Matthew 6:14-15 (MSG)
“In prayer there is a connection between what God does and what you do. You can’t get forgiveness from God, for instance, without also forgiving others. If you refuse to do your part, you cut yourself off from God’s part.”
Sometimes when we read verses like this about forgiveness, we get the idea that God is holding grudges against us. We read a verse that says God can not forgive you for your sins unless you forgive others, and we instantly get a negative picture of who God is. But the Messages translation of this verse makes things a bit more clear.
You see it isn’t that God is sitting up in heaven waiting to hold all your sins against you. He isn’t. The Bible makes it clear that Jesus’ death and resurrection paid the price for all sin. All sin. All. Any sin that had ever been committed before His death as well as any sin that would be committed after His death. The penalty has already been paid. That means God is no longer holding our sins against us. That debt has been paid in full.
What this verse is telling us is that we control the flow of blessings in our life. God provided the blessing of forgiveness for us. It’s like the city water supply. It’s there. It’s there in abundance. But just because the city water supply is more than sufficient and is ready to flow down the pipes and into your home doesn’t mean water runs in your home constantly. No. You have to turn on the tap. You have to allow the water to flow.
Forgiveness works the same way. God has an abundant, overflowing, never-ending supply of forgiveness ready to flow into your life and meet any need you have, but YOU are in control of the tap. If you harbor unforgiveness towards others, that tap stays in the “off” position–not because God is withholding forgiveness from you, but rather because your own actions have stopped up the flow of His blessings in your life.
So turn on the tap. Open your hands and release the hurt that you are holding on to. You aren’t excusing the behavior. You’re just making sure it doesn’t have power over you any more. You’re opening your hands and handing it to God. You’re turning on the tap. And when the tap is turned on, God’s abundant, over-flowing, never-ending, and all-sufficient supply of forgiveness can run into your life to cover all your sins and run through you to cover the sins of the people around you. It’s up to you. Is your tap on or off?
Father, I thank you that you gave your Son Jesus to die for my sins. I thank you that as a result of His sacrifice, you no longer hold any sins against us. You aren’t that kind of God. You are a loving God who has blessed us with EVERY spiritual blessing through Jesus Christ. I thank you that when I have a hurt in my life, I can open my hands, release it to you, and receive your divine forgiveness flowing through me to let that hurt go and forgive the person who caused it. I thank you that when I do that, your forgiveness for me becomes more real in my life, and I can experience your blessings to a greater level. Thank you, God. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
A Beautiful Mess 