Good Morning!
Matthew 18:21-35
21 Then Peter came to him and asked, “Lord, how often should I forgive someone who sins against me? Seven times?” 22 “No!” Jesus replied, “seventy times seven!” 23 “For this reason, the Kingdom of Heaven can be compared to a king who decided to bring his accounts up to date with servants who had borrowed money from him. 24 In the process, one of his debtors was brought in who owed him millions of dollars. 25 He couldn’t pay, so the king ordered that he, his wife, his children, and everything he had be sold to pay the debt. 26 But the man fell down before the king and begged him, ‘Oh, sir, be patient with me, and I will pay it all.’ 27 Then the king was filled with pity for him, and he released him and forgave his debt. 28 “But when the man left the king, he went to a fellow servant who owed him a few thousand dollars. He grabbed him by the throat and demanded instant payment. 29 His fellow servant fell down before him and begged for a little more time. ‘Be patient and I will pay it,’ he pleaded. 30 But his creditor wouldn’t wait. He had the man arrested and jailed until the debt could be paid in full. 31 “When some of the other servants saw this, they were very upset. They went to the king and told him what had happened. 32 Then the king called in the man he had forgiven and said, ‘You evil servant! I forgave you that tremendous debt because you pleaded with me. 33 Shouldn’t you have mercy on your fellow servant, just as I had mercy on you?’ 34 Then the angry king sent the man to prison until he had paid every penny. 35 “That’s what my heavenly Father will do to you if you refuse to forgive your brothers and sisters in your heart.”
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, (Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.) 1996.
Forgiving those who have sinned against us is not easy, but it is not an option. We are to forgive others as God has forgiven us. There is not one of us who does not have some deep pain from someone who has done us wrong. We may be perfectly innocent and they may be perfectly wrong in what they did, but it still does not let us off the hook. We must forgive them for our sake and not for theirs. When we don’t forgive, we have blocked our direct connection to God. Our prayers will hit the ceiling. When we realize this, we must forgive and move on. The same is true if we have harmed or sinned against another. Paul tells us that we must go immediately to that person and say you are sorry and ask for forgiveness. What they do with your request is up to them, but you have done what you can. We have a responsibility on either side to either forgive or seek forgiveness. It only hurts you to hold onto resentment and the memory of the pain that sinned caused. Forgive and forget and then move on. Life is full of hurts and pains and this will not be the last time someone sins against you. Open the door for the Spirit of God to come in and fill you with His grace and then fill your heart with peace. Let it go and give it to God. He will hear your prayers and you will receive His peace.
Have a God Day! Dr.Diana Brevan