21 Then Peter came up and said to him, "Lord,
how often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?"
22 Jesus said to him, "I do not say to you seven times, but seventy times seven.
23 "Therefore the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to
settle accounts with his servants. 24 When he began to settle, one was brought to
him who owed him ten thousand talents. 25 And since he could not pay, his master
ordered him to be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and payment
to be made. 26 So the servant fell on his knees, imploring him, 'Have patience with
me, and I will pay you everything.' 27 And out of pity for him, the master of that
servant released him and forgave him the debt. ~ (Matthew 18:21-27, ESV)
This is the first half of the parable of the
unforgiving servant, this is the half where the master forgives his servants
debt. This is part of the parable point to how God forgives us, asking nothing
in return. When God forgives us it frees us from paying our debt of sin, a debt
that we could never repay. God’s forgiveness frees us of our slavery to Satan’s
grip, from the appeal of fleshly desire, the forgiveness that frees us from the
very grips of hell.
When Christ took upon Himself our sins, He freed
us from regret, from lying, deceitfulness and thievery. Jesus cleared the mist
of our imperfect reasoning. When Christ became our sin, He gave us permission
to forgive ourselves and the ability to forgive others; conceitedness gives way
to respect and compassion for those around you.
Jesus tells a story here of two men who owed a
debt, the first one owed more than he could repay in 500 lifetimes, he was
ecstatic when the king absolved his debt. However he was not as forgiving as
the king had been to him when a slave who owed him only 100 days wages could
not repay and had him thrown in jail. How could this man be so merciless after
having such an enormous amount just given him? Did he not realize that in
prison this man could not repay him even if he wanted to?
“Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving
one another, as God in Christ forgave you” ~ (Ephesians 4:32, ESV).
Living in the limitless grace of Yahweh-M’Kaddesh,
The Lord Who Sanctifies in our life through Jesus absolution, our gratefulness develops
in mercy and humility. God’s forgiveness is a merry-go-round of liberty. Abba
Father forgives us because of His grace through confidence in Jesus. We thankfully
welcome God’s forgiveness with a delightful soul allowing mercy, compassion and
tenderness to forgive ourselves and to forgive others. Because of our ability
to forgive, others may turn to God seeking forgiveness. This is how Christ’s redeeming
absolution grows across the face of the earth, to all peoples and all nations. Jesus
Christ has absolutely freed us giving us the ability to forgive.
Who is it that is in need your mercy and
compassion? Your Christ given ability to show mercy and to forgive others may
be the only opportunity they have had to experience Christ. Discharge trespassers
from the grievances you may have, lift the burden of grudge and anguish against
them; then you both will be released to benefit from the fruits of God’s
grace allowing peace and all the fruits of love and God’s Spirit to enter into
your hearts. It is in Jesus Christ that we have the freedom in forgiveness to
receive and give!
“For freedom Christ has set us
free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke
of slavery.” ~ (Galatians 5:1, ESV).
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