Matthew 18:21-25
At that point Peter got up the nerve to ask, “Master, how many times do I forgive a brother or sister who hurts me? Seven?”
Jesus replied, “Seven! Hardly. Try seventy times seven.
“The kingdom of God is like a king who decided to square accounts with his servants. As he got under way, one servant was brought before him who had run up a debt of a hundred thousand dollars. He couldn’t pay up, so the king ordered the man, along with his wife, children, and goods, to be auctioned off at the slave market.
“The poor wretch threw himself at the king’s feet and begged, ‘Give me a chance and I’ll pay it all back.’ Touched by his plea, the king let him off, erasing the debt.
“The servant was no sooner out of the room when he came upon one of his fellow servants who owed him ten dollars. He seized him by the throat and demanded, ‘Pay up. Now!’
“The poor wretch threw himself down and begged, ‘Give me a chance and I’ll pay it all back.’ But he wouldn’t do it. He had him arrested and put in jail until the debt was paid. When the other servants saw this going on, they were outraged and brought a detailed report to the king.
“The king summoned the man and said, ‘You evil servant! I forgave your entire debt when you begged me for mercy. Shouldn’t you be compelled to be merciful to your fellow servant who asked for mercy?’ The king was furious and put the screws to the man until he paid back his entire debt. And that’s exactly what my Father in heaven is going to do to each one of you who doesn’t forgive unconditionally anyone who asks for mercy.”
Scripture quotations from The Message. © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress, Colorado Springs, CO. All rights reserved.
My mom was telling me about attending a performance of “Jonah” at the Sight & Sound Theater in Branson, Missouri. This larger-than-life theatrical presentation of the story of Jonah is receiving rave reviews from all who see it. Mother described the special effects and the over-the-top scenery. And then she said “At the end when Jonah is so angry because God has forgiven the people of Nineveh - and the fact that his shade tree withered - Jesus appears and tells Jonah that He went to the cross and forgave with love. I loved Jonah’s line: ‘But love is messy! There’s putting up with the failings of others and forgiving and forgiving over and over…’.”
Love IS messy. And forgiveness often requires patience and restraint…and a huge dose of compassion. And all we have to do is look to the cross to see the perfect example of how we should operate. “But if you only knew what he/she did to me!” you may protest. And I do understand. We’ve all been mistreated at one point or another. Granted, some abuses are much worse than others. Evil people do heinous things to one another. But at the end of the day…none of us has been abused like Jesus. Not a single one of us has as much to forgive as He did. And yet, some of His last words on this earth were, “Father, forgive them…” Not only did JESUS forgive those who attacked Him… He asked God to forgive them, also.
Putting up with the failings of others and forgiving – over and over – is hard. It requires not only endurance and tolerance…but also a huge dose of faith and obedience to God. Often, we have to bite our tongue, swallow hard, and say, “LORD, help me…because I cannot do this under my own strength.” God will give you all that you need to show compassion and forgiveness to others. I can’t tell you exactly how or when…but I know that He will.
If God can forgive those who persecuted Jesus… if JESUS can forgive them…can’t we forgive those who come against us? Who do you need to reach out to with the love and compassion of Christ? Isn’t today a good day to begin?
©2014 Debbie Robus
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