How to Pray the Lord's Way: 'Forgive Us Our Debts'
(4th blog post in a series on the Lord’s Prayer)
By Jeff Cranston
When people hurt us, we often adopt the mindset, “To err is human. To forgive is out of the question.” But God calls us to another way. In Matthew 6:12, Jesus prayed, “And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.” This is a difficult part of the Lord’s Prayer Jesus taught us. The church father, Augustine, called this text “a terrible petition.” He pointed out that if you pray these words while harboring an unforgiving spirit, you are actually asking God not to forgive you.
Let’s dive a little deeper and see what this verse means and how we can apply it to our lives.
This prayer involves an action on God’s part.
“And forgive us our debts … “
Our past is buried in the sea of God’s forgiveness and forgetfulness. He does not remember our sin anymore. And that is what makes Christianity absolutely unique.
“Forgive us our debts” is a prayer that requires action on God’s part.
Forgive: The word forgive, defined biblically, means to forsake; to lay aside; to leave; to omit; to send away; to let go free; to pardon. We’re asking God to do that for us.
Debts: A “debt” is something owed. And payment is very strictly due. Now, when we hear this word in our 21st-century ears, what do we automatically think of? Money, right? But that’s not what Jesus is talking about here. And while this word was used as a commercial term for financial debt in the language of the first century, Jesus used it here figuratively for sin. It’s a moral debt … a sin committed.
This part of the prayer links with the part of the prayer in Matthew 6:11, “Give us this day our daily bread … ” Daily bread is a vital thing; our physical needs must be met. We need that bread to sustain us and enable us to go on.
Forgiveness is as much the basis of a day’s duty as bread. If we are to live and serve on earth, we must have bread. But, if we are to live and serve either on earth or elsewhere, we must have forgiveness. Without bread, we would faint and die; without God’s forgiveness, we would faint and die from all godly living and all godly purposes. Until the matter of sin is adjusted, and dealt with, between my heavenly Father and my soul, I can’t go on.
Let me ask you: Do you begin each day with a free spirit, an unburdened soul, running in the way of God’s precepts and commandments? Only the person who stands forgiven by God lives that way. And the only way that forgiveness comes my way is when I request it—forgive us our debts …
And that’s where this part of the prayer requires action on God’s part. This part of the prayer sets me down in my true position before a holy, righteous God. I am His debtor. My sin places me in debt to God; I need His forgiveness. It reminds me that my sin has more to do than with just me; my sin reminds me of my connection to God. And so, Jesus said, ask for His forgiveness. That’s His part in this.
This prayer involves an action on my part.
“… As we also have forgiven our debtors.”
The word “as” introduces the concept that acceptance of forgiveness from God implies that we extend forgiveness to others. In the expression of this prayer is the explosion of forgiveness. I might begin praying the Lord’s Prayer with bitterness in my heart toward someone who hurt me 38 years ago, eight weeks ago, or 10 minutes ago. But as I pray, “Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors,” suddenly the resentment, the bitterness, the ill-will dissipates for me as I meaningfully pray this prayer.
In Matthew 6:14, Jesus said, “For if you forgive others for their transgressions, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. This verse has caused many to trip up over its meaning. Let’s look …
The first word, “for,” is the type of word used to identify the fact that what follows is an explanation of a previous statement, in this case, it’s prior phrase, “as we also have forgiven our debtors.”
Jesus is emphasizing the importance and necessity of forgiving one another when we pray to our Father. Forgiveness from the Father depends on forgiveness dispensed to others. This forgiveness relates to fellowship within the family of God.
Let’s be very clear here: Jesus is NOT talking about the forgiveness which is associated with salvation. If you are a Christ-follower, you are judicially forgiven of all sins, past, present and future. You are forever members of the family of God, but as occurs when family members harbor unforgiveness, the day-to-day experiential relationship is disrupted. Be sure you understand the difference. Jesus is not saying you are in danger of losing your salvation, but you are sure to not experience the joy of your salvation which He desires that you might experience to the full if you harbor unforgiveness in your heart.
Matthew 6:15, says: “But if you do not forgive others, then your Father will not forgive your transgressions.” Non-forgiveness does not imply that the death of Christ for our sins has no effect if we do not forgive others; however, non-forgiveness deeply affects our fellowship with God on a daily basis. Our view of forgiving others is an indication of our view of God’s forgiveness.
“Forgive us our debts … ” The idea of forgiveness is to release other people from their obligation towards us. We grant them freedom from their wrong towards us. Forgiveness is costly. If we retaliate against someone for an offense against us, that is the opposite of forgiveness. It is a vengeful mentality. This makes us judges who dispense whatever judgment we deem necessary.
We have not merely borrowed from God an unpayable debt for which we appeal for bankruptcy protection. All the way back to the Garden of Eden, we have seized a realm and exercised a right that belongs to Him. We have violated God and His precepts and commandments. We have committed a treasonous trespass, and we owe the debt of treason: death (“For the wages of sin is death.” – Romans 6:23).
And what Jesus has done, for those of us who trust Him, is pay that terrible debt completely. And what He’s requiring of us is to forgive others who have occupied a realm and exercised a right that belongs to us, who have violated us—since we have been forgiven a far worse violation.
Since God has forgiven everyone on your list, you can too. This doesn’t mean that you have to put up with continuing sin. It’s possible to forgive the sins of the past and take a stand against the sins of the present.
Don’t wait to forgive until you feel like forgiving. You will never get there. Feelings take time to heal, after the choice to forgive is made. Ephesians 4:32 reminds us: “Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you.”
I want to close this blog post with these challenging words from author, poet, and theologian Thomas Merton: “We do not really know how to forgive until we know what it is to be forgiven. Therefore, we should be glad that we can be forgiven by our brothers. It is our forgiveness of one another that makes the love of Jesus manifest in our lives, for in forgiving we act towards one another as he has acted towards us.”[1]
Jeff Cranston is the lead pastor of LowCountry Community Church in Bluffton, South Carolina.
Reference
[1] Johan Christoph Arnold. Seventy Times Seven. The Plough Publishing House, Farmington, PA., 1997. p. 146.
