Forgive as We Are Forgiven
Month 4: The Teacher (Part 1) · Loving Others
Today's Scripture
Read together: Matthew 6:12, 14-15
12 And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. … 14 For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15 But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive yours.
Memory Verse
“So then, this is how you should pray: ‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name.”— Matthew 6:9 (BSB)
📖 Bible-in-a-Year (optional)
Today's reading: 2 Chronicles 12-14
Reading the whole Bible in a year — do this when you have extra time. (Around Day 117 of 365 — kings rise and fall, and Asa learns to rely on the LORD in battle.)The Heart of It
Of all the lines in the Lord's Prayer, this is the one Jesus circles back to and underlines. We pray, "Forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors." Then, in case we missed it, He adds, "For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive… neither will your Father forgive your trespasses." Why does Jesus tie our forgiving to our being forgiven? It is not because we earn God's mercy by being merciful. We never could. It is because a heart that has truly received forgiveness becomes a forgiving heart. Picture hugging God's mercy with one hand while clutching a grudge in the other. Something has gone wrong. I haven't really let the mercy in.
Forgiving others is hard, especially when the hurt is real. But Jesus isn't asking us to pretend it didn't matter. He isn't asking us to say it was okay. He is asking us to let go of the debt. He wants us to stop demanding payback, the same way God let go of the enormous debt we owed Him. Think of how much you have been forgiven. Every wrong thought, word, and deed, washed away at the cross. Next to that, the wrongs we carry against each other, while painful, are small. So when we forgive a brother who took our toy, a friend who left us out, or someone who really wounded us, we are loving them the way God first loved us. And we are keeping our own hearts soft and free.
Around the Table
God forgives us when we say sorry, so we forgive others too. Holding a grudge is like carrying a heavy rock. Forgiving puts it down!
Let's do it: Pretend to carry a heavy rock. Then drop it and say, "I forgive you, and I feel lighter!"
Jesus says people who have been forgiven a lot should be quick to forgive others. Forgiving doesn't mean it didn't hurt. It means we let it go.
Let's talk: Is there someone you need to forgive? What makes it hard? What might make it easier?
Forgiving others doesn't earn God's mercy. It is proof that we have received it. An unforgiving heart shows the mercy hasn't truly landed.
Let's go deeper: Is there a grudge you've been holding onto? You have been forgiven a huge debt yourself. How does remembering that change how you see it?
💬 Conversation Starter
What's the heaviest thing you've ever had to carry? A grudge is even heavier. And Jesus shows us how to set it down.
🛡️ Defending the Faith
Jesus' teaching on forgiveness is so bold that it points to where it came from. No merely human rulebook naturally tells the person who was wronged to let their offender go free. Only Christianity roots forgiveness in a God who first forgave us at the cross. We commend this hope gently and respectfully ().
For Dad · Go Deeper
This is one of the most sobering lines Jesus ever spoke, and we mustn't soften it. A heart that stays unforgiving raises a real question about whether grace has truly taken root. This is not "salvation by forgiving." We are saved by grace through faith. But Jesus is describing the fruit of a heart that has genuinely been changed, a heart that abides in Him (). For a father, the front line is the home. Think of the apology you brushed off, the resentment toward a relative, the old wound you keep replaying. Your children are learning what forgiveness looks like mostly from watching you. The most powerful thing many dads can do this week is name an offense they've been holding, let it go before God, and, where it is wise, go and make it right.
Draws on: Tim Keller, Forgive: Why Should I and How Can I?.
Let's Pray Together
"Father, thank You for forgiving all our wrongs through Jesus. Make our hearts soft. Help us forgive others, just as You forgave us. Help us let go of every grudge we are holding. In Jesus' name, amen."
I've been forgiven a mountain. So today I'll let go of the small debts others owe me.