Yesterday when I was reading the Bible I came across this story in Matthew 18:
A servant who is in a lot of debt is brought before the king and the king decides he is going to sell the servant, his wife, his children and all he has in order for the debt to be paid. Of course (like any of us would do) the servant falls to the floor and begs for the king to be patient with him, pleading for time to pay his debt. The king is moved with compassion and decides to forgive the servant of all of his debt and let him go. Impressive indeed. This, however, is not so impressive.....
The servant doesn't run home and tell his wife and kids the good news. Apparently, he wasn't feeling the love and instead of being grateful and celebrating this burden being lifted off his shoulders, he leaves to go find a fellow servant that owes him money. He grabs his fellow servant by the throat and says to him: "Pay me what you owe me!" The fellow servant falls to the ground (a familiar scene) and begs for patience and time to pay the debt. Amazingly, the throat gripping servant was in the exact same position less than an hour before, but has obviously forgotten and casts his fellow servant into prison for his unpaid debt. This news gets back to the king and it doesn't go so well for the servant this second time. The servant, who had been given a clean slate, forgot to extend that which had been extended to him and his clean slate was no longer clean. He would have to pay for his debt after all.
How many of us plead to God for patience, compassion, forgiveness and mercy, yet even within the same hour of that plea do not extend what we desire for ourselves, to others? I am amazed at how much work I have yet to do. This story has helped me to recognize that if I do not extend mercy, compassion and forgiveness to others, I should not expect it to be extended to me. It really is quite simple.
