Jesus answered and said to them, Have faith in God. For assuredly, I say to you, That whosoever says to this mountain, Be removed, and be cast into the sea; and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says. Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray believe that you receive them, and you will have them. (Mark 11:22-24)
Jesus was talking about faith in verse 22, how to release your faith in your saying in verse 23, and how to release your faith in your praying in verse 24. In the following two verses, He said that the biggest enemy to faith in your life is unforgiveness or offense.
And whenever you stand praying, if you have ought against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses. But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses. (Mark 11:25-26)
Notice Jesus said, “…if you have ought against any.” Ought is holding a grudge against someone for any reason. A grudge implies some sort of bitterness. The Bible speaks of a root of bitterness that defiles people (Heb. 12:15).
Jesus said all things are possible in prayer. However, He pointed out that if you don’t deal with unforgiveness, none of your praying, your saying, or your faith will work! Unforgiveness is the door thorough which the devil enters. He knows that he can neutralize your faith with unforgiveness faster than any other way.
When The Devil Works On You
Dad Hagin said it his way, “Anytime you’re feeling mistreated, you know that the devil is working on you.” If someone really did you wrong, you must forgive them, by releasing them of any unforgiveness on your part. Watch it, because those feelings and that voice of offense will tell you that you’ve been mistreated. The devil will continue to work on you to set up an offense.
You must not speak against or attack those who have mistreated you. When you release and forgive them, something positive will happen inside you.
I like the following what Smith Wigglesworth said: "I realize that God can never bless us on the lines of being hardhearted, critical, or unforgiving. This will hinder faith quicker than anything will. I believe there are a great any people who would be healed, but they are harboring things in their heart that are as a blight. Let these things go. Forgive and the Lord will forgive you. There many good people, people that mean well, but they have no power to do anything for God. There is just some little thing that came in their hearts years ago and their faith has been paralyzed since."
Faith Words by Love
…faith which worketh by love. (Gal. 5:6)
Your faith life will not work properly if you are not walking in love. Faith worketh by love! If your mountain keeps standing there in the same old place, you’re not receiving what you’re praying for, and your faith is not working, the problem is not with God!
The first thing you need to check is your love walk. Evaluate the way you’re talking, acting, and conducting your relationships. Walk in love, because faith works by love!
Forgiveness Is Your Responsibility
How long does it take to deal with an offense or unforgiveness? When another person is involved and know about the problem, the first thing you need to do is say, “I want you to forgive me.” You may argue, “What if I tell them I’m sorry, but I feel like it’s really their fault, and they won’t tell me they are sorry?”
Even if that person doesn’t reciprocate, it’s not your business. Your business is to forgive them! Get rid of that grudge!
However, if the other person doesn’t know about the problem, if it’s something you did or something you’ve been holding against them; there’s no reason to get them involved, because you’ll stir up more devils that you can cast out. There is no need to tell someone, “I’ve been mad at you for six months” when they did know it. Just forgive them and be friendly again.
Ephesians 4:26 says you shouldn’t let the sun go down on your wrath. What does that mean? One translation says, “Don’t let the sun go down finding you nursing a grudge.” This is where the devil has his greatest opportunity to hinder your faith.
Ephesians 4:27 continues, “Neither give place to the devil.” If the devil has any place in your life, you gave it to him! You might not have known what you were doing, or you might have given him place through negligence.
Negligence means you refused to exercise your authority as a believer. In other words, you refused to do what is right. Another way the devil got in was through disobedience. You know what the Word said, and you refused to do it. Therefore, you opened the door to the devil.
Old Testament Examples
As you study Job in the Old Testament, you will notice that God turned his captivity when he prayed for his friends (Job 42:10). Job’s friends were really his critics. God can turn your captivity, too, if you will pray for your critics and ask God to bless them.
Joseph is the greatest illustration of God’s promotion. He had many opportunities for offense during his life. His brothers cast him into a pit and sold him into slavery. In Egypt, Potiphar’s wife falsely accused him of rape and the two men he helped get release from prison refused to speak up for him (Gen. 37, 39, and 40).
Joseph could have turned into a bitter, mean, and frustrated man. However, the Bible says that while he was in prison, Joseph willingly did whatever the jailer needed with all of his might. So even while he was in prison. Joseph kept on working as unto the Lord and he never got bitter.
God brought Joseph out of prison, turned the whole situation around, and made him ruler over all of Egypt. Eventually his brothers came to Egypt. They bowed before him begging to buy food in the middle of a severe drought.
He could have said, “I’ve got a chance to get you back now for what you did to me 20 years ago,” but he never held that grudge. Instead, he told his brothers, “What you meant for evil God turned for my good. Now I can be a blessing to you.”
Joseph was promoted by God, but if he had let unforgiveness and bitterness enter his heart, God could never have taken him where He needed him to go as ruler of Egypt. You need to guard against offenses because they will come. One minister said, “Life is not fair, but God is good.” Glory to God!
Forgiveness Is Your Responsibility
How long does it take to deal with an offense or unforgiveness? When another person is involved and know about the problem, the first thing you need to do is say, “I want you to forgive me.” You may argue, “What if I tell them I’m sorry, but I feel like it’s really their fault, and they won’t tell me they are sorry?”
Even if that person doesn’t reciprocate, it’s not your business. Your business is to forgive them! Get rid of that grudge!
However, if the other person doesn’t know about the problem, if it’s something you did or something you’ve been holding against them; there’s no reason to get them involved, because you’ll stir up more devils that you can cast out. There is no need to tell someone, “I’ve been mad at you for six months” when they did know it. Just forgive them and be friendly again.
Ephesians 4:26 says you shouldn’t let the sun go down on your wrath. What does that mean? One translation says, “Don’t let the sun go down finding you nursing a grudge.” This is where the devil has his greatest opportunity to hinder your faith.
Ephesians 4:27 continues, “Neither give place to the devil.” If the devil has any place in your life, you gave it to him! You might not have known what you were doing, or you might have given him place through negligence.
Negligence means you refused to exercise your authority as a believer. In other words, you refused to do what is right. Another way the devil got in was through disobedience. You know what the Word said, and you refused to do it. Therefore, you opened the door to the devil.
Old Testament Examples
As you study Job in the Old Testament, you will notice that God turned his captivity when he prayed for his friends (Job 42:10). Job’s friends were really his critics. God can turn your captivity, too, if you will pray for your critics and ask God to bless them.
Joseph is the greatest illustration of God’s promotion. He had many opportunities for offense during his life. His brothers cast him into a pit and sold him into slavery. In Egypt, Potiphar’s wife falsely accused him of rape and the two men he helped get release from prison refused to speak up for him (Gen. 37, 39, and 40).
Joseph could have turned into a bitter, mean, and frustrated man. However, the Bible says that while he was in prison, Joseph willingly did whatever the jailer needed with all of his might. So even while he was in prison. Joseph kept on working as unto the Lord and he never got bitter.
God brought Joseph out of prison, turned the whole situation around, and made him ruler over all of Egypt. Eventually his brothers came to Egypt. They bowed before him begging to buy food in the middle of a severe drought.
He could have said, “I’ve got a chance to get you back now for what you did to me 20 years ago,” but he never held that grudge. Instead, he told his brothers, “What you meant for evil God turned for my good. Now I can be a blessing to you.”
Joseph was promoted by God, but if he had let unforgiveness and bitterness enter his heart, God could never have taken him where He needed him to go as ruler of Egypt. You need to guard against offenses because they will come. One minister said, “Life is not fair, but God is good.” Glory to God!
Source: The Spirit of Faith by Mark Hankins
Excerpt permission granted by Mark Hankins Ministries
Excerpt permission granted by Mark Hankins Ministries
Mark and Trina Hankins travel nationally and internationally preaching the Word of God with the power of the Holy Spirit. The vision of MHM is to take the spirit of faith, the message of who the believer is in Christ, and the work of the Holy Spirit to every generation and to every nation.
Mark and Trina Hankins have been in full-time ministry for over thirty five years. Through church services, leadership conferences, mission trips, publications, radio, television, Bible schools, and the internet, MHM is reaching the world with the Word of God. Mark is known widely for his unique anointing to minister on the subjects of faith and the believer’s identification in Christ.
