The Lord’s Prayer begins with God’s glory. The second half focuses on our needs. These personal petitions begin our bodies: “Give us this day our daily bread.” The remaining petitions address our souls: “And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.”Even though our bodies are addressed first, the priority is our souls. 

The first concern of the soul is stated in Matthew 6:12: “And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven debtors.” The first word of this petition is the conjunction “and,” which connects verse 12 to verse 11: “Give us this day our daily bread.” Forgiveness is to the soul what food is to the body. Our bodies starve when we do not eat. Our souls starve when we do not forgive. Most spiritual problems are rooted in guilt or bitterness. 

• Guilt is the need to receive forgiveness. 
• Bitterness is the need to extend forgiveness. 

The Greek word translated “forgive” means “to send away.” It was used to cancel a debt, discharge an arrow, dismiss a criminal proceeding, divorce a woman, end a meeting, or loose a ship into the sea. This is what forgiveness does. It sends away guilt and bitterness. Christianity is not just about comes into your life when you follow Jesus. It is about what departs from your life when you follow Jesus. Christianity is a life of sending away guilt and bitterness. We are most like beasts when we kill. We are most like men when we judge. We are most like God when we forgive.

Forgiveness is a natural, essential, and beneficial part of the Christian life. We pray for forgiveness as we pray for daily bread. In Matthew 18:21-35, Jesus tells of a servant who wasted his master’s money and owed an incalculable debt. Begging for mercy, the king forgave his debt. But the forgiven servant refused to show mercy to a fellow servant who owed him a relatively small debt. In response, the king repossessed the forgiveness he offered the unmerciful servant. In Matthew 18:35, Jesus concludes: “So also my heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother from the heart.”  

• The servant owed a debt to the king he could never repay. 
• The king forgave the servant’s debt freely and graciously. 
• The forgiveness you receive is tied to the forgiveness you extend. 

Those key facts illustrate the principle Jesus teaches in this fifth petition of the model prayer. There are three fundamental dynamics of Christian forgiveness. 

Forgiveness Needed. 

John Wesley once talked to a man who boasted, “I never forgive.” “Then, sir,” Mr. Wesley replied, “I hope that you never sin.” 

The first reason Christians forgive is because we are always in need of forgiveness. This petition is a prayer confession. We pray “Forgive us our debts” to acknowledge own sinfulness. It describes the nature of sin in graphic terms: debts. In our culture, debt is a way of life for many people. In scripture, debt always involves condemnation and consequences. Because God created us, we are accountable to God. Because God is holy, he demands perfect obedience. When we sin, we put ourselves in debt to God. Sin is failure to pay God what we owe him. Romans 6:23a says: “For the wages of sin is death.” Sin is a costly debt that accumulates painful interests. 

• Where can you hide when you owe heaven’s bank? 
• What payment plan will satisfy heaven’s bank? 
• What court can grant bankruptcy protection from heaven’s bank? 

We are debt-ridden sinners who must come to God with the desperation of a beggar, not the confidence of a banker. Albert Mohler wrote: “This petition reminds us that the Lord’s Prayer is not a casual prayer for the generically religious. This prayer is a gospel prayer. We can only say these words and ask these things of God when we stand on the finished, atoning work of Jesus Christ.” Jesus taught this prayer to his disciples. “Forgive us our debts” is a prayer for the baptized. Only those who can pray, “Our Father in heaven,” can pray, “Forgive us our debts.” The saved, born-again, justified still need to be forgiven. Why do Christians pray, “Forgive us our debts, as we have forgiven our debtors”? 

There are two types of forgiveness God extends: judicial and parental. Judicial forgiveness is the once-and-for-all forgiveness God bestows upon those who trust Christ for salvation. Parental forgiveness is the regular forgiveness God bestows upon those who trust Christ for salvation. Judicial forgiveness is about salvation. Parental forgiveness is about fellowship. Judicial forgiveness establishes a personal relationship with God. Parental forgiveness maintains intimate fellowship with God.

Before we are saved, God is our Judge. We must seek his forgiveness, so we will not be eternally condemned. Once we are saved, God becomes our heavenly Father. We seek his forgiveness to live in his favor. We pray, “Forgive us our debts,” not as criminals who need to meet God, but as children who want to stay on speaking terms with the Father. 

After the Last Supper, Jesus took a towel and basin and washed his disciples’ feet. Peter said, “Lord, are you going to wash my feet?” Jesus answered, “What I am doing, you do not understand now. But you will later.” Peter said, “You are not going to wash my feet.” Jesus said, “If I do not wash your feet, you are not mine.” Peter remained confused. But he said, “Don’t stop at my feet. Wash all of me.” In John 13:10, Jesus said, “The one who has bathed does not need to wash, except for his feet, but is completely clean. And you are clean, but not every one of you.” 

People took a bath and walked in open-toe shoes to their destination. When they arrived, it was customary to wash their feet. Likewise, we have been washed clean by the blood of Jesus. As we travel life’s journey, our feet get dirty. When that happens, we do not need to get saved again. We need our feet washed. We do not need judicial forgiveness. We need parental forgiveness. We pray, “Forgive us our debts, as we have forgiven our debtors.” 

Forgiveness Received. 

This petition does not say, “Teach us to forgive, so that we might be forgiven.” This would leave us in control. From our storehouse of righteousness, we could reach out to those who hurt, wrong, or offend us. Jesus teaches us to ask for forgiveness first. That takes us out of control. It means we are at the mercy of someone else’s account of our lives. Thus, our forgiveness of others begins as a response to our being forgiven. 

• It is not an act of generosity toward those who have offended us. 
• It is an act of gratitude toward our forgiving God. 

If we control the forgiveness we receive, we control the forgiveness we extend. To forgive the way Christ commands, we must first be recipients of grace. 

This petition does not say anything about forgiving ourselves. Christians say, “I believe God has forgiven me. Now I have to forgive myself.” Of the more than 125 direct references to forgiveness in scripture, forgiving ourselves is not mentioned once. That is not a Christian way of thinking or talking. To forgive yourself makes you the God you offended. That is blasphemous. It is another attempt to depend upon our righteousness rather than the grace of God. True forgiveness is a gift from God. We pray, “Forgive us our debts, as we have forgiven our debtors.”

You have two options for dealing with sin. You can lie to God, others, and yourself about your sins. Or you can be honest with God. 1 John 1:9 says, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 2:1 explains: “But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.” We owed a debt we could not pay. At the cross, Jesus paid a debt he did not owe. By the blood and righteousness of Christ, our sin-debt is remitted, canceled, and erased. 

• Swallow your pride. 
• Run to the cross. 
• Receive God’s mercy. 
• Keep short accounts with God. 
• Trust God for free forgiveness. 

People are reluctant to forgive. Psalm 86:5 says, “For you, O Lord, are good and forgiving, abounding in steadfast love to all who call upon you.” People forgive, but don’t forget. Isaiah 45:25 says, “I, I am he who blots out your transgressions for my own sake, and I will not remember your sins.” People forgive minor offenses but refuse to forgive major hurts. Isaiah 1:18 says, “Come now, let us reason together says the Lord: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool.” 

People put stipulations on their forgiveness. Isaiah 55:7 says: “Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the Lord, that he may have compassion on him, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.” People forgive but hold it against you. Psalm 30:5 teaches, “For his anger is but for a moment, and his favor is for a lifetime. Weeping may tarry for the night, but joy comes with the morning.”

As a family was sightseeing in Washington D.C., their son became fascinated with the Washington Monument. He went up to a guard and said, “I want to buy it.” The guard asked, “How much do you have?” The boy reached into his pocket and pulled out a quarter. The guard said, “That’s not enough.” The boy replied, “I thought you would say that.” He pulled out nine more cents. The guard replied, “Let me explain. Thirty-four cents is not enough. Thirty-four million dollars is not enough money because the Washington Monument is not for sale. But if you are an American citizen, the Washington Monument already belongs to you.” Likewise, you do not have enough to pay for God’s forgiveness. God’s forgiveness is not for sale. But if you are a citizen of the kingdom of heaven, forgiveness is already yours. 

Forgiveness Extended. 

This petition contains a confession: we are debtors. It makes a petition: forgive us our debts. It also sets a condition: “Forgive us our debts, as we have forgiven our debtors.” Let me paraphrase this petition: “Father, I need your forgiveness. But I request that you treat me the way I treat those who have wronged me.” Are you aware that this is what you are saying to the Father? Give me what I give them. Grant me the peace I grant others. Let me enjoy whatever tolerance I offer. Did you get that? God will treat you the way you treat others. It is as if God sends you to the market to buy your neighbor’s groceries and says, “What you get your neighbor, get for yourself. For whatever you give him is what you will receive.”

 There are debtors in your life! 

• Your parents should have been more loving. 
• Your children should have been more appreciative. 
• Your mate should have been more faithful. 
• Your friends should have been more supportive. 
• Your church should have been more caring. 

You have debtors. Note the plural terms in this petition. We have debts. We also have debtors. But you must let them off the hook. Because we all tend to sin, you better forgive your debtors. When you come to God with a bitter spirit, unhealed breach, or unsettled quarrel, you are asking God not to forgive you. You must pray, “Forgive us our debts, as we have forgiven our debtors.” This is the only petition with explanatory commentary. In Matthew 6:14-15, Jesus says, “For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.” If you do not forgive others, God will not forgive you. 

Why is the forgiveness we receive equated with the forgiveness we extend? Forgiveness is like a coin: it is a single unit with two sides. The attitude that enables us to accept forgiveness compels us to extend it. If we are unable to forgive others, our hardness will prevent us from receiving God’s forgiveness. Philip Graham Ryken wrote: “Indeed, our ability to forgive is one of the surest signs of our having been forgiven. Those who are truly forgiven, truly forgive.”

It is like being in love. When you give your heart to someone, you open yourself up to the joy and pain love brings. You cannot say, “I want the joy love brings, but no pain.” The one you love can bring incredible joy and cause excruciating pain. It is the same way with forgiveness. When you hold a grudge, nurse your hurts, and vow never to forgive those who have wronged you, you block your own forgiveness. If your heart is to be open to receive forgiveness, it must be open to extend forgiveness.

Joseph’s brothers feared he would get revenge. In Genesis 50:18, Joseph asked, “Am I in the place of God?” You must remember that you are not God. You must forgive, let your debtors off the hook, and leave them in the hands of the Lord. I am not saying it is as easy as “forgive and forget.” Some things you cannot forget. Some things you should not forget. But God is able to take the pain out of your memories.  

We are to hate the sin and love the sinner. This seems impossible until we look in the mirror. You have no problem loving yourself despite the hateful things you do. We minimize our faults but exalt the faults of others. We need to be more appalled by our own sins and more patient with the sins of others. Ephesians 4:32 says, “Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.” The Bible does not say your debtors have to admit their wrongs or apologize for you to forgive. They need to do that for reconciliation, not for forgiveness. All you need to forgive is to know that God in Christ has forgiven you. 

Peter Miller was a pastor in Pennsylvania during the Revolutionary War. There was a man who hated Miller and the church. This man was convicted of treason and sentenced to death. When Miller heard of it, he walked to Philadelphia to ask General George Washington to pardon him. “I’m sorry that I cannot grant your request for your friend,” Washington told him. “Friend!” Miller cried. “That man is the worst enemy I have in the world!” Surprised, Washington asked, “Have you walked sixty miles to save the life of an enemy? That, in my judgment, puts the matter in a different light; I will grant him the pardon for your sake.” Before the execution was to take place that afternoon, Miller showed up with the pardon that spared his enemy’s life.