In this excerpt from the Gospel for the Mass of Tuesday of the First week of Lent, Jesus reminds us that there is a condition for our bring forgiven for our sins: 

Matthew 6:14-15

“If you forgive men their transgressions,

your heavenly Father will forgive you.

But if you do not forgive men,

neither will your Father forgive your transgressions.”

That is probably the hardest part of the prayer, and the significance of it is, I think, ofter overlooked. We rarely think of the implications. I know that when I remind others of this part and what it means, they get nervous.

If you want forgiveness from God for your sins, you must forgive others who have sinned against you. If you cannot extend to others this mercy, then you shouldn’t expect it from God.

This is related to that other Gospel parable of Jesus where He talks about the guy who owed his master a lot of money and couldn’t pay it back. The master was going to sell him, his wife and children into slavery to get the money he was owed. The guy begged forgiveness and the master relented. Then, upon leaving the man throttled another who owed him much less. This was reported to the guy’s master, who was less than thrilled that his servant did not extend the kindness he himself had received. The fact that Jesus tells the same moral lesson in different ways underlies the importance by which He regards mercy and forgiveness. He is trying to tell us something.

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