In the Parable of the Unforgiving Servant, Jesus is asked by Peter how many times he should forgive his brother or sister. Peter says “Lord, should it be up to seven times?” I feel like Jesus probably gave Peter a nice little laugh until things turned serious with His response. Jesus tells Peter, “Not seven times, but seventy-seven times.” Jesus goes on to give Peter some examples of exactly what forgiveness looks like in one of the greatest parables in the Bible.

In the parable, Jesus tells Peter of a servant who owed his master a debt that could not be paid. His master was understanding and canceled the entire debt. Does this ring a bell? This same servant was owed a much smaller debt by a friend. Unwilling to forgive his friend, he had him thrown into jail! The master was so angry with the servant that he had so freely forgiven that he handed him over to be tortured until he repaid his initial debt.

Have you ever “forgiven” someone who did something unfair to you? We have all tried to forgive others, but it is so hard! We, as humans, tend to hold grudges and even shun those we “love” for things they do to us. Without a relationship with Jesus, we are so easily offended and unwilling to forgive. It is amazing how a closeness with Jesus can change this tendency within us.

Jesus makes it very clear in this parable that we should forgive just as He has forgiven us of our sins against him. God owed us nothing when He sent His only Son to save us from our sins. God loved us so much, and He knew we needed forgiveness. My husband was reading a book a few weeks ago and told me a little about it. I can’t quote exactly what was written, but it said something along the lines of, "We should have the mindset that when someone says something hurtful to us or doesn’t repay the debt they owe us, we should just utter the words ‘forgiven.’”

Forgive freely and have mercy on others just as our God has mercy on us. No matter how big our sins are, He is so merciful!

Reflection:

• Think back to a time when you had to forgive someone. Do you still think about a sin committed against you? Maybe this would be a good time to revisit this person and TRULY forgive them. Mend that relationship, take that weight off of yourself, and give it to God.
• Ask God to change your mindset and to help you have a heart that is not easily offended. You could even practice with your dog! Look at that precious little face who just chewed up your brand-new shoe and say, “Forgiven.”
• Write down your current offenses. One by one, pray over them and let the Holy Spirit lead your path and tell you what to do. Forgive freely, be merciful, one by one.

Family Application: Forgiveness

Author: Amy Stampley

• Have you ever had someone hurt your feelings or make you feel sad? Sometimes those feelings can be difficult, and we aren’t sure how to deal with them.
• Today, we are reading about a conversation between Peter and Jesus. Jesus uses a parable (a story that teaches us a lesson) about forgiveness. Peter asked Jesus how many times he should forgive his brother. Peter said that maybe seven times would be a good number to forgive his brother. Jesus answers that it should be seventy times seven. Jesus does not mean an exact number, but rather, His teaching here is meant to say that forgiveness should happen without limits.
• Forgiveness means that we let go of feelings of anger or sadness toward someone who has hurt us. We sometimes get angry when our brother or sister borrows something without permission or a friend leaves us out when inviting others to play. We need to remember that anytime we choose to sin that God has already died on the cross to forgive us for all of our sins. Just like God chooses to forgive us, He wants us to forgive those who have hurt us.
• Isn’t it great that God does not put a limit on the number of times that we can be forgiven? What can you do to show forgiveness today? When someone hurts your feelings or does something that makes you sad, maybe you can tell them how that made you feel or write it down in a letter. Sometimes taking action can help us to work past the hurts.
• Prayer: Dear God, thank You for helping me deal with my feelings when someone has hurt me. Help me to let go of those sad feelings and teach me how to forgive others. Lord, I am thankful that You do not limit the number of times that You forgive us when we come to You with sincere hearts asking for forgiveness. Help me be understanding and compassionate toward the people who have hurt me so that I can learn to practice forgiveness. Amen.