Then Peter came to Him and said, "Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Up to seven times?"
Jesus said to him, "I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven...then He goes on to tell a parable about a king who wanted to settle his accounts. He had a certain servant who owed him 10,000 talents, but the servant could not pay, punishment was set. The servant fell down before the king and humbly begged for patience until he could pay the debt. The king "moved with compassion, released him, and forgave him the debt." (v27) The king didn't release him to earn the money to be paid back, he released him and forgave the debt-wiped it off his record.
However, the servant went out and found his servant who owed him a small amount, demanded his payment of him and when his servant asked for patience until he could pay his master (the first servant) threw him in prison until payment could be made.
The first servant owed a big debt, was shown mercy and the debt was forgiven. When his servant pleaded for mercy concerning his small debt he showed him contempt, and treated him harshly throwing him in prison where it would've been impossible to pay back his debt.
Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life.
Romans 3:23 For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.
John 19:30 Jesus before giving up His spirit on the cross said, "It is finished." The transaction for our sin debt is final, paid in full.
Every person alive owes a sin debt, for all have sinned. We all owe a debt to God for the sin in our lives, no one is good enough on his own merit to pay this debt. Jesus, God in the flesh, paid that debt for us on the cross with His life.
So, the question still stands, "Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him?" Jesus said, "...seventy times seven." Four hundred and ninety times we should forgive the one who has sinned against us. Why?
In the parable there were witnesses to the harsh treatment of the second servant, they went and reported it to the king. The first servant was called in to give an account for his treatment of his servant. The king was not pleased, he said to this servant, "You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you begged me. Should you not also have had compassion on your fellow servant, just as I had pity on you?" And his master was angry, and delivered him to the torturers until he should pay all that was due to him. Matthew 18:32-34
Initially the first servant's punishment was to be sold into slavery, with his family, until the debt was paid. He probably would've been a slave in the king's household for a certain time until his debt was paid. How often do we joke that we will have to do dishes when we are at a restaurant and the bill is too high. Jokingly we are saying we will become your (the restaurant's) slave (working without pay) to pay our bill (our debt, meal price) knowing it would only be a short time of washing dishes before the debt is paid. This was the first servants punishment for not having the money to pay back his debt to the king.
However, we see that the first servants punishment for his unforgiveness towards a smaller debt owed to him is of a graver consequence. He was given to the torturers until his debt was paid.
You see our debt of sin we owe to God is death, not physical death, but spiritual death. The punishment is to "be cast out into outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth." Matthew 8:12
Our debt to one another is so much smaller than our debt to God. He forgave us on the day we turned our lives over into His hands, acknowledging our debt of sin to Him, pleading for His mercy. He had a compassion on us and forgave us our debt. We owe a debt and when we cry out to Him instead of treating us harshly and turning us over to the torturers He deals with us tenderly and wipes our debt clean to the point that He does not remember it. We are no longer accountable for that debt.
Psalm 103:12 As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed His transgressions from us.
If it is good enough for our Lord God to forgive us so grave a debt then it is good enough for us to forgive others their debt against us. Unforgiveness bears it's own consequences. God knows this and ultimately it is for our good, not the offenders, that we forgive others.
Years ago I was date raped, I knew the guy, he was supposed to have been my friend. I lived with unforgiveness for years. It consumed me, I was miserable living with thoughts of hate and murder. It didn't bother him, my unforgiveness didn't make him unhappy, or sad nor did it affect the quality of his life one bit. However, it robbed me of joy and happiness. One day, through a series of events, I was able to forgive him. At the moment of forgiveness I literally felt a weight come off my shoulders. I no longer was consumed with hate, and my joy was returned to me.
I lived in a prison of my own making, my thoughts torturing me until I released all that hate and replaced it with forgiveness. If someone has hurt you deeply, maybe even repeatedly, ask God to work into your heart forgiveness. He will do it. It's His will for you to forgive. "For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you." Matthew 6:14
1 John 5:14-15 Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will , He hears us. And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him.
Ask your Lord to free you from unforgiveness then turn your heart over to Him and be filled with joy inexpressible. (1 Peter 1:8)
With love,
CC
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