Forgiveness is not rocket science.
The Bible is very clear about how the principle of forgiveness works. When the disciples asked Jesus to teach them to pray, He gave them what is known to us as the “Model Prayer”.
Eight words in, we find the letters f-o-r-g-i-v-e along with a major lesson on the topic.
Matthew 6:12 says this:
“forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors".
Whether we agree or not, we owe something to our Creator—obedience. Our unwillingness to obey God creates a personal debt (another word for sin).
Just like we ask God to provide our daily bread, we should also ask Him to forgive us of the debts we have accumulated from being disobedient to Him and doing wrong to others.
The foundational principle in Matthew 6:12 not only established a relational connection to God, but it also aligns that same debt-to-forgiveness ratio with others.
When we say the Model Prayer, we petition God to forgive us "as we forgive" others.
The implication is simple. Whether intentional or unintentional, people will disobey God and do things to hurt or harm others. Our prayer request stipulates that God will release (forgive) us from our debts as a means to us releasing (forgiving) others’ from their indebtedness to us. That’s tight—but it’s right.
Many of us are concerned about our credit score…but we might want to take a look at our "indebted score".
Just like me, you're in debt too.
Today's challenge is to answer the following questions honestly:
- Have I removed Matthew 6:12 from my daily prayers?
- Am I obligated to God for anything?
- How willing am I to forgive others?