(490 Times)
Introduction – Mercy Triumphs over Judgment
When Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?” Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy times seven” (Matthew 18:21–22).
Today’s message is titled “Pardon Me.” It is about more than counting offenses; it is about living in the rhythm of God’s pardon toward us and our pardon toward others. Mercy triumphs over judgment (James 2:13). That is the heart of God toward sinners like us.
If it were not for the mercy and compassion of God, where would we be? Lamentations 3:22–23 says, “The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.” We receive mercy; therefore we extend mercy. Jesus said, “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy” (Matthew 5:7).
The question for us is simple but searching: Are we becoming merciful—or are we becoming hard-hearted? Are we quick to forgive, or quick to nurse resentment?
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I. Mercy: The Daily Foundation of Forgiveness
The only way any of us can draw near to God today is by His mercy. If God were not continually pouring out mercy, we would have no fellowship with Him.
Hebrews 4:16 invites us to “come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”
Because mercy is God’s posture toward us, it must become our posture toward others. We do not forgive to earn God’s favor; we forgive because we have received God’s favor.
Ephesians 4:32 says, “Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.” Notice the order: God forgave—therefore we forgive.
Forgiveness is not sentimental weakness. It is moral courage anchored in the cross where Jesus prayed, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do” (Luke 23:34).
When we remember how much mercy God has poured into our own lives, extending mercy to others becomes the most reasonable thing in the world.
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II. The Trap of Offense and the Enemy’s Strategy
Jesus warned that in the last days “many will be offended, and will betray one another, and will hate one another… and because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold” (Matthew 24:10–12). Our adversary knows that “a house divided against itself cannot stand” (Mark 3:25).
So he tempts us with accusations, gossip, slander, fault-finding, rejection, bitterness, impatience, unforgiveness, and lust. Each of these corrodes love and erodes trust until relationships fracture. He delights when families, churches, and friendships splinter under the weight of unresolved grievances.
Peter counsels us, “Resist him, steadfast in the faith” (1 Peter 5:9). One of the most effective ways to resist the devil is at the onset—before an offense takes root. The moment you sense irritation toward someone, treat that moment as spiritual warfare. Do not rehearse the hurt. Do not draft closing arguments in your mind. Do not daydream revenge.
“By beholding we are changed,” so refuse to behold the offense. Behold Christ. Keep short accounts. Choose the way of love, because “above all things have fervent love for one another, for love will cover a multitude of sins” (1 Peter 4:8).
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III. What Forgiveness Is (and Isn’t)
Jesus taught us to pray, “Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors” (Matthew 6:12). When someone wrongs you, a debt is created. Something was taken—time, trust, dignity, reputation, opportunity—and the offender cannot truly pay it back.
Forgiveness is the decision to cancel the debt and release the person to God’s justice. Romans 12:19 reminds us: “Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: ‘It is mine to avenge; I will repay,’ says the Lord.”
When we refuse to forgive, we don’t hurt the other person—we hurt ourselves. Unforgiveness is like drinking poison and expecting the other person to die. It locks us in a prison of bitterness, resentment, and self-pity.
Isaiah 61:1 describes the Messiah’s mission as opening the prison doors to those who are bound. Part of that freedom is the release that comes when we cancel the debts of others.
Forgiveness does not mean excusing sin, ignoring justice, or pretending the wrong never happened. It means we hand over the right of repayment to God, the only perfectly just Judge. Sometimes people cannot restore what they took from us. Even if they wanted to, they could never pay it back.
God says, “I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten” (Joel 2:25). When we release our offenders to Him, He steps in with restoration and healing.
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IV. Releasing the Debt
Think of the parable in Matthew 18:23–35. A servant owed his master ten thousand talents—an impossible debt. The master forgave him entirely. Yet that same servant went and seized a fellow servant who owed him a hundred denarii and refused to forgive. When the master heard, he was furious and delivered the unforgiving servant to the jailers. Jesus concluded, “So also my heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother from your heart.”
The parable reminds us: we are the servant who owed ten thousand talents. God forgave us an unpayable debt. How then can we withhold forgiveness from others for their much smaller debts?
Some people here today carry around lists of old wounds, scorecards of offenses, catalogues of slights. Each one is like a chain dragging behind you.
Forgiveness means cutting the chain. It is releasing the debt and canceling the punishment due.
Paul gives us a real-life example in 2 Timothy 4:16. At his trial, Paul said, “At my first defense, no one came to my support, but everyone deserted me. May it not be held against them.”
Think of it! After years of pouring himself out, Paul was abandoned at the hour of need. Yet instead of nursing resentment, he released them. That’s why he walked in so much power—the grace of God rested on his forgiving heart.
Forgiveness must become a lifestyle. Not a one-time event, not a once-a-year reconciliation, but a daily habit. Jesus said seventy times seven—not for us to keep count, but so that we stop counting altogether. Seven times seventy is a way of saying: forgive as often as it takes.
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V. Power through Obedience and Humility
Philippians 2:5–8 tells us, “Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.”
Forgiveness requires humility. Pride insists on repayment. Pride clings to the right to be offended. Pride demands to prove we are right. But the mind of Christ is humility—laying down our rights in obedience to the Father.
Often what keeps us from forgiving is not justice but pride. We don’t want the other person to think they “got away with it.” But forgiveness is not about letting someone off the hook—it’s about taking ourselves off the hook of bitterness.
God says, “Either I’m going to bring justice, or you are.” If we insist on collecting our own debts, we step into His place. But if we release the debt, He steps in with His perfect timing and power.
Mark 11:22–26 makes it clear: faith and forgiveness are inseparable. Jesus said, “Have faith in God. Truly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says will come to pass, it will be done for him. Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. And whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone, so that your Father also who is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.”
Do you hear that? We cannot speak to mountains in faith while holding grudges in our hearts. Faith works through love (Galatians 5:6). Love keeps no record of wrongs (1 Corinthians 13:5). If we want power in prayer, if we want mountains to move, we must forgive.
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Closing Appeal
So I ask you today: who do you need to forgive? Whose debt do you need to cancel? Who needs to be released from the prison of your bitterness? When you open their prison door, you will find that you step free as well.
Some of you have carried wounds for years. Old betrayals, harsh words, broken promises. Perhaps it was a parent, a spouse, a child, a friend, or even a church leader.
You may say, “But it wasn’t right!” And you’re correct. It wasn’t right. But neither are our sins against God, and yet He forgave us at the cross.
Today the Spirit says: cancel the debt. Release it. Let it go. Do not walk out of here dragging the chains of old offenses. Walk out free. Live in the lifestyle of forgiveness. Be quick to forgive, slow to anger, rich in mercy. Be like your Father in heaven, who forgives seventy times seven.
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Closing Prayer
Lord Jesus, thank You for forgiving us beyond measure—far more than seventy times seven. We release those who have hurt us into Your hands. Cleanse our hearts from bitterness and fill us with Your Spirit. Teach us to live a lifestyle of mercy and love, so that our faith may work through love and our lives may reflect Your glory. Make us champions of forgiveness in our families, in our church, and in our daily walk.
We pray this in Your precious name. Amen.
