To Infinity and Beyond!

Our Daily Bread Podcast | Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread Ministries

Religion & Spirituality, Christianity

4.6 • 955 Ratings

🗓️ 23 April 2025

⏱️ 5 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

In the animated movie Toy Story, a child’s toys come to life whenever he leaves the room or falls asleep. One character, a space ranger named Buzz Lightyear, shouts his signature catchphrase while demonstrating his ability to fly about the bedroom. “To infinity and beyond!”

It’s a phrase that has confused many. Isn’t infinity as far as you can go? How can there be anything “beyond” infinity? Drawing on wisdom from ancient Greek philosophers, mathematician Ian Stewart suggests that what is beyond infinity are yet bigger infinities. On and on and on.

Jesus seems to employ such exponential effort in the realm of forgiveness. When Peter asked Jesus, “How many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?” Jesus answered, “I tell you, you must forgive him more than seven times. You must forgive him even if he wrongs you seventy times seven” (Matthew 18:22). Jesus goes on to tell a parable comparing a merciful and unmerciful servant, making the point that when someone truly regrets their error, there is no limit to the number of times we are to forgive. We are to forgive others the way God forgives us (v. 33). Over and over, on and on.

That may seem impossible to us. That’s why we constantly need to ask God for His help.

Only in His strength can we do this. Forgiven people forgive people. To infinity and beyond!

Transcript

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0:00.0	Shouldn't you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?
0:06.3	Matthew chapter 18, verse 33.
0:10.0	Welcome to today's encouragement from our daily bread.
0:14.0	Our reading titled To Infinity and Beyond was written and read by Elisa Morgan.
0:21.7	Matthew chapter 18, verses 21 to 35.
0:26.9	Then Peter came to Jesus and asked,
0:30.3	Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister
0:34.3	who sins against me?
0:36.3	Up to seven times? Jesus answered, I tell you, not seven times,
0:43.0	but 77 times. Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts
0:50.7	with his servants. As he began the settlement, a man who owed him 10,000 bags of gold
0:57.5	was brought to him. Since he was not able to pay, the master ordered that he and his wife and his
1:05.2	children and all that he had be sold to repay the debt. At this, the servant fell on his knees before him.
1:15.4	Be patient with me, he begged, and I will pay back everything. The servant's master took pity on him,
1:24.4	cancelled the debt, and let him go. But when that servant went out, he found one of his
1:31.3	fellow servants who owed him a hundred silver coins. He grabbed him and began to choke him.
1:39.3	Pay back what you owe me, he demanded. His fellow servant fell to his knees and begged him,
1:47.0	Be patient with me, and I will pay it back. But he refused. Instead, he went off and had the man
1:56.1	thrown into prison until he could pay the debt. When the other servants saw what had happened, they
2:02.5	were outraged and went and told their master everything that had happened. Then the master called
2:10.1	the servant in. You wicked servant, he said, I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to.
2:20.1	Shouldn't you have had mercy on your fellow servant, just as I had on you?
	...

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