For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you:
God forgives only those who forgive others their wrongs, so holding a wrong against another leaves a person unforgiven. The pardon asked for is measured by the pardon given, for in praying to be forgiven as they forgive, people set the rule by which they are dealt with. Forgiveness must be free, full and from the heart, given in the same manner and to the same extent as is hoped for from God, treating the confessed wrong as though it had never been done. It is not to be withheld until the offender admits the fault, and it is to be repeated as often as the erring repent, without judging the sufficiency of the confession or exacting an equivalent. An unforgiving spirit shuts the heart against divine mercy and cuts off the channel by which it is received, while a forgiving spirit keeps that channel open.
Prayer and Setting
Christ gave the saying as part of His instruction to disciples on prayer to correct praying standing in synagogues and in streets to be seen by men and using vain repetitions after the manner of the scribes and Pharisees. In kindness and mercy He gave instead a short sample prayer framing into words what comprehends every human need, including forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors, with the added condition that the heavenly Father forgives those who forgive men their trespasses. Even that short prayer, offered in sincerity with heart and mind and soul, is heart-service to God and more acceptable than long tedious prayers offered to be heard of men and exalting supposed good works from desire for praise.
It belongs to the Sermon on the Mount, which stood opposed to the doctrines and practices of the self-righteous scribes and Pharisees. Its naming of God as heavenly Father teaches that He relates to people with paternal love rather than as a stern, loveless judge. Forgiving men their trespasses is one of the far-reaching principles of the law of God taught in that sermon. That principle proves that the state of the heart regulates the life and character and that the spirit of the law must be in the heart when the claims of the law are kept, and this must be impressed upon new converts or labor for them will be lost.
It is part of the pure gospel given upon the mount that explains God's holy law and sets the holy standard of loving God with the whole heart and loving one's neighbor. That standard condemns diverting mission means from its true object to ambitious designs, mingling human wisdom with the divine, confusing minds about right and holy business methods, and unjustly acquiring means at another's expense to please lust for gain and power and treat gain as godliness. Those who do such things have not learned this law and do not meet its standard, and must repent and be converted, do works worthy of the Christian name, and receive a cleansing and purging of the soul temple.
The requirement is plainly stated and without flaw, so at the day of judgment no one will have excuse for saying it was not understood. It contains a lesson that must order daily life and enjoins the duty of dedicating all to God. It is to be studied diligently as the truth of the living God, not as a make-believe story, as the foundation of faith and the assurance on which hope of eternal life in the kingdom of heaven is built. Recognizing every gift as coming from God, with gratitude for His goodness filling the heart, surrounds the soul with a heavenly atmosphere.
Conditional Forgiveness Promise
The heavenly Father's forgiveness is conditional upon forgiving the trespasses of others, and those who forgive are promised forgiveness from Him. Forgiving others is joined and connected to receiving forgiveness from God, and this requirement serves to instruct and protect disciples by calling them to reform and escape the evil results of transgression. Only those who forgive will be forgiven, for the condition holds plainly in the other direction that those who refuse to forgive will not be forgiven. Holding the trespasses of others against them leaves a person without the Father's forgiveness and without assurance of it, and that painful uncertainty teaches how serious an unforgiving spirit is. An unforgiving spirit toward fellow erring workers in work and church means the Lord will not forgive, but will deal with a person as that person deals with others.
No one may look indifferently on a humbled soul who confesses sin, but must take the repenting one back with rejoicing, because forgiveness is offered to everyone who says I repent and is sorry for sin. When a brother states that God has forgiven him and asks forgiveness, the answer is to clasp his hand and say, As I hope to be forgiven, I forgive, and no one is placed as judge to unite in discouraging and destroying him. When an offense has been confessed the wronged person is to forgive freely and fully and treat the offender as though the wrong had never been done. God forgives as people forgive, with the mercy extended to others becoming the measure of the mercy asked from Him. People state the condition themselves when they pray to be forgiven as they forgive, and that becomes the rule by which God deals with them.
Since all depend on pardoning mercy every day and every hour, to cherish resentment, bitterness, malice, revenge, animosity, or an unforgiving spirit toward fellow sinners while asking God for pardon shows no true sense of that prayer. Indulging such a spirit is among the most common sins and is attended with most pernicious results, yet these terms are little understood or heeded. If Christians carried out this principle in daily intercourse, a blessed change would be wrought in church and world and would provide the most convincing testimony to genuine Bible religion. Forgiving others keeps open the channel through which divine mercy is received, so even when deeply hurt a person must not cling to grievances or dwell on injuries but pardon as pardon is hoped for from God. An unforgiving and unmerciful spirit shuts and closes the heart against God's mercy and cuts off that channel, while God's love draws people to Him and creates love for fellow human beings.
This forgiveness is not earned by forgiving but is received in the same forgiving spirit, for Christ's death is the ground of forgiveness while repentance and faith are conditions of salvation. It calls for free, willing, and thorough forgiveness of erring brethren, without judging whether their repentance is sincere and without exacting an equivalent for the wrong. One who refuses kindness and forgiveness to others will not receive God's forgiveness.
Forgiving Others Fully
Forgiveness must be free, full, wholehearted and from the heart, offered from a love of forgiving. When an offense has been confessed, the offender is to be treated as though the wrong had never been done, for refusing to forgive leaves the one who refuses without the Father's forgiveness. Those who seek pardon must forgive in the same manner and to the same extent they hope to be forgiven, praying with a forgiving spirit. They must extend the pity and pardon they seek from Christ even when the injury is only supposed.
Though no one deserves pardon, God grants it freely, so forgiveness and affection must not be withheld as though others were unworthy, for hard-heartedness toward one another is not Christ-like. Forgiveness must not be withheld until the one who caused harm admits the wrong, but compassion and forgiveness are required whether or not that person confesses. Even when injury was truly caused, estrangement must be refused.
Forgiveness must be repeated as often as the erring repent, seven times in a day and seventy times seven, just as often as Christ forgives. No one can read the heart, so there must be no judging whether humility, confession, or repentance is sufficient or sincere, and no equivalent exacted for the wrong. God's free forgiveness of all sins without any equivalent from man, for Christ's sake, is the pattern for treating fellow men, while Christ's death is the ground of forgiveness and repentance and faith are conditions of salvation. Final overcoming is not because of personal righteousness but through the righteousness of Christ and the long forbearance, mercy and forgiveness of God, received only by those who cherish kindness, love and a forgiving spirit toward their brethren, and this forgiveness is not earned by forgiving but is received in the same forgiving spirit.
Forgiving means not clinging to grievances, dwelling on injuries, or letting confessed errors and past wrongs return to the mind and fester. Wrongs must not be kept alive by dwelling on them or bringing them up again when the person fails again, for reviving forgiven wrongs shows they were not truly forgiven. After confession and all possible undoing of the past, God receives the confession and speaks pardon that ends the matter, so neither the forgiven should keep afflicting the soul over the past nor the wronged keep letting it afflict the mind, calling it up, or holding it unforgivingly against brethren and children. Forgiveness should be joined with pity and compassion for those who have sinned and are trying to turn from error.
Receiving God's forgiveness for one's own sins should lead to a forgiving spirit toward others. Forgiveness of those who injure and do harm is the fruit of the Spirit's daily work in the heart, and the one who loves God because sins have been forgiven will show that love by forgiving others. Experiencing God's abundant mercy leads to the same compassion, patience, leniency and forgiving love, with Jesus' forgiving love replacing retaliation, because people continually depend on mercy and must not harbor resentment or seek retaliation. Wrongs suffered for Christ and His cause need not be regretted.
Reconciliation and Community Life
No one is set as judge over a humbled soul who confesses wrong, so such a one is never to be met with indifference or joined with the enemy to discourage and destroy him when he asks forgiveness. Christ came to pardon everyone who says I repent and is sorry for sin, and the repenting one is to be taken back with rejoicing. When a brother says God has forgiven him and asks for pardon, the answer is to clasp his hand and say, As I hope to be forgiven, I forgive, for forgiving one who repents reflects the mercy hoped for from God. When a person goes out of the way and acts wickedly and then repents, God pardons the transgressions, so others must forgive him also. Onlookers must not stand by uncaring but must go to the erring brother as a brother, learn the particulars of the case and where the mistakes were made, put themselves in his place, remember that he feels his position keenly, and give him a helping hand. Turning away from those who err with no heart to feel for them brings distress with no knowledge of which way to turn, and brings the unfeeling over the same ground they imposed on their brethren. Gifts and prayers are hindered and unacceptable to God while pride of heart, refusal to confess faults, envy, evil surmising, jealousy, and unremoved wrong impressions remain. If a brother has anything against us, the gift must be left before the altar until reconciliation, with every concession made, every stumbling block removed from his feet, and wrongs healed without delay. This requires confessing faults and removing wrong impressions when at fault, and even when not at fault giving an explanation that removes misunderstanding and leaves no fellow worker to misapprehend. It is the only way to keep God's peace in the heart and to keep union and happiness, and it spares sorrow, alienation, and misunderstanding. Those whom the Lord has forgiven are to show tenderness and sympathy to the straying and wounded rather than joining to condemn or destroy them. Brethren's confessions are to be accepted generously and met with encouragement rather than dwelling on past mistakes and errors. The Holy Spirit leads to recognizing one's own faults, pitying the weakness of others, and forgiving as one wishes to be forgiven, which is Christlike rather than punishing those who reject warnings and reproofs. Confessing wrongs and asking both the injured person and God for forgiveness belongs to this response, for those who seek God's forgiveness must freely forgive people who have wronged them. Parents are to forgive freely children who yield to temptation but repent and recognize their error, just as they hope their heavenly Father will forgive them. Believers are to forgive everyone believed to have injured them, while recognizing their own sins and seeking the Saviour's pardon. Claiming God has forgiven while withholding forgiveness from brethren is inconsistent, so personal grievances are not to be dwelt upon but forgiven, even by one hurt through the same unjust principles he helped bring on others. Differences are to be laid aside by forgiving one another as they wish to be forgiven, and church members apply this by asking pardon from God and from His people for their wrongs. Coming into right relation to God requires putting away all strife for place and position, honor and recognition, as manifestation of unconverted self. Honor is to be sought rightly by obedience to the word of truth, honoring Christ at every step, being content in the place God has assigned, yielding the will to the control of the Holy Spirit, and revealing the fruits of righteousness in words that bless and encourage. There is to be no hasty temper, cruel speech, unkind thought, exalting of one and condemning of another, or elbowing a fellow worker aside to make room for personal plans. When sore because another advances or tempted to complain, the matter is to be taken to the Father in prayer for the impress of His Spirit on mind and character, and answered instead with words of hope, comfort, blessing, and encouragement that make life's battle easier for others. Indulging an unforgiving spirit is one of the most common sins and is attended with most pernicious results, yet these terms are little understood or heeded. People depend on God's pardoning mercy every day and every hour, and they state the condition themselves when they pray to be forgiven as they forgive, with the mercy they extend measuring the mercy they ask as the rule by which God deals with them. To cherish resentment, animosity, revenge, bitterness, and malice toward fellow sinners while bowing to ask pardon shows no true sense of that prayer. If Christians carried out this principle in all daily intercourse, a blessed change would be wrought in the church and in the world, and it would be the most convincing testimony to the reality of genuine Bible religion.
God forgives only those who forgive others their wrongs, so holding a wrong against another leaves a person unforgiven. The pardon asked for is measured by the pardon given, for in praying to be forgiven as they forgive, people set the rule by which they are dealt with. Forgiveness must be free, full and from the heart, given in the same manner and to the same extent as is hoped for from God, treating the confessed wrong as though it had never been done. It is not to be withheld until the offender admits the fault, and it is to be repeated as often as the erring repent, without judging the sufficiency of the confession or exacting an equivalent. An unforgiving spirit shuts the heart against divine mercy and cuts off the channel by which it is received, while a forgiving spirit keeps that channel open.
Prayer and Setting
Christ gave the saying as part of His instruction to disciples on prayer to correct praying standing in synagogues and in streets to be seen by men and using vain repetitions after the manner of the scribes and Pharisees. In kindness and mercy He gave instead a short sample prayer framing into words what comprehends every human need, including forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors, with the added condition that the heavenly Father forgives those who forgive men their trespasses. Even that short prayer, offered in sincerity with heart and mind and soul, is heart-service to God and more acceptable than long tedious prayers offered to be heard of men and exalting supposed good works from desire for praise.
It belongs to the Sermon on the Mount, which stood opposed to the doctrines and practices of the self-righteous scribes and Pharisees. Its naming of God as heavenly Father teaches that He relates to people with paternal love rather than as a stern, loveless judge. Forgiving men their trespasses is one of the far-reaching principles of the law of God taught in that sermon. That principle proves that the state of the heart regulates the life and character and that the spirit of the law must be in the heart when the claims of the law are kept, and this must be impressed upon new converts or labor for them will be lost.
It is part of the pure gospel given upon the mount that explains God's holy law and sets the holy standard of loving God with the whole heart and loving one's neighbor. That standard condemns diverting mission means from its true object to ambitious designs, mingling human wisdom with the divine, confusing minds about right and holy business methods, and unjustly acquiring means at another's expense to please lust for gain and power and treat gain as godliness. Those who do such things have not learned this law and do not meet its standard, and must repent and be converted, do works worthy of the Christian name, and receive a cleansing and purging of the soul temple.
The requirement is plainly stated and without flaw, so at the day of judgment no one will have excuse for saying it was not understood. It contains a lesson that must order daily life and enjoins the duty of dedicating all to God. It is to be studied diligently as the truth of the living God, not as a make-believe story, as the foundation of faith and the assurance on which hope of eternal life in the kingdom of heaven is built. Recognizing every gift as coming from God, with gratitude for His goodness filling the heart, surrounds the soul with a heavenly atmosphere.
Conditional Forgiveness Promise
The heavenly Father's forgiveness is conditional upon forgiving the trespasses of others, and those who forgive are promised forgiveness from Him. Forgiving others is joined and connected to receiving forgiveness from God, and this requirement serves to instruct and protect disciples by calling them to reform and escape the evil results of transgression. Only those who forgive will be forgiven, for the condition holds plainly in the other direction that those who refuse to forgive will not be forgiven. Holding the trespasses of others against them leaves a person without the Father's forgiveness and without assurance of it, and that painful uncertainty teaches how serious an unforgiving spirit is. An unforgiving spirit toward fellow erring workers in work and church means the Lord will not forgive, but will deal with a person as that person deals with others.
No one may look indifferently on a humbled soul who confesses sin, but must take the repenting one back with rejoicing, because forgiveness is offered to everyone who says I repent and is sorry for sin. When a brother states that God has forgiven him and asks forgiveness, the answer is to clasp his hand and say, As I hope to be forgiven, I forgive, and no one is placed as judge to unite in discouraging and destroying him. When an offense has been confessed the wronged person is to forgive freely and fully and treat the offender as though the wrong had never been done. God forgives as people forgive, with the mercy extended to others becoming the measure of the mercy asked from Him. People state the condition themselves when they pray to be forgiven as they forgive, and that becomes the rule by which God deals with them.
Since all depend on pardoning mercy every day and every hour, to cherish resentment, bitterness, malice, revenge, animosity, or an unforgiving spirit toward fellow sinners while asking God for pardon shows no true sense of that prayer. Indulging such a spirit is among the most common sins and is attended with most pernicious results, yet these terms are little understood or heeded. If Christians carried out this principle in daily intercourse, a blessed change would be wrought in church and world and would provide the most convincing testimony to genuine Bible religion. Forgiving others keeps open the channel through which divine mercy is received, so even when deeply hurt a person must not cling to grievances or dwell on injuries but pardon as pardon is hoped for from God. An unforgiving and unmerciful spirit shuts and closes the heart against God's mercy and cuts off that channel, while God's love draws people to Him and creates love for fellow human beings.
This forgiveness is not earned by forgiving but is received in the same forgiving spirit, for Christ's death is the ground of forgiveness while repentance and faith are conditions of salvation. It calls for free, willing, and thorough forgiveness of erring brethren, without judging whether their repentance is sincere and without exacting an equivalent for the wrong. One who refuses kindness and forgiveness to others will not receive God's forgiveness.
Forgiving Others Fully
Forgiveness must be free, full, wholehearted and from the heart, offered from a love of forgiving. When an offense has been confessed, the offender is to be treated as though the wrong had never been done, for refusing to forgive leaves the one who refuses without the Father's forgiveness. Those who seek pardon must forgive in the same manner and to the same extent they hope to be forgiven, praying with a forgiving spirit. They must extend the pity and pardon they seek from Christ even when the injury is only supposed.
Though no one deserves pardon, God grants it freely, so forgiveness and affection must not be withheld as though others were unworthy, for hard-heartedness toward one another is not Christ-like. Forgiveness must not be withheld until the one who caused harm admits the wrong, but compassion and forgiveness are required whether or not that person confesses. Even when injury was truly caused, estrangement must be refused.
Forgiveness must be repeated as often as the erring repent, seven times in a day and seventy times seven, just as often as Christ forgives. No one can read the heart, so there must be no judging whether humility, confession, or repentance is sufficient or sincere, and no equivalent exacted for the wrong. God's free forgiveness of all sins without any equivalent from man, for Christ's sake, is the pattern for treating fellow men, while Christ's death is the ground of forgiveness and repentance and faith are conditions of salvation. Final overcoming is not because of personal righteousness but through the righteousness of Christ and the long forbearance, mercy and forgiveness of God, received only by those who cherish kindness, love and a forgiving spirit toward their brethren, and this forgiveness is not earned by forgiving but is received in the same forgiving spirit.
Forgiving means not clinging to grievances, dwelling on injuries, or letting confessed errors and past wrongs return to the mind and fester. Wrongs must not be kept alive by dwelling on them or bringing them up again when the person fails again, for reviving forgiven wrongs shows they were not truly forgiven. After confession and all possible undoing of the past, God receives the confession and speaks pardon that ends the matter, so neither the forgiven should keep afflicting the soul over the past nor the wronged keep letting it afflict the mind, calling it up, or holding it unforgivingly against brethren and children. Forgiveness should be joined with pity and compassion for those who have sinned and are trying to turn from error.
Receiving God's forgiveness for one's own sins should lead to a forgiving spirit toward others. Forgiveness of those who injure and do harm is the fruit of the Spirit's daily work in the heart, and the one who loves God because sins have been forgiven will show that love by forgiving others. Experiencing God's abundant mercy leads to the same compassion, patience, leniency and forgiving love, with Jesus' forgiving love replacing retaliation, because people continually depend on mercy and must not harbor resentment or seek retaliation. Wrongs suffered for Christ and His cause need not be regretted.
Reconciliation and Community Life
No one is set as judge over a humbled soul who confesses wrong, so such a one is never to be met with indifference or joined with the enemy to discourage and destroy him when he asks forgiveness. Christ came to pardon everyone who says I repent and is sorry for sin, and the repenting one is to be taken back with rejoicing. When a brother says God has forgiven him and asks for pardon, the answer is to clasp his hand and say, As I hope to be forgiven, I forgive, for forgiving one who repents reflects the mercy hoped for from God.
When a person goes out of the way and acts wickedly and then repents, God pardons the transgressions, so others must forgive him also. Onlookers must not stand by uncaring but must go to the erring brother as a brother, learn the particulars of the case and where the mistakes were made, put themselves in his place, remember that he feels his position keenly, and give him a helping hand. Turning away from those who err with no heart to feel for them brings distress with no knowledge of which way to turn, and brings the unfeeling over the same ground they imposed on their brethren.
Gifts and prayers are hindered and unacceptable to God while pride of heart, refusal to confess faults, envy, evil surmising, jealousy, and unremoved wrong impressions remain. If a brother has anything against us, the gift must be left before the altar until reconciliation, with every concession made, every stumbling block removed from his feet, and wrongs healed without delay. This requires confessing faults and removing wrong impressions when at fault, and even when not at fault giving an explanation that removes misunderstanding and leaves no fellow worker to misapprehend. It is the only way to keep God's peace in the heart and to keep union and happiness, and it spares sorrow, alienation, and misunderstanding.
Those whom the Lord has forgiven are to show tenderness and sympathy to the straying and wounded rather than joining to condemn or destroy them. Brethren's confessions are to be accepted generously and met with encouragement rather than dwelling on past mistakes and errors. The Holy Spirit leads to recognizing one's own faults, pitying the weakness of others, and forgiving as one wishes to be forgiven, which is Christlike rather than punishing those who reject warnings and reproofs. Confessing wrongs and asking both the injured person and God for forgiveness belongs to this response, for those who seek God's forgiveness must freely forgive people who have wronged them.
Parents are to forgive freely children who yield to temptation but repent and recognize their error, just as they hope their heavenly Father will forgive them. Believers are to forgive everyone believed to have injured them, while recognizing their own sins and seeking the Saviour's pardon. Claiming God has forgiven while withholding forgiveness from brethren is inconsistent, so personal grievances are not to be dwelt upon but forgiven, even by one hurt through the same unjust principles he helped bring on others. Differences are to be laid aside by forgiving one another as they wish to be forgiven, and church members apply this by asking pardon from God and from His people for their wrongs.
Coming into right relation to God requires putting away all strife for place and position, honor and recognition, as manifestation of unconverted self. Honor is to be sought rightly by obedience to the word of truth, honoring Christ at every step, being content in the place God has assigned, yielding the will to the control of the Holy Spirit, and revealing the fruits of righteousness in words that bless and encourage. There is to be no hasty temper, cruel speech, unkind thought, exalting of one and condemning of another, or elbowing a fellow worker aside to make room for personal plans. When sore because another advances or tempted to complain, the matter is to be taken to the Father in prayer for the impress of His Spirit on mind and character, and answered instead with words of hope, comfort, blessing, and encouragement that make life's battle easier for others.
Indulging an unforgiving spirit is one of the most common sins and is attended with most pernicious results, yet these terms are little understood or heeded. People depend on God's pardoning mercy every day and every hour, and they state the condition themselves when they pray to be forgiven as they forgive, with the mercy they extend measuring the mercy they ask as the rule by which God deals with them. To cherish resentment, animosity, revenge, bitterness, and malice toward fellow sinners while bowing to ask pardon shows no true sense of that prayer. If Christians carried out this principle in all daily intercourse, a blessed change would be wrought in the church and in the world, and it would be the most convincing testimony to the reality of genuine Bible religion.