Grace and Peace Episode 62
Presbyterian Church of Easton
December 5, 2021
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Philippians 1:2
126 Q. What does the fifth petition mean?
A. “Forgive us our debts,as we also have forgiven our debtors” means: Because of Christ’s blood, do not hold against us, poor sinners that we are, any of the sins we do or the evil that constantly clings to us. Forgive us just as we are fully determined, as evidence of your grace in us, to forgive our neighbors.
Matthew 6:9 “This, then, is how you should pray: “‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, 10 your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. 11 Give us today our daily bread. 12 And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
We know that we have been forgiven by God. All of our sins have been washed away. Our sins were paid for by Jesus’ blood on the cross. All of this comes to us by the grace of God. But as forgiven sinners we now have a very important task. We are to forgive those who have sinned against us.
Of course from time to time we Christains do forgive those who have harmed us. But notice that the command to forgive comes just after our request for daily bread. These two things are linked. Just as we have to eat every day so too must we forgive every day. Just as daily bread satisfies our hunger, daily forgiveness reduces our anger and allows us to maintain and restore relationships.
Every day we sit down for three meals. And we pray, thanking God for the blessing of a world filled with such delicious food. What if we prayed for this and prayed for forgiveness for ourselves and others. Tying together our thanks for daily bread and forgiveness with the word “and” is precisely what Jesus is teaching us to do in the Lord’s Prayer. Maybe we could say at each meal, “Lord, thank you for our food and thank you for forgiving us.” Let’s pray.
Heavenly Father, we thank you for the beautiful world that provided the delicious food you have blessed us with today. And, we thank you for forgiving our disobedience. Help us, Lord, to forgive others. This we pray in your glorious name. Amen.
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