Forgiveness is at the heart of the Gospel. We are forgiven because of God’s grace and mercy. We have been forgiven so much that we can never begin to repay God. But so often we still find it hard to forgive others.
The principle of forgiveness is bluntly laid out for us by Jesus in Matthew 6:12-15, where we are commanded to pray ‘forgive us our debts (or trespasses) as we have also forgiven our debtors’. The concluding verses in that passage (“For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins”) make it clear that if we don’t forgive others, God is unable to forgive us, for unforgiveness is sin and God cannot look on sin.
In the parable of the unforgiving servant (Matthew 18:21-35), Jesus demonstrates both the extent to which we have been forgiven and the need for us to forgive others. Peter asks Jesus how many times we need to forgive a brother or sister who has sinned against us. His suggestion (“Up to seven times?”) clearly indicates his frustration and exasperation. Most of us would sympathise with Peter at this point. Forgiving when we are hurt just the once is hard enough. If we manage to do it more than once, surely we’ve done something really noble!
Jesus’s reply (however we take the maths) indicates that we have failed to understand the Gospel if we are still counting. The parable clearly illustrates the problems caused by unforgiveness and ends with a terrible warning: “This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother or sister from your heart.”
Before we throw up our hands in despair – for it’s obvious that Jesus is talking about more than the mere words ‘I forgive you’ here – we need to look at the practice of God on this very subject. For God never asks us to do something He has not shown us how to do Himself. Psalm 103:10-12 tells us “he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us.” Jeremiah 31:33-34 tells us that God will forgive our wickedness and remember our iniquities no more. We have all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God (Rom 3:23), but God has chosen to forgive us. Moreover, we see the ultimate practice of forgiveness on the cross, as Jesus prayed, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” (Luke 23:34)
We therefore have no option, if we want to remain forgiven and to be in that perfect position where we can receive God’s blessing. We have to forgive.
Many of us accept that with our heads, but struggle to put it into practice in our hearts. We feel wronged. We have been offended. We struggle to get past the hurt done to us. Mark concluded by asking the piercing question: “Who is more at fault? – the one who causes the offence, or the one who takes offence?” Whatever the wrong done to us, God expects us to forgive. He has modelled forgiveness for us. May we have the grace to forgive others and to enter into the freedom He has purchased for us.