How Often Should I Forgive Someone?

"Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Up to seven times?" Matthew 18:21 That's a question most of us have asked God. How many times do I forgive someone who keeps wounding me? How long do I keep trying? Where is the line? When is enough enough? Peter asked the question we all ask. And Jesus answered him quickly and completely outside the limits Peter expected. "I do not say to you up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven." Matthew 18:22 Jesus was not giving a number. He was revealing the heart of God. You may not know this about Jesus- When He said "seventy times seven," He was drawing from the Scriptures He knew by heart. Psalm 103:10-12 says God does not deal with us according to our sins and removes them as far as the east is from the west. Micah says God delights in mercy and casts our sins into the depths of the sea. Micah 7:18-19 Isaiah says though our sins are like scarlet, God makes them white as snow. Isaiah 1:18 Psalm 130 says if God kept score, no one could stand, but with Him there is forgiveness. Psalm 130:3-4 Jesus knew these passages. Jesus lived these passages. Jesus revealed these passages. And He was teaching Peter- and teaching us- that forgiveness is not based on the one who sinned, but on the One who forgives. Not on the size of the offense, but on the size of God's mercy. Not on how many times we have been wronged, but on how many times God has forgiven us. Which is: without limit. If forgiveness feels impossible, you are closer to Jesus than you think. He does His best work where our strength ends. Unlimited forgiveness begins with receiving His mercy again, letting His compassion steady us, and trusting that His grace is greater than the wound we carry. Here is what Jesus wants you to know- He never commands unlimited forgiveness without first giving unlimited mercy. Forgiveness begins not with our willingness, but with His. Not with our strength, but with His mercy. Not with our love, but with His.