As Dr. R. Albert Mohler Jr. put it, “We are a nation of debtors. Millions of young people are on the verge of bankruptcy with unpayable credit card debt that compounds more and more interest every month…
While many Americans view debt as an annoyance, in the ancient world, debt was punishable by prison sentence.
Those who could not make good on their payments were incarcerated until they could pay what they owed. This system was meant to put pressure on the families of the incarcerated debtor to find the necessary money to pay their debts to free their loved one from prison.
This is the context in which Jesus teaches us to pray ‘forgive our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.’ Jesus’ use of the word debts is meant to evoke in our mind both a serious offense and a corresponding serious punishment. To be forgiven a debt was no mere trifle, but an act of extravagant mercy.”
Click here for more about The Lord’s Prayer from Pete Greig, Dr. R. Albert Mohler, Jr., W. Phillip Keller, and N.T. Wright
