⚖️ Mifano ya Biblia — Sehemu ya 10: Mtumwa Asiyesamehe⚖️ Parables of the Bible — Unit 10: The Unforgiving Servant

UtanguliziOrientation

Neno linalotumika mara nyingi zaidi katika Agano Jipya kwa msamaha ni aphesis, ambalo maana yake halisi ni "kuachilia." Mfikirie mtu aliyetafuta hazina maisha yake yote. Siku moja alipata kipande kikubwa cha dhahabu, akaanza kukibeba kwenda nyumbani. Njiani aliteleza akaanguka mtoni. Alikuwa mwogeleaji hodari, lakini ile dhahabu iliendelea kumvuta chini. Mwishowe alikabili uamuzi: aiachilie dhahabu, au azame. Kila Mkristo hatimaye hukabili uamuzi ule ule kuhusu uchungu, hasira, na tamaa ya kulipiza kisasi. Ama tunaviachilia, ama vitatuzamisha.The most common New Testament word for forgiveness is aphesis, which means literally "a letting go." Picture a man who had searched all his life for treasure. One day he found a great bar of gold and started carrying it home. On the way he slipped and fell into a river. He was a strong swimmer, but the gold kept pulling him down. At last he faced a choice: let go of the gold, or drown. Every Christian eventually faces the same choice with bitterness, anger, and the desire for revenge. Either we let go of them, or they will drag us down.

Sehemu hii inatoa somo kamili juu ya mojawapo ya mifano inayochunguza moyo zaidi kuliko yote ambayo Yesu aliwahi kuisimulia, yaani mfano wa mtumwa asiyesamehe (Mathayo 18:21–35). Katika Sehemu ya 6 tuliona msamaha wa Hosea usioweza kufikirika, na katika Sehemu ya 9 tuliona baba akikimbia kumsamehe mwanawe. Hapa Yesu analigeuza swali. Sisi tumesamehewa; je, tutasamehe?This unit gives a full study to one of the most searching parables Jesus ever told, the parable of the unforgiving servant (Matthew 18:21–35). In Unit 6 we saw Hosea's unforgivable forgiveness, and in Unit 9 we saw a father run to forgive his son. Here Jesus turns the question around. We have been forgiven; will we forgive?

I. Mazingira: Msamaha katika Familia ya MunguI. The Setting: Forgiveness in the Family of God

Mathayo 18 wakati mwingine huitwa sura ya kanisa. Yesu anawafundisha wanafunzi wake jinsi ya kuishi pamoja: kujinyenyekeza kama watoto wadogo (18:1–5), kamwe kutomkosesha mmoja wa wadogo hawa (18:6–9), kumtafuta kondoo mmoja anayepotea (18:10–14), na ndugu akikukosea, kumwendea faraghani, kisha pamoja na mashahidi, na mwishowe mbele ya kanisa (18:15–20). Mara baada ya fundisho hili kuhusu kumwonya ndugu anayetenda dhambi, Petro aliuliza swali lililofuata kwa kawaida: "Bwana, ndugu yangu anikosee mara ngapi, nami nimsamehe? Hata mara saba?" (18:21).Matthew 18 is sometimes called the church chapter. Jesus teaches His disciples how to live together: become humble like little children (18:1–5), never cause a little one to stumble (18:6–9), go after the one sheep that wanders (18:10–14), and when a brother sins against you, go to him privately, then with witnesses, and finally before the church (18:15–20). Right after this teaching on correcting a sinning brother, Peter asked the obvious next question: "Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Up to seven times?" (18:21).

Petro alidhani kwamba alikuwa mkarimu. Baadhi ya marabi wa wakati ule walifundisha kwamba mtu asamehewe kosa lile lile hadi mara tatu, lakini si mara ya nne. Petro aliiongeza idadi hiyo mara mbili na kuongeza moja zaidi. Yesu akajibu, "Sikuambii, Hata mara saba, bali, Hata saba mara sabini" (18:22). Kiyunani kinaweza pia kusomwa "mara sabini na saba," na kwa vyovyote vile idadi hiyo inakusudiwa kukomesha kuhesabu kabisa. Wafasiri wengi wanasikia mwangwi wa Mwanzo 4:24, ambapo Lameki alijigamba kwamba ikiwa Kaini atalipiwa kisasi mara saba, yeye atalipiwa mara sabini na saba. Lameki aliongeza kisasi; Yesu anaongeza msamaha. Ufalme unapindua roho ya Lameki.Peter thought he was being generous. Some rabbis of that era taught that a person should be forgiven for the same offense up to three times, but not a fourth. Peter doubled that number and added one for good measure. Jesus answered, "I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven" (18:22). The Greek can also be read "seventy-seven times," and either way the number is meant to end all counting. Many interpreters hear an echo of Genesis 4:24, where Lamech boasted that if Cain would be avenged sevenfold, he would be avenged seventy-sevenfold. Lamech multiplied revenge; Jesus multiplies forgiveness. The kingdom reverses the spirit of Lamech.

Angalia kwamba msamaha na uwajibikaji vinasimama bega kwa bega katika sura hii. Yesu hawaambii wafuasi wake wapuuze dhambi; anawaambia waikabili kwa upendo na waisamehe bila kikomo. Kuonya bila kusamehe huwa ukali, na kusamehe bila kuonya kabisa kunaweza kuwa uzembe. Familia ya Mungu inahitaji vyote viwili.Notice that forgiveness and accountability stand side by side in this chapter. Jesus does not tell His followers to ignore sin; He tells them to confront it lovingly and to forgive it endlessly. Correction without forgiveness becomes harsh, and forgiveness without any correction can become careless. The family of God needs both.

II. Mfano (Mathayo 18:23–35)II. The Parable (Matthew 18:23–35)

Mfalme mmoja alifanya hesabu na watumwa wake, na mmoja wao alikuwa akidaiwa talanta elfu kumi. Talanta ilikuwa kiasi kikubwa sana cha fedha, takriban kile ambacho kibarua angeweza kupata katika miaka kumi na tano au ishirini, na elfu kumi ilikuwa idadi kubwa kabisa katika hesabu ya kawaida ya Kiyunani. Mwanahistoria Yosefo anaripoti kwamba mapato ya kodi ya mwaka mzima kutoka maeneo yote ya Herode yalikuwa takriban talanta mia tisa tu. Mtumwa huyu alidaiwa zaidi ya kodi za miaka kumi za ufalme mzima. Lilikuwa deni ambalo hakuna mtu angeweza kulilipa kamwe. Mfalme aliamuru auzwe pamoja na familia yake, na yule mtumwa akaanguka akimsihi, "Bwana, nivumilie, nami nitakulipa yote" (18:26). Ilikuwa ahadi isiyowezekana. "Bwana wa mtumwa yule akamwonea huruma, akamfungulia, akamsamehe ile deni" (18:27).A king settled accounts with his servants, and one owed him ten thousand talents. A talent was a huge sum, roughly what a laborer could earn in fifteen or twenty years, and ten thousand was the largest number in ordinary Greek counting. The historian Josephus reports that the yearly tax revenue from all of Herod's territories was only about nine hundred talents. This servant owed more than ten years of a whole kingdom's taxes. It was a debt no one could ever repay. The king ordered him sold with his family, and the servant fell down begging, "Master, have patience with me, and I will pay you all" (18:26). It was an impossible promise. "Then the master of that servant was moved with compassion, released him, and forgave him the debt" (18:27).

Mtumwa yule yule alitoka akamkuta mjoli wake aliyekuwa akimdai dinari mia, yaani takriban mshahara wa siku mia. Lilikuwa deni halisi, lakini likilinganishwa na talanta elfu kumi lilikuwa karibu si kitu. "Akamkamata, akamshika koo, akisema, Nilipe unachodaiwa." Mjoli wake alitumia karibu maneno yale yale ambayo yule mtumwa wa kwanza alikuwa ametumia: "Nivumilie, nami nitakulipa." Lakini alikataa, akamtupa gerezani hata atakapolipa. Mfalme aliposikia, alimwita yule mtumwa tena: "Wewe mtumwa mwovu, nilikusamehe deni ile yote, uliponisihi; nawe, je! Haikukupasa kumrehemu mjoli wako, kama mimi nilivyokurehemu wewe?" (18:32–33). Naye akamtia mikononi mwa watesaji. Yesu akahitimisha, "Ndivyo na Baba yangu wa mbinguni atakavyowafanyia ninyi, msipomsamehe kila mtu ndugu yake kwa mioyo yenu" (18:35).That same servant went out and found a fellow servant who owed him a hundred denarii, about a hundred days' wages. It was a real debt, but next to ten thousand talents it was almost nothing. "He laid hands on him and took him by the throat, saying, 'Pay me what you owe!'" The fellow servant used almost the same words the first servant had used: "Have patience with me, and I will pay you all." But he refused and threw the man into prison until he paid. When the king heard, he called the servant back: "You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you begged me. Should you not also have had compassion on your fellow servant, just as I had pity on you?" (18:32–33). And he handed him over to the jailers. Jesus concluded, "So My heavenly Father also will do to you if each of you, from his heart, does not forgive his brother his trespasses" (18:35).

Ujumbe uko wazi. Kwa sababu Mungu ametusamehe deni ambalo tusingeweza kamwe kulilipa, ni lazima tuwasamehe wengine madeni madogo zaidi wanayotudai. Wafasiri wa mapokeo mbalimbali hujadili kama mtumwa huyu anamwakilisha mwamini anayepoteza msamaha wa Mungu au mtu ambaye hakuwahi kuupokea kwa kweli. Wote wanakubaliana juu ya jambo lililo muhimu zaidi: moyo unaokataa kusamehe unaonyesha kwamba haujaielewa, au haujaipokea, rehema ya Mungu.The point is clear. Because God has forgiven us a debt we could never pay, we must forgive the far smaller debts others owe us. Interpreters from different traditions discuss whether this servant pictures a believer who loses God's forgiveness or a person who never truly received it. Both agree on what matters most: a heart that refuses to forgive shows that it has not understood, or has not received, the mercy of God.

III. Matatizo ya Roho IsiyosameheIII. The Problems of the Unforgiving Spirit

1. Inatuzuia kuomba. Ombi pekee la Sala ya Bwana ambalo Yesu alilieleza baadaye ni lile linalohusu msamaha: "Kwa maana mkiwasamehe watu makosa yao, na Baba yenu wa mbinguni atawasamehe ninyi. Bali msipowasamehe watu makosa yao, wala Baba yenu hatawasamehe ninyi makosa yenu" (Mathayo 6:14–15). Yesu pia alisema kwamba tukileta sadaka madhabahuni na kukumbuka kwamba mtu fulani ana neno juu yetu, tunapaswa kwanza kwenda kupatana naye (Mathayo 5:23–24). Uhusiano wetu na Mungu hauwezi kuwa bora kuliko uhusiano wetu na watu wengine. Tunapomkasirikia mtu, tunaweza kuendelea kuzungumza na Mungu, lakini maombi yetu yanaonekana kugonga dari na kurudi. Dwight L. Moody aliwahi kumtembelea mwanamke mmoja ili azungumze naye kuhusu wokovu wake. Hakuweza kumfikia moyoni, kwa hiyo alimwomba wasali pamoja Sala ya Bwana. Walipofika kwenye "utusamehe deni zetu, kama sisi nasi tuwasamehevyo wadeni wetu," alisimama. "Kuna mwanamke mmoja ambaye sitamsamehe kamwe," alisema. Hakukubali kuachilia, na uchungu wake mwenyewe ulifunga mlango wa maombi.1. It keeps us from praying. The only petition of the Lord's Prayer that Jesus explained afterward is the one about forgiveness: "For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses" (Matthew 6:14–15). Jesus also said that if we are bringing a gift to the altar and remember that someone has something against us, we should first go and be reconciled (Matthew 5:23–24). Our relationship with God can be no better than our relationships with other people. When we are angry with someone, we may keep talking to God, but our prayers seem to bounce off the ceiling. Dwight L. Moody once visited a woman to talk with her about her salvation. He could not get through to her, so he asked her to pray the Lord's Prayer with him. When they reached "forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors," she stopped. "There is one woman I never will forgive," she said. She would not let go, and her own bitterness shut the door to prayer.

2. Inatuzuia kupokea rehema. Tunaweza kupata haki au rehema, lakini hatuwezi kupata vyote viwili. Katika mfano, mtumwa alipokea rehema kwa ajili yake mwenyewe na akadai haki kutoka kwa mjoli wake, na mwishowe alipokea haki. "Heri wenye rehema; maana hao watapata rehema" (Mathayo 5:7). "Kwa maana hukumu haina rehema kwake yeye asiyekuwa na rehema" (Yakobo 2:13). Mmisionari mmoja huko New Zealand aliwahi kuongoza ibada ya Meza ya Bwana. Mtu mmoja alikuwa karibu kupiga magoti ghafla akainuka na kutembea hadi upande wa pili wa kanisa. Baada ya muda alirudi akapiga magoti. Baadaye mmisionari alimwuliza kwa nini. Alisema kwamba alipoanza kupiga magoti, alimtambua mtu aliyekuwa kando yake kuwa mkuu wa kabila jirani aliyemuua baba yake, naye alikuwa ameapa kumuua katika nafasi ya kwanza ambayo angeipata. Alitembea mbali ili kuepuka nguvu ya msukumo ule. Kisha, akiwa amesimama upande wa pili wa chumba, alimkumbuka Yule aliyeomba, "Baba, uwasamehe, kwa kuwa hawajui watendalo," naye akaona kwamba angeweza kumsamehe muuaji wa baba yake. Kwa hiyo alirudi akapiga magoti kando yake kwenye Meza ya Bwana.2. It keeps us from receiving mercy. We can have justice or mercy, but we cannot have both. In the parable the servant received mercy for himself and demanded justice from his fellow servant, and in the end he received justice. "Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy" (Matthew 5:7). "For judgment is without mercy to the one who has shown no mercy" (James 2:13). A missionary in New Zealand was once leading a communion service. One man was about to kneel when suddenly he got up and walked to the other side of the church. After a while he returned and knelt. Later the missionary asked him why. He said that as he began to kneel, he recognized the man next to him as the chief of a neighboring tribe who had murdered his father, and he had sworn to kill him at the first opportunity. He walked away to escape the power of that impulse. Then, standing at the other end of the room, he remembered the One who prayed, "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do," and he found that he could forgive his father's murderer. So he came back and knelt beside him at the Lord's Table.

3. Inatuzuia kuwa na amani. Madaktari wamechunguza kwa muda mrefu kwamba hasira na uhasama vinavyoshikiliwa kwa muda huathiri moyo na sehemu nyingine za mwili. Tunapokataa kusamehe, tunampa mtu mwingine mamlaka juu ya afya yetu, mawazo yetu, na furaha yetu. Aina mbaya kabisa ya jeraha ni la kutobolewa, kwa sababu vijidudu husukumwa ndani kabisa; nje kunaweza kupona huku ndani kukiendelea kuoza. Uchungu hufanya kazi vivyo hivyo. Kwaya inaweza kuwa na upatanifu tu ikiwa kila sauti inaimba sehemu yake kwa kupatana na nyingine, na uchungu huvuruga upatanifu wa kila uhusiano maishani mwetu. Je, umeona kwamba watu walio wagumu zaidi kuwasamehe kwa kawaida ni wale tuliowaamini zaidi na wale tunaowapenda kidogo zaidi? Petro, mmoja wa rafiki wa karibu sana wa Yesu, alimkana mara tatu. Hata hivyo Yesu alimsamehe kabisa. Hakuwahi kusema, "Nilikuambia," naye alimrejesha Petro kando ya Bahari ya Galilaya (Yohana 21:15–19).3. It keeps us from having peace. Doctors have long observed that anger and hostility held over time take a toll on the heart and the rest of the body. When we refuse to forgive, we give the other person control over our health, our thoughts, and our happiness. The worst kind of wound is a puncture, because the germs are pushed deep inside; the outside may heal while the inside stays infected. Bitterness works the same way. A choir can only be in harmony if each voice sings its own part in tune with the others, and bitterness throws every relationship in our lives out of harmony. Have you noticed that the hardest people to forgive are usually those we trusted most and those we like least? Peter, one of Jesus' closest friends, denied Him three times. Yet Jesus forgave him completely. He never said, "I told you so," and He restored Peter by the Sea of Galilee (John 21:15–19).

Msamaha unaweza kumshinda adui. Askari mmoja kijana Mkristo aliendelea na desturi yake ya kupiga magoti kuomba kando ya kitanda chake usiku, ingawa wenzake katika kambi walimdhihaki kwa ajili ya jambo hilo. Usiku mmoja, baada ya safari ndefu ya miguu, mmoja wao alimtupia buti zake zenye matope, zikampiga kila upande wa kichwa. Yule Mkristo hakusema neno. Aliziokota zile buti, akaziweka kando ya kitanda chake, akaendelea kuomba. Asubuhi iliyofuata yule askari mwingine alikuta buti zake kando ya kitanda chake mwenyewe, zimesafishwa na kung'arishwa. Jambo hilo lilimgusa sana hata akaomba msamaha, na baada ya muda akawa Mkristo. Abraham Lincoln aliwahi kukosolewa kwa kuwazungumzia adui zake kwa wema badala ya kutafuta kuwaangamiza. Alijibu, "Je, siwaangamizi adui zangu ninapowafanya kuwa rafiki zangu?"Forgiveness can overcome an enemy. A young Christian soldier kept his habit of kneeling to pray beside his bed at night, though the men in his barracks mocked him for it. One night, after a long march, one of them threw his muddy boots at him, hitting him on each side of the head. The Christian said nothing. He picked up the boots, set them beside his bed, and went on praying. The next morning the other soldier found his boots beside his own bed, cleaned and polished. It so affected him that he asked for forgiveness, and in time he became a Christian. Abraham Lincoln was once criticized for speaking kindly of his enemies instead of seeking to destroy them. He answered, "Do I not destroy my enemies when I make them my friends?"

IV. Msamaha Ni Nini na Si NiniIV. What Forgiveness Is and Is Not

Neno la uangalizi wa kichungaji linahitajika hapa. Kusamehe maana yake ni kuachilia deni na kuacha haki ya kulipiza kisasi. "Wapenzi, msijilipizie kisasi, bali ipisheni ghadhabu ya Mungu; maana imeandikwa, Kisasi ni juu yangu mimi; mimi nitalipa, anena Bwana" (Warumi 12:19). Tunaposamehe, hatutangazi kwamba lile kosa halikuwa na maana. Tunamkabidhi shauri lile Hakimu atakayetenda haki.A word of pastoral care is needed here. Forgiveness means releasing the debt and giving up the right to revenge. "Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, 'Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,' says the Lord" (Romans 12:19). When we forgive, we do not declare that the wrong did not matter. We hand the case over to the Judge who will do right.

Kusamehe si kujifanya kwamba kosa halikutokea, na si sikuzote sawa na upatanisho. Yesu alisema, "Ndugu yako akikosa, mwonye; akitubu, msamehe. Na kama akikukosa mara saba kwa siku moja, akarejea kwako mara saba, akisema, Nimetubu; msamehe" (Luka 17:3–4). Wafasiri hujadili jinsi hili linavyohusiana na Mathayo 18. Wengi hulieleza hivi: moyo lazima uachilie uchungu na kisasi iwe mkosaji atatubu au hatatubu kamwe, kama Yesu alivyofanya msalabani; lakini upatanisho kamili, yaani kurejeshwa kwa uhusiano wa kuaminiana, unahitaji mkosaji atubu na unaweza kuchukua muda. Pale ambapo kumekuwa na unyanyasaji au hatari, kusamehe kutoka moyoni hakudai mtu arudi mahali pa madhara. Mungu anasema, "dhambi zao sitazikumbuka tena" (Waebrania 8:12). Kwetu sisi, kusamehe maana yake ni kuchagua kutoendelea kumshikilia mtu kwa kosa lile, hata kumbukumbu ikiendelea kubaki.Forgiveness is not pretending that a wrong did not happen, and it is not always the same as reconciliation. Jesus said, "If your brother sins against you, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him. And if he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times in a day returns to you, saying, 'I repent,' you shall forgive him" (Luke 17:3–4). Interpreters discuss how this relates to Matthew 18. Many explain it this way: the heart must release bitterness and revenge whether or not the offender ever repents, as Jesus did on the cross; but full reconciliation, the restoring of a relationship of trust, requires the offender to repent and may take time. Where there has been abuse or danger, forgiving from the heart does not require returning to harm's way. God says, "I will remember their sins no more" (Hebrews 8:12). For us, forgiving means choosing not to keep holding the wrong against the person, even when the memory remains.

Yusufu ndiye picha kuu ya msamaha katika Agano la Kale. Ndugu zake walimwuza utumwani, na miaka mingi baadaye, waliposimama mbele yake kwa hofu, alisema, "Ninyi mlikusudia mabaya juu yangu, bali Mungu aliyakusudia mema" (Mwanzo 50:20). Msamaha haukani uovu. Unaona mkono wa Mungu juu yake.Joseph is the great Old Testament picture of forgiveness. His brothers sold him into slavery, and years later, when they stood before him in fear, he said, "You meant evil against me; but God meant it for good" (Genesis 50:20). Forgiveness does not deny the evil. It sees God's hand above it.

Corrie ten Boom, ambaye familia yake ya Kiholanzi ilipelekwa kwenye kambi za mateso za Wanazi kwa kuwaficha Wayahudi, na ambaye dada yake Betsie alifia Ravensbrück, alisimulia jinsi alivyohubiri katika kanisa moja huko Munich baada ya vita. Ibada ilipoisha, mtu mmoja alikuja mbele ambaye alimtambua kuwa mmoja wa walinzi wakatili wa kambi ile. Alisema kwamba amekuwa Mkristo na anajua Mungu amemsamehe, naye akanyoosha mkono wake akauliza, "Je, utanisamehe?" Alisimama pale bila kuweza kusogea, moyo wake ukiwa baridi. Aliomba kimya kimya apate msaada, na alipounyoosha mkono wake kama mashine, aliandika baadaye, alihisi joto likimtiririka, naye akaweza kusema, "Nakusamehe, ndugu, kwa moyo wangu wote." Alijifunza kwamba upendo na msamaha ambao Yesu anaviamuru, Yeye pia huvitoa. Hatuwezi kusamehe makosa makubwa kwa nguvu zetu wenyewe. Tunasamehe kwa upendo ule ule ambao Mungu ametusamehe nao.Corrie ten Boom, whose Dutch family was sent to Nazi concentration camps for hiding Jews, and whose sister Betsie died at Ravensbrück, told of speaking in a church in Munich after the war. When the service ended, a man came forward whom she recognized as one of the cruel guards from the camp. He said he had become a Christian and knew God had forgiven him, and he held out his hand and asked, "Will you forgive me?" She stood there unable to move, her heart cold. She prayed silently for help, and as she mechanically put out her hand, she later wrote, she felt a warmth flow through her, and she was able to say, "I forgive you, brother, with all my heart." She learned that the love and forgiveness Jesus commands, He also supplies. We cannot forgive great wrongs in our own strength. We forgive with the love by which God has forgiven us.

V. Kuhubiri Mfano wa Mtumwa AsiyesameheV. Preaching the Unforgiving Servant

Mfano huu unahubirika kwa kawaida katika hatua tatu: deni lililosamehewa (18:23–27), deni lililodaiwa (18:28–30), na deni lililorudishwa (18:31–35). Waache wasikilizaji waisikie ukubwa wa deni la kwanza kabla hawajaona udogo wa la pili; nguvu yote ya hadithi iko katika tofauti hiyo. Mahubiri ya pili yanaweza kufuata matatizo matatu ya roho isiyosamehe: inatuzuia kuomba, kupokea rehema, na kuwa na amani. Kwa njia yoyote ile, malizia kwa mwaliko wa kupokea msamaha wa Mungu na kuachilia uchungu dhidi ya mtu mwingine. Uwe mchungaji: baadhi ya watu katika kusanyiko wana majeraha makubwa, nao wanahitaji kusikia msamaha ni nini na si nini, na kwamba Kristo hutoa upendo ule anaouamuru.The parable preaches naturally in three movements: the debt forgiven (18:23–27), the debt demanded (18:28–30), and the debt returned (18:31–35). Let the listeners feel the size of the first debt before they see the smallness of the second; the whole power of the story lies in the contrast. A second sermon can follow the three problems of the unforgiving spirit: it keeps us from praying, from receiving mercy, and from having peace. Either way, close with an invitation to receive God's forgiveness and to let go of bitterness toward someone else. Be pastoral: some in the congregation carry deep wounds, and they need to hear what forgiveness is and what it is not, and that Christ supplies the love He commands.

HitimishoClosing

Moto unahitaji vitu vitatu ili uwake: kuni, oksijeni, na joto. Ondoa kimojawapo, na moto unazimika. Uchungu huwaka vivyo hivyo. Hula kumbukumbu, hupumua hewa ya kinyongo, na huendelea kuwa wa moto kwa kulirudia rudia lile kosa. Msamaha huondoa kuni. Neno la msamaha maana yake ni "kuachilia." Kama yule mtu mtoni na kipande chake cha dhahabu, tunaweza kuushikilia uchungu wetu na kuzama, au tunaweza kuachilia na kuishi. Mungu aliyetusamehe deni la talanta elfu kumi yuko tayari kutusaidia kuwasamehe wengine dinari mia wanazotudai. Je, utaachilia?A fire needs three things to burn: fuel, oxygen, and heat. Take away any one of them, and the fire goes out. Bitterness burns the same way. It feeds on memories, breathes the air of resentment, and is kept hot by rehearsing the wrong. Forgiveness takes away the fuel. The word for forgiveness means "letting go." Like the man in the river with the bar of gold, we can hold on to our bitterness and drown, or we can let go and live. The God who forgave us a debt of ten thousand talents is ready to help us forgive the hundred denarii others owe us. Will you let go?

— Dkt. Wayne Cook
Seminari ya Teolojia ya Chapala— Dr. Wayne Cook
Chapala Theological Seminary

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