Then Peter came and said to Him, “Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me and I forgive him? Up to seven times?” Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven. “For this reason the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his slaves. When he had begun to settle them, one who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him. But since he did not have the means to repay, his lord commanded him to be sold, along with his wife and children and all that he had, and repayment to be made. So the slave fell to the ground and prostrated himself before him, saying, ‘Have patience with me and I will repay you everything.’ And the lord of that slave felt compassion and released him and forgave him the debt. But that slave went out and found one of his fellow slaves who owed him a hundred denarii; and he seized him and began to choke him, saying, ‘Pay back what you owe.’ So his fellow slave fell to the ground and began to plead with him, saying, ‘Have patience with me and I will repay you.’ But he was unwilling and went and threw him in prison until he should pay back what was owed. So when his fellow slaves saw what had happened, they were deeply grieved and came and reported to their lord all that had happened. Then summoning him, his lord said to him, ‘You wicked slave, I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me. Should you not also have had mercy on your fellow slave, in the same way that I had mercy on you?’ And his lord, moved with anger, handed him over to the torturers until he should repay all that was owed him. My heavenly Father will also do the same to you, if each of you does not forgive his brother from your heart.”

Matthew 18:21-35

I bolded some key phrases because I want to know if anyone else sees what I’m seeing here.

The perspective we bring to God’s forgiveness affects how we do (or don’t) receive it. God stands ready to forgive even the most heinous sin. We come to Him burdened with a debt we cannot possibly repay. Yet many will come to Him grateful for the relief, but insisting on paying back “everything”. What foolishness!!

So, when this person encounters someone who owed him a little debt, I am thinking he was considering the amount he was owed as due him immediately, so that he could get to repaying his master quickly. Even though it does not say in the story what the wicked servant’s response is to being sent to jail, I can easily imagine him crying, “but I was just trying to repay you!”

As long as we have any inkling that we can repay God, we will not be able to forgive others as He forgives us. We will be thinking of ourselves as working off our debt, and therefore see those who sin against us as in need of working off their debts to us.

Romans talks about it this way:

Now to the one who works, his wage is not credited as a favor, but as what is due. But to the one who does not work, but believes in Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is credited as righteousness,

Romans 4:4-5

As usual, God’s way is not like ours. We want to “repay everything”, and He says no. He says He will pay it. He insists upon us believing in His forgiveness so fully that we can forgive others “seventy times seven”. What great grace!

https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=JoeAKG3LVCU&feature=share