JUNE 15
MATTHEW 6:12_as we forgive our debtors.
When God pays your sin debt, the kicks you used to experience in sin begin to disappear. If they don’t, then in the words of the great Miss Clavel, “Something is not right!” (Madeline – Ludwig Bemelmans). You sin because it supplies some kind of satisfaction. It may be physical, emotional, or financial. When it no longer produces satisfaction (which is the nature of sin), you sink deeper and deeper into sin. The deeper, the harder to come out.
When redeemed by the Savior, sin begins to lose its hold. There is no joy in sin for the saved. Just when things look good for the debtor, Jesus adds another piece to the pattern.
He lets a fly in the ointment!
Jesus’ prayer causes vertical forgiveness (from God to you) to be based on horizontal forgiveness (from you to your offenders). That means you pray God to forgive you in the way you forgive those who wrong you.
I declare! Jesus just won’t let you get by with anything! That takes a lot of love!
If you confess, repent, and ask God’s forgiveness, why should that have anything to do with those who wronged you? They need to do their own confessing! More of those natural instincts of your hard heart.
The truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth is your offenders and their confession is between them and God. You forgiving them is between you and God.
A clear sign you have been redeemed is you want to forgive. Old sins lose their grip and hard hearts soften!
PRAYER
Great Redeemer, Thank You for not only saving me, but changing me. In the powerful name of Jesus, Amen.
Christ redeems me—He changes me!
The Works of Her Hands 