By

Kaye Singleton

      “Then came Peter to him, and said, Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Till seven times? Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times seven.” (Matthew 18:21-22 in the King James Version of the Holy Bible).

     I’ve been preparing to speak at a Ladies Conference and ran across this in my Bible reading. This is definitely nothing new, but on that particular day it jumped out at me. Jesus recognized immediately that Peter had a problem, so He gave him a problem to figure out. He said in essence for Peter to do a multiplication problem: 70 x 7 = 490. I think that’s a good number for all of us to remember.

     We remember our: Address, Phone Number, DOB, Social Security Number, and sometimes our Drivers License Number, why not remember another one. Here’s one more for your list 490! Make sure your children remember this number too for they will need this number in life.

     I need help in the area of forgiveness. I want to be like the Lord and be able to forgive generously, but I’ve got the same problem Peter has. It seems like seven times is enough, isn’t it?

     Let me commit to memory the number 490. God has forgiven me way more than that. His Word tells me that when I show mercy and forgive that I will receive mercy and forgiveness.

     You never get too old to learn something new and that’s what happened to me when I began to study this passage and take it to heart. I want to be a member of the 490 Club.