“AND FORGIVE US OUR DEBTS”
“Seeking His Forgiveness”
“And forgive us our debts.”
The second petition in the Lord’s Prayer which deals with our human dilemma
is, “And forgive us our debts.” The first three requests relate to the role of God
as our Father. The last four focus on our very human needs as God’s children.
Of these seven, the matter of forgiveness assumes such enormous importance
that it reemphasize and develop in depth.
The thoughts and concepts held in the Master’s mind when He said, “Forgive
us our debts, were much wider than this simple petition implies. Evidence of
this can be found in the various ways this has been rendered in different
translations. Here are some examples:
“Forgive us our trespasses (Knox)
“Forgive us our shortcomings” (Plymouth).
“Forgive us what we owe to you” (Phillips).
“Forgive us our sins” (TB)
“Forgive us our resentments” (Amplified).
“Forgive us the wrong we have done” (NEB).
If we sincerely pray, “Forgive us our debts, ‘”or,”Forgive us our trespasses,”
then we are openly and candidly admitting ourselves to be guilty of
wrongdoing.
Now this really does not come home to many of us who repeat
these five simple words. Thousands of dear people who recite the Lord’s
Prayer do not see themselves really as debtors, trespassers, sinners, or
offenders. They do not consider themselves actually guilty before God.
And, of course, it follows, does it not, that it is not until one feels convicted of
wrongdoing that there is any sense of need for forgiveness? The irony of it all
is that uncounted people do feel quite innocent. Consequently this petition,
instead of being a genuine desire rising from a penitent heart, is often little
more than an empty repetition of words by a self-satisfied soul.
All of which leads to the second very searching concept. Do I indeed come to
my heavenly Father as one who feels indebted to Him? Do I sense in some
deep instinctive way that I have trespassed on His love and generosity? Am I
acutely conscious of wrongdoing, of wrong attitudes, of wrong motives?
Unless I am, then obviously this prayer is not only pointless but absurd.
Yet none of this nullifies the fact that we should come to our Father keenly
sensitive to sin and selfishness in our lives. The very recognition and
admission that we are debtors, and trespassers produces within the human heart
a genuine humility that opens our whole being to the presence and Person of
God Himself.
“The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in
spirit. (PS. 34:18)
Perhaps the next point it is well to remind ourselves of, is that our petitions are
not likely to be answered if we come in an attitude of arrogance and pride. (J
4:6)
No doubt the thought held uppermost in Christ’s mind when He taught this
prayer was that of a human heart coming humbly to seek restoration from a
forgiving Father. After all, He Himself made it abundantly clear to us that
God’s attitude toward anyone who sought forgiveness was one of immediate
reconciliation. God our Father never holds anyone at arm’s length who shows
the slightest inclination to turn toward Him in honest and open need of
forgiveness.
Now, it may very well be asked, “But what if I don’t feel I have done wrong?
What if I don’t feel in need of forgiveness? What if I don’t sense my
indebtedness?”
The only possible answer which can be given is that such a soul has never yet
had a personal encounter with the living Christ. That one has never yet sensed
the overwhelming love and concern of God for him as a Father for His child.
It is when we stand alone, quietly, earnestly contemplating the cost to God of
our forgiveness made possible by the cross, that there floods over us our deep
debt of love to Him. The cross stands central in our Father’s magnanimous
scheme for the forgiveness of all men of all time. Someone, somewhere
always must pay the penalty for misconduct. He Himself undertook, at
Calvary, to bear that cost, to absorb the penalty, to pay the enormous price for
our sin.
The outstanding, eternal debt which all men of all time owe their heavenly
Father is a debt of gratitude and of love for the price paid for our forgiveness.
The cost of that forgiveness was Calvary. No man, no woman, who
contemplate this expression of our Father’s love and concern for us can help
but feel a deep sense of unworthiness.
It is no wonder, then, that Christ should include this request for forgiveness in
His prayer, It is the key which unlocks the door where by we enter a rich and
wondrous relationship to God our Father.
So when Christ taught His disciples this prayer, this petition was included to
cover and deal with this deep need in the human heart that deep down they
know something is wrong, something is missing, but what? As long as we
sense in anyway that sin or wrongdoing stands between us and God or that sin
or wrongdoing stands between us and God or between us and others, we feel
estranged and apart.
“Forgive us our debts” may well be the four most important words that ever
cross our lips, provided we really mean them. Any man, any woman, who
comes to our Father in heaven with a genuine, heartfelt attitude of contrition is
bound to find forgiveness. There will fall from the shoulders the old burden of
guilt, and, in its place, there will be wrapped around our hearts a radiant sense
of warmth, affection, love, and acceptance. “You are forgiven. You are Mine.
You do belong. You are home!”
“As we forgive our debtors”
In all of our Lord’s Prayer, by far the difficult phrase is, “As we forgive our
debtors.” It Is not easy for us either to understand or to apply in a practical
way to our daily living.
It is probably safe to say that the overwhelming majority of men and women
who repeat this prayer have not forgiven others. They have not written off the
debts. They do not have a clear conscience. A backlog of lingering ill will,
hostilities, resentments, and animosities beclouds their relationship with
others. They are still demanding restitution. They still insist on getting their
pound of flesh.
How can we come and in good conscience ask our Father in heaven to forgive
us, when we have failed to forgive others? It cannot be done except very
hypocritically. God sees right through this sort of sham.
Our Lord was always emphasizing the fact that our inner attitudes were more
important than our outward actions. It was His assertion that our Father in
heaven knew our attitudes and rated them far above outward appearance.
Beneath all our difficulties in forgiving others lies the formidable foundational
fact of human pride. The iron-like resistance of our egos, the great, central I,
which stands like a huge, steel beam at the very core of our makeup refuses to
budge, or bend, or be broken. We insist on our rights; we defend ourselves; we
lay claim to our privileges; we hold fast to our positions. Mine, me, and I stand
guard, jealously protecting our personal self-esteem and our proud reputation.
How can we get over this? What can change these inner attitudes that are so
damaging, both to ourselves and others?
The answer lies again in coming to Christ and seeing something of what He
endured for us at Calvary. Calvary stands eternally as God’s demonstration to
us of total selflessness. It towers above time as the supreme act of self-denial
in a world that is largely selfish and self-indulgent.
It was no small thing that our Lord, who was God in human form, should be
willing to humble Himself, make Himself of no reputation, take upon His
innocent Person our wrongs, pride, and perverseness. All of this He did
without murmuring or complaining.
This is the exact opposite of our usual behavior. It is the difference between
God’s conduct and man’s conduct. It is love in action as opposed to selfishness
in attitude.
It is no wonder, then, that Paul should write to the Christians at Ephesus, “Be
ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God , for
Christ’s sake hath forgiven you” (Eph 4:32
Our Master put it like this: “If your brother wrongs you, go and have it out with
him at once – just between the two of you. If he will listen to you, you have
won him back as your brother (Mt 18:15)
It is in the bright light of understanding something of God’s kindness that we in
turn are able to extend genuine forgiveness and kindness to others. We are
made willing to accept others as they are just as we desire our Father in heaven
to accept us with all our weaknesses. The marvelous thing ,is He does. And
wonder of wonders, we begin to discover that we too can accept and forgive
others with all their faults.
This is to find rest from our own restlessness. It is to be set free from our fault-
finding. It is to know a quietness of spirit not readily aroused by those who
trespass against us. However, if we have truly expressed God’s forgiveness,
then we will have a readiness to forgive others.