"Makapila ko gid bala siya patawaron?"

Ebanghelyo subong nga Adlaw (Mateo 18:21-35)

Nagpalapit si Pedro kay Jesus kag nagpamangkot, "Ginoo, kon ang akon utod permi lang makasala sa akon, makapila ko gid bala siya patawaron? Makapito gid bala ka beses?"

Nagsabat si Jesus sa iya, "Indi lang hasta sa pito, kundi hasta sa 77 ka beses.

Kay ang paghari sang Dios pareho sa natabo sa isa ka hari nga nagahusay sang mga utang sang iya mga suluguon.

Samtang nagahusay siya sang ila mga utang, may gindala sa iya nga suluguon nga ang iya utang minilyon.

Tungod nga indi siya makabayad nagsugo ang hari nga ibaligya siya bilang ulipon pati ang iya asawa kag ang iya mga bata. Kag ibaligya man ang tanan niya nga pagkabutang agod mabayaran niya ang iya utang.

Ang ginhimo sang suluguon, nagluhod siya sa hari kag nagpakitluoy nga nagasiling, 'Pasensyaha lang ako anay kay bayaran ko gid ikaw sang tanan!'

Naluoy ang hari sa iya, gani ginpatawad siya kag wala na pagpabayara sang iya utang, kag ginpapauli siya.

"Pagpauli sadto nga suluguon nasugata niya ang kapareho niya nga suluguon nga may utang sa iya nga gamay gid lang. Gindakop niya siya kag ginkuga dayon nga nagasiling, 'Bayari ako sang imo utang!'

Nagluhod sa iya ang iya kapareho nga suluguon nga nagapakitluoy, 'Pasensyaha lang ako anay kay bayaran ko gid ikaw!'

Pero wala gid siya nagpasugot. Ginpapriso gid niya ang suluguon nga ato hasta makabayad.

Pagkakita sadto sang iban pa gid nga mga suluguon naglain ang ila buot, gani nagkadto sila sa ila hari kag ginsugid ang parte sa natabo.

Ginpatawag sang hari ang suluguon kag nagsiling, 'Masyado ka kalain nga suluguon. Ginpatawad ko ikaw sa imo utang sa akon tungod kay nagpakitluoy ka sa akon.

Ngaa bala wala mo pagkaluoyi ang imo kapareho nga suluguon pareho sang akon pagkaluoy sa imo?'

Naakig gid ang hari sa iya. Ginpapriso niya siya kag ginpasilutan hasta mabayaran ang tanan niya nga utang."

Dayon nagsiling si Jesus sa ila, "Amo man ini ang himuon sa inyo sang akon Amay sa langit kon indi kamo magpatawad sa inyo kapareho sa bug-os ninyo nga tagipusuon."

Prayers:

"Lord, make me an instrument of your peace. Where there is hatred let me sow love. Where there is injury let me sow pardon. Where there is doubt let me sow faith. Where there is despair let me give hope. Where there is darkness let me give light. Where there is sadness let me give joy." (Prayer of Saint Francis of Assisi)

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Reflection of the Daily Gospel:

Who doesn't have debts they need to pay off! And who wouldn't be grateful to have someone release them from their debts? But can we really expect mercy and pardon when we owe someone a great deal? The prophet Amos speaks of God forgiving transgression three times, but warns that God may not revoke punishment for the fourth (see Amos 1:3-13; 2:1-6). When Peter posed the question of forgiveness, he characteristically offered an answer he thought Jesus would be pleased with. Why not forgive seven times! How unthinkable for Jesus to counter with the proposition that one must forgive seventy times that. Jesus made it clear that there is no reckonable limit to forgiveness. And he drove the lesson home with a parable about two very different kinds of debts. The first man owed an enormous sum of money – millions in our currency. In Jesus' time this amount was greater than the total revenue of a province – more than it would cost to ransom a king! The man who was forgiven such an incredible debt could not, however bring himself to forgive his neighbor a very small debt which was about one- hundred-thousandth of his own debt. The contrast could not have been greater!

Paul the Apostle tells us that "the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Romans 6:23). There is no way we could repay God the debt we owed him because of our sins and offenses. Only his mercy and pardon could free us from such a debt. There is no offense our neighbor can do to us that can compare with our debt to God! If God has forgiven each of us our debt, which was very great, we, too must forgive others the debt they owe us. Through Jesus' atoning sacrifice for our sins on the cross, we have been forgiven a debt beyond all reckoning. It cost God his very own Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, to ransom us with the price of his blood. Jesus paid the price for us and won for us pardon for our sins and freedom from slavery to our unruly desires and sinful habits. God in his mercy offers us the grace and help of his Holy Spirit so we can love as he loves, pardon as he pardons, and treat others with the same mercy and kindness which he has shown to us. God has made his peace with us. Have you made your peace with God? If we understand God's love and accept it, than we have no other choice but to be merciful towards others as our heavenly Father is merciful towards us. Are you a peacemaker?