The Curate writes…

A phrase from the Lord’s prayer and a verse that follows:

…and forgive us our sins, as we have forgiven those who have sinned against us.
Matthew 6:12

For if you forgive people their offenses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive people their offenses, your Father will not forgive your offenses."
Matthew 6:14-15

When preparing for conflict, military personnel practice particular moves over and over and study tactics particularly carefully. They learn things for different battles and scenarios very carefully, for obvious reasons. Their lives depend on it.


In some ways, the Lord’s Prayer (The Lord’s Way of Life actually) is similar. Live the Jesus way and his kingdom comes. Like military combat practice, it needs to be really lived out and thought about over and over and over. Unlike drudgery, or rote learning though, living the Lord’s way is actually living life to the full.

The context of the Lord’s prayer is in the bigger picture of God who because of his love through and through, he has come to rescue us from destructiveness, to wash us clean, to restore us to relationship with him in his family. He is like the king in the parable of the unforgiving servant (Matthew 18 v 23 onwards). When a servant came for forgiveness, the king forgave him a vast debt. So the servant was then able to live life generously and freely. But he didn’t – he didn’t freely forgive somebody who owed him what was by contrast a measly amount. So the king changed his mind.

The point of the parable is ‘don’t go there!’, ‘don’t live like that’. Don’t just think forgiveness is a nice concept – actually do it!

I think the phrases in the Lord’s prayer are meant to be understood in that kind of way. Because we have already experienced the grace of God, because we already know what its like, because we are in the family and call him Father, even more, Our Father – because of all that, we are actually free to forgive with the same generosity of Father God. The teaching of the scriptures is like that don’t you think?

It needs to be done with great care and attention and without waiting for others to make the first move. Love your enemies, do good to those that persecute you, says the Lord. Personally, I don’t think going to somebody and saying ‘I forgive you’ is the best way. It can so easily be misunderstood or dissolve into further argument. I reckon, actually being forgiving, living forgiving, wanting God’s best for them, doing good to them is the way. Or, if it is us that’s done some wrong (and we are aware of it) then go and ask forgiveness for what we’ve done without mention of anything they may have done.
(There is a place for prayerfully, restoratively correcting folk – but that is a different thing. That is found in Matthew 18 too, a church discipline kind of thing. But this letter is about relationships.)

If there is any difficulty in any of your relationships, be sure that you have God’s heart of forgiveness towards the other person and go and ask forgiveness precisely, carefully, in repentance for just what you have done wrong. Bitterness etc will be uprooted. There’ll be fresh water in the well, the living water will flow.


The Lord make His face to shine upon you and give you his peace.

God Bless.
Dave