“Then came Peter to him, and said, Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? till seven times? Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times seven.” Matt. 18:21-22 (Read 21-35)

How often should we forgive a brother or sister who sins against us? This is the question Peter asked of Jesus.

Note Jesus’ answer: “I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times seven.” Jesus did not mean only 490 times, but all the time! Like our Lord, we are always to be “ready to forgive” (Psalm 86:5).

The parable of the unforgiving servant illustrates Jesus’ point to Peter. A certain servant owed the king such a great amount that he would never be able to work off and repay his debt. When the king justly would have sold him and all that he had to recover at least a part of this debt, the servant pleaded for mercy. The king was moved to compassion and forgave the entire debt.

We, like the first servant in this parable, owe to God a greater debt than we can ever repay. Our sins against the LORD God are so great that there is no hope of us ever repaying or making amends for our sins — even thinking that we could do so is foolishness. God’s law demands that we be cast into hell’s eternal prison and suffer there forever the just penalty for our sins. Cf. Rom. 3:9ff.; 6:23a.

There is nothing we can do but plead for mercy!

And God, like the king in Jesus’ parable, is merciful. He sent His only-begotten Son into the world to live a righteous and holy life in our stead and then pay in full the debt of our sins and the sins of all by suffering our just punishment as He was crucified and died upon the cross. God accepted His atoning sacrifice and raised Him up and, in the Gospel, offers to us in Christ mercy instead of judgment, forgiveness instead of eternal damnation. Cf. 1 Cor. 15:3-4; Rom. 3:21ff.; 5:6ff.

When we look to God in faith, seeking His mercy in Christ Jesus and for the sake of Christ’s atoning sacrifice on the cross, God graciously forgives our entire debt of sin. “As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us” (Psalm 103:12).

But then there is the second part of Jesus’ parable. This same servant went out and found a fellow servant who owed him only a very small and insignificant amount in comparison with the huge debt which had been forgiven him. Rather than showing mercy to this servant as he had been shown mercy by his lord, he refused to forgive this small debt and “cast him into prison, till he should pay the debt.”

When the king saw that his compassion and forgiveness had no effect on this unforgiving servant, he was angry and “delivered him to the tormentors, till he should pay all that was due unto him.”

In our earthly lives, others sin against us many times; but this debt of sin, though it may seem great to us, is small and insignificant in comparison with the great debt of sin that the LORD God has forgiven us for Jesus’ sake. As a fruit of our faith, and as a result of God’s great mercy to us in Christ Jesus, we ought also to forgive those who sin against us, even “until seventy times seven” (cf. Eph. 4:32).

It is as Jesus said in His parable: If we refuse to forgive from our hearts those who sin against us, neither will our heavenly Father forgive us; instead, He will cast us into the fires of hell to pay in full the punishment due unto us! Cf. Matt. 6:12,14-15.

Forgive our sins, Lord, we implore, remove from us their burden sore, as we their trespasses forgive who by offenses us do grieve. Thus let us dwell in charity and serve our brother willingly. Amen.

“Our Father, Thou in Heaven Above,” Martin Luther, TLH, Hymn 458, v. 6

[Scripture quotations are from the King James Version of the Bible.]

The following are excerpts from the 1912 Concordia Publishing House publication: A Short Exposition of Dr. Martin Luther’s Small Catechism which was authorized by the Evangelical Lutheran Synodical Conference.

What is Confession?
Confession embraces two parts: one is that we confess our sins; the other, that we receive absolution, or forgiveness, from the confessor, as from God Himself, and in no wise doubt, but firmly believe that by it our sins are forgiven before God in heaven.

What sins should we confess?
Before God we should plead guilty of all sins, even of those which we do not know, as we do in the Lord’s Prayer; but before the confessor, we should confess those sins only which we know and feel in our hearts.

But how is it with confession before the confessor?
No one should indeed be forced or urged to private confession; but in it a Christian obtains the comfort that to him especially absolution is pronounced, and on such occasion he may ask remission of such particular sins as may above others weigh upon his heart and burden his conscience.

What, then, do you believe according to these words?
I believe that when the called ministers of Christ deal with us by His divine command, especially when they exclude manifest and impenitent sinners from the Christian congregation, and, again, when they absolve those who repent of their sins and are willing to amend, this is as valid and certain, in heaven also, as if Christ, our dear Lord, dealt with us Himself.

“Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? by taking heed thereto according to Thy word … I will meditate in Thy precepts, and have respect unto Thy ways.” Psalm 119:9, 15 (Read Psalm 119:9-16)

Are you looking for direction in your life? Do you wonder how you can ever get back on track and going the right way? Psalm 119 tells us how to cleanse our way: “By taking heed thereto according to Thy word.” Jesus says it this way: “Blessed are they that hear the word of God, and keep it!” (Luke 11:28).

God’s Word calls upon every one of us to repent of our selfish and sinful ways and to turn unto the LORD for His mercy and forgiveness in Christ Jesus, and God’s Word also teaches and guides us in the way He would have us live (cf. Psalm 32).

Therefore, we would be wise to read and study the Bible, to meditate on His precepts and to consider and have respect for His ways. We would do well to hide God’s Word in our hearts that we might walk in His ways and not turn aside and sin against Him.

It is indeed sad that so few take the time to do this. What a tragedy to miss out on knowing the LORD and His ways! What a waste to live one’s life and not know or receive the blessings which He offers and gives for the sake of the shed blood of His only begotten Son! How foolish to neglect so great a salvation simply because we will not hear, read and heed God’s very Word to us!

O LORD God, give us the desire to read and study the Bible and learn of You. Grant that we seek after You with our whole heart. And graciously make us “wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus” (2 Tim. 3:15). In Jesus’ name, we pray. Amen.

[Scripture quotations are from the King James Version of the Bible]

In the Service of Holy Communion, after the bread and wine are consecrated and before they are distributed, we sing the Agnus Dei (Lamb of God), which is based on the words of John the Baptist pointing his disciples to Jesus and saying: “Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world” (John 1:29).

We sing these words to remind us that we are about to partake of much more than mere bread and wine, for Christ gives to us in the Sacrament to partake of His very body and blood which were given and shed for us upon the cross for the remission of our sins.

As the ancient believers partook of the sacrificial lamb at the Passover, we partake of Christ, God’s Son in human flesh who was sacrificed for us to make full atonement for all our sins. This holy food Christ wills to give to baptized and confessing believers who rightly examine themselves, are penitent and trust in His name.

In the Agnus Dei, we appeal to Jesus, our Messiah and Savior, for mercy and forgiveness and to grant us the peace of sins forgiven.

O Christ, Thou Lamb of God, that takest away the sin of the world, have mercy upon us!
O Christ, Thou Lamb of God, that takest away the sin of the world, have mercy upon us!
O Christ, Thou Lamb of God, that takest away the sin of the world, grant us Thy peace! Amen.