“This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother from your heart.”
Matthew 18:35
Forgiveness is not valued much in prison. Even for the non-incarcerated, it can be dreadfully hard to forgive those who have hurt us. But Jesus teaches us to pray, “Forgive us our debts as we also have forgiven our debtors.” In Matthew 18, He tells the story of a servant indebted to his master, a sobering picture of you and me in our spiritual debt to God.
In the story, the servant owed his master a sum of money that could never be repaid—so much, in fact, that his master was prepared to auction off the servant and his family for payment. But the master showed mercy, cancelling his servant’s entire debt (v. 27).
As the parable continues, we read that the forgiven man refused to forgive a much smaller debt owed to him by a fellow servant (v. 30-31). When the master found this out, he was furious and cast the man into jail to suffer for his hypocrisy (v. 32-24).
Do not claim to have been forgiven of your eternal sin debt, yet withhold forgiveness from someone else. The payment Jesus made for you is worth more than gold.
In the story, the servant owed his master a sum of money that could never be repaid—so much, in fact, that his master was prepared to auction off the servant and his family for payment. But the master showed mercy, cancelling his servant’s entire debt (v. 27).
As the parable continues, we read that the forgiven man refused to forgive a much smaller debt owed to him by a fellow servant (v. 30-31). When the master found this out, he was furious and cast the man into jail to suffer for his hypocrisy (v. 32-24).
Do not claim to have been forgiven of your eternal sin debt, yet withhold forgiveness from someone else. The payment Jesus made for you is worth more than gold.
Scripture Focus
Matthew 6:9-13
Insight
Have you grasped that you have been forgiven much? Then be quick to forgive others!
Bible In A Year
- Leviticus 19-20
- Psalm 56
- Luke 20
