Matthew 18:21-35

Peter asks Jesus how many times we should forgive someone who wrongs us. He asks if seven is enough times (three was the common teaching of the day). Jesus answered him that it should be seventy times seven. Peter may have thought he was being incredibly generous by more than doubling the current standard, but Jesus took it far beyond even that. Of course, 490 isn't the magic number for forgiveness - in fact, we shouldn't even be keeping score (1 Cor 13:4-5). The number was not meant to be an absolute, but rather to be illustrative of a very high number (as much as it takes).

To further bring home the point of forgiveness, Jesus tells a parable about a man who owed a large sum of money to his king - more than he could hope to repay. When the king decided to sell the man, his family, and all his belongings to settle the debt, the man begged for mercy and promised to find a way to repay his debt. The king was so moved, he not only let him remain free, but also canceled the entire debt.

The man owed a debt that he could not pay his master. Likewise, our sin debt to God is one that we cannot pay. God, in His love, covered our debt by sacrificing His Son, Jesus. Justice allows that each of us pay the penalty for our sin; grace wipes the debt clean.

After being released, the man went and found someone who owed him a small amount and demanded repayment. When this person made the same plea, the forgiven man refused to hear it and had his debtor thrown into prison. When the king heard about this, he was angry and threw the man he had previously forgiven into prison.

This brings to mind the part of the model prayer given by Jesus where we are to ask God to forgive us as we have forgiven others (Matthew 6:12). The man in the parable was shown a great deal of mercy, but showed none. In return, the mercy was withdrawn from him. If we model our lives in every way after God, we will learn to forgive unconditionally - no matter the size of the offense or number of times. Be glad that God doesn't limit His grace to seven times or even seventy times seven.