“Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us”
“The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love. He will not always accuse, nor will He harbor His anger forever; He des not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is His love for those who fear Him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us. As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear Him…” (Psalm 103:8-13)
These words of the Lord’s prayer has been the source of comfort for us, but for many, it has also caused some misunderstanding when it comes to the endless depths of God’s mercy. This confusion can come from the second part of the phrase…”as we forgive those who trespass against us”.
Is the forgiveness that we receive from God dependent upon our forgiveness of others? Does God only forgive us IF we forgive others? Does God forgive like we forgive?
If God’s forgiveness mimicks my forgiveness then I am in serious trouble…the pressure is on. The wonderful mercy that brings us freedom from the bondage of sin now becomes conditional. Instead of relieving me of the burden of sin I am now saddled with pressure to forgive like God forgives…and that is a tall order for anyone.
It is true that God’s forgiveness should have an effect on the way that we forgive others. But, it is not true that God forgives us like we forgive. The Psalm above describes the way that our compassionate Father deals with our sins. He removes our sins and does not treat us as our sins deserve. We can forgive but…very few of us can forget. We can forgive but…many of us keep a score card for future reference. God doesn’t do that. His forgiveness is based on His love for us. It is available to all of us if we come to Him with a repentant heart. I can’t forgive like that anymore than I can love like that. It will take the transforming power of the Holy Spirit and a lifetime of fellowship with Him to even begin to exhibit that kind of mercy.
Jesus is instructing us to pray for forgiveness and to be about forgiving others. So, more accurately, the phrase should read, “Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive others (not “like” we forgive) through your divine power, in order that we may give testimony to your great mercy and grace that is more than anyone can imagine.”
Today experience the forgiveness of God.