Forgiving Those Who Hurt You

“Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, ‘Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me?’” Matthew 18:21

The story in this parable seems almost impossible to imagine. Why would anyone who has just been forgiven a million-dollar debt refuse to forgive a debt of a few dollars? It doesn’t make sense.

Consider, though, how hard it can be to forgive others. How long have we held a grudge against someone, even for a simple mistake? Or how about refusing to forgive someone for saying something that hurt you—perhaps so long ago that you can’t remember what they said? Or maybe the offense was more serious. Perhaps a spouse betrayed you, a coworker lied and got you fired, a parent abused you, or a bully made your life miserable.

Only the grace of God makes it possible to forgive people who sin against us. Only when we begin to realize how much God has forgiven us in Christ can we learn to forgive. We forgive, not SO THAT we will be forgiven. This isn’t a quid pro quo. We forgive BECAUSE we have been forgiven. We can’t earn our forgiveness, but how we live shows how much we are open to being changed by the Lord’s grace.

As we continue our sermon series on “Living Together in Harmony,” we’ll examine how forgiveness fosters freedom in our relationships. How many of us long to experience that in life? So let’s look forward with great joy to the opportunity to worship together, learn together, and fellowship together over a delicious meal. Be blessed this week!