that some of our brethren are notorious as Matthew 24:49 and 1 Corinthians 1:11 - these being the ones who are accruing a debt to The Lord, yet to be settled as in Matthew 18:23.
Indeed, to condemn a fellow servant is to lack a required degree of love. Why? Listen to this quote:
"
When someone violates us, we make him or her evil along with the evil they did, don't we? You have to be able to separate the people from their sin."
- Dr. Henry W. Wright, A More Excellent Way, 2009.
We then who are strong ought to bear with the scruples of the weak, and not to please ourselves. Let each of us please his neighbor for his good, leading to edification.
Romans 15:1-2
Jesus teaches us in Luke 7:36-50 “… he that is forgiven much loves much…”, so since this first servant was forgiven of such a unbelievable huge debt he would automatically and have to have an unbelievable huge Love which would easily be seen in his actions toward another servant of the master since servants of good masters were almost treated as family members. How could this servant be unloving toward a servant of the Master if he Loved the master?
Keep in mind that the said fellow servant is presently unfaithful to the master because he sins against his brother (Matthew 7:12, James 2:10, 1 John 3:9 vs John 8:44, Ezekiel 16:15). So, there is some conflict of loyalty and a temptation to resentment for the disloyalty (Luke 15:13). Of course this is a judgement that belongs to the master and not the slave (Romans 2:1). Please consider Ecclesiastes 1:18, Isaiah 58:5-6 & Matthew 6:16-18.
Did the Master expect the servant to show great Love?
Matthew 18:34 and James 1:13 show that indeed, God had a just reason to expect a love and mercy that was lacking.
How could the Master “handed him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed.” Since the master had forgiven the debt the servant owed, so the servant owed the Master nothing?
I can only imagine that it would be like a new debt. Luke 12:48b comes to mind: "and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked."
If the servant has to payback this unbelievable huge debt before the torture can stop how long will that take and does that not sound like hell?
Yes, that is right. See what Revelation 2:11 says about this: "The one who is victorious will not be harmed by the second death". Also consider Matthew 24:51.
Since the servant shows no great love after the Master forgave him and since the servant still owes the master the huge debt forgiveness must not have taken place even though the master did His part perfectly was there a part the servant had to play to complete the forgiveness transaction?
Matthew 18:35 states that we must forgive from the heart. This means we must nail to the cross the flesh with all it's passions and become a living sacrifice to do the will of God.
Freely you have received, freely give. If you do not forgive others, then Your Heavenly Father will not forgive you. He who wants to keep his life will lose it, but he who loses his life for my sake shall find it.
If there is a part the sinner must play (humbly accepting the pure charity) in the forgiveness process would it take anything away from God’s sovereignty?
God is sovereign because He is holy. He is forever without blame, and forever absolutely wise.
St. James states that He cannot be tempted by evil. So, we can be forever grateful to Him for that. The way we can demonstrate our gratefulness, is to likewise reflect His qualities .. that will ultimately reduce suffering and restore the world to it's proper condition where it entirely glorifies Him (Isaiah 11:6-9).