Matthew 18:21-22…Working

Matthew 18:21-22…Working

18:21 Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive (863-“To send forth, send away”.) my brother (Fellow believer, Church member, anyone.) when he sins against me? (i.e. To hurt, offend, wrong.) Up to seven times?” (Suggests Peter was being very generous, due to the fact that Rabbis taught that “Three times” was sufficient. {cf. Amos 2:1-6}) 22 Jesus answered, I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times. (Seventy times seven-K.J.V. A.V. Whether it’s 77 times or 490 times the principal expresses the same as in unlimited, indefinitely, often as needed, etc.)

Continued From Book

“Even today, forgiveness doesn’t mean we forgive & forget, or excuse and close our eyes to the offense. Forgiveness does not erase the past or remove the pain, hurt, damage, distrust, or bring instant healing, Forgiveness is it about trusting them again, or done out of duty and obligation. But rather it’s about us letting go of our hatred, anger, bitterness, resentment,  and vengeance to always doing them good and leaving them in God’s hands”. ⇒ Forgiveness doesn’t mean we pretend like nothing ever happened. It doesn’t mean trusting a swindler with money, trusting a wife-beater not get abusive again, or appointing a child-molester to be a youth pastor. Forgiveness is not excusing, diminishing, condoning, ignoring, tolerating, trusting, reconciling, or even making up. Forgiveness does mean we do not harbor grudges, we do not seek vengeance. It means letting go of our need to get even. It means praying for our enemies. It means seeing ourselves in their shoes, knowing that God has, for the sake of Christ, forgiven us all our sins too.

“Forgiveness is personal and difficult thing to do. Saying “I forgive you” is hard to do. Forgiving someone who harmed us goes against our very instincts. But by choosing to forgive stops the cycle of hurt and pain, turns the page, and brings peace and healing. It is a choice that is good for us.” ⇒ Forgiveness doesn’t come easily or happen overnight, it’s a slow process that takes time, patience, effort, and determination, often over many years. Forgiveness can be difficult for many reasons. Holding onto bitterness and resentment can become habit forming, making it hard to let go. Forgiving someone can bring up fear of being hurt again. We may have difficulty forgiving if we believe we need an apology first, or we need to see remorse, or evidence of having changed. We may believe that forgiving someone gives them permission to hurt us again, or that we are excusing their behavior and letting them of the hook. Or we don’t feel the person has earned it. Forgiving someone can feel like we are giving up our right to justice. Forgiving someone can be difficult when we feel like the person who hurt us needs to be held accountable for their actions. Forgiveness can be hard when someone we trusted betrays us, it can be hard to forgive them and rebuild that trust. When we withhold forgiveness we are saying “You will never be able to make this right.” When what we are really saying is; “I will always hold onto this pain.” 

Additional Notes & Applications

Forgiving someone is not about whether they deserve it or not; it’s an act of grace, just as we have been graciously forgiven by God through Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross.

Whether it’s Seventy seven times (as the N.I.V. translates it) or a literal 490 times is a figurative way of saying “Indefinitely”. Others who hold to the N.I.V. translation of 77 times suggests that Jesus may have come to that calculation based on the average lifespan of an individual and therefore was figuratively saying forgiveness applies as long as they live. Others suggests that Jesus is making reference to either; Lamech’s threat of greater vengeance then the vengeance that God would bring one those who attacked Cain and therefore was transforming into a principal of unlimited forgiveness. (See Gen. 4:15, 24)  Or that Jesus is referring to Daniel’s 70 weeks (490 years) which was a prophecy that calculated that from the decree to rebuilt the temple (Cyrus- 538 B.C.) to Jesus’ triumphal entry & crucifixion (33 A.D. 69 weeks  = 483 years) to Jesus’ second advent (seventh week = 7 years) would equal 77 x 7 (490) that therefore Jesus was saying that forgiveness applies until He returns. (See Dan. 9:24-27, Matt. 24:15, Rev. Chps. 6-19,  Rev. 11:2-3, 13:5) (Note: the 69^th week and the 70^th week do not follow immediately or consecutively there is an unknown intermediate duration period between the two, so far to date 2000 years have past) (More will discussed on this subject in chapter 24)