Forgiveness in the Kingdom of God
Re-gifting gifts kind of has a negative connotation. Some consider it cheap or insensitive. But I want to put a different twist on re-gifting: If you are a Christian, then you do have some gifts that you can give others and these are gifts that they need. God has given us the gift of forgiveness. Others need that gift from us and we can give it to them. In the process we can change their lives. We look to Matthew 18:21-35 for a lesson of the forgiveness in the kingdom of God.
This parable follows a question asked by Peter, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me?” In Peter’s mind, he was showing a generous mercy. His offer to forgive the person seven times, more than double than the traditional Jewish belief. But Jesus’ answer does away with all limits. Seventy-seven times! This might seem unreasonable, but Jesus explains why this must be.
WE HAVE RECEIVED THE GIFT OF FORGIVENESS (V.23-27)
As you know, the king in Jesus’ story represents God, the debtor represents all of us, and the debt was unpayable. This debt represents our sin debt to God. There is no way we were ever going to be able to satisfy that debt to God.
The first part of Jesus’ story is simply meant to convey just how overwhelmed we were with God and the extremely hopeless and horrifying situation. We were going to spend eternity in hell paying off that sin-debt, but God, in his grace, forgave us of all that debt.
What happened to that debt when it was forgiven? Well, debts don’t just go away. In this world, debts must always be paid, and in Jesus’ parable, the king paid (and suffered for) the debt so that God could give us the gift of forgiveness.
“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” I John 1:9
WE CAN GIVE THE GIFT OF FORGIVENESS
God in His grace has treated us well indeed, far better than we deserve to be treated. What does God now expect of us in return? Very simply, He expects us to act toward other people according to this same spirit of grace.
“Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.” Ephesians 4:32
God wants us, who have been saved by grace and who have been forgiven, to forgive others even though they deserve the opposite! Grace is the very opposite of punishment; under grace, the offender is treated with the very opposite of what they deserve; that is what happened when God gave us grace.
Punishment is a necessary component in many law systems, but forgiveness is not about consequences and punishment. It is about releasing emotions that hold us back. In our everyday lives, Christians bear the banner of the cross, the symbol of grace, and forgiveness. We must live the lifestyle of grace, free giving and freely forgiving.
Father,
We want to thank you for your gift of forgiveness. Please make me aware of how much I have been forgiven by you. Remind me that we can forgive others because you have forgiven us through what Christ has accomplished on our behalf. Help us to forgive those who wrong us so that we may bring glory to your name because of how much you have shown mercy to us.
In Jesus’ name,
Amen.