Grace Gems - Sin Isn't A Problem With God - Andrew Wommack

God the Father forsook Jesus so you and I would never be forsaken. All that you and I would have suffered, through billions of years in eternity—the grief, the pain and, worst of all, the complete separation from the presence of God—Jesus experienced. And He experienced all of this for us. When we say God is judging our sins as individuals or corporately as a nation, we are voiding what Jesus did. That would be “double jeopardy.”

Some of you may not like this, but it’s true. Sin isn’t a problem with God anymore. It’s the church that has made it a major deal. Neither past, present, nor future sins can separate you from God.The only people who will go to hell are those who have spurned and rejected the greatest sacrifice that has ever been made. In heaven, you won’t answer for your sin; Jesus already has. You will answer for your acceptance or rejection of Jesus.

Andrew Wommack - The War Is Over.

Grace Gems - Release

It is your spirit that is instantly changed at salvation. It is perfect (Heb. 12:23). It cannot sin (1 Jn. 3:9). Everything that is true of Jesus is true of our born-again spirit. Your spiritual salvation is complete. At salvation, you receive the same spirit that you will have throughout all eternity. It will not have to be changed or cleansed again. It is sealed with the Holy Spirit (Eph. 1:13) and therefore, is sanctified and perfected forever (Heb. 10:10, 14; 12:23).

For the remainder of our Christian life, we must not try to obtain faith, joy or love from God, but rather release what we already have in our spirits (Gal. 5:22-23) into our soul and body. Failure to understand this has caused some people to despair when they don't see sufficient change in their life after coming to the Lord for salvation. It must be understood that the change is internal in our spirit and the outward change will take place as we renew our minds through God's Word.

Andrew Wommack

God Is Bigger

Are You A Car? by Andrew Wommack

God's Grace by Andrew Wommack

"For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men"-. Titus 2:11

Grace is what God does for you. It’s His part. It is something that was done for you before you existed. Grace has nothing to do with you. By definition, it is “unmerited, unearned, undeserved favor.” If grace is something that God does and if grace alone saved people, then every person would be saved, because Titus 2:11 reveals that the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to everyone.

God’s Grace

God’s grace is the same toward everyone. God has been exactly the same toward every person who has ever lived. But you may be wondering, Then how come so and so got healed and I didn’t? Why did God touch them and not me? The problem is, you think that when you see something happen, all of a sudden God has done something or provided something for that person that He hasn’t provided for you. God’s grace is the same toward everybody, because it’s not based on, or tied to, what you do. God, by grace, has already brought salvation to every person on the face of this earth (Titus 2:11).

This is not something that is commonly understood. Most people believe that it’s their performance that earns them extra pull and favor to get the power of God operating in their lives. But the truth is, the moment you begin relating God’s blessing—the manifestation of His power in your life—to anything you’ve done, you have just voided grace, because you’ve made God’s blessing and manifestation in your life proportional to something that you’ve done. If you think that way, then you don’t understand the grace of God.

God, by grace, has already provided everything for you before you ever needed it. Take, for instance, salvation. Many people think that you have to ask God to forgive your sins and for Jesus to come into your heart to receive salvation. They will pray, “Jesus, would You please come into my life?” They tell others, “Just ask Christ to come into your life.” That’s not what salvation is.

A Non-issue

Acts 16:30-31 is a scriptural example of someone receiving salvation. Paul and Silas were in the Philippian jail, and the jailer came to them and asked,

Sirs, what must I do to be saved? -  Acts 16:30

They didn’t answer by saying, “Ask Jesus to come into your life” or “Repent of your sins, and quit doing this and that.” They simply responded,

Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved. - Acts 16:31

Believe what? It’s not just believe that Jesus existed or that He came to earth.

Jesus didn’t die only for the people whom He knew would accept Him someday.

He is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.

1 John 2:2

Jesus died for every sinner who has ever lived on this earth. And He died for our sins two thousand years ago, long before we ever committed them. The Lord doesn’t wait until we ask Him “Please come into my heart” to forgive us of our sins. The radical truth is that the sins of the entire world are already forgiven.

God forgave your sins before you existed. Before you were ever born, all of your sins were forgiven. Before you had ever committed a sin, God forgave them. Your sins are forgiven. Sin is actually a non-issue with God.

Already Been Forgiven

This is not the message of the church today. The church is basically preaching that every time you sin, it’s an affront against God. They say, “You have to get that sin forgiven and under the blood before God can move in your life.” That’s not what the Scriptures teach. The Word reveals that your sins are already forgiven. You don’t have to ask God to forgive you your sins or ask Him to come into your life. What you have to do is believe the Gospel—that Jesus has already come, already died, and already forgiven the sins of the world.

Someone might say, “Well, then, if that’s true, then everybody’s saved, right?” No, because grace alone doesn’t save. God, by grace, has made the provision and paid for every person’s sins. People aren’t going to hell for sexual immorality, murder, lying, or stealing. All of those sins have been paid for. The sin that is going to send people to hell is the singular sin of rejecting Jesus as their personal Savior. This is what the Bible reveals in John 16.

When he [the Holy Spirit] is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment. - John 16:8, brackets mine

Then in verse 9, Jesus explained what that sin is that the Holy Spirit would reprove the world of. It’s the sin of not believing on Jesus.

Of sin, because they believe not on me. - John 16:9

The church has been misrepresenting the Holy Spirit by saying, “He’s here to nail you every time you lie, cheat, and steal. He’ll get you every time you don’t study the Word or do this and not that.” This has made us sin conscious. It’s magnified sin. But the truth is, Jesus has already paid for that. The Holy Spirit is only dealing with this one issue: Have you believed on the Lord Jesus Christ? If you have made Jesus your Lord, then all of your sins—past, present, and even future sins (sins you haven’t committed yet)—have already been forgiven.

Identical Toward Us All

That truth would get me kicked out of most churches. It’s why my citywide meetings are normally held in a neutral venue, like a hotel or conference center. There aren’t very many churches that will let me share these truths, because they’re just so radical.

Sin has already been dealt with by grace (Heb. 9-10). If it’s by grace, then that means it isn’t dependent on whether you’ve asked Him to forgive you or not. The truth is, God provided salvation for the entire human race by grace.

Again, Titus 2:11 says,
For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men.

God’s grace is exactly the same toward everybody—not only to you, but to every person on the face of the earth. Adolf Hitler had as much grace extended toward him as you and I have had extended toward us. Every person who has done terrible things in the history of the world, Jesus loved them, died for them, and paid for their sins exactly the same as He did for all of the people who have received Him, love Him, and seek Him. The grace of God is identical toward us all.

God, by grace, has already provided healing for everybody. One of my staff members who works at our citywide meetings used to be a quadriplegic. Now he’s up walking around and doing great. He was supernaturally healed. Every quadriplegic has had the same exact grace extended toward them. God isn’t different toward any of us.

Radical Truth

The moment you start saying, “Well, why did God heal him? Why did He heal her of cancer? Why did God do this for them, yet He hasn’t done it for me?” The moment you start thinking like that, you have to factor in your performance. “Well, I haven’t prayed enough. I haven’t done enough of this, or enough of that. This is why God hasn’t done it.” That’s totally wrong thinking.

The grace of God is consistent. He’s the same toward everybody. God is no respecter of persons (Rom. 2:11). He doesn’t love one person more than He loves another. He hasn’t provided more for one person than He’s provided for another. God has forgiven the sins of the entire human race. Does that mean that everybody is saved? No, because not everybody has put faith in what God did by grace. Grace is what God does for us independently of us

.

Prior to you existing, before you even had the need, God had already created the supply. Before you ever get discouraged, God has already blessed you with all spiritual blessings. He’s already abounded toward you. You don’t have to ask the Lord to give you joy and peace, to heal you, prosper you, or to save you. You don’t have to ask. He’s already provided before you ever had the problem. That’s awesome!

God, by grace, has already done everything. He anticipated every need you could ever have, and He already met all of those needs through Christ. Jesus was how God intervened in the affairs of man. Jesus is how God provided everything, and that happened two thousand years ago. Jesus hasn’t died for a single person’s sins since. He hasn’t healed a single person since two thousand years ago when He took stripes on His back. Salvation, healing, and deliverance have already been provided. When people today hear the truth and believe, all of a sudden what God has already provided by grace becomes a reality to them. As they mix faith with the Word of God, what He has already done by grace begins to manifest in their lives.

You’re saved by grace through faith, not one or the other. 

God Loves You

Grace Gems - Jesus Freed Us From Sin

Luke 23:18"And they cried out all at once, saying, Away with this man, and release unto us Barabbas:"

What happened to Barabbas is a picture of what happens when a person is born again. Barabbas was guilty; Jesus was innocent. Yet Jesus suffered the death that Barabbas should have experienced, and Barabbas went free.

Likewise, we were all guilty and condemned to death , yet Jesus suffered our punishment so that we may go free. Just as Barabbas didn't ask for this substitution, so "God commended his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us" (Rom. 5:8).

Barabbas was freed, but he had to choose whether or not to accept this new start and remain free, or go back to his old ways and come under the judgment of Rome again. Likewise, we have all been freed through the substitutionary death of Jesus, but we have to choose whether to accept our freedom by putting faith in Jesus or to reject it, by denying Him.

Our death to sin and resurrection to life with Christ, is already a reality in our spirits but will only become a physical reality when we know and believe it. In the same way that Jesus died unto sin once, and death no longer has dominion over Him, the person who recognizes their death with Christ unto sin, will not allow sin to rule over him anymore. Any Christian who is struggling with sin has not recognized that they are dead unto sin.

Andrew Wommack

Grace Gems - It's A Done Deal

When Jesus cried “It is finished” (John 19:30), He meant just that. His work on earth was done. The Atonement was complete. He provided everything we could ever need. We aren’t waiting on Him to give; He is waiting on us to receive.

The book of Ephesians is written from the perspective of everything already being ours in Christ. It starts in Ephesians 1:3 by saying,

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ”.

Any blessing you could ever need or desire from the Lord is not something to strive for but something you already have. God made the provision before you had the need. It is just a simple matter of receiving what He has already done.

The benefit of understanding and being assured of this is enormous. It kills legalism and the performance mentality, and that takes a huge load off of you. How could you doubt that God will give you something if He’s already given it to you?

First Peter 2:24b says, “By whose stripes ye were healed”  

It’s already a done deal. It is actually incorrect to pray for healing. Instead, we should just receive the healing that the Lord has already provided. There is a difference between fighting to get healed and fighting because we have been healed. That difference is the difference between success and failure.

In Ephesians 2:8, Paul said, “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves.”

We aren’t saved by grace alone or by faith alone;we are saved by a combination of the two.

Actually, faith isn’t true biblical faith unless its used in receiving what God has already provided by grace.

Grace is what God has already done for us, independent of any worth or value on our part. If it’s tied to some goodness of ours, then it’s not true grace. God, by grace, has already provided everything we will ever need.

Our faith doesn’t move God. If God hasn’t already moved by His grace, then your faith can’t make Him. Faith simply appropriates what God has already provided by grace. If He’s already provided your needs by His grace, then faith is just your positive response to what He has already done—not something you do to get God to respond to you.

Andrew Wommack

Grace Gems - God is NOT Angry

We need to recognize that God isn’t angry at mankind anymore. He is no longer imputing or holding our sins against us.

“God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation” (2 Cor. 5:19).

We are NOW reconciled to God through Jesus. That means we are in harmony and are friendly with God right now. He isn’t mad; He’s not even in a bad mood. The war between God and man is over.That’s what the angels proclaimed at the birth of Jesus.

Luke 2:14 says,

“Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.”

These angels weren’t saying that peace would reign on earth and that wars between people would cease. That certainly hasn’t happened. They were proclaiming the end of war between God and man. Jesus paid a price that was infinitely greater than the sins of the whole human race.

God’s wrath and justice have been satisfied. Jesus changed everything. God isn’t angry. His mercy extends to all people. He loves the world, not just the church, but the whole world. He paid for all sin.

The Scriptures say in 1 John 2:2,

“And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.”

In the Old Testament, God’s judgment was poured out on both individuals and nations. In the New Testament, God’s judgment was poured out on Jesus. That is the nearly-too-good-to-be-true news of the Gospel. We no longer get what we deserve; we get what Jesus paid the price for, if we will only believe.

Before I understood this, I would say, “If God doesn’t judge America, He will have to apologize to Sodom and Gomorrah.” Now I say, “If God judges America, He will have to apologize to Jesus.”

Understanding what Jesus did completely changes our perspective.

Andrew Wommack

Grace Gems - Joy of the Lord

Many believers wait until their emotions feel like praising the Lord before they enter in to worship. They think it's hypocritical to act like they are rejoicing in the Lord if they don't "feel" it. But our spirits are always rejoicing in the Lord. It's actually hypocritical to go by our feelings and not magnify the Lord with our souls when our born again spirits are already rejoicing.

Our born again spirits are always in tune with the Lord and walking in the joy of the Lord. Our flesh is often dominated by what it sees and feels.

Sometimes it doesn't feel like praising the Lord, but the choice rests with our souls. If we choose to praise the Lord, our emotions will follow.

The decision is yours (Dt. 30:19).

Today, choose to walk in the joy of the Lord.

Andrew Wommack

Grace Notes - Luke 13 v 16

Luke 13:16 "And ought not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan hath bound, lo, these eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath day?"

Sickness is not a blessing in disguise, God does not withhold healing from us to teach us or show us things. In the same way that all our sins were forgiven at the cross all our sickness was dealt with at the cross.

God in his grace has provided all we need to live in victory. Jesus never refused to heal anyone in scripture and everyone who came and asked to be healed was healed. Jesus never withheld healing.

The full provision of our healing is included in our salvation and we have access to full power of Christ and this power works within us. I have received the fullness of Christ in my spirit and I am united into all God’s complete work, inside me.

Here Andrew Wommack explains that healing is part of our salvation, and we need to receive all God has provided for us.

This sickness was the work of Satan - not the work of God. Jesus said it had bound her - not blessed her - for eighteen years. The teaching that says that sickness is actually a blessing in disguise, because the Lord is working His plan in one's life, is not found in scripture. As Acts 10:38 says, Jesus "went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil," not "oppressed of God."

There are 17 times in the Gospels when Jesus healed all of the sick that were present. There are 47 other times when He healed one or two people at a time.

Nowhere do we find Jesus refusing to heal anyone. Jesus said that He could do nothing of Himself, but only what He saw the Father do. His actions are proof enough that it is always God's will to heal!

Jesus provided for physical healing as well as forgiveness of sins. The very word "save" (Gk.-"sozo") is translated "made whole" in reference to physical healing in Matthew 9:22, Mark 5:34, and Luke 8:48. James 5:15 says "the prayer of faith shall save (Gk.-"sozo") the sick." Many scriptures mention the healing of our bodies in conjunction with the forgiveness of our sins.

Healing is a part of our salvation, just as much as the forgiveness of our sins.

It is God's will that no one should perish, but many do because of their unbelief. Likewise, it is God's will that we all be healed, but not all are healed because of failure to believe. It is a mistake to assume that whatever God wills will automatically come to pass. We play a part in receiving from God. Believe His Word today.

Grace Notes - Mark 14:36

Mark 14:36 "And he said, Abba, Father, all things are possible unto thee; take away this cup from me: nevertheless not what I will, but what thou wilt."

It is almost too good to be true, that God should welcome me into his family as a joint-heir.  All the privileges of sonship have been bestowed on me.

Just like any natural son, I have the same DNA and blood flowing through my veins. If you were to open me up and dissect my spirit it would have the fullness of Christ grafted into it.

Nothing can separate me from the love of Christ, because Christ is eternally interwoven into my spirit and when God looks at me he sees Christ in me.

As Andrew Wommack explains Jesus purchased us from the depths of sin so we could reign with Him in fullness of life, right here, right now all by his wonderful grace.

Although God was referred to as our Father in the Old Testament, Jesus' frequent use of this title brought a whole new understanding of our relationship with God. Jesus referred to God as His Father, and He spoke of God as being our Father as well. This infuriated the religious Jews of Jesus' day who considered it blasphemy to call God their Father, because they understood that to mean they were equal with God.

We are instructed to call God our Father, revealing the kind, gentle, loving nature of our God. The term "Abba" is an affectionate term that a young child calls his father, which corresponds to our term "daddy." It is a term used to express intimacy and affectionate fondness. It removes the idea of God as a strict judge and carries the image of Him as a loving Father who cares, understands, and is our best friend. "Behold what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God" (1 Jn. 3:1).

We are sons of God by adoption. Jesus was the Son of God by nature. As Jesus said to the Jews, ye are of your Father the devil (Jn. 8:44; Eph. 2:3).

However, Jesus purchased us and made us adopted sons of God.

We are not just heirs, we are joint-heirs with Christ. To think that we share equally with the one who has inherited everything God is, and has, is beyond comprehension.

Grace Notes - John 1:16

John 1:16,  - "And of his fulness have all we received, and grace for grace."

Salvation is a finished work; everything that is needed for us to live a fulfilled, victorious Christian life was provided by Jesus at the cross and is available to us by grace.

There was nothing left unavailable or unattainable, the work of Christ was perfect and complete. By grace we can receive, forgiveness, righteousness, peace, joy, hope, security, assurance, love, a sound mind, power. Grace is an overflowing fountain of God’s delights poured out to each and every one of us.

It is all available right now, this instance and it is free.

As Andrew Wommack explains grace is all that God is given to us through Christ: -

The Christian life is not like an insurance policy that only pays off when we die and go to heaven. Every believer has now received the grace of God and the fullness of God. We are now complete in Him (Col. 2:9-10).

When we receive Jesus as our Lord, we are instantly changed in our spirits (2 Cor. 5:17). Many Christians aren't aware of the change that takes place in their spirit. They continue to live within their physical and emotional realms and are oblivious to the new, born-again part of them that has received the fullness of God.

You can't see or feel your spirit. You just have to believe what the Word of God tells you because God's Word is spirit and life (Johnn. 6:63). Your spiritual salvation is complete. Nothing can be added to it. In your spirit, you are right now as you will be throughout all eternity (1 John. 4:17). PRAISE THE LORD!

To the degree that we will renew our minds to these truths and believe them, we will experience this fullness in this life, for as a man "thinks in his heart, so [is] he" (Proverbs. 23:7).

Pray the prayer of Ephesians. 1:15-23 and let the Holy Spirit reveal "Christ in you, the hope of glory" (Col. 1:27).

Ephesians. 1:15-23 - “Ever since I first heard of your strong faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for God’s people everywhere, I have not stopped thanking God for you. I pray for you constantly, asking God, the glorious Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, to give you spiritual wisdom and insight so that you might grow in your knowledge of God. I pray that your hearts will be flooded with light so that you can understand the confident hope he has given to those he called—his holy people who are his rich and glorious inheritance.

I also pray that you will understand the incredible greatness of God’s power for us who believe him. This is the same mighty power that raised Christ from the dead and seated him in the place of honor at God’s right hand in the heavenly realms. Now he is far above any ruler or authority or power or leader or anything else—not only in this world but also in the world to come. God has put all things under the authority of Christ and has made him head over all things for the benefit of the church.  And the church is his body; it is made full and complete by Christ, who fills all things everywhere with himself.”

Grace Notes - Matthew 26:28

Matthew 26:28  "For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins."

The amazing, wonderful reality of the New Covenant  is that God has now come to live inside man. We have access to God through Christ every second we live. As long as we breathe we can touch and know the presence of God.

Jesus will never leave us, by the Holy Spirit he is interwoven into our Spirit and Christ in all his fullness dwells within us.

We are never alone, we are never separated, the only barrier to living in the fullness of Christ is us. It is all there for us to receive and live in but it is limited by our response to his grace. God will not force himself upon us the more we enjoy, revel and depend upon his grace the more it will overflow out of our lives.

As Andrew Wommack explains the New Covenant is all about what God has done for us and made available to us.  

The principle of the Old Covenant was "do" and you shall live. The principle of the New Covenant is "it is done," and includes redemption, reconciliation, righteousness, and sanctification. The work is finished! We are complete in Him!

If the Old Covenant had no defects, there would have been no attempt to institute another (Heb. 8:7). In the Old Covenant, men found themselves unable to abide in its agreement, for it was based upon a man's performance.

The new agreement, however, is based totally upon God's grace. Under the Old Covenant, men approached God through a priest, while under the New Covenant, we have direct access to the Father through Jesus Christ. Under the Old Covenant, a man's sin led to his death while under the New Covenant, God is merciful to our unrighteousness. Under the Old Covenant, man could not be cleansed of a consciousness of sin while under the New Covenant, our sins and iniquities are remembered no more, and our guilty consciences are cleansed.

Prior to salvation we are incomplete and there is a constant striving in every person to satisfy their hunger. Through the new birth we are complete in Christ and our hunger now should only be for more revelation of what we already have in Christ.

In the same way that Jesus had the fullness of God in Him, we also have the fullness of Christ in us. That makes us complete or perfect in Him,  that is speaking of our spiritual man. Our born-again spirit is identical in righteousness, authority, and power to Christ's spirit, because our born-again spirit is the Spirit of Christ (Rom. 8:9). It has been sent into our hearts crying "Abba Father" (Gal. 4:6).

Life by Andrew Wommack

Grace Notes - Matthew 20 v 20

Matthew 22:20-21 "And he said to them, Whose is this image and superscription? They said to him, Caesar's. Then He said to them, Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's; and unto God the things that are God's."

The grace of God is free to all, there ready to be received and enjoyed.  When we believe in Christ and accept his sacrifice at Calvary, our Spirit’s are made alive in Christ and are made into a new creation.

It is our Spirit that is born again and but our soul is contaminated with all the lies and pollution of our dead ‘sinful nature’.  Our sinful nature died at the cross and we are left with the residue of the world in our flesh.

We live in the world, but are not controlled by the world. We feel the effects of the ‘cursed earth system’ but we are now ‘seated in heavenly places in Christ’. We chose where we live, either according to the Spirit or according to the flesh.

The more we identify with Christ and his victory the more we live in all Christ won for us at the cross and enjoy all the wonderful benefits of His grace.

Here Andrew Wommack explains that a simple thing as a coin shows us that we live in the world but are united with Christ:-

“The image on the denarius, the only small silver coin acceptable for imperial tax payments, was probably that of Tiberius Caesar (reigned A.D. 14-37). The inscription upon the coin read "Tiberius Caesar Augustus, Son of the Divine Augustus" with the reverse side reading "Chief Priest." This inscription was a claim to divinity and as emperor, the right to be worshiped.

The Jews had tried many times to accuse Jesus on the basis of religious issues and had always failed. Now they approached Him about paying taxes in hopes that His answer might give them the opportunity to deliver Him to Pilate for prosecution.

These Pharisees and Herodians reasoned that any answer that Jesus gave would be wrong. If He approved of the Roman taxes, then He would lose popularity with the masses. If He spoke against the Roman taxes, then the Jews would hand Him over to the Roman government and Pilate would dispose of Him. It looked like they had Jesus trapped. Jesus, however, answered with such simple wisdom that these Pharisees and Herodians were caught in their own trap and made to look like fools.

Jesus declared, "Render (give back) to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's" (Mk. 12:17). People are made in God's image, so we must render to God the things belonging to God (our lives) and to Caesar the things belonging to Caesar (his money and other benefits of his rule).”

The Things by Andrew Wommack

Grace Notes - Mark 11 v 25

Mark 11:25 "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”.

All of my sin, every past, present and future sin was forgiven at the cross. The amazing fact is that before I was born, before I was conceived in my mother’s womb all my sin was forgiven. It is not sin that separates me from God but it is my unbelief in all that Christ accomplished for me on the cross. My eternal redemption was won for me, I just have to accept and receive it.

Likewise as a Christian, my good works do not earn any blessings from God and if I sin that sin does not separate me from God.

Sin does however cause a barrier in my heart, as it makes me more conscious of my ‘old man’ and causes my heart to harden to the grace of God.

Forgiving others and asking for forgiveness of others keeps our hearts free from the pollution of the world and the accusations of the Devil. We don’t ask for forgiveness to be right with God, we ask to be right with our fellow man and show the same reconciliation that God shows to us.

As Andrew Wommack explains keeping our hearts free from the pollution of sin helps us hear the quiet whisper of God’s voice and the awareness of the Spirit in our lives:-

There are qualifications for believing and receiving as well as restrictions for receiving answers to prayer. Unforgiveness in our hearts will keep our prayers from being answered.

We should forgive others as quickly as it takes to make the decision to pray. The Greek word for "when" means "whenever, as soon as, or while." When we stand praying, we must forgive if we have ought ("anything at all, the least little part; whatsoever") against anyone.

When we are offended or hurt, we often feel justified in holding a grudge.

The Old Testament law expressed this when it stated, "Eye for eye, tooth for tooth" (Ex. 21:23-25). Until the offense was paid, we did not feel free to forgive. However, God dealt with all men's offenses by placing sin upon the perfect Savior who was judged in place of every sinner of all time. To demand that others must earn our forgiveness is not Christlike. Jesus died for every man's sins, extending forgiveness to us while we were yet sinners, and we should do the same.

It is doubtful that a person who refuses to forgive has ever experienced forgiveness himself. This is comparable to the servant that Jesus talked about in Matthew 18:23-35. He was forgiven a debt of over $3,000,000,000 and yet he refused to forgive his fellow servant who owed him $3,000. The forgiveness that we have received from the Lord is infinitely greater than any forgiveness we will ever be asked to extend to others. Freely forgive as you have been forgiven.

God is not Limited from Andrew Wommack

Grace Notes - John 11 v 14

"Then said Jesus unto them plainly, Lazarus is dead." John 11:14

We must face the facts that confront us. Hiding behind a false religious mask, helps no-one.

There is no disgrace or lack of maturity in indentifying and sharing when we are going through difficulties, problems, trials and periods of ill health. Trials are a part of every day life, in a fallen world, where the effects of sin dominate.

The problem is when we are overtaken by our identity with the problem and we forget all that God has provided by grace and has deposited inside of us.

Yes, we have trials and tribulations, but we have all the fullness of God, the same power that raised Christ from the dead living inside of us.

God understands every situations of our life, he anticipated every attack from the evil one and he provided the answer in the finished work of the cross.

We can look and acknowledge the problem and us can look, acknowledge and focus on the grace of God. Keeping our focus and eyes on Christ will give us a heavenly perspective over a carnal perspective.

As Andrew Wommack explains, Christ acknowledges Lazarus was dead, but with his words and the power of heaven called him back to life:-  

Jesus spoke of Lazarus being asleep instead of dead because that is really a much better description. Death, to their carnal minds, would be final; whereas the word "sleep" would not. When the disciples misunderstood what He was saying, He clarified the situation by saying plainly, "Lazarus is dead."

This looks like a contrary statement to what Jesus was going to do (raise Lazarus from the dead) and indeed it would have been if He had left it at that. But He went on to say in verse 15, "I am glad for your sakes that I was not there, to the intent ye may believe." This was referring to Lazarus being raised from the dead and it turned Jesus' statement of a negative fact into a positive confession of faith.

Many people have been confused over this very issue. Many times people will refuse to speak of or acknowledge any situation that is contrary to a promise that God has given them. It is certainly desirable to avoid talking about our problems and there is scriptural precedent for this (2 Ki. 4:20, 26). In this very instance, Jesus avoided using a word to describe Lazarus' situation that would have instilled fear into His disciples' hearts. But when dealing with people who didn't understand, He didn't deny the natural facts.

A true, positive confession doesn't deny natural truth. It just refuses to stop at the natural realm and speaks forth the greater spiritual truth. This is what Jesus did and we should follow His example. Therefore, it is not wrong to acknowledge a physical problem such as sickness just as long as we acknowledge to an equal or greater degree the spiritual truth, "by whose stripes ye were healed" (1 Pet. 2:24). Don't deny that problems exist, just deny those problems the right to continue to exist in your life by confessing your faith in God.