Forgiveness and Prayer
(Matt. 6:14, 15 )
(Mark 11:25-26 NKJV) “And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses. 26 “But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses.”
V25 “And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses.” Prayer is talking to God. The Bible is God’s word to us. Note how the Psalmist is just talking to God. Psalms 54:2 (EHV) “God, hear my prayer. Turn your ear to the words of my mouth.” Jesus made it abundantly clear that we must forgive others before God will forgive us. Forgiveness is turning over to God whatever evil another did to us. Then we can live in peace. If someone abuses, then you must leave the area if at all possible.
There is no proper stance when praying. We can stand, sit, kneel, lie on our face, etc. What God requires from us is sincerity and honoring Him in our hearts.
For God to pay attention to our prayer, we must forgive those who sinned against us, and we must confess our sins to others and make restitution if necessary. We forgive them even if they do not ask to be forgiven. This places our burden on our Lord to deal with them. And, we are now free. We are not to seek revenge.
V26 “But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses.” A fact. If we want our sins forgiven, instead of being punished, then we must forgive all others’ sins against us. This is very clear. Read and remember The Parable of the Unforgiving Servant in Matthew 18:21-35.
Some Scriptures showing the blessedness of forgiveness—Psalm 32:5 and 1 John 1:9.
Some Scriptures showing the dangers of unforgiveness—Luke 6:37, Psalm 32:5 (those who hid their sins and do not confess them), and Proverbs 28:13.
We learn:
- We must forgive others.
- God is the lawgiver and King of kings.
- God is the only one who can forgive sins (doing away with any punishment from Him).
Questions:
- Have you forgiven all people who have sinned against you?
- Have you asked forgiveness of God?