Ascension Lutheran Church
September 13 - Fifteenth Sunday after Pentecost
Forgiving as the Lord Forgives Us
In settling His accounts with us, our Lord acts not with anger, but with compassion. He does not imprison us as we deserve, but He forgives all our debts and releases us (Matthew 18:2–27). Therefore, our Lord bids each of us to have “mercy on your fellow servant” and “forgive your brother from your heart” (Matthew 18:33, 35). By the Lord’s forgiveness of our sins, we are free to forgive those who sin against us, because He has been handed over to the jailers in our stead and He has paid our entire debt with His lifeblood.
Whether we live or die, we “are the Lord’s” (Romans 14:8). Since we all will “stand before the judgment seat of God,” we are not to despise our brother (Romans 14:10), but gladly forgive him. By the grace of God, our brother also “will be upheld, for the Lord is able to make him stand” (Romans 14:4).
Though we daily sin against each other, the Lord intends “to bring it about that many people should be kept alive” (Genesis 50:20). Jesus speaks kindly by His Gospel and promises: “I will provide for you and your little ones” (Genesis 50:21).