3. Forgive as You are Forgiven

More difficult than doing good or loving others is to forgive others, even when they wrong you!

Jesus’ message about forgiveness is really clear – check what he teaches the disciples in the Lord’s Prayer. Here is the verse from the Lord’s Prayer about forgiveness (Matthew 6:12) in multiple translations to give you a broader picture:

And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. (NIV)

Forgive us for doing wrong, as we forgive others. (Contemporary English Version)

Keep us forgiven with you and forgiving others. (The Message)

Forgive us the wrongs we have done, as we forgive the wrongs that others have done to us. (Good News Bible)

You get the idea, right? Jesus is teaching in the Lord’s Prayer is that we seek forgiveness from God, just as we forgive others.

Then, just in case the disciples (and us) did not understand, Jesus expands on this same topic of forgiving others just a few verses later, saying this:

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. – Matthew 6:14-15

Yikes! Apparently, he was pretty serious about this business of forgiving others – because if we don’t do that, then God will not forgive us either!

But what does that mean for your salvation? Does not forgiving someone – even an enemy – mean that your salvation isn’t real? It could… check the conclusion of the parable about the unmerciful (unforgiving) servant as told by Jesus:

“Then the master called the servant in. ‘You wicked servant,’ he said, ‘I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?’ In anger his master handed him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed. This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother or sister from your heart.” – Matthew 18:32-35

A conclusion like that surely doesn’t make salvation look too sure if you’re not forgiving others, does it?

Fortunately, there is hope in the gift of salvation offered by Jesus. He knows you and I are not perfect, and can never be while still here on earth.

Therefore, if you recognize your sinfulness – perhaps in not forgiving others – Jesus can still forgive you:

If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us.– 1 John 1:8-10

However, if you do not see the need to forgive others, and you’re not even trying to do so, then you surely do have a problem about whether your salvation is actually the real deal.

How are you doing with forgiving others today? Do you recognize the need and have the desire to do so?