January 28
Ex 5:22-7 | PS 23 | Prov 5:22-23 | Matt 18:21-19:12
James 1:17, states, "Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning." When I take this to heart, I realize that I really haven't earned or deserve anything, it is all from Him. So, I don't deserve my wife or my children. I haven't earned my profession, it was God leading me in this path. I don't deserve my next meal, my next breath, or my next heartbeat. He created me, and provides for me. Despite this, not only am I not as thankful as I should be, I sin daily in both thought and deed. Sometimes accidentally, other times purposely. If not for His continuous mercy, grace, and forgiveness which He lavishes upon me, my situation would be hopeless. We all pray in the Lord's prayer in Matthew 6:12, "And forgive us our debts,...". But how often we ignore the verse just after the Lord's prayer in 6:15, "But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses." Paul said in Ephesians 4:32, "And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you." The question is, "Do we forgive others?" How often we minimize our own sins in our own eyes, but blow up other's sins in these same eyes (as exemplified in the Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector (Luke 18:9-14)). We grandstand, finger point, say a lot of "how dare you's" , etc. We do this against family, friends, co-workers, neighbors, etc. We also do this against many who we will never actually meet face to face in the media or in politics. We form our arguments, justify our resentments, but this ignores the principle of forgiving others. This also ignores what it is that we are seeking God's forgiveness for in our own lives. This does not mean that we shouldn't discern and keep our distance from certain individuals who might endanger us, but have we forgiven them?
Peter no doubt, thought he was impressing the Lord with his question, when he asked in Matthew 18:21, "Then Peter came to Him and said, “Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Up to seven times?”, but we read Jesus' response in 18:22, "Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven." He then goes on to give a very vivid example in the Parable of the Unforgiving Servant in 18:23-34. In this parable, a servant owes the king an amount which would be impossible to pay back in a lifetime. Ten thousand talents was equivalent to several millions of dollars in those days. Yet we read the interaction in 18:26-27, "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." This is what God does for us. The story then moves to an interaction between this same servant and one of his fellow servants who owed him one hundred denarii, one denarii was equivalent to a day's wage, equivalent in those days to approximately 16 cents. But we read of this interaction in 18:28-30, "...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." This is what we often do with others. When the king heard of this, we read at his shock and outrage at how, despite all that he was forgiven, how little forgiveness he was willing to give to his fellow servant. We read the conclusion in 18:35, "“So My heavenly Father also will do to you if each of you, from his heart, does not forgive his brother his trespasses.”"
Interestingly, in today's reading we come next to Psalm 23. This was the Psalm that began my journey into a relationship with Jesus Christ, as a woman lovingly prayed this over me as I sat beside the body of my mother who had just died. Did I deserve this woman? No. Did I deserve the Bible that was given to me freely by the chaplain? No. Did I deserve the salvation that was offered me a couple of years later when I repented and asked Jesus into my heart? No. In fact we read in Ephesians 2:8-9, "For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast." Our salvation rests entirely on what He did, not on what we do. There is danger when we forget how much He has done and how little we do. There is danger when we look at things from an earthly perspective, on a horizontal plane, rather than from a kingdom perspective, on a vertical plane. So much anger. So much bitterness. So much resentment. We also call way to many things "righteous or holy anger", when often times it is not, but we feel more justified when we do so. We, Christians, should be the most forgiving, welcoming, individuals on the face of this planet. If we are not, then it is time to look at ourselves soberly in the mirror, and remind ourselves who we are, and what He has done for us. Thank you, Jesus, for paying the price that I could not. Please help me to remember this as I interact daily with anyone and everyone. Please help me to keep short accounts with others, as I continually ask You to forgive me as I try to keep short accounts with You. Thank you for Your mercy, Your grace, and Your forgiveness towards me, Your servant who does not deserve anything that You have lovingly bestowed upon me.
Messages from Pastor Lloyd Pulley: