Matthew 6:12 “And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.”
Last week we concentrated on what I count to be the fifth petition of “the Lord’s Prayer”, “forgive us our debts”. Forgiveness may be our greatest need. Romans 3:22-23 teaches us, “For there is no difference; for all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.” When Adam sinned mankind sinned, we are sinful by nature, we have all gone astray, by virtue of being human we are sinful and so we need forgiveness. With all of that said, the request for forgiveness is not Jesus teaching us to plead for something that is far away or hard to find. God does not shine a light on our sin so that we will see our depravity; He reveals and allows us to see our sin so that we will recognize the abundance of the riches of His grace. Praying to be forgiven must be founded in the recognition that forgiveness is part of God’s character or else we will be those that plead without ever being confident that we have received. We are saved and kept by grace, not of works lest any of us should boast or fear. My works are because I’m forgiven not to be forgiven, they are because I’m loved not to be loved, they are because of who God is not because of who I want God to think I am. Hebrews 4 tells us to come boldly to the throne of grace that we may obtain mercy; we come boldly because of the One we approach, He is merciful and so I can come with confidence that the One that is merciful will provide me with mercy because that is who He is and that is His desire. My prayer for forgiveness can’t ever be an effort to sway God by revealing my sorrow, it must always be that the magnitude of His grace has overwhelmed me and has created a desire to be free from sin.
Our daily prayer of forgiveness is not about how far from the mark we have come and God’s desire for us to show our sorrow, it is about God’s unsearchable, uncountable, unfathomable riches of grace; it is me seeing my sin because I have seen His grace. I’m not afraid to repent because I can see He will never run out of grace. I’m not worried about Him becoming weary with me because I have seen that He has chosen me. I’m not bound by an effort to prove myself worthy of being forgiven, I’m not worthy, I am tie to a revelation that He is worthy and He will not forsake me. Paul wrote in II Timothy 2:13 “If we are faithless, He remains faithful; He cannot deny Himself.” Forgiveness is granted because God is gracious; our role in being forgiven is confession and request, I John 1:9 “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” Romans 5:20 says “but where sin increased, grace much more abounded.” The truth of that verse is that there is more grace than there is sin! As we look at our hearts and see sin God says “There is grace for that!” As we watch the world and see sin God says “There is grace for that!” As we see the church God says “There is grace for that!” We pray for forgiveness so that grace can be applied because grace is abundant and available.
Today we move from our request for forgiveness into a condition that being forgiven creates “forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.” We are not forgiven only to be reconciled to God but so that we can receive the ministry of reconciliation. We are forgiven not only so that we can become disciples but so that we can go and make disciples. As I mentioned last week, forgiveness isn’t something we consume it is something we sow. The fruit of repentance becomes the seeds of forgiveness. We are forgiven to forgive. Jesus teaches us to pray that we would be equal in the forgiveness we receive and the forgiveness we grant, that the nature of the One who has forgiven us would become our nature so that we can follow Him in His example and be forgiving. When the ones forgiven become the forgivers the name of the Father is hallowed, His kingdom has come, His will is being done and we have been transformed. Forgiveness may be our greatest need and in the “last becoming first and first becoming last” nature of the Kingdom of God, forgiveness may also be our greatest calling.