In the same way My heavenly Father will deal with you, if each of you does not forgive his brother’s offenses from the heart.”
This statement is the concluding lesson of the parable Jesus told. He steps away from the metaphor and addresses the listeners directly. Jesus says that God, the righteous and Heavenly Father, will act in the same way toward those who do not live in accordance with forgiveness. Here the demand for forgiveness is proclaimed not as an outward form, but “from the whole heart,” that is, from the depths, sincerely, without artificiality or keeping a reserved offense. This is the deep standard of a forgiving spirit. In spiritual life, forgiving becomes not only a moral obligation, but a test of faith with eternal consequences. The one who does not forgive his brother, in reality rejects the continuation of God’s work of forgiveness within him. Jesus plainly says that the absence of forgiveness hinders salvation.