Times like the one we find ourselves in seem to bring out the best and the worst of us all. I am always amazed during times of crisis to see the heroic acts of ordinary people to serve the world around them––only to then see the same person who has preformed the heroic act get caught up in some petty self-entitled rage over an insignificant issue. I have seen this in other people and I have seen this in my own life. I have decided over my lifetime that this is an indication, especially in times of prolonged public distress, that we are working out the sanctification of our innermost being.
One of the areas of inner development most often mentioned in the Gospels is that of forgiveness. In fact I have come to believe that the act of forgiveness is one of the most fundamental human needs we have to grow into, if we are going to become the women and men God created us to be. This week we will be looking at the need we each have to live into a life of forgiveness and how it becomes essential for riding out the good and especially the bad times of life. Please take a few minutes over the next few days to watch the video, read the scripture and reflect on the questions below.
Also, there might be neighbors, family and friends that are looking for a word of hope and are open to worshiping online. Invite them to joins us this Sunday at 9:30 a.m. See you online!
Scripture Reading:
Matt. 18:21 Then Peter came to him and asked, “Lord, how often should I forgive someone who sins against me? Seven times?”
Matt. 18:22 “No, not seven times,” Jesus replied, “but seventy times seven!
Matt. 18:23 “Therefore, 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 his master ordered that he be sold—along with his wife, his children, and everything he owned—to pay the debt.
Matt. 18:26 “But the man fell down before his master and begged him, ‘Please, be patient with me, and I will pay it all.’ 27 Then his master was filled with pity for him, and he released him and forgave his debt.
Matt. 18:28 “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.
Matt. 18:29 “His fellow servant fell down before him and begged for a little more time. ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay it,’ he pleaded. 30 But his creditor wouldn’t wait. He had the man arrested and put in prison until the debt could be paid in full.
Matt. 18:31 “When some of the other servants saw this, they were very upset. They went to the king and told him everything that 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 to be tortured until he had paid his entire debt.
Matt. 18:35 “That’s what my heavenly Father will do to you if you refuse to forgive your brothers and sisters from your heart.”
Reflection Questions:
- See if you can retell this story of forgiveness in your own context.
- Why do you think Jesus calls Peter to forgive “seventy times seven times?”
- How would you work today in your life to forgive “seventy times seven times?”
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