Seventy Times Seven: When Forgiveness Costs More Than Offense
At Stone & Sling, our goal is simple: to point people to Christ through faith-driven witness wear and the truth of Scripture. Every design begins with the Word, and this one is no exception.
Then Peter came to Him and said, “Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Up to seven times?” Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven.”
— Matthew 18:21–22 (NKJV)
Peter thought he was being generous.
Seven times felt excessive. Seven times felt holy. Seven times felt like the outer limit of grace before justice should finally take over. But Jesus wasn’t interested in setting a higher number—He was dismantling the entire system of keeping score.
“Seventy times seven” was not a math problem. It was a heart issue.
Jesus wasn’t commanding 490 acts of forgiveness and then permission to harden your heart on the 491st offense. He was calling His followers to a posture of forgiveness so complete that counting would no longer make sense.
Because forgiveness in the Kingdom of God is not transactional.
It’s transformational.
The Cost We Don’t Talk About
Forgiveness sounds beautiful until it costs you something.
- It costs pride.
- It costs the right to be right.
- It costs the story you’ve been telling yourself about what they deserve.
Sometimes it even costs justice—at least the kind of justice we think we’re owed. That’s why forgiveness feels impossible without Christ.
Left to ourselves, we forgive selectively. We forgive when the apology is convincing enough. We forgive when the wound isn’t too deep. We forgive when the offender understands how badly they hurt us.
But Jesus ties forgiveness to something far heavier: mercy received.
Later in Matthew 18, Jesus tells a parable about a servant forgiven an unpayable debt who then refuses to forgive a small one. The message is sharp and uncomfortable—those who truly grasp the mercy of God cannot remain unforgiving people.
Not because it’s easy.
But because it’s consistent.
Forgiveness Is Not Approval
Forgiving does not mean pretending the wound didn’t happen.
Forgiving does not mean enabling abuse.
Forgiving does not mean reconciliation is automatic.
Forgiveness means releasing the debt.
It means choosing to trust God with justice instead of demanding control over it yourself. It means refusing to let bitterness become a permanent resident in your heart.
Forgiveness is obedience before it is emotion.
And obedience often comes before healing.
Living Marked by Mercy
“Seventy times seven” is not a suggestion for special occasions. It is the daily rhythm of those who follow Christ.
It shows up in marriages when old arguments resurface.
It shows up in churches when people disappoint us.
It shows up in friendships where betrayal leaves scars.
Forgiveness becomes the quiet evidence that we belong to a different Kingdom—one where mercy triumphs over judgment, and grace is never exhausted.
When we forgive repeatedly, visibly, and sincerely, we preach the gospel without opening our mouths.
A Prayer for the Hard Places
Lord,
You know the wounds I carry—the ones I’ve buried deep and the ones that still ache when I think about them. You see the names, the faces, the moments I replay in my mind. Today, I bring them before You.
Teach me to forgive the way You forgive me—fully, freely, and without keeping score. Help me release what I’ve been holding onto, not because it feels good, but because You are good. Guard my heart from bitterness. Heal what I cannot fix. Give me strength to obey You even when forgiveness feels costly.
Make my life a reflection of Your mercy, so that others may see You in the way I love, the way I forgive, and the way I walk in freedom.
In Jesus’ name, Amen.
If this message resonates with you, the Seventy Times Seven design was created as a reminder of Christ’s call to forgive without limits.
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