There is something else we need to see about how love and forgiveness work together. Unforgiveness—the lack of forgiveness—is one hindrance to prayer that Jesus mentioned.
For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith.
Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.
And when ye stand praying, forgive if ye have ought against any: that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.
(Mark 11:23-25)
A lot of times people take these verses out of context and make them say something they don’t say and try to make them work. But, you see, there are some conditions involved in getting Mark 11:23 and 24 to work.
Did you ever notice that many of the promises of God are conditional?
You see, the blessings of God don’t just fall on us like ripe cherries off a tree. You have your part to play—your responsibility in the matter.
When Jesus tells us in Mark 11:23-24 that we can have what we say, we all rejoice and are thrilled with those truths. And we should be. But do you know that is not all Jesus said about answered prayer?
Mark 11:23 and 24 do not present the whole story on the subject of faith. For example, in Galatians 5:6, the Bible has something else to say about faith. It says that faith only works by love.
For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love.
(Gal. 5:6)
So you won’t be able to get your faith to work for you if you’re not walking in love and forgiveness. I don’t care how many biblical confessions you make or how scriptural they are—your faith won’t work without the God-kind of love.
You can make all the confessions you want, but they won’t work for you unless you forgive. You can get up every morning and go through your list, take time out at noon to speak faith confessions, and even get up in the middle of the night and repeat the same confessions—and your faith still won’t work for you unless you’re walking in love.
You can even quote your faith confessions like that for a 100 years, but your faith just will not work in an atmosphere of unforgiveness.
You see, believing you have your petition and confessing your faith with your mouth is only part of effective faith and receiving answers to prayer. In fact, Mark 11:23 and 24 won’t work without Mark 11:25: “And when ye stand praying, forgive….”
Why won’t they work without Mark 11:25? Because faith won’t work without love, and love forgives.
Notice that verse 25 begins with the word “and.” The word “and” is a conjunction. It joins what Jesus just finished saying to what He’s about to say.
Notice what Jesus had just said in Mark 11:24: “Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray….” Jesus is talking about prayer. And He is talking about how to make your faith effectual.
In verse 25, Jesus said, “When ye stand praying, if ye have ought against any, forgive.” When you pray—forgive.
Why did Jesus say that? Because Jesus knows that if we have an air of unforgiveness about us, our prayers wouldn’t be effectual. Faith only works by love (Gal. 5:6). Love forgives because God is love, and God forgives.
Now if Jesus had just said, “When you stand praying, you’ll have your petition,” we’d all have it made. But He didn’t stop there. He said that when we stand praying, we have to do something. What do we have to do? Forgive! If we have ought against anyone, we have to forgive.
Prayer and faith won’t work when there is an air of unforgiveness about you! And unforgiveness is what has so many people stymied in their faith and their prayer life. Can you see that?
Faith in your prayer life won’t work unless you are a forgiving person. So when you stand praying, forgive. In fact, have you ever thought about it? Sometimes it takes faith just to forgive! But it will hinder your prayer life if you don’t forgive.
by Kenneth E. Hagin.
Excerpt permission granted by Faith Library Publications
Rev. Hagin served in Christian ministry for nearly 70 years and was known as the "father of the modern faith movement." His teachings and books are filled with vivid stories that show God's power and truth working in his life and the lives of others.
Rev. Hagin was born on Aug. 20, 1917, in McKinney, Texas, a son of the late Lillie Viola Drake Hagin and Jess Hagin.
Rev. Hagin was sickly as a child, suffering from a deformed heart and an incurable blood disease. He was not expected to live and became bedfast at age 15. In April 1933 during a dramatic conversion experience, he reported dying three times in 10 minutes, each time seeing the horrors of hell and then returning to life.
In August of 1934, Rev. Hagin was miraculously healed, raised off a deathbed by the power of God and the revelation of faith in God's Word. Two years later, he preached his first sermon as pastor of a small community church in Roland, Texas.
In 1937, Rev. Hagin was baptized in the Holy Spirit and began ministering in Pentecostal churches. During the next 12 years he pastored five churches in Texas: in the cities of Tom Bean, Farmersville (twice), Talco, Greggton, and Van. In 1949, he began an itinerant ministry as a Bible teacher and evangelist.
During the next 14 years, Jesus appeared to Rev. Hagin eight times in visions that changed the course of his ministry. In 1966, he moved to Tulsa, Oklahoma, where he opened a ministry office. That same year, he taught for the first time on radio—on KSKY in Dallas. In 1967, he began a regular radio broadcast that continues today as Faith Seminar of the Air. Teaching by his son, Rev. Kenneth W. Hagin, is also heard on the program.
In 1968, Rev. Hagin published the first issues of The Word of Faith magazine, which now has a monthly circulation of more than 250,000. The publishing outreach he founded, Faith Library Publications, has circulated more than 65 million copies of books by Rev. Hagin, Rev. Hagin Jr., and several other authors worldwide. Faith Library Publications also has produced more than 9 million audio teaching tapes and CDs.
Other outreaches of Kenneth Hagin Ministries include RHEMA Praise, a weekly television broadcast hosted by Rev. and Mrs. Kenneth W. Hagin; RHEMA Correspondence Bible School; RHEMA Alumni Association; RHEMA Ministerial Association International; RHEMA Supportive Ministries Association; the RHEMA Prayer and Healing Center; and a prison ministry.
In 1974, Rev. Hagin founded RHEMA Bible Training Center USA and in 1976 moved the school and ministry offices to Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, where they remain. To date, RHEMA Bible Training Center USA has 23,000 alumni, and RHEMA Bible Training Centers have opened in 13 other nations: Austria, Brazil, Colombia, Germany, India, Italy, Mexico, Peru, Romania, Samoa, Singapore, South Africa, and Thailand. Together, the 14 schools have more than 28,000 graduates worldwide.
RHEMA Bible Church, pastored by Rev. Hagin Jr., began holding services in October of 1985 on the RHEMA campus in Broken Arrow and has since grown to become a thriving congregation with more than 8,000 members.
Rev. Hagin's daughter and son-in-law, Pat Harrison and the late Doyle "Buddy" Harrison, founded Harrison House Publishers in 1975 and Faith Christian Fellowship International Church in 1977. Both organizations are based in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
Until shortly before his death in September 2003, Rev. Hagin continued to travel and teach throughout the United States and into Canada conducting All Faiths' Crusades and other special meetings.