He that takes vengeance will suffer vengeance from the Lord

Sirach 27:30-28:7, Rom. 14:7-9, Mt. 18:21-35. On this Twenty Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time Year A, the Church challenges us to put on the cloak of forgiveness, which is an important element of reconciliation for our Christian belief. Who does not get angry sometimes? Who does not occasionally “lose it” whether while driving, at home with children or people living with us or in a meeting or anywhere? We should be aware of how angry, aggressive and abusive our interactions can become. Sirach tells us in the first reading that “wrath and anger are hateful things". Jesus responds to this situation as He answer Peter’s question in today's Gospel, which, as always, is our question also. Peter asks: “Lord, if my brother (or sister) sins against me, how often must I forgive? As many as seven times?”

The number seven is a biblical term for a “perfect number” indicative of completeness. Jesus teaches that seven times puts limit to the act of forgiveness but seventy times seven (70 x 7 = 490), implying “as many as it takes.” In teaching Peter, Jesus teaches us to strive to imitate God in His unending love and compassion as the Psalmist tells us: “The Lord is kind and merciful, slow to anger and rich in compassion.” In the parable, the king calls his servants in order to settle his accounts with them. The first servant owes the king the equivalent of ten billion Naira. This shows the incredible generosity of a king who loaned such an immense sum knowing the servant would have difficulty in repaying it. The servant whose debt was forgiven leaves the king’s presence and meets a fellow servant who owed him the equivalent of ten thousand Naira. This was a pittance in comparison to what he had been forgiven by the king. He refuses to give his fellow servant the time to repay and even tries to choke him before sending him to prison. The message of the parable is fairly obvious. God forgives us over and over again, as we turn to Him for forgiveness, in proportion to our forgiveness to one another. In the second reading, we are told that the life and death of each one of us has its influence on others. Our Christian vocation is, among other things, to witness to God’s forgiveness to ourselves by doing the same for others.

May the Lord help us to forgive others so that we may truly experience the peace God wants for us in this life and in the life to come! Amen!! Stay safe and save life, Jesus loves you, happy Sunday!!!