Do Not Harden Your Heart: Listen to God and Learn to Forgive

The readings from Ezekiel 12:1–12, Psalm 77(78):56–59, 61–62, and Matthew 18:21–19:1 teach us about obedience, pride, mercy, and forgiveness. They remind us that God wants to change our hearts, but we must be willing to listen to Him.

Sometimes People Refuse to Listen to God

In Ezekiel 12:1–12, God tells the prophet Ezekiel that he is living among rebellious people. They have eyes to see and ears to hear, but they still refuse to understand what God is telling them.

God asks Ezekiel to do something unusual. He packs his belongings and acts as though he is going into exile. His actions are meant to be a sign to the people of what will happen because they continue to turn away from God.

We may also meet people who do not understand why we follow God. Sometimes they may ignore us or think that the way we live our faith is strange.

We should not become discouraged. Instead, we should continue trying to live according to God's commandments and set a good example. We cannot force another person to believe in God or change their heart. We can pray for them, love them, and allow God to work in their lives.

Pride Can Make Us Forget God

In Psalm 77(78):56–59, 61–62, the Israelites rebel against God even after experiencing His goodness.

We can sometimes behave in a similar way.

We pray for something and expect God to answer immediately. When the answer does not come in the way or at the time we expect, we may become frustrated. We may start thinking that God is not listening to us.

Sometimes pride can also make us want everything our own way.

But God sees much more than we do. His answer may be yes, no, or not yet. We are called to trust Him even when we do not understand what He is doing.

Everything we have ultimately comes from God. Instead of demanding that God follow our plans, we should ask Him to help us follow His will.

Forgive Because God Has Forgiven You

In Matthew 18:21–19:1, Peter asks Jesus how many times he should forgive someone who sins against him.

Peter asks whether seven times is enough. Jesus answers:

“Not seven times, but, I tell you, seventy-seven times.”

Jesus is teaching us that forgiveness should not be something we keep count of.

He then tells the parable of a servant who owes his master a huge debt. The master has mercy on him and forgives the debt. But afterwards, that same servant refuses to show mercy to another person who owes him much less.

Jesus uses this story to teach us something very important: God has shown us great mercy, so we should also show mercy to others.

This can be very difficult.

When someone hurts us deeply, we may say, “I can never forgive this person.” We may continue remembering what happened and feeling the pain.

But forgiveness does not necessarily mean forgetting what happened. It also does not mean pretending that what someone did was acceptable. We may sometimes need healthy boundaries to prevent someone from hurting us again.

Forgiveness means giving up hatred and revenge and placing the person and the situation into God's hands.

Sometimes we cannot do this through our own strength. We need God's grace.

We can simply pray:

“Lord, I am hurt and I am struggling to forgive. Please give me the grace to forgive this person as You have forgiven me.”

A Heart That Is Open to God

These three readings have something important in common.

Ezekiel shows us people whose hearts have become stubborn toward God. The Psalm shows us how easily people can forget God's goodness and choose their own way. Jesus teaches us that our hearts can also become hardened when we receive mercy but refuse to give mercy to others.

God does not want our hearts to become hard.

He wants us to listen to Him, trust Him, remember His goodness, and show mercy to others.

We will not always succeed. There will be times when pride, anger, impatience, and hurt get in the way. When this happens, we can return to God and ask for His grace.

Our prayer can be simple:

Lord, change my heart. Help me listen to You when I want my own way. Help me remember everything You have done for me. And when someone hurts me, give me the grace to forgive and show the same mercy that You have shown me. Amen.

Reflection Question

Is there someone I am struggling to forgive, or an area of my life where I am refusing to listen to God? What is preventing me from placing it in His hands?