In today's Gospel reading from Matthew 6, Jesus taught his disciples to pray the Our Father, in which we are to ask the Father to forgive our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. The Lord further added, "If you forgive others their transgressions, your heavenly Father will forgive you. But if you do not forgive others, neither will your Father forgive your transgressions." The promise and warning can't be any clearer. We know that to forgive our enemies or those we plain do not like is hard, but forgive we must. It helps to know that forgiving them doesn't mean that you are to become fast friends with them or even like them, although that would be nice. To forgive is to wish that God will also save them. If he comes to you and asks you if he should save them, your ready answer should be a resounding yes, since you want to always please him. If God equates whatever we do for one of our least brothers to doing it for him, then surely holding a grudge against anyone would be the same as holding one against him. I've learned that to be at odds with God ever so slightly can deprive us of inner peace ~ thank God for having made us this way. Only complete obedience to God will ensure our own salvation.
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