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

“This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother or sister from your heart.” Matthew 18:32-35

            It’s a good question.  Jesus told this parable of a servant who was shown mercy in his debts and then went out and strong armed others to get their debts paid back to them.  Obviously that servant had no idea what forgiveness was all about.

            If we confess our sins and receive God’s forgiveness of sins, through Jesus Christ on the cross, then we know what forgiveness is all about.  It’s not about me.  It’s about God.

            If I say I’m forgiven and yet don’t forgive others, then did I really ask for and receive forgiveness?  Did I truly understand the weight of my sins?  Maybe not.

            It’s possible, as young Christians, we have a habit of not forgiving others before we were saved then we mature in our understanding of forgiveness and apply it more easily.

            This doesn’t mean that we have to forgive all financial debts or let all our tenants stay in our rentals for free.  That may not be a good business practice.  However, we could show more mercy if someone is late because as a Christian we understand mercy and need mercy because we mess up too.