Debits
and
Credits
By the Rev. Lee Woofenden
Bridgewater, Massachusetts,
November
9, 2003
Readings
Deuteronomy
15:1-11
Be
generous
with
your
neighbor
At
the
end
of
every
seven
years
you
must
cancel
debts.
This
is
how
it
is
to
be
done:
Every
creditor
shall
cancel
the
loan
made
to
a
neighbor,
not
requiring
payment
from
the
neighbor
or
community
member,
because
the
Lord's
time
for
canceling
debts
has
been
proclaimed.
You
may
require
payment
from
a
foreigner,
but
you
must
cancel
any
debt
that
a
member
of
your
community
owes
you.
However,
there
should
be
no
poor
among
you,
for
in
the
land
the
Lord
your
God
is
giving
you
to
possess
as
your
inheritance,
he
will
richly
bless
you,
if
only
you
fully
obey
the
Lord
your
God,
and
are
careful
to
follow
all
these
commands
I
am
giving
you
today.
For
the
Lord
your
God
will
bless
you
as
he
has
promised,
and
you
will
lend
to
many
nations
but
will
borrow
from
none.
You
will
rule
over
many
nations
but
none
will
rule
over
you.
If
there
is
a
poor
person
among
your
community
members
in
any
of
the
towns
of
the
land
that
the
Lord
your
God
is
giving
you,
do
not
be
hard-hearted
or
tight-fisted
towards
your
needy
neighbor.
Rather
be
open-handed
and
freely
lend
enough
to
meet
the
need,
whatever
it
may
be.
Be
careful
not
to
harbor
this
evil
thought:
"The
seventh
year,
the
year
for
canceling
debts,
is
near,"
so
that
you
do
not
show
ill
will
towards
your
needy
neighbor
and
give
nothing.
Your
neighbor
may
then
appeal
to
the
Lord
against
you,
and
you
will
be
found
guilty
of
sin.
Give
generously,
and
do
so
without
a
grudging
heart;
then
because
of
this
the
Lord
your
God
will
bless
you
in
all
your
work
and
in
everything
you
put
your
hand
to.
There
will
always
be
poor
people
in
the
land.
Therefore
I
command
you
to
be
open-handed
towards
the
members
of
your
community,
and
towards
the
poor
and
needy
in
your
land.
Matthew
18:21-35
The
unmerciful
servant
Then
Peter
came
to
Jesus
and
asked,
"Lord,
how
many
times
shall
I
forgive
my
brother
when
he
sins
against
me?
Up
to
seven
times?"
Jesus
answered,
"I
tell
you,
not
seven
times,
but
seventy
times
seven
times.
"Therefore,
the
kingdom
of
heaven
is
like
a
king
who
wanted
to
settle
accounts
with
his
servants.
As
he
began
the
settlement,
a
man
who
owed
him
ten
thousand
talents
was
brought
to
him.
Since
he
was
not
able
to
pay,
the
master
ordered
that
he
and
his
wife
and
his
children
and
all
that
he
had
be
sold
to
repay
the
debt.
"The
servant
fell
on
his
knees
before
him.
'Be
patient
with
me,'
he
begged,
'and
I
will
pay
back
everything.'
The
servant's
master
took
pity
on
him,
cancelled
the
debt
and
let
him
go.
"But
when
that
servant
went
out,
he
found
one
of
his
fellow-servants
who
owed
him
a
hundred
denarii.
He
grabbed
him
and
began
to
choke
him.
'Pay
back
what
you
owe
me!'
he
demanded.
"His
fellow-servant
fell
to
his
knees
and
begged
him,
'Be
patient
with
me,
and
I
will
pay
you
back.'
"But
he
refused.
Instead,
he
went
off
and
had
the
man
thrown
into
prison
until
he
could
pay
the
debt.
When
the
other
servants
saw
what
had
happened,
they
were
greatly
distressed
and
went
and
told
their
master
everything
that
had
happened.
"Then
the
master
called
the
servant
in.
'You
wicked
servant,'
he
said,
'I
cancelled
all
that
debt
of
yours
because
you
begged
me
to.
Shouldn't
you
have
had
mercy
on
your
fellow-servant
just
as
I
had
on
you?'
In
anger
his
master
turned
him
over
to
the
jailers
to
be
tortured,
until
he
should
pay
back
all
he
owed.
"This
is
how
my
heavenly
Father
will
treat
each
of
you
unless
you
forgive
your
brother
from
your
heart."
Heaven
and
Hell
#357
Rich
and
poor:
literal
or
spiritual?
There
are
various
opinions
about
acceptance
into
heaven.
Some
people
think
that
poor
people
are
accepted
but
not
rich
people;
some
think
that
rich
and
poor
alike
are
accepted;
some
think
that
rich
people
cannot
be
accepted
unless
they
give
up
their
assets
and
become
like
the
poor--and
all
of
them
support
their
opinions
from
the
Bible.
However,
as
far
as
heaven
is
concerned,
people
who
differentiate
between
the
rich
and
the
poor
do
not
understand
the
Bible.
At
heart,
the
Bible
is
spiritual,
though
it
is
material
in
the
letter.
So
if
people
take
the
Bible
only
in
its
literal
meaning
and
not
in
some
spiritual
meaning,
they
go
astray
in
all
kinds
of
ways--especially
regarding
the
rich
and
the
poor.
Sermon
The
kingdom
of
heaven
is
like
a
king
who
wanted
to
settle
accounts
with
his
servants.
(Matthew
18:23)
This
morning
I
am
going
to
talk
about
debits
and
credits.
In
other
words,
I'm
going
to
talk
about
money.
I
will
also
talk
about
that
paper
stuff
that's
in
your
pocket
or
pocketbook.
There
is
a
great
misconception
floating
around
that
money
has
little
or
nothing
to
do
with
religion,
the
Bible,
and
God.
But
in
fact,
one
of
the
Lord's
favorite
topics
was
wealth
and
poverty,
great
treasures
and
small
pittances,
gold
and
silver,
and
little
copper
coins.
More
than
once
he
compares
the
kingdom
of
heaven
to
treasure.
And
in
today's
parable,
he
speaks
of
heaven
as
a
king
settling
his
accounts.
You
don't
have
to
be
an
accountant
to
know
that
account
books
consist
primarily
of
debits
and
credits.
Debits
are
everything
that
goes
out,
or
debts
that
are
(or
must
be)
paid
by
us.
Credits
are
everything
that
comes
in,
or
debts
that
others
pay
(or
owe)
to
us.
Debits
go
on
the
minus
side,
and
credits
on
the
plus
side.
And
even
though
it
doesn't
make
much
sense
in
reality,
at
a
gut
level
we
like
credits,
and
we
don't
like
debits.
In
other
words,
we
think
money
coming
in
is
good,
and
money
going
out
is
bad.
That
is
because
we
tend
to
focus
on
the
money
itself,
and
not
on
its
usefulness.
After
all,
what
is
money?
Today
we
do
not
actually
have
money
in
our
pockets--except
the
coins.
Instead
we
have
"notes,"
or
"bills,"
both
of
which
mean
debts.
In
our
current
monetary
system,
it
is
hard
to
figure
out
exactly
what
debt
is
represented
by
a
"dollar
bill."
However,
the
bills
are
issued
under
the
auspices
of
the
U.S.
government--which
is
trillions
of
dollars
in
debt.
So
the
paper
bills
in
our
pockets
and
pocketbooks
are
essentially
debt
that
we
have
all
agreed
to
use
as
a
medium
of
exchange,
so
that
they
represent
money.
Money
itself
is
a
store,
not
of
debt,
but
of
positive
value.
In
the
earlier
history
of
our
country--and
throughout
the
history
of
civilization--that
store
of
value
was
primarily
gold
and
silver.
These
metals
provide
an
excellent
store
of
value
because
they
are
durable,
easily
carried,
have
intrinsically
useful
qualities,
and
are
sufficiently
plentiful
to
provide
enough
to
go
around,
but
scarce
enough
that
that
the
law
of
supply
and
demand
keeps
their
value
high.
In
material
terms,
gold
and
silver,
and
to
a
lesser
extent
other
useful
metals
such
as
copper
and
iron,
have
real
value
in
themselves,
while
providing
a
convenient
medium
of
exchange.
That
is
why
gold
and
silver
are
the
most
frequently
mentioned,
and
the
most
desirable,
forms
of
money
in
the
Bible.
Gold
and
silver
are
used
in
the
Bible
to
mean
something
valuable.
But
what
is
the
Bible
really
talking
about
when
it
mentions
this
money?
Of
course,
on
the
strictly
literal
level,
when
the
Bible
is
talking
about
money,
it
is
talking
about
what
we
ordinarily
think
of
as
money:
a
material
thing
that
we
use
as
a
store
of
material
value,
with
which
we
can
buy
material
goods
and
services.
But
the
Bible
itself
also
points
to
a
deeper
meaning
of
money.
In
the
Psalms
we
read:
The
ordinances
of
the
Lord
are
sure
and
altogether
righteous.
They
are
more
precious
than
gold,
than
much
pure
gold.
(Psalm
19:9,
10)
And
the
Lord
tells
us:
Do
not
store
up
for
yourselves
treasures
on
earth,
where
moth
and
rust
destroy,
and
where
thieves
break
in
and
steal.
But
store
up
for
yourselves
treasures
in
heaven,
where
moth
and
rust
do
not
destroy,
and
where
thieves
do
not
break
in
and
steal.
For
where
your
treasure
is,
there
your
heart
will
be
also.
(Matthew
6:19,
20)
Now
we
can
begin
to
understand
Swedenborg's
statement
in
our
reading
from
Heaven
and
Hell
about
why
people
are
so
confused
by
the
Bible's
teachings
about
money,
and
about
rich
people
getting
into
heaven.
As
Swedenborg
points
out,
when
the
Bible
talks
about
money--about
gold
and
silver,
treasure,
pearls,
diamonds,
and
so
on--it
is
not
really
concerned
with
material
money,
but
with
spiritual
money.
Spiritual
wealth
is
real
wealth,
whereas
what
we
have
here
on
earth
is
only
a
crude
and
temporary
form
of
that
real
wealth.
We
are
back
to
the
question,
"what
is
money?"
We
can
find
out
what
real,
spiritual
money
is
by
learning
the
spiritual
significance
of
gold
and
silver
in
the
Bible.
Gold,
Swedenborg
tells
us,
corresponds
to
the
goodness
of
love,
while
silver
corresponds
to
our
understanding
of
the
truth--especially
spiritual
truth.
In
other
words,
real
money,
real
wealth,
is
the
only
real
value
in
the
universe:
love
and
truth.
And
these
come
from
God.
All
of
the
"money"
that
we
carry
with
us
physically
is
only
a
material
shadow
of
that
real
wealth,
which
we
carry,
not
in
our
pockets
or
pocketbooks,
but
in
our
hearts
and
minds.
This
can
be
hard
for
people
to
accept
in
this
materialistic
culture.
But
the
old
saying
"you
can't
take
it
with
you"
sums
it
all
up.
When
we
die,
we
will
leave
behind
all
the
"treasures
on
earth"
that
we
may
have
built
up
here.
But
we
will
carry
with
us
all
the
"treasures
in
heaven"--the
love
and
goodness,
the
truth
and
understanding--that
we
build
up
within
and
around
ourselves
while
we
are
here
on
earth.
Swedenborg
expresses
it
this
way
in
an
entry
in
his
diary
of
spiritual
experiences:
Being
promoted
to
honor
and
wealth
in
the
world
are
not
real
gains
or
real
blessings,
both
because
they
seduce
us
and
lead
us
away
from
heaven,
and
because
they
are
temporary
and
thus
nothing
in
eternity.
Therefore,
relatively
speaking,
they
have
no
reality
in
themselves.
The
Lord's
gifts
are
eternal
gifts,
and
he
gives
these
gifts
by
means
of
things
that
lead
us
to
heaven--and
riches
and
honors
do
not
lead
us
to
heaven.
(Spiritual
Experiences
#5710)
To
borrow
a
phrase
from
Paul,
the
wealth
we
possess
materially
here
on
earth
is
only
a
"copy
and
shadow"
of
the
wealth
that
is
in
heaven
(see
Hebrews
8:5).
And
we
are
being
rather
foolish
if
we
work
only
for
temporary
wealth
that
we
know
we
will
eventually
lose,
and
neglect
working
for
eternal
wealth,
which
we
will
continue
to
enjoy
forever.
That
eternal
wealth,
as
I
already
mentioned,
is
God's
love
in
our
hearts,
and
God's
truth
in
our
minds.
With
all
of
this
in
mind,
we
can
begin
to
understand
what
the
Lord
was
talking
about
in
our
parable
from
Matthew--the
parable
of
the
unmerciful
servant.
This
parable
is
prompted
by
a
question
from
Peter:
"Lord,
how
many
times
shall
I
forgive
my
brother
when
he
sins
against
me?
Up
to
seven
times?"
And
the
Lord's
answer
means,
in
essence,
that
there
should
be
no
limit
to
our
forgiveness.
Jesus
answered
Peter,
"I
tell
you,
not
seven
times,
but
seventy
times
seven
times."
He
then
went
on
to
tell
the
parable
of
a
man
who
was
forgiven
a
huge
debt
(millions
of
dollars
in
today's
currency)
by
his
king,
but
who
then
turned
around
and
refused
to
forgive
a
small
debt
(a
few
dollars
in
today's
currency)
to
someone
who
owed
him--and
the
consequences
of
that
man's
lack
of
mercy
when
he
himself
had
been
shown
great
mercy
by
his
master.
As
Jesus
indicates
in
the
final
line
of
the
story,
the
king
in
the
parable
is
none
other
than
God,
our
heavenly
Father.
The
fact
is,
all
of
us
owe
a
huge
debt
to
God.
If
you
have
any
trouble
accepting
this,
here
is
a
simple
demonstration:
That
big
old
universe
out
there,
and
the
earth
that
we
live
on,
the
air
that
we
breathe,
the
sunshine
that
sustains
life
on
earth,
and
all
the
plant
and
animal
life
that
we
depend
on
for
our
sustenance?
God
created
them
all.
It's
simple,
folks.
If
God
hadn't
made
the
universe
and
everything
in
it,
including
us,
we
wouldn't
exist.
So
we
owe
our
very
life--everything
we
have
and
everything
we
are--to
God.
This
is
a
debt
that
we
can
never
repay.
We
simply
don't
have
the
ability
to
create
a
universe
and
give
it
back
to
God
in
payment
for
the
one
God
gave
us.
Every
single
one
of
us
is
in
the
position
of
that
servant
who
owed
the
king
millions
of
dollars.
When
the
Lord
settles
spiritual
accounts
with
us,
we
will
have
to
admit
that
we
simply
cannot
repay
all
that
the
Lord
has
done
for
us.
In
fact,
each
one
of
us
would
have
to
admit
that
not
only
can
we
not
repay
the
Lord,
but
we
have
actually
squandered
much
of
what
the
Lord
has
given
us.
Instead
of
using
all
of
our
abilities
and
all
of
this
world's
goods
to
do
good
to
others
as
the
Lord
has
done
to
us,
we
have
used
much
of
it
to
gain
benefits
for
ourselves,
even
at
the
expense
of
others.
We
humans
have
laid
up
a
lot
more
treasure
here
on
earth
than
we
have
in
heaven.
We
are
all
hopelessly
overdrawn
on
our
spiritual
bank
accounts,
and
we
can
never
catch
up
on
our
own.
If
the
old
Christian
theology
were
correct,
and
God
was
a
God
who
condemns
us,
we
would
all
be
heading
straight
to
hell,
and
all
we
could
do
would
be
to
beg
God's
mercy
and
hope
for
the
best.
But
the
parable
clearly
shows
that
the
old
theology
is
not
correct.
It
shows
that
God
is
not
a
God
who
condemns
us,
but
a
God
who
has
mercy
on
us,
and
forgives
us
our
debts.
When
the
man
who
owed
the
ten
thousand
talents
fell
on
his
knees
and
begged
the
king
to
be
patient,
and
promised
to
pay
it
all
back,
the
king
took
pity
on
him,
cancelled
the
debt,
and
let
him
go.
This
is
how
God
will
treat
us,
also,
if
we
recognize
that
we
are
hopelessly
indebted
to
the
Lord,
and
commit
ourselves
to
at
least
do
what
we
can
to
repay
that
debt.
We'll
get
to
that
in
a
minute.
But
first,
a
word
about
the
nature
of
God's
forgiveness.
The
parable
makes
it
sound
as
if
God's
forgiveness
is
changeable
and
conditional.
First
the
king
demands
repayment
of
the
debt,
then
he
forgives
the
debt,
and
then,
when
he
sees
how
hypocritical
the
servant
is,
he
demands
the
debt
again,
throwing
the
debtor
into
prison.
The
story
gives
the
impression
that
God's
forgiveness
is
conditional
because
when
Jesus
spoke
to
the
people--and
when
the
Lord
speaks
to
us--he
has
to
do
it
in
terms
that
we
will
understand.
So
he
uses
human
character
traits
to
illustrate
divine
ones.
In
this
case,
he
uses
the
character
of
a
king
whose
forgiveness
is
conditional.
In
fact,
it
is
not
the
Lord's
forgiveness
of
us
that
is
conditional.
God
forgives
everyone
"until
seventy
times
seven
times,"
meaning
always,
continually,
forever.
In
the
words
of
Jesus,
"He
causes
his
sun
to
rise
on
the
evil
and
the
good,
and
sends
rain
on
the
righteous
and
the
unrighteous"
(Matthew
5:45).
It
is
our
acceptance
of
God's
forgiveness
that
is
changeable
and
conditional.
The
servant
who
owed
the
ten
thousand
talents
was
happy
to
have
his
debt
forgiven.
But
he
turned
around
and
refused
to
show
the
same
mercy
to
someone
who
owed
him
a
far
smaller
debt.
Spiritually
and
psychologically
speaking,
we
cannot
accept
the
Lord's
forgiveness
when
we
do
not
have
forgiveness
in
our
own
heart.
If
we
are
hard-hearted
and
unforgiving
of
others,
we
simply
will
not
believe
in
our
heart
of
hearts
that
the
Lord
forgives
us
for
the
wrongs
we
think
and
do.
And
so
we
will
laugh
at
the
idea
of
God's
forgiveness,
and
close
our
minds
and
hearts
against
accepting
it.
We
will
spiritually
condemn
ourselves
to
prison.
Like
the
unmerciful
servant,
we
will
find
ourselves
"turned
over
to
the
jailers
to
be
tortured,
until
we
have
paid
back
all
we
owed."
In
other
words,
if
we
refuse
to
learn
love,
mercy,
and
forgiveness
the
easy
way
by
listening
to
the
Lord,
we
will
learn
it
the
hard
way:
through
pain,
struggle,
trial,
and
temptation,
until
through
hard
experience,
our
hearts
soften
and
our
minds
open
to
the
Lord's
truth,
the
Lord's
love,
and
the
Lord's
forgiveness.
The
parable
does
speak
according
to
how
we
see
things.
When
we
are
facing
the
pain
and
struggles
of
this
life,
we
tend
to
blame
it
all
on
God.
When
something
particularly
hard
has
happened,
we
even
say
things
like,
"Why
is
God
doing
this
to
me?!"
But
God
does
not
do
anything
evil
to
us.
God
merely
allows
us
to
experience
the
results
of
our
own
individual
and
collective
actions.
When
those
actions
are
wrong,
they
bring
pain
and
suffering
not
only
on
us,
but
on
those
around
us.
That
is
why
the
Lord
wants
us
to
build
up
our
spiritual
capital.
The
Lord
offers
us
rich
treasures
of
love
and
understanding.
We
do
not
have
to
repay
that
incredible
debt.
We
are
simply
asked
to
show
our
fellow
human
beings
a
tiny
bit
of
the
infinite
love
and
mercy
that
God
has
shown
us.
Amen.
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