10. “For if you forgive men their offenses, your Heavenly Father will also forgive you your offenses” (Mt 6:14).
Although we are made of nothing, Our Father has given us the power to forgive. This power is one of the highest manifestations of His image in us. Yet if we were never offended, we’d have nothing to forgive. We wouldn’t be able to use this power we’ve been given. This would be a big problem for us because we are all offenders ourselves. In this way we can see (although probably only intellectually) that when Our Father allows us to be offended against, it is actually a gift of His Fatherly Providence to us since it allows us to use our God-like power to forgive. Even more importantly, it makes us eligible to receive our Heavenly Father’s forgiveness, which is dependent on the exercise of our power to forgive.
