The Beauty in Forgiveness (Matthew 18:21-22)
By: Betsy St. Amant Haddox Matthew 18:21-22 (ESV) Then Peter came up and said to him, "Lord, how often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?" Jesus said to him, "I do not say to you seven times, but seventy-seven times. Forgiveness can be a tricky thing. After all, we're commanded to do so as believers. While we understand the 'forgive" part, we're not gifted this side of eternity with the "forget" capability. And that can make the forgiving part a lot harder. The disciples weren't quite sure how it all worked, either—hence Peter's discussion with Jesus in Matthew 18. They were still thinking in terms of the law. According to Amos 1:3-13, God forgave His people three times before exacting punishment. In Peter's day, this was a popular passage that the Rabbis taught from on the subject. Peter possibly assumed that by suggesting seven times—more than double the assumed appropriate amount—he would get brownie points with Jesus for being extra gracious. But Jesus had an answer that blew them all away. "Seventy times seven." | 
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