Forgiveness. Easier said than done, right? That’s a
common attitude to have when we feel that we’ve been wronged or someone, even a
brother or sister in Christ, has said something that is hurtful to us. It is
just so hard to actually forgive – we want our “pound of flesh” before
reconciliation can be made. Many will come to a discussion like this one and
focus on the offender, stating that they must apologize before true
reconciliation can occur. I am not interested in discussing the response of the
offender at the present time. They certainly need to make things right for
their own soul (Matthew 5:23-24), and should be encouraged to do so. What I do
want to discuss is the attitude that we must always strive to possess – an attitude
of forgiveness. If we don’t have this, then it is altogether likely that we
will not readily accept the advances of one who does try to make amends.
A forgiving attitude is much easier to develop when we
begin to understand our own needs and remember them. The Christian understands
that he has escaped a terrible end through the grace that God the Father
extends to us in the form of His Son, Jesus (Romans 6:23). He is also quick to
forgive when we rebel or fail in our efforts to keep His righteousness (I John
1:9). When one comes to Jesus, there is no worry that He will hold a grudge
over what you’ve done; there is simply an attitude that wants to forgive
(Hebrews 8:12). That’s what we need. This attitude and its opposite are
displayed in the Parable of the Unmerciful Servant that Jesus told to His
disciples in Matthew 18:21-35. Look at the Parable:
“Then Peter came up and said to him, “Lord,
how often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven
times?” Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you seven times, but seventy-seven
times. Therefore the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to
settle accounts with his servants. When he began to settle, one was brought to
him who owed him ten thousand talents. And since he could not pay, his master
ordered him to be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and
payment to be made. So the servant fell on his knees, imploring him, ‘Have
patience with me, and I will pay you everything.’ And out of pity for him, the
master of that servant released him and forgave him the debt. But when that
same servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a
hundred denarii, and seizing him, he began to choke him, saying, ‘Pay what you
owe.’ So his fellow servant fell down and pleaded with him, ‘Have patience with
me, and I will pay you.’ He refused and went and put him in prison until he
should pay the debt. When his fellow servants saw what had taken place, they
were greatly distressed, and they went and reported to their master all that
had taken place. Then his master summoned him and said to him, ‘You wicked
servant! I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me. And should
not you have had mercy on your fellow servant, as I had mercy on you?’ And in
anger his master delivered him to the jailers, until he should pay all his
debt. So also my heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you do not
forgive your brother from your heart.”
First, I feel the need to explore the amount of debt
that was forgiven the man in the parable – 10,000 talents. One talent was equal
roughly to six-thousand denarii. One denarius was equal to about one day’s
wages for the common person. When the math is all done, the man owed the King
SIXTY MILLION DAYS WAGES. It simply represents an insurmountable debt since the
average life would be only about 24,000 days. This man couldn’t repay this debt
if he were to live 2,500 lifetimes! This represents our debt of sin before God.
It is a debt far too large for us to pay. But God has an attitude of
forgiveness toward us and is ready and willing to forgive to the point that He
paid our debt with the sacrifice of His very own Son.
We must always remember the debt that was paid on our
behalf if we are to have an attitude of forgiveness. The man in the Parable had
no such attitude. Although forgiven of an astounding debt, he demands payment
of a small amount that would be equal to about three months’ wages. Do we stand
in the place of this man at times? Certainly, we do as we hold grudges or have
extended periods of anger against a brother or sister in Christ. How does that
look to God? I think the remainder of the Parable lets us know how God sees it.
We should have mercy on those who wrong us, because God has gone to great
lengths to forgive us our trespasses. Having the wrong attitude in this area
will have disastrous consequences. In the Parable, the King delivered the man
to jail until he repaid ALL his debt. This, my brethren, is something that we
need to avoid at all costs.
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