Let’s begin today with a few numbers. As of the time of this writing, the U.S. National Debt is $16,658,047,122,041, and by 2017, this number will have jumped at the current rate to over $22 trillion. The U.S. Total Debt is $58,221,519,401,846. Every year, some US citizens make donations to help reduce the over $16 trillion national debt. Since the government began to accept gifts for that purpose in 1961, almost $100 million has been given. That is a lot of money, but it does nothing to scratch the surface of the level of debt in this nation.
How much is $16 trillion? Think about it like this: The population of the United States is about 310 million. If we could collect $53,056 from every man, woman and child alive in the United States today, we could pay off our current debt. Or, how about this: According to United Nations estimates, there are approximately 7 billion people alive in the world today. If we could collect about $2,000 from each of them (every man, woman and child in the world), we’d still be about $2 trillion short. It would take approximately $2,350 per person to cover the entire current debt. Or put another way, scientists have estimated the total number of human beings born since the beginning of time at approximately 106 billion. If we had about $155 for every person ever born, we’d have just enough to pay off our national debt. Or, in terms of real estate, the total value of all residential real estate in the U.S. is estimated at $16.3 trillion. So, if every residential property in the U.S. were sold at current appraised value, the proceeds would just about cover our total current national debt (“How Much”).
The servant in the parable of Matthew 18:21-35 had an enormous debt. It was so great that the king wanted the servant, his wife, his children and all he owned to be sold as payment (vs. 25). He asked for more time and promised to repay all that he owed (vs. 26). Yet, the amount was so huge that there was absolutely no way he could repay the amount owed. However, the king had compassion on him and forgave the debt. The servant, though, was heartless and showed no mercy to someone who owed him but a small fraction of what he had owed the king (vs. 28-30).
Can you pay the personal debt the government said you owe? Back in ancient times, if you couldn’t pay your debts you were either thrown into prison or you and your family would be forced to work in slavery until the debt could be paid. The idea was that the debtor, while sitting in prison, would sell all he owned including any land or that relatives would pay that debt. If not, you spent the rest of your days in the cooler.
The rabbis believed that you should forgive someone only three times. Peter was being nice about it and gave the number of completeness – seven (vs. 21)! Was that enough? Jesus said, “seventy times seven” (vs. 22).
What was Jesus saying in this parable? He was teaching us what it cost God to forgive us of our sins, and He wants us never to forget the importance of forgiving those who are indebted to us. We shouldn’t keep track of how many times we forgive someone. We should always forgive those who are truly repentant for what they have done. When God says, “I forgive,” our way of living should automatically change.
Works Cited
“How Much Is $16.5 Trillion?” The Real Estate Pro. 3 Mar 2013. <https://www.therealestatepro.com/articles/viewArticle.aspx?a=811>.
