“Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field: but while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way. But when the blade was sprung up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also. So the servants of the householder came and said unto him, Sir, didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? from whence then hath it tares? He said unto them, An enemy hath done this. The servants said unto him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up? But he said, Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn.”
Matthew 13:24-30 KJV
https://bible.com/bible/1/mat.13.24-30.KJV
Forgiveness Matters
One of the most profound Biblical examples of forgiveness is found in a story Jesus told about a king who wanted to settle his debts. One man owed the king a lot of money that he couldn’t repay, but the king had mercy on him and forgave the debt.
Afterward, the forgiven man encountered someone who owed him a small debt. But instead of showing mercy and forgiveness, he sends the man to prison until the debt is repaid. When the king hears about this, he is outraged at the hypocrisy, and has the forgiven man arrested.
If we’re being honest with ourselves, we probably fit into this story somewhere. How often have we chosen not to forgive someone while happily receiving the forgiveness that God offers us?
We’ve all made mistakes. We’ve all rebelled against God. And all wrongdoing is contrary to God’s ways. Some sins have bigger consequences—but every mistake causes us to fall short of God’s perfection.
Forgiveness doesn’t necessarily erase the hurt caused, ...