The Lord's prayer in Matthew 6 reminds us to "forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors." These "debts" are sins toward God that I owe because I have violated His laws. In showing us how to pray, Jesus wanted us to know that we are to forgive always, everytime, no matter what. Why? Because we have been forgiven the greater debt. Our debt toward a pure and holy God is hugely more serious than my fellow man's debt toward me because I'm not pure or holy. The words immediately following the prayer in chapter 6 reiterate the meaning. "For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses." Now, we can know that God does not withdraw our justification if we live in unforgiveness (John 5:24, Romans 8:1, Eph. 1:7), but our feet aren't washed. Remember Peter and his dirty feet? Jesus told Peter he didn't need his entire body washed but only his feet. Peter's dirty feet are symbolic of the daily defilement that grinds into our soul's in this sin stricken body and in this sin stained world. I'd like clean feet I think. We must forgive over and over and over and over and over...
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