Father Forgive Them
Lorraine St. John, Canada
A friend of mine was upset because she had been unjustly released from her job...she wasn't sure how to react..this is what I shared with her.....FATHER FORGIVE THEM
I know you are upset now..in shock...but let me say this to you...the Word says that we should rather suffer a wrong..then to try to justify ourselves or have revenge..I want to share something with you....the car I just bought...it has major problems... and the dealer I bought it from doesn't want to fix it...it will cost a small fortune...and I was angry...its not as devastating as your story..but I am going to make a point here...I was SO angry...he wronged me...he was not up front or honest...and it is going to COST me...well...the Lord began to talk to me about my anger....and how to react to people who wrong you...it was a God moment
He reminded me about Job...and how Job's friends were unjust with him...and how they wronged him...and God told his friends that they should make a sacrifice and ask Job to pray for them...or He would destroy them...and God told Job to PRAY for his friends...now Job wasn't healed..BEFORE he prayed...he was healed after he obeyed God and prayed...and forgave and asked God to forgive them...
Then God restored to Job DOUBLE what he had lost...AFTER he prayed for his friends... because the Word says that if a THIEF is caught he must restore DOUBLE what he stole...and we know that satan came to steal and kill and destroy...now Job would have been justified in being angry...God had told his friends that UNLESS Job prayed for them that He would DESTROY them.. and Job could have let God do that...he had reason...he could have kept his anger...
But if he had done that THREE things would have happened...
First...Job would have remained on the ash heap..scratching his sores...he would not have received healing...Second..the three friends would have been destroyed...and Third ...the whole community would have been affected... because they knew Job to be a man of God and were watching to see what was going to happen...but instead he obeyed God...and when He did...God healed him and restored to him double what was stolen from him...he spared Job's friends...and the community saw the glory of God manifested in Job's life
The Lord took me to a process for dealing with people who have been unjust to me...for me it was perfect timing...I had to deal with my anger toward the man who sold me this car
He showed me 4 steps
1....Forgive and RELEASE them...That means you don't HOLD them responsible...you let it go...you live with the consequences of their actions against you...you cant ask mercy for your
sins and justice for those who sin against youGod sayswhose sins you retainthey are retained...and whose sins you forgivethey are forgiven...you have to forgiveand release ...vengeance belongs to Godand God's brand of vengeance since the Crossis MERCY
2...Ask GOD to forgive them....Remember Jesus said "Father forgive them...they know not what they do"and He was talking about the people who had nailed Him to the Crossnot just someone who ripped Him off for some money or offended Him...
3...Pray that no judgement comes on them for their actions....Release them from just retribution...remember the Word says that God will bless those who bless you ..and curse those who curse you...there is a penalty for coming against a child of God...but you want to walk in MERCY toward themas God has toward you...remember...to the merciful He will show Himself to be merciful...Pray this prayer..."Father I ask that NO judgements, curses or penalties come upon (name the offender) I release them. They owe me nothing"
4. You BLESS them...Bless their lives...their ministrytheir worktheir family...their marriage...their homes...their health....remember God says that in blessing He will blessand in cursing He will curse...if you want a blessingyou need to bless your enemies...do GOOD to those who despitefully use you...And then stand back and watch how God restores to you...DOUBLE
FORGIVING THE DEBT
Lorraine St. John, Canada
This might help you to deal with wounds, rejection, unforgiveness issues etc. God gave me this to teach to His body. It can be applied to any area of wounding in your life, not just adultry. It deals first with the reconcilliation that must take place in your heart with the one who has wounded you, whether or not they ever reconcile to you. Then it deals with the issue of forgiveness. Hope it helps you.....
RECONCILED IN YOUR HEART:
When my husband left our marriage for another woman I struggled to come to terms with this and to forgive him. It seemed to me that this was something that was near impossible to forgive. The pain was incredible. But as I began to cry out to the Lord to help me, He began to talk to me about this. The following is what He showed me. I hope it will help others who are struggling to forgive someone for a deep wound.
First, He said "I want you to be reconciled to your husband."
I yelled "WHAT?????? WHAT???????? Are You kidding???? How can I be reconciled to him??? He doesn't want ANYTHING to do with me!!! He has another woman in his life. If we could be reconciled we could live together!!!!" I was confused. And angry. And frustrated. And I didn't get this. And I wasn't so sure I wanted to get this.
So after I calmed down a bit and quit ranting, He gave me 2 scriptures.
The first one : "If you bring your gift to the altar and remember your
brother has something against you, leave your gift and go be RECONCILED to your brother." (Matthew 5: 23,24).
The second one: "If a married woman is separated from her husband she should remain single or else be RECONCILED to her husband" (I Cor 7:10,11).
Then He told me to look up the meaning of the word "reconciled" in both scriptures.
In the first scripture "reconciled" is the word "diallasso" it means "to
change thoroughly" to put things right - ONE person - it is singular - you have to be reconciled IN YOUR HEART - even if it never happens mutually - nothing between you and them - all forgiven. All taken to the Cross of Christ and brought to death there. To have a change of HEART - but only ONE person doing this regardless of the other's actions.
The 2nd scripture "reconciled" is the word "Katallasso" it means - "to change mutually" to change toward each other.
So, He showed me I needed to be reconciled to my husband - as in the first scripture - the debt forgiven! Even if he was never reconciled to me and even if we were never reconciled mutually. Then when I do that I am reconciled to him IN MY HEART, although not reconciled as in the 2nd scripture - not mutual change.
I had to be reconciled to him in my heart - what he did was not my concern; and I had to go on with God whether God healed the marriage or not; and I had to come to the place where it didn't matter either way - like Abraham - he died to the promise God gave him to be the father of nations when he was going to kill Isaac. I think that when he went up that mountain he didn't know for sure if God
would keep the promise or not -maybe his son would be spared, maybe not - but he knew God was faithful and he was going to obey God anyway.
Or like the Hebrew children who said "We know God is ABLE to deliver us from the fiery furnace, but whether or not He does we will still not bow our knee to idols" And off they went into the furnace - and came out without even the smell of smoke on their clothes!!!
THE DEBT FORGIVEN:
"Well Lord", I said "this is fine and dandy. It's a good idea and I would
like to accommodate You, but what do I do with all this anger? And all this pain?"
Then the Lord began talking to me about forgiving my husband for the debt he owed.
He took me to the parable about the man who owed 10,000 talents and was forgiven, but wouldn't forgive the one who owed him 10 (Matthew 18:23-35). And then He led me to (Matthew 6:12,14,15) "Forgive us our debts as we have forgiven (left, remitted, and let go of the debts, and have given up resentment against) our debtors. For if you forgive (leaving them, letting them go and giving up resentment) people their trespasses (their reckless and willful sins), your heavenly Father will also forgive you." (Amp)
Now the word "debt" means "to be under obligation (ought, must, should), to fail in duty, be guilty"
The Lord had me write down all I felt my husband owed me - All those things that he "ought" to have done and "should" have done and "must" do now...like love, respect, kindness, honor, financial support, faithfulness, coming home, an apology, an explanation etc.
And then He told me "He CANNOT pay the debt" - and the Lord showed me the debt was paid for on the Cross.
So I wrote across the list "HE OWES ME NOTHING - PAID IN FULL "
DEBTOR'S PRISON:
Now the one who wouldn't forgive the small debt that was owed him by his servant, after being forgiven SO much by his Master, was thrown into "debtor's prison". And he wouldn't get out till he paid the very last penny. The "last penny" for me was every ounce of forgiveness that I needed to pay my husband so that I could be free.
Now debtor's prison is a place of our own making. It is built brick by brick as we allow unforgiveness, resentment and eventually bitterness to grow in our hearts. And the only way out of it is by forgiving, letting go the resentment and releasing the one who has wounded you, offended you and sinned against you.
You see, we are people who live under grace, not the law. We can get our sins forgiven by the mercy of God. But when we hold unforgiveness against someone else what we are doing is asking mercy for us and justice for them. We bind them to the Law. When we bind someone to the Law we give satan legal rights to come in and demand that justice be done. If God dealt with us according to
justice we would all have to pay for our own sins. We can't have both. We cannot ask mercy for us and justice for others. When we demand justice for others, we reap justice for ourselves. Remember that God said that "to the merciful He would show Himself merciful"
(ll Samual 22:26) and that "with the same judgement that we judge, we will be judged" (Matthew 7:2) When we demand justice for someone else's sins (and that's what unforgiveness does), we reap justice for our sins and are thrown into "debtor's prison" and we stay there till we pay the bill. The only way out is to pay the forgiveness that grace and mercy demands.
This has got to do with binding and loosing. Now we have been taught that "binding and loosing" are for spiritual warfare (and it is), but it goes deeper than that. "Binding" and "loosing" are ancient legal terms. When we "bind" something to the law, we bring it under the full force and effects of the law. When we "loose" something from the law, we release it from the constraints of the law.
The "law" is the realm of satan's authority. He knows nothing of grace and mercy, but is an expert on the law. That is why satan could go before God and accuse Job. Because in Job's day he was under the law. And satan was right about Job. Job had a fear that what he had would be taken from him and a pride in his possessions and family. When satan accused him he had legal grounds to stand on and God had to allow satan to attack Job. Satan "bound" Job to the law. And when we do not immediately offer forgiveness to the one
who has wounded us we begin the same process of binding to the law. And the law demands that a price be paid.
The spiritual realm run parallel to the natural realm. And "What is bound on earth is bound in heaven". Picture two Barbie dolls. The first doll represents the one who wounded you. The second doll represents God. Now take a string and begin to wind it around them one revolution at a time. Every time we withhold unforgiveness and hold resentment in our hearts we wind that string one more revolution around the dolls. Soon the dolls are completely bound and cannot get free. And that is what happens to the one that you "bind" by your unforgiveness. And at the same time God is bound. He has no room to move in either the heart and life of the one you have bound or in you. You have bound this unforgiveness on earth and in heaven. Remember, it is a DOUBLE binding...what is bound on earth is also bound in heaven.This is when you enter debtor's prison.
Remember we reap what we sow. If we sow unforgiveness, we also reap it. Jesus said "if you do not forgive your brother his offenses from your heart, neither will I forgive you." You bind the Lord from working forgiveness in them towards you.
The Word says "Whose sins you shall forgive they are forgiven, who sins you shall retain they are retained." You cause the sins of both yourself and your wounder to be retained (to be in full effect in both your lives...with the consequences of them in tact) when you bind them by your unforgiveness. This speaks of the consequences that follow sin. Of course you can have your sins forgiven when you confess them. But the translation of the words in this scripture indicate that you can retain the consequences of your sins here on
earth, or you can be set free from them, according to whether or not you release your wounder from the consequences of their sin.
In order to be set free from the just consequences of my unforgiveness and anger I had to be willing to accept the consequences of his sin and at the same time release him from the consequences of his sin. It meant that I would suffer financially. That I would live alone. That I would have to explain the marriage break up to people. That I would have to suffer the embarassment of
the break-up. That I would have to return to work full time. That I would have to do myself all the things that had been his to do and many other things. I had to accept these consequences without anger or resentment.
And I had to take it one step further and release him of the consequences of his sin. I had to be willing to let him go in peace. To refuse to demand my rights as his wife. To refuse to talk badly about him to others. I gave up the right to be angry. Because when my debt was paid for by Jesus, it was completely cancelled. And "as He is, so are we in this world" And "loosing" him was the key to my freedom. And that is why you have to cry out to God for mercy for your wounder. It is for you. For your freedom. This is "loosing" in the
spiritual realm.
You begin this "loosing" as you offer forgiveness to the one who wounded you. Now at first this will just be forgiveness offered by your mouth. You begin to unwind what you have bound. And as God works His grace into this it will become forgiveness from the heart. You will begin to love your wounder with the love of God, and you will bless them in His Name. And then, and only then, will He turn the key to YOUR prison door and set you free. And then He will be free to work in the heart of your wounder.
I know your flesh cries out "NOT FAIR. NOT FAIR." They are the ones who sinned against you. They are the ones who wounded you. They are the ones who offended you. You have your "rights".
And to offer mercy is to let them go "scot free". Yes. It is. Isn't that
what Jesus did for you? He let you go "scot free." You didn't have to pay the price for your sins and neither should they.
The Lord showed me something. James 2:22 says "For He Who has said 'You shall not commit adultery', also said "You shall not kill'. If you do not commit adultery, but do kill, you have become guilty of transgressing the whole law". Now in the Sermon on the Mount Jesus showed us that to "hate our brother in our hearts" is the same as murder in His eyes. Hating your brother in your heart is holding unforgiveness against him. So you see my husband's adultery and my hate (unforgiveness) in my heart are no different in His eyes. He deals with them in the same way. Because James also says "whoever keeps the law as a whole, but stumbles and offends in one single instance has become guilty of breaking all of it." (vs 10) Now James goes on to say "For to him who has shown no mercy, the judgement (justice) will be merciless, but mercy triumphs over judgment (justice)!!!" (vs 13) So, in my heart I cry "MERCY, Lord MERCY. For him and for me." Because I do not want God to deal
with MY sins by justice, but by Mercy. I don't want to live in prison. It was for FREEDOM that Christ set me FREE.
Now you have to work all this out and in. It doesn't happen in an instant. Even after God gave me this revelation about forgiving the debt and being reconciled in my heart, I still had to take it to the Cross daily, and hourly, and sometimes each minute. I had to "die daily" to my right to be angry. But I have now come into a place of total forgiveness and freedom from the anger, resentment and pain that accompanied my wounding. So much so that I truly love my ex husband. Not in a romantic way. But as a child of God. I have been set free.
You can apply these principals to any area of wounding in your lives, not just adultery. And not just to a marriage partner. So I pray that you will be not just a hearer of this Word, but a doer. Because it is the key to your prison door.
Pray this prayer:
Father in the Name of Jesus I forgive_________________for __________________ and for the wounds that have been inflicted on my life. I ask that You would reach out to them in mercy and not with judgement. I ask that You would forgive me for carrying these wounds and not forgiving and letting go of the resentment against them from my heart. I ask that Your Holy Spirit would take me through the process of forgiving them completely, and that You would reveal my heart to me and the sins that I have committed in the midst of these wounds. Just as You forgive me, I forgive them, and
I ask that You would forgive___________________. I release them from the responsibility and consequences of their sins. And I ask that You would loose us both from the just retribution due us for these sins. I ask that You would perform all Your plans and purposes in the life of __________________ and that Your Truth will set us both free. Amen.
I hope and pray that what the Lord showed me will help some of you in your struggles to forgive deep wounds.
Lorraine St.John
Porch & Altar Ministries
London, Ontario Canada....
"Let the priests..the ministers of the Lord, weep between the porch and the altar; and let them say , have mercy and spare Your people, oh Lord"" Joel 2:17
