The Hard Word

Many a soul has slept through the praying of the Lord's Prayer during Sunday morning worship.  Or, perhaps, somewhere between "Our Father'  and "Amen"  we hit the auto pilot button.  It probably just as well because by the time we get deep into the prayer, we have gotten to some of the really hard stuff.  And, what might be characterized as the hard stuff?  "And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors."  (Matthew 6:12)  Of course, Jesus was not talking about anything related to money.  He was talking about sin and broken relationships. 

Most of us would rather pray about other stuff.  Who among us wants God's forgiveness to be connected to our forgiveness of others?  Yet, here in this prayer we are praying is this part which asks Him to extend His mercy to us according to the way we are willing to extend it to someone who is a part of the people circle in which we live.  Is it really possible that God would withhold forgiving us simply because we are not willing or ready to forgive someone whose life is touching our life?  While some might argue that God is going to forgive regardless, the prayer He taught us to pray is a warning that to live with an unforgiving spirit is to tread dangerous ground. 

 

If we are tempted to think that forgiveness is not a serious matter, then we only need pray the words of the prayer until the serious consequences of being negligent sink in our heart.  It would seem that there is no point in seeking forgiveness for our own sins from God until our heart has been changed toward our neighbor.  To expect God to forgive us when we refuse to forgive others is to ask God to make us an exception to the rule which is, of course, one of the most basic definitions of the essence of sin.  Asking God to forgive us when we refuse to be forgiving is expecting God to compromise His integrity which is an unrealistic expectation on our part.