Why would I keep forgiving someone when they simply keep needing to be forgiven? Let’s be honest: from our human perspectives, this makes no sense...
“I’m a forgiving person, but…”
I was having a spiritual conversation with a coworker (don’t worry, from a past job, not my current one at Lakeshore!), and they said something to the effect of, “I’m a forgiving person, but when someone keeps repeating the same offense I’m not going to keep wasting my time forgiving them.” Here’s the truth: that statement makes a lot of sense. When someone repeatedly sins against us despite our efforts to forgive, and even help, in our minds it doesn’t make a lot of sense for us to keep offering forgiveness. In fact, much of our human reasoning for limiting our forgiveness makes a lot of sense. “I’m a forgiving person, but… I’ve been hurt too badly,” or “I’m a forgiving person, but… I’ve been hurt too badly,” “I’m a forgiving person, but… they don’t deserve it,” or any number of other qualifiers we attach to forgiveness.
This line of thinking made sense to Peter as well when he talks to Jesus in Matthew 18:21. Peter says, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?”
Forgive someone seven times?? That’s crazy talk! Rabbinic law at the time said a person only needed to forgive an offender up to three times. Jesus had previously told the disciples that their righteousness needed to surpass that of the “Pharisees and teachers of the law” (Matthew 5:20). Peter is making an exaggeration, essentially telling Jesus, “I know what you said, but you can’t possibly mean as much as seven times!”
Jesus responds in verse 22 by saying, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.”
While Jesus says seventy-seven times, He is actually raising the bar much higher than seventy-seven. In Jewish culture, “seventy-seven times” was an idiom that meant without limit. Jesus is making a point: followers of Jesus don’t limit their forgiveness, or add a qualifier to their forgiveness, but extend forgiveness, without limit. So then, when we add a qualifier to our forgiveness, saying “I’m a forgiving person, but…” we limit our forgiveness, showing that we don’t truly understand that real forgiveness has no qualifiers, and no limits.
Let’s be honest: from our human perspectives, this makes no sense! Why would I keep forgiving someone when they simply keep needing to be forgiven? The answer is simple: because that’s how God forgives us. In the verses following Peter’s question, Jesus uses a parable to demonstrate immense God’s mercy and compassion is, and why that should drive us to forgive others as He forgave us: without limit.
Church, I know this is hard. In fact, this parable is very personal to me because of my own struggles with hurt and unforgiveness. Although, this passage has helped immensely not just to change my understanding but change my heart, seeing that God is not asking me to do something for others that He has not already done in abundance for me.
I look forward to being able to learn from this passage together with you all this Sunday!
With love,
Nate Zablotny
Student Pastor
