By Scott Guffin
Associate Professor and Executive Director of Christian Ministry, Samford University
The Evidence of Forgiveness
Matthew 18:21-35
There is a line in the Lord’s Prayer that most Christians who have been around a while are familiar with: “And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors” (Matt. 6:12).
While we may recite this passage as a matter of course, could it be that we are unthinkingly and unwittingly requesting something of God that we might not truly desire?
The literal application of this passage is that we are asking God to forgive us in the same manner that we have forgiven (note the past tense) others. What if God decided to take us up on this request? What if He truly decided to base His forgiveness of us on our forgiveness (or lack of it) for others? Would we be blessed, or would we be in a mess of our own making?
In response to a question about forgiveness from Peter, Jesus relates a parable of a man who begged for forgiveness yet refused to offer the same mercy to another. He concludes with a strong lesson regarding how and why we should forgive others.
We are to be generous in forgiving others. (21–22)
This story begins with Peter asking the kind of question we often ask: “Lord, how many times must I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? As many as seven times?” Peter is not asking about God’s standard of forgiveness or even how to grow in this kindness toward others. Rather, Peter is asking to what extent he must follow God’s expectations.
We are often guilty of asking similar questions, explicitly or implicitly, probing how far we must go to obtain God’s approval, or how far we can go without incurring God’s disapproval.
Here, Jesus answers Peter in a way that he likely did not expect: “Seventy times seven.” In saying this, Jesus isn’t providing Peter with a literal limit. On the contrary, Jesus is setting before Peter a seemingly impossible standard, but one that truly reflects the heart of God.
We can be generous in forgiving others because God has been generous in forgiving us. (23–30)
Jesus next tells a story to illustrate the point He is making to Peter — that the question is never about us currying God’s favor through our own efforts, but rather to what degree our obedience can reflect the favor He has already granted to us.
The servant in the story hypocritically refused to extend to another the grace and mercy he had received from the master who forgave his debt. The positive takeaway is that we are to offer forgiveness generously to others just as we have received it from God.
A lack of forgiveness calls into question our own experience with God’s forgiveness. (31–35)
Jesus concludes His story by telling how others reported their fellow servant’s actions to the master, who then punishes him. The master highlighted the servant’s hypocrisy in a question: “Shouldn’t you also have had mercy on your fellow servant, as I had mercy on you?” Then, Jesus made clear the point of the whole story, noting that God will do likewise to the one who fails to forgive others as he has been forgiven.
Earlier, at the conclusion of the Lord’s Prayer in Matthew 6, Jesus had declared, “For if you forgive others their offenses, your heavenly Father will forgive you as well. But if you don’t forgive others, your Father will not forgive your offenses.”
Jesus’ point is not that God is in the business of forgiving us only to the extent we forgive others, but rather that those who truly experience His forgiveness will be transformed and thus motivated to do likewise for others.
As we conclude this study in forgiveness, let us remember with gratitude how God has forgiven us and, taking His example, extend our forgiveness in like fashion to others.
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