Forgive Us Our Debts

Prayer Matters: Praying with Power and Purpose

Part 7: Forgive Us Our Debts

Matthew 6:12

9 “This, then, is how you should pray:

“‘Our Father in heaven,

hallowed be your name,

10 your kingdom come,

your will be done,

    on earth as it is in heaven.

11 Give us today our daily bread.

12 And forgive us our debts,

    as we also have forgiven our debtors.

13 And lead us not into temptation,

    but deliver us from the evil one.’ Matthew 6:9-13

12 And forgive us our debts,

    as we also have forgiven our debtors. Matthew 6:12

In Jesus’ time, to be forgiven a debt was an act of extravagant .

1.This prayer makes clear that we are in need of .

23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. Romans 3:23-24

5 However, to the one who does not work but trusts God who justifies the ungodly, their faith is credited as righteousness. Romans 4:5

21 God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. 2 Corinthians 5:21

“The sum and substance of the gospel is that a holy and righteous God who must claim a full penalty for our sin both demands that penalty and provides for it!” — R. Albert Mohler Jr.

8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9 not by works, so that no one can boast. 10 For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. Ephesians 2:8-10

2. Even though we are , we can approach our Father to seek His .

18 Pride goes before destruction,

    a haughty spirit before a fall. Proverbs 16:18

3. God is willing, and wanting, to !

4  [God] wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth.

1 Timothy 2:4

9 The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. 2 Peter 3:9

4. This petition demonstrates the of .

• When we experience God’s forgiveness, we are fundamentally transformed into .
• people are people.

21 Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?”

22 Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times. Matthew 18:21-22

23 “Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. 24 As he began the settlement, a man who owed him ten thousand bags of gold was brought to him. 25 Since he was not able to pay, the master ordered that he and his wife and his children and all that he had be sold to repay the debt.

26 “At this the servant fell on his knees before him. ‘Be patient with me,’ he begged, ‘and I will pay back everything.’ 27 The servant’s master took pity on him, canceled the debt and let him go.

28 “But when that servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred silver coins. He grabbed him and began to choke him. ‘Pay back what you owe me!’ he demanded.

29 “His fellow servant fell to his knees and begged him, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay it back.’

30 “But he refused. Instead, he went off and had the man thrown into prison until he could pay the debt. 31 When the other servants saw what had happened, they were outraged and went and told their master everything that had happened.

32 “Then the master called the servant in. ‘You wicked servant,’ he said, ‘I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. 33 Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?’ 34 In anger his master handed him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed.

35 “This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother or sister from your heart.” Matthew 18:23-35

So what does Jesus mean when He says, “forgive our debts as we forgive our debtors.” The expectation is clear… forgiveness is a fruit of our own salvation… Because you have been forgiven, you are then willing to forgive others.