I Searched for Justice, but Found Loveਨਮੂਨਾ

Forgiveness, why? (2)

“So the servant fell on his knees, imploring him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything.’ And out of pity for him, the master of that servant released him and forgave him the debt.” (Matthew 18:26-27)

In the previous devotional, we saw the reasons for forgiving that are helpful to you, or for the benefit of the other person. But there is another deeper reason that needs to be mentioned. We find it in the parable of Matthew 18. Namely, if we dare to be honest with ourselves and consider how much the Lord God has forgiven us, shouldn’t we be able to forgive the other person?

But the important point is that we have faith in God's forgiveness for us. Personally, I think this was lacking with the one servant in Matthew 18:21-35. His huge debt had been forgiven, but he lived with a kind of assumption that he "fortunately" did not end up in prison. His plan seemed to be to pay it all off anyway. After all, he had asked the king for this opportunity.

It’s only when we realize that we have truly received forgiveness and that we have no reason in our hearts to be superior to the other person that we can develop an attitude of forgiveness.

Are you convinced that you have truly received forgiveness from God? How does this affect your attitude toward others?