When Others Fail Us

Matthew 18:21-35

You’re in a difficult situation, and one by one, friends have fallen away. Now the pain is worse because you’re suffering alone. Why were you deserted? It’s possible friends left because they felt inadequate or couldn’t stand to watch you suffer. Or perhaps some had their own best interests in mind and feared being associated with your situation and potentially falling into similar trouble.

You might wonder how to respond to them. There is only one appropriate biblical response: forgiveness. As forgiven people, we never have the right to withhold pardon from others. (Remember, however, that forgiving does not require you to remain in an abusive situation.)

The apostle Paul is a good example for us to follow. After being alone during his Roman imprisonment, he wrote: “May it not be counted against them” (2 Tim. 4:16). Perhaps Paul remembered that Stephen, while being stoned, cried out, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them!” (Acts 7:60). But it is probable that Paul had an even greater act of forgiveness in mind: Christ’s death and His attitude toward the crucifiers. Jesus prayed, “Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing” (Luke 23:34).

Because God unreservedly forgives us—and all who turn to Him—of sin, we too should be willing to extend forgiveness.

Bible in One Year: Luke 12-13