Forgive And Forget?

Peter approached Jesus and asked him, "Lord, if my brother sins against me, how often must I forgive him? As many as seven times?" Jesus answered, "I say to you, not seven times but seventy-seven times. That is why the Kingdom of heaven may be likened to a king who decided to settle accounts with his servants. When he began the accounting, a debtor was brought before him who owed him a huge amount. Since he had no way of paying it back, his master ordered him to be sold, along with his wife, his children, and all his property, in payment of the debt. At that, the servant fell down, did him homage, and said, 'Be patient with me, and I will pay you back in full. ‘Moved with compassion the master of that servant let him go and forgave him the loan.

When that servant had left, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a much smaller amount. He seized him and started to choke him, demanding, 'Pay back what you owe.' Falling to his knees, his fellow servant begged him, 'Be patient with me, and I will pay you back.' But he refused. Instead, he had him put in prison until he paid back the debt.

Now when his fellow servants saw what had happened, they were deeply disturbed, and went to their master and reported the whole affair. His master summoned him and said to him, 'You wicked servant! I forgave you your entire debt because you begged me to. Should you not have had pity on your fellow servant, as I had pity on you?' Then in anger his master handed him over to the torturers until he should pay back the whole debt. So will my heavenly Father do to you, unless each of you forgives your brother from your heart." (Matthew 18:21-35)

Forgive and forget.  The only thing to forget is the saying.  Forget is not part of the equation.  Try to forget an injustice that hurts us by breaking our heart, for example.  Unfaithfulness is one.  Betrayal of trust is extremely difficult to forget if it can be forgotten at all.  What is Jesus’ point?

Forgiveness is a grace we are given by God, and that is reflected in the Lord’s Prayer: “Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.”  But we all have memories with some being like steel traps. According to Matthew, “Peter approached Jesus and asked him, ‘Lord, if my brother sins against me, how often must I forgive him? As many as seven times?’ Jesus answered, ‘I say to you, not seven times but seventy-seven times.”  In other words, we must forgive, but forgetting is unlikely which is why we must keep forgiving perhaps 100 times or more, not just 77 times.  Some hurts cut very deep, and scabs easily dislodge.   

So, let’s be prepared for marathon sessions of required forgiveness.  Jesus will accompany us along that long route like a carrier of water bottles to quench our thirsts when our wellsprings of forgiveness run dry.

Deacon David Pierce