Should you not also have had compassion on your fellow servant, just as I had pity on you?

 

 Then Peter came to Him and said, "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.  Therefore the kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants.  And when he had begun to settle accounts, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents.  But as he was not able to pay, his master commanded that he be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and that payment be made.  The servant therefore fell down before him, saying, 'Master, have patience with me, and I will pay you all.'  Then the master of that servant was moved with compassion, released him, and forgave him the debt.  But that servant went out and found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii; and he laid hands on him and took him by the throat, saying, 'Pay me what you owe!'  So his fellow servant fell own at his feet and begged him, saying, 'Have patience with me, and I will pay you all."  And he would not, but went and threw him into prison till he should pay the debt.  So when his fellow servants saw what had been done, they were very grieved, and came and told their master all that had been done.  Then his master, after he had called him, said to him, 'You wicked servant!  I forgave you all that debt because you begged me.  Should you not also have had compassion on your fellow servant, just as I had pity on you?'  And his master was angry, and delivered him to the torturers until he should pay all that was due to him.  So My heavenly Father also will do to you if each of you, from his heart, does not forgive his brother his trespass."

 

- Matthew 18:21-35 

 

Yesterday we read that Jesus taught His disciples: "Take heed that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I say to you that in heaven their angels always see the face of My Father who is in heaven.  For the Son of Man has come to save that which was lost.  What do you think?  If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them goes astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine and go to the mountains to seek the one that is straying?  And if he should find it, assuredly, I say to you, he rejoices more over that sheep than over the ninety-nine that did not go astray.  Even so it is not the will of your Father who is in heaven that one of these little ones should perish.  Moreover if your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone.  If he hears you, you have gained your brother.  But if he will not hear, take with you one or two more, that 'by the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established.'  And if he refuses to hear them, tell it to the church.  But if he refuses even to hear the church, let him be to you like a heathen and tax collector.  Assuredly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.  Again I say to you that if two of you agree on earth concerning anything that they ask, it will be done for them by My Father in heaven.  For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them." 

 Then Peter came to Him and said, "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."  My study Bible explains that seventy times seven is an expression which is symbolic of an unlimited amount. 

"Therefore the kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants.  And when he had begun to settle accounts, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents.  But as he was not able to pay, his master commanded that he be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and that payment be made.  The servant therefore fell down before him, saying, 'Master, have patience with me, and I will pay you all.'  Then the master of that servant was moved with compassion, released him, and forgave him the debt.  But that servant went out and found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii; and he laid hands on him and took him by the throat, saying, 'Pay me what you owe!'  So his fellow servant fell own at his feet and begged him, saying, 'Have patience with me, and I will pay you all."  And he would not, but went and threw him into prison till he should pay the debt.  So when his fellow servants saw what had been done, they were very grieved, and came and told their master all that had been done.  Then his master, after he had called him, said to him, 'You wicked servant!  I forgave you all that debt because you begged me.  Should you not also have had compassion on your fellow servant, just as I had pity on you?'  And his master was angry, and delivered him to the torturers until he should pay all that was due to him.  So My heavenly Father also will do to you if each of you, from his heart, does not forgive his brother his trespass."  This parable is an illustration of the need for unlimited forgiveness, my study Bible explains.  Ten thousand talents is an extraordinarily impossible sum, as it is more than a laborer could earn in several lifetimes.  A "talent" (Greek talanton/τάλαντον) was a weight value which measured precious metal such as gold or silver.  A hundred denarii, according to my study Bible, was worth about three months wages, and so is still large sum.  But it's a pittance when compared to the debt owed the king.  My study Bible comments that God not only stays the punishment we deserve, but forgives us the entire debt as well.  Because God forgives us, it says, we in turn are required to grant the gift of forgiveness to others.  There is also a spiritual interpretation given to the punishment in patristic commentary.  In this understanding, the man represents the soul, the wife represents the body, and the children represent a person's deeds.  So, the body and the deeds are given over to slavery -- that is, to Satan -- so that the soul might possibly be saved (see 1 Corinthians 5:5).  

In today's parable, Jesus seems to describe a system (if you will) that promises to return to us the same type of treatment we give to others, but this return comes in a spiritual sense.  It is, in that sense, a parable that serves to enforce the logic of what is called the Golden Rule, found in Luke 6:31, in which Jesus teaches that "just as you want men to do to you, you also do to them likewise."  (See this teaching in context at Luke 6:27-31.)  In the Sermon on the Mount it is found at Matthew 7:12, in which Jesus teaches, "Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets" (see in context, Matthew 7:7-12).  But the parable also gives us an added window onto the understanding of the Golden Rule, and that is the measure of forgiveness that God extends to us.  This becomes the basis and the foundation for the understanding of our places in the world, in relationship to others.  Jesus explicitly lays this down as the foundation for understanding how forgiveness must work in our worldly lives, because we are already forgiven so much by God:  therefore the parable is also an illustration of what Jesus calls the Greatest Commandments.  In chapter 22, Jesus is asked what is the greatest commandment in the Law, and He replies, "'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.'  This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.'  On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets" (see Matthew 22:36-40).  Once again, we see the pattern taught in the parable:  we begin with our relationship to God, and we must extend within that context our relationship to neighbor.  So when we think of forgiveness, we take our minds from a purely worldly focus on vengeance or even restitution, and take it to a spiritual level in expanding it to the economy of God and our place in God's creation.  We consider how much we are forgiven by the One who holds all things, and it is within that context that we extend forgiveness.  Let us with all appropriate hastiness understand that the things which come to us in life also come from God.  It is a sense in which God is the ultimate "Banker" who holds or controls the wealth of all things; our willingness to forgive is a commitment to God and we expect that it is God who will repay or amend or heal the hurts and trespasses and deficits in our lives caused by harm done to us by others.  Let us also keep in mind that Jesus' parable is told in response to Peter's question, which comes after Jesus has set out a pattern for discipline and mutual correction in the Church (see yesterday's reading, above).  In that pattern, a sin is acknowledged, either in private or in the context of community.  But we often grapple with things we feel have harmed us, or what we believe others should owe to us, which go unacknowledged and unrepented.   And yet, within that context also, Jesus' parable is something to keep in mind, for it remains a kind of understanding of the Golden Rule.  It remains also within the context of the Old Testament and God's word in Moses' Song from Deuteronomy:  "Vengeance is Mine, and recompense" (Deuteronomy 32:35; see in context:  Deuteronomy 32).  St. Paul quotes the same in Romans 12:18-20, a teaching against vengeance and urging effort at a peaceful life.  Let us note closely that in St. Paul's teaching, justice is not neglected either.  We are reliant upon the One who is able to recompense and who forgives us in an inestimable degree in the first place.  Therefore we turn to God first in order to seek a way through life's hurts and difficulties.  The cruel harshness of the unforgiving servant of the parable results only in reaping the same results for himself.  Let us note also that Christ's teaching on forgiveness does not leave out justice; He does not neglect a need for acknowledgment of sin and harm.  But God is our ultimate ground for being and for understanding our places in the world and in creation.  We must keep in mind these teachings as we negotiate our lives through what often feels like a battleground or minefield.  In the Lord's Prayer, Jesus teaches us to pray, "Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors" (Matthew 6:12) and He adds at the end of the prayer, "For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.  But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses" (Matthew 6:14); see in context Matthew 6:8-14.  We are always given teachings about forgiveness in the context of God's forgiveness first, and God's economy of creation.  Jesus teaches us the understanding that our relationships with others fall within the context of our relationship with God; even the "debts" we feel that others have caused us fall within the context of God's purview to recompense and heal for us, so we go to prayer to find good resolution for how to conduct ourselves in response to harm done to us.  Let us consider the things we feel are owed to us, and the significant debt we may incur ourselves without God's guidance for our lives. 

Our Father in heaven

 "And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do.  For they think that they will be heard by their many words.  Therefore do not be like them.  For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him.  In this manner, therefore, pray:

"Our Father in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.
Your kingdom come.
Your will be done
On earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts,
As we forgive our debtors.
And do not lead us into temptation,
But deliver us from the evil one.
For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever.
Amen.

"For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.  But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses."

- Matthew 6:7-15

In yesterday's lectionary reading, we read that Jesus taught (in the Sermon on the Mount):  "Take heed that you do not do your charitable deeds before men, to be seen by them.  Otherwise you have no reward from your Father in heaven.  Therefore, when you do a charitable deed, do not sound a trumpet before you as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory from men.  Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward.  But when you do a charitable deed, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, that your charitable deed may be in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will Himself reward you openly.  And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites.  For they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men.   Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward.  But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly." . . . "Moreover, when you fast, do not be like the hypocrites, with a sad countenance.  For they disfigure their faces that they may appear to men to be fasting.  Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward.  But you, when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, so that you do not appear to men to be fasting, but to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly."

"And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do.  For they think that they will be heard by their many words.  Therefore do not be like them.  For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him. "  My study bible says that vain repetitions cannot establish a communion with God, as God does not need our "babble."   It adds that in order to partake of this communion, both silence and words are needful.  Therefore, we pray always (Luke 18:1), and without ceasing (1 Thessalonians 5:17).  Note that this is not a condemnation per se of many words but rather "vain repetitions" (emphasis mine).  What the Church has always understood -- and in all useful prayer practices -- is that words must express the desire for communion with God.  In today's reading, Jesus gives us specific words to repeat (which is known as the Lord's Prayer).   So it's not repetition which is condemned or forbidden, but rather vain repetitions.  My study bible adds that many psalms, prayers, and hymns of the Church have been repeated for countless generations in the worship of God "in spirit and in truth" (John 4:23).

"Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven."  My study bible tells us that the Father-Son relationship within the Trinity is a revelation of our potential relationship with God.  Christ, as Son of God, grants us the privilege of calling God Our Father by the grace of adoption (Galatians 4:4-7).   As a  "son of God" (regardless of gender), each Christian is called to love, trust, and serve God as does Christ serve, trust, and love God the Father.  Note that God is not our Father simply because God has created us.  God is Father for those in a saving and personal relationship -- a communion that comes by the grace of adoption (see John 1:13; Romans 8:14-16).  We are therefore to understand "sonship" as a status of being an heir.  In the context of Your name this is very important, as it indicates that status of an heir in a particular royal house; and that this house is honored as holy (hallowed).   This house is the kingdom of heaven, and we pray for our Father's royal will to be fully manifest on earth as it is in heaven.
  
"Give us this day our daily bread."  My study bible informs us that daily is a misleading translation of the Greek word epiousios/ἐπιούσιος.  This word literally means "above the essence," or "supersubstantial."  So when we read or say the phrase daily bread, we should understand it to mean not simply bread for today, and for earthly nourishment.  Rather this refers to the bread for the eternal day of the Kingdom of God, as my study bible beautifully puts it, which is for the nourishment of our immortal soul.  Of course, this living, supersubstantial bread is Christ Himself.  My study bible says that therefore in the Lord's Prayer, we are not asking merely for material bread for physical health, but rather for the spiritual bread of eternal life (John 6:27-58).   This bread is to sustain our life in the Kingdom.  Notable also is that this word appears nowhere in literature, contemporary or otherwise, and seems to have been coined specifically for the prayer given to us by Jesus.  This simply adds to our understanding of the uniqueness of what Christ offers, and asks us to pray for.  Of course, the echoes in the Eucharist are also clear here. 

"And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors."  This request to be forgiven is notably plural.  My study bible says that it directs us to pray always for the forgiveness of others.  The term debts is literally what is stated in the words of Christ reported in the Gospel, and it refers to spiritual debts.  To forgive a debt is to wipe it off the books, literally here the word means to "let go" or "release."

"And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one."  My study bible says that God tempts no one to sin (James 1:13).  Temptations are from the evil one, the devil.  It adds that temptations are aimed at the soul's giving in to the sinful passions of the flesh (Romans 7:5).  No one lives without encountering temptations, but we pray that great temptations -- or tests beyond what we can bear (1 Corinthians 10:13) -- should not come to us.  Let us note that we pray to be delivered from the evil one, and this would include all forms of evil.  This specific word for evil (or "the evil one") also literally means pain, or laborious trouble, that which gives misery.

"For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever.  Amen."  This statement once again emphasizes the kingdom of our Father, and that it is God's power and glory which we seek, worship, commit to serve, and in which we desire to dwell.

"For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.  But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses."   My study bible comments here that Jesus insists on mutual forgiveness between people as a precondition of God's forgiveness.  Those who do not forgive are not forgiven.  This is a teaching which is repeated in the parable of the unforgiving servant (18:21-35), which ends with the same teaching.  My study bible adds that to not forgive others is to willfully flee from the forgiveness of God for ourselves.  Let us note that here the word "trespass" is used where "debt" was used in the prayer.   Each is important to understand.  While debt is a kind of spiritual wound, trespass indicates a misstep, a lapse, falling away -- even something done unintentionally.

Jesus' prayer really gives us everything we need for our lives.  It is an essential prayer to say every day, and a good prayer for every day use.  Each phrase is meaningful, and sets us in a right place, a right orientation to our lives and to our faith.  In particular, it orients us to God our Father in the right way.  It is entirely in keeping with Jesus' teaching that rather than have us pray to Him in His specifically instructed prayer, we pray to the Father.  For not once during His entire time of ministry does He deviate from the important assertion that He is in the world to serve and to represent the Father, that even Christ's will and aim are not simply His own, but the will of His Father in heaven.  Therefore, His life was one of teaching us to do and serve the same, as "sons" of the Father by adoption, and therefore heirs in the kingdom of heaven.  This prayer emphasizes our sonship (again, regardless of our gender, and using language meant to teach us that we are heirs).  The use of the words "debt" and "trespass" I think warrants further attention, as they seem to describe with varied hidden implications different things.  A debt really indicates a kind of wounding or loss, something that has been taken from us that belongs to us.  We can think of this kind of debt as that which one might normally seek to avenge.  But we are asked to "let go."  To my mind, this does not imply that we are going to best friends with those who do us serious harm; a reconciliation process may be a long one.  But to let go of our debts and give them up to God our Father is essential for life in the Kingdom, because we really seek God's will in how we will live.  Therefore this aspect of the prayer is one that emphasizes letting go of purely worldly notions of vengeance or getting one's own back, and seeking to be directed through God's will for how we will live.  Furthermore, it is a liberation, for we are freed from concern for that debt in particular, and enabled to live more wholly and fully and from a better perspective.  It reinstates our personal integrity by letting go of what is essentially a loss or harm, just like businesses will often write off old debts to be unburdened of the toll.  So we are asked to "let go" -- especially indicative of letting go of collecting or exacting vengeance, returning the same to the one responsible for the debt.  Trespass indicates something less serious:  an error or misstep, something that causes a kind of offense but may even be unintentional, a mistake.  And these we are called to forgive as well, to let go.  Once again, Jesus emphasizes that this is a "deal" between our heavenly Father and ourselves.  It is a part of the communion of the Kingdom that we are forgiven as we forgive.   It is not a pact with the trespasser so much as it is one with our Father.  It seems to me that this emphasis is highly important, because it is a true way to freedom.  If we continue to nurse the debts or wounds we feel, or even the trespasses of others, we are always going to be miserable.  In the ancient systems of justice, one had to depend frequently on family or clan for the implementation of justice, and one can see how that could include traditions of vengeance and retribution to equal the insult or the harm.  But through Jesus' prayer, we are reminded that "Vengeance is mine, I will repay," says the Lord (Romans 12:19, Deuteronomy 32:35).  Therefore what we seek to do is place all things in the hands of God, and to seek God's will for the best way to handle our difficulties, and to live our lives.  Effectively, this kind of forgiveness or letting go to God is a way to open up all possibilities, to become unlimited in seeking the best way to respond to any hurtful or difficult circumstance.  It opens us up to what is best, whether that be a step by step process to reconciliation, or a need for distancing, depending upon the problems (or even evil) we incur and suffer.  Let us consider also the importance of asking God to deliver us from evil (or the evil one).  This is a prayer not simply for deliverance but also for protection, and it is equally important to recognize that we don't live in a perfect world -- and our discipleship is not necessarily simple nor easy.  Let us keep in mind that Christ in this way prepares us for what we need.  In the wisdom of the Church, we are given what we need in this prayer, a gift from our Lord.  Let us pray it as often as needed, for it is not "vain repetition" to trust in Christ's prayer for us.  Rather, let it help us increase our understanding, and apply what it teaches to all that comes to mind and is in hearts, whatever that might be.

And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors

Christ Pantocrator, 6th century, St. Catherine's Monastery, Sinai

 "And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do.  For they think that they will be heard for their many words.  Therefore do not be like them.  For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him.  In this manner, therefore, pray:

Our Father in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.
Your kingdom come.
Your will be done
On earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts,
As we forgive our debtors.
And do not lead us into temptation,
But deliver us from the evil one.
For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever.
Amen.

"For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.  But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses."

- Matthew 6:7-15

We are currently reading through the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew chapters 5 - 7).  In yesterday's reading, Jesus taught:   "Take heed that you do not do your charitable deeds before men, to be seen by them.  Otherwise you have no reward from your Father in heaven.  Therefore, when you do a charitable deed, do not sound a trumpet before you as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory from men.  Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward.  But when you do a charitable deed, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, that your charitable deed may be in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will Himself reward you openly.  And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites.  For they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men.  Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward.  But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly. . . . Moreover, when you fast, do not be like the hypocrites, with a sad countenance.  For they disfigure their faces that they may appear to men to be fasting.  Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward.  But you, when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, so that you do not appear to men to be fasting, but to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly."

"And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do.  For they think that they will be heard for their many words.  Therefore do not be like them.  For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him."  Vain repetitions are repetitions which do not express a true desire for communion with God, and thereby cannot establish a state of true prayer.  God does not need our "babble," my study bible says, but our sincerity.  Christ does not condemn the use of many words per se -- it is, instead, the sincere desire the words convey that matters.   In today's reading, Jesus gives us specific words to repeat (the Lord's Prayer, which follows).  It's important to distinguish between repetition and vain repetition, which Jesus emphasizes.  There are many psalms, prayers, and hymns in the Church repeated for countless generations in worshiping God "in spirit and truth" (John 4:23).   What counts in prayer is sincerity, which goes along with Christ's emphasis on secrecy and personal communion in yesterday's reading.

"In this manner, therefore, pray:  Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name."  My study bible says that the Father-Son relationship within the Trinity also reveals our own potential relationship with God  Christ, who is the Son of God, also gives us the privilege of calling God Our Father by grace of adoption (Galatians 4:4-7).  As a "son of God" (and therefore "heir" regardless of gender), every follower of Christ is called to love, trust, and serve God the same way that Christ does the Father.  My study bible also points out that God is not our Father simply by virtue of the fact that God is our Creator.  God is Father to those with whom God is in a saving and personal relationship, which is a communion by grace of adoption (see John 1:13; Romans 8:14-16).

"Your kingdom come.  Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven."  As children of God, we seek to participate in God's kingdom, or rule, even as we live our lives on earth.  Sonship by adoption implies a way of life, or perhaps more precisely, a way of living in communion with God and God's kingdom.  As did Christ, our desire of for God's kingdom to be manifest in this world, and to follow God's will.

"Give us this day our daily bread."  The word for daily is somewhat misleadingly translated.  The Greek word is epiousios, which literally means "above the essence," or "supersubstantial."  It denotes a kind of superstructure added atop the normal substance of bread.   This makes a strong allusion to the Eucharist, and implies a "supersubstance" which we -- as those who seek to live in loving communion with God -- need for our daily lives which we seek to live as members of God's kingdom.   Daily bread, my study bible says, indicates not simply bread for today and for earthly nourishment.  This request is regarding the bread for the eternal day of the Kingdom of God, for the nourishment of our immortal soul.  The living, supersubstantial bread is Christ Himself.  My study bible sums up this request as not asking merely for material bread for physical health, but for the spiritual bread of eternal life (John 6:27-58).

"And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors."   This request to be forgiven is in the plural, making it a type of communal request.  My study bible says that it therefore directs us to pray always for the forgiveness of others.  Debts refers to spiritual debts (see 18:21-35).  See also the final verses of today's reading.

"And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one."  James 1:13 teaches us that God tempts no one to sin.  Looking at the temptations of Christ (see this reading), we understand that temptation comes from the evil one, the devil.  My study bible adds that temptations are aimed at the soul's giving in to the sinful passions of the flesh (Romans 7:5).   It says that no one lives without encountering temptations, but we pray that great temptations -- that is, tests beyond what we can bear (1 Corinthians 10:13), should not come to us.

"For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever.  Amen."  This is a solemn affirmation not only of the prayer itself (Amen), but also of our recognition of the rule, authority, and majesty of God.

"For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.  But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses."  Here Christ instructs us regarding mutual forgiveness between people as a precondition of God's forgiveness.  My study bible says that those who do not forgive are not forgiven -- period.  This is repeated in the parable of the unforgiving servant (18:21-35), cited in commentary above, which concludes with the same teaching.  My study bible adds that to not forgive others is to willfully flee from the forgiveness of God for ourselves.

Forgiveness can be a difficult road to go down.  Offenses that have caused great harm seem impossible to even begin to address in the spirit of forgiveness.  But if we think about the language that Jesus has used here -- which is the language of debt, of financial transaction -- then we may be able to make a start at understanding what is asked of us.  A debt is "forgiven" when it is wiped off the books.  That is, we no longer expect payment.  Therefore, in the context of debt in this sense, we have to ask what "payment" we may be expecting from an offender when we withhold forgiveness.  Someone who has caused us harm or hurt may not, in any sense, be able to render payment equal to the offense.  Even if we could think up what payment would satisfy us, it is rare indeed that it could restore what we feel has been taken away.  For example, slander may cause a great deal of lasting harm that no "correction" can make disappear in the minds of those who've believed a false tale.  Moreover, to forgive in this sense of the prayer is mentioned in the context of our relationship with God.  That is, the idea of forgiveness, as directed by Christ, expands relationship from simply one-to-one (offender and the one offended) to a three-way relationship which is, additionally, described within the context of the community of believers ("forgive us our debts").  So Christ's prayer has the effect of widely expanding the pool of interaction within which forgiveness is asked.  If I am harmed by something a person has done, it is no longer simply myself involved in the hurt.  This is rather expanded to an entire community which is, moreover, in relationship to God the Father.  When I choose to "forgive" or rather "give up" or "let go" that debt (as the Greek word more literally means), then I release it to God and to community.  I am, therefore, through the act of forgiving, relying upon God and community not only to direct my response, but also to be the Source from which my healing or restoration will come.  In other words, to release the debt to God becomes a way of expanding one's own sources of healing and restoration, recompense and guidance for how to properly and best conduct oneself in response to any form of harm.  If this seems too much to take in, consider how an offender may "pay us back" for hurts as some form of debt they owe.  It makes us consider what retribution we might demand or extract in relationship to what God and community can do for us.  If I suffer abuse, am I helped by holding onto that debt myself?  If I release that debt to God in prayer and do so within a community of believers, are my chances of finding a better way forward for my life increased?  Are not God's help and guidance more likely to lead us somewhere good than our own immediate response?  Let us consider how we may find ways to transcend suffering within this framework of "giving up" something, a debt or trespass.  Perhaps our prayer and forgiveness will lead us to a just settlement, even within a legal framework.  Perhaps those things which will need a deeper source of forgiveness and reconciliation will only give us real help through faith and our relationship to God.  Perhaps we will find a pathway whereby our experience is put to better use than staying stuck in a pattern from the past.  All of this, put into the context of God and community, may be used for a much greater healing, for insight and meaning, and for the depth of character that is better able to help others and to move forward in life with positive plans.  We free up our own energies for healing when we start to bring in those things that are greater than ourselves, help and assistance with more wisdom and insight, and the One who loves and knows us better than we know ourselves.  What is most important to understand about forgiveness is that when we turn to God, there is nothing left out.  It is not a sweeping under the rug of past hurts.  It is, rather, a way to ask for the fullness of healing, a restoration of our energies, repair of the soul, so that we may be free to find greater fulfillment in our own potentials for a better and more creative life than staying stuck only in an identity of hurt.  God never forgets the truth of who we are, even when we do -- and neither are our needs ignored, even when we might prefer to do so ourselves.  Christ offers us a way to find ourselves in right-relatedness, to remind ourselves Whose children we really are, and to find identity in the one place where we are truly known.  Let us begin and end with His prayer!  The icon above was one of the few to survive the Iconoclast movement.  It is Christ Pantocrator, meaning "Almighty."   It shows us Christ's identity which is both human and divine, but perhaps even more importantly implies those human experiences and suffering which were glorified in His Ascension into heaven.  We see this in the trace of a tear, the gray hairs, and the facial wrinkles on the right side of the icon.  We see His hand raised in blessing, and holding His Gospel for us.  If Christ's suffering may become glorified, designated for the very purpose of salvation for the whole of creation, imagine the implication for those "debts" which we, in turn, give up to the kingdom, to God our Father?  In God's redemption, then, we trust -- and this is truly the salvation of Christ at work in us.

Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Up to seven times?

 Then Peter came to Him and said, "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.

"Therefore the kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants.  And when he had begun to settle accounts, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents.  But as he was not able to pay, his master commanded that he be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and that payment be made.  The servant therefore fell down before him, saying, 'Master, have patience with me, and I will pay you all.'  Then the master of that servant was moved with compassion, released him, and forgave him the debt.  But that servant went out and found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii; and he laid hands on him and took him by the throat, saying, 'Pay me what you owe!'  So his fellow servant fell down at his feet and begged him, saying, 'Have patience with me, and I will pay you all.'  And he would not, but went and threw him into prison till he should pay the debt.  So when his fellow servants saw what had been done, they were very grieved, and came and told their master all that had been done.  Then his master, after he had called him, said to him, 'You wicked servant!  I forgave you all that debt because you begged me.  Should you not also have had compassion on your fellow servant, just as I had pity on you?'  And his master was angry, and delivered him to the torturers until he should pay all that was due to him.  So My heavenly Father also will do to you if each of you, from his heart, does not forgive his brother his trespasses." 

- Matthew 18:21-35

In yesterday's reading, Jesus taught, "Take heed that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I say to you that in heaven their angels always see the face of My Father who is in heaven.  For the Son of Man has come to save that which was lost.  What do you think?  If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them goes astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine and go to the mountains to seek the one that is straying?  And if he should find it, assuredly, I say to you, he rejoices more over that sheep than over the ninety-nine that did not go astray.  Even so it is not the will of your Father who is in heaven that one of these little ones should perish.  Moreover if your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone.  If he hears you, you have gained your brother.  But if he will not hear, take with you one or two more, that 'by the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established.'  And if he refuses to hear them, tell it to the church.  But if he refuses even to hear the church, let him be to you like a heathen and a tax collector.  Assuredly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.  Again I say to you that if two of you agree on earth concerning anything that they ask, it will be done for them by My Father in heaven.  For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them."

Then Peter came to Him and said, "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."   Seven is a number of completion or fullness.  Seventy times seven is symbolic of an unlimited amount.

 "Therefore the kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants.  And when he had begun to settle accounts, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents.  But as he was not able to pay, his master commanded that he be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and that payment be made.  The servant therefore fell down before him, saying, 'Master, have patience with me, and I will pay you all.'  Then the master of that servant was moved with compassion, released him, and forgave him the debt.  But that servant went out and found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii; and he laid hands on him and took him by the throat, saying, 'Pay me what you owe!'  So his fellow servant fell down at his feet and begged him, saying, 'Have patience with me, and I will pay you all.'  And he would not, but went and threw him into prison till he should pay the debt."   Ten thousand talents (the amount owed to the king) is an impossible sum, my study bible says.  It's more than a laborer could earn in several lifetimes.  By contrast, a hundred denarii (owed to the debtor servant) is a significant amount from a worldly perspective -- it's about three months' wages.  But it's a pittance compared to the debt that this servant owed the king.  The parable, of course, is a parable about the mercy shown to us by God.  God not only stays the punishment we deserve, but forgives the entire impossible debt as well.  As God forgives us, we in turn are required to grant the gift of forgiveness to others.

"So when his fellow servants saw what had been done, they were very grieved, and came and told their master all that had been done.  Then his master, after he had called him, said to him, 'You wicked servant!  I forgave you all that debt because you begged me.  Should you not also have had compassion on your fellow servant, just as I had pity on you?'  And his master was angry, and delivered him to the torturers until he should pay all that was due to him.  So My heavenly Father also will do to you if each of you, from his heart, does not forgive his brother his trespasses."  My study bible cites a patristic interpretation to the punishment described here.  It's seen in spiritual terms:  the man represents the soul, the wife represents the body, and the children represent a person's deeds.  Therefore, the body and the deeds are given over to slavery (that is, to Satan), so that the soul might possibly be saved -- see 1 Corinthians 5:5.

Forgiveness is an essential component of Christian faith.  We remember that Christ gives this parable in the midst of advising the disciples what type of leadership He wants in His Church, and after the second time He's warned the disciples the He will be killed, and rise on the third day.  He's just given a system for mutual correction in the Church (see yesterday's reading, above), and so Peter asks how many times forgiveness must be extended.  In this model of correction, forgiveness is extended when a sin has been acknowledged or "heard," in Jesus' teaching.  That is, if the person has listened to the complaint.  But forgiveness is a complex problem.  Jesus is, of course, giving instruction for those within the Church, as we understand this talk in the context of the teaching on mutual correction.  But there are deeper aspects to forgiveness.   The word for forgive, in the Greek, literally means to "let go."   Like the debts in the parable, it is something which one can demand repayment for, or forgive, let go.  Punishment for any type of debt is payment.  Therefore, in Jesus' model, forgiveness implies not seeking vengeance, redress, repayment for a type of boundary violation (implied in the word "trespass").  Within the Church, Jesus' system teaches, even one who will not listen or hear even the whole Church will lack standing -- but we must note that vengeance is still left out of this equation.  This is the form that "letting go" takes, that a failure to acknowledge sin implies an unwillingness to correct personal behavior.  But the decision to "repay" or "punish" isn't ours; that is up to God.  Therefore, under any and all circumstances, we may forgive or let go.  Each of us has some form of old hurt, an unacknowledged trespass.  It is important, regardless of whatever else happens in the matter, that we give up vengeance or pure justice to God.  There are all kinds of sins that can't literally be paid back or recompensed.  A terrible loss, such as the life of a loved one, can't really be recompensed regardless of punishment or payment in liability.  The pain of such a trespass can't be ameliorated fully through even the most just human legal system; there are too many layers of loss.  Forgiveness becomes important because without it, we lose.  We lose our souls, we lose our well-being, we lose our peace.  Forgiveness, ultimately, is letting go to God Who is the ultimate Judge.  There are all kinds of problems of justice in the world, but ultimate and true justice is in God's hands.  If we wish to experience the grace of our relatedness with God, then we need "give up" the things that stand in the way of true righteousness.  We need to recognize the infinite ways in which we are forgiven for what we fail to understand or acknowledge, and live within this system of grace so that it is also at work in us.  To carry a great debt can be a terrible burden emotionally, psychologically, spiritually.  Forgiveness is also our answer for that; it is a kind of contract, as illustrated in the parable, between ourselves and God.  In Romans 12:18, St. Paul reminds us, citing a passage from Deuteronomy, "Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, 'Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,' says the Lord."  Forgiveness and acknowledgement of transgression go hand in hand.  But forgiveness as contract between ourselves and God is wisdom, and it is for the restoration and health of our own lives, on so many levels.

Our Father in heaven

 "And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do.  For they think that they will be heard for their many words.  Therefore do not be like them.  For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him.  In this manner, therefore, pray:

Our Father in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.
Your kingdom come.
Your will be done
On earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts,
As we forgive our debtors.
And do not lead us into temptation,
But deliver us from the evil one.
For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever.
Amen.

"For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.  But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses."

- Matthew 6:7-15

We are reading through the Sermon on the Mount.  We began with the Beatitudes, then we read You are the salt of the earth, Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets.  I did not come to destroy but to fulfill, Whoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment, Let your "Yes" be "Yes," and your "No," "No." and Love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven.  Yesterday, we read that Jesus taught, "Take heed that you do not do your charitable deeds before men, to be seen by them.  Otherwise you have no reward from your Father in heaven.  Therefore, when you do a charitable deed, do not sound a trumpet before you as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory from men.  Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward.  But when you do a charitable deed, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, that your charitable deed may be in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will Himself reward you openly.  And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites.  For they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men.  Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward.  But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly."  The lectionary then skipped over the reading passage for today, in which Jesus gives us what we call the Lord's Prayer, or the Our Father.  Jesus continued afterward, "Moreover, when you fast, do not be like the hypocrites, with a sad countenance.  For they disfigure their faces that they may appear to men to be fasting.  Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward.  But you, when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, so that you do not appear to men to be fasting, but to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly."

  "And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do.  For they think that they will be heard for their many words.  Therefore do not be like them.  For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him."  These are teachings Jesus continued on prayer from yesterday's reading.  We understand that prayer is for a deliberate and personal communion with God.  We are to pray to our Father who is in the secret place.  We are to go into an inner room to pray.  Everything is about intimacy, the personal, the depth of the heart, where the Father sees in secret.  It's the most intimate and true relationship we can have.  The vain repetitions don't help to establish such intimacy.  My study bible says that God does not need our "babble."  Both silence and words are necessary.  So, we pray always (Luke 18:1) and without ceasing (1 Thessalonians 5:17).  It's not "many words"or even "repetition" that is problematic, but rather vain repetitions.   Below, Jesus gives us specific words to repeat, the Lord's Prayer, or Our Father.  My study bible says that many psalms, prayers, and hymns of the Church have been repeated for countless generations in the worship of God "in spirit and in truth" (John 4:23).

"Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name.  Your kingdom come.  Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven."  This prayer is found as a centerpiece of worship, and a constant personal prayer all over Christendom.  It is the prayer we are given by Christ, thus "the Lord's Prayer."  First of all, says my study bible, the Father-Son relationship within the Trinity gives us our potential relationship with God.  It tells us, "Christ, Son of God, grants us the privilege of calling God Our Father by the grace of adoption (Galatians 4:4-7).  As a 'son of God,' the Christian is called to love, trust, and serve God as Christ does the Father."  It adds that God is not our Father just because He created us -- He's only Father to those who are in a saving and personal relationship with Him, a communion that comes only by the grace of adoption (see John 1:13, Romans 8:14-16).  We can't limit who that's on offer to, but we do know it's realized through our active participation in that relationship.  The first words of the prayer establish that relationship and our part in it.

"Give us this day our daily bread."  What is our daily bread?  The word here in Greek that describes this bread is "epiousios" -- it doesn't mean "daily."  It means literally "above the essence" or "supersubstantial."  This is a "super-bread" so to speak.  Daily bread doesn't just mean food for the day or worldly bread we eat for today.  This is the bread for the eternal day of that Kingdom of God we've just prayed about.  This is the bread for the nourishment of our immortal soul.  The living, supersubstantial bread is Christ Himself ("I am the bread of life" - John 6:35).  So this prayer Jesus teaches doesn't have us praying for just material needs for physical health, but the spiritual bread of eternal life (see John 6:27-58).

"And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors."  My study bible notes that this request to be forgiven is in the plural, so we're directed to pray for the forgiveness of others.  This is basically a community prayer, we pray as a community, even alone in a secret place.  And what we do, and what we pray, affects others in ways we don't necessarily know or see.   Within the Body of Christ we have a communion that is always going to be at work whether we realize it or not.  Debts here are spiritual debts (see 18:41-35).

"And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.   For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever.  Amen."   God doesn't tempt us to sin (James 1:13) -- that comes from the evil one, the devil.  Temptations are aimed, says my study bible, at the soul's giving in to sinful passions of the flesh (Romans 7:5), characterized by a kind of selfishness or self-centeredness that spiritually harms self and community.  Nobody lives, it says, without encountering temptations.  But we pray that great temptations, tests beyond what we can bear (1 Corinthians 10:13), should not come to us.

"For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.  But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses."   This is another type of statement like the "Golden Rule."   My study bible says that Jesus insists on mutual forgiveness between people as a precondition of God's forgiveness.  We forgive if we want to be forgiven; if we don't then we do not realize forgiveness for ourselves.  The teaching is found also in the parable of the unforgiving servant (18:21-35), which concludes with the same teaching.  Earlier in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus has taught, "Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy."

It's interesting to think about debts and trespasses.  These are types of sins in the Law, for which offerings are given at the temple.  Debts and trespass involve both community and God the Father, God as Judge.  They both imply "owing" something.  A debt means we've taken something away from someone else.  A trespass teaches that somehow we crossed over the line with what is someone else's.  This is another sense in which Jesus fulfills the Law of "an eye for an eye," which is a kind of exact repayment for debt, in kind.  We recall once again that the Law as Moses gave it was intended to limit retribution, to create justice.  It was merciful in the context of its time.  Jesus speaks of forgiveness, erasing the need for payment in kind.  But above all, we have the Judge.  Forgiveness does not mean we take it upon ourselves to decide what needs to be paid and what doesn't need to be paid.  It doesn't mean that we don't recognize what's wrong, or what's hurt us, or what crosses over the line -- neither does it mean we don't have to know when we've done this!  What it really means is that we don't seek retribution, and furthermore, we give it up to the Judge to decide.  As we pray to God for "Your will be done," we ask what is the best way to go about living our lives.  Have we been harmed?  Is there a debt somewhere?  No doubt there always will be in a world that has not realized God's perfect will.  But how do we handle such things, and how are we disciples who wish to bring about God's kingdom in the world?  This is the key to forgiveness.  We don't waste our time with a kind of retribution or vengeance that's not going to serve our best interest, the best life we can have.  This is not our top priority.  Serving God becomes the top priority, and in that service what we will find is a way in which we seek to serve that which serves our lives best and our community best -- bringing further harm neither to ourselves nor to those whom we love and care about, nor to our community.  Think of all the times we might take things into our own hands and go from the frying pan into the fire.  Now think about prayer, and asking God instead for the wisdom to know the best way to go forward.  This might be the most important lesson we learn, using trauma to steer our lives into the better direction, the best "Way" we can.  Forgiveness is giving up our understanding of justice to God, seeking God's will in prayer, and doing what's best for ourselves and our community, those who are most intimately connected to us.  It doesn't mean we ignore a state justice system, and it doesn't mean we overlook continual harm or fail to protect against it, but it does mean we find the best way.  Think of all the children who might be spared bitterness and harm if parents choose to handle life's crises this way, spouses who are given a measure of peace with such wisdom.  Vengeance is rarely satisfying, no matter how it may be portrayed!   There's always someone or something else to continue the cycle.  And "closure" requires a much deeper recipe than what happens in somebody else's life.  His Way, we will always be on the way to somewhere better and wiser and more peaceful.  And with God, all the things in our lives can be used to work toward such a goal, helping us to grow.