I Forgive Him…
What is the mark of a great man? How does a person move from being a person who cares to a person of greatness? Actions, words, deeds or would it be humility, servitude and charity? If one person comes before another and ask assistance, if our physical ability allows it, shouldn’t we happily help? What if they ask, beg forgiveness of a debt, a wrong-doing against us, theft of property or worse, the taking of the life of one of our family?
Then came Peter to him, and said, Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? till seven times? Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times seven. ~ Matthew 18:21-22 KJB
Jesus says 490 times we are to forgive an individual for a single act of sin against another person. Some days it’s difficult to get past one much less triple-digits. How do we change our heart to ensure that we forgive others and see our enemies as just a child of God and not as our enemy? Isn’t it in fact the devil, who is referenced as “the enemy”, that causes us to see, hear and believe that another person is our enemy when they are simply another person, another child of God?
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We love helping others and believe that’s one of the reasons we are chosen as Ambassadors of the Kingdom, to serve God’s children. We look to the Greatest Commandment as our Powering force.
What makes our heart turn hard, cold and unforgiving? What have we learned that would make us turn so quickly, so often? The story Jesus is telling describes a man that owes his owner ten-thousand talents (approximately, six-hundred ounces of silver – which would make a person a multimillionaire at the time). The owner forgives the man after – which is important – after the man begs forgiveness and explains that he is willing to repay what he owes. His debt is then forgiven.
This same man, whose debt, equal to multi-millions of dollars in today’s terms, has just been forgiven he then immediately confronts one of his peers that owes him one-hundred pence (approximately one-twentieth an ounce of silver), approximately half-a-days pay for a Roman soldier, and demands payment thus. The man willing to repay all he owes, he just needs time. The same man whose debt was forgiven has his peer cast into prison for the debt he owes instead of showing the same mercy that was just shown him!! What makes our heart harden, turn cold and unforgiving?
We have a choice – free will or God’s will. If we are living in God’s will forgiving another person wouldn’t be thought – it would come as easy and as natural as breathing.
Either the Scripture is the divine Word of God teaching us how to live and how to be a reflection of God, or it’s nothing more than a historical account of events.
