So Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you; as the Father has sent Me, I also send you.” And when He had said this, He breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, their sins have been forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they have been retained.” John 20:21-23.
Today your LORD (יהוה) God (אלהים) says:
When I raised Jesus from the dead many things occurred. He appeared to Mary Magdalene and the other women who were brave to come to the tomb. He appeared privately to Peter. He appeared to the two disciples on the way to Emmaus and in the evening He came to the upper room to His disciples. And He greeted them with SHALOM, gave them an assignment, breathed the Holy Spirit into them so they were born again, and gave all those who receive the indwelling Holy Spirit authority to release and retain sin.
“Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, their sins have been forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they have been retained.” John 20: 23.
This is a passage that many find hard to believe so they interpret it wrongly by human understanding (of the flesh alone) but not by the Spirit. Spiritual things must be spiritually discerned.
Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may know the things freely given to us by God, which things we also speak, not in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit, combining spiritual thoughts with spiritual words. But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised. But he who is spiritual appraises all things, yet he himself is appraised by no one. For who has known the mind of the Lord, that he will instruct Him? But we have the mind of Christ. 1 Corinthians 2:12-15.
You have far more power than you think. Ephesians 3:21; Ephesians 1:18-19. Resurrection power is in you, and it is yours. Most have not touched this yet, but you should. It is binding and loosing, forgiving and retaining and it is available to the entire body of Christ. Jesus has released you from your sins and made you a kingdom, priests unto Me. Revelation 1:5-6. You are a royal priesthood, a people of My own, working with Me in the earth to plant Heaven and establish it upon the earth. 1 Peter 2:9-10; Exodus 19:4-6; Isaiah 51:16.
I made you to reign with Me.
And there will no longer be any night; and they will not have need of the light of a lamp nor the light of the sun, because the Lord God will illumine them; and they will reign forever and ever. Revelation 22:5.
For if by the transgression of the one, death reigned through the one, much more those who receive the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ. Romans 5:17.
I gave you dominion over the works of My hands, the works preceding your creation are under your authority.
Let us consider what Jesus said on the evening of His resurrection because it is important for you to carry out your mission, for as I sent Him, so He sends you.
So when it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and when the doors were shut where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in their midst and said to them, “Peace be with you.” And when He had said this, He showed them both His hands and His side. The disciples then rejoiced when they saw the Lord. So Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you; as the Father has sent Me, I also send you.” And when He had said this, He breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, their sins have been forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they have been retained.” John 20:19-23.
The disciples had locked themselves in from fear but Jesus walked right through their fear and spoke “shalom peace” to them. And when He had said “shalom,” He showed them His hands and His side. Why? Isaiah 53:5. He was pierced through for your transgression and upon Him was the chastisement that gave you shalom, that restored you whole and complete. And that evidence took all fear out of their hearts, instead they rejoiced when they saw the risen Lord. John 20:20.
He then gave them a second “shalom” greeting to impart a double shalom, great peace have those who trust in Me. And then He spoke the plan: “As the Father has sent Me, I also send you.” I sent Jesus to seek out and save the lost, to undo the works of the devil, and to preach the good news of the Kingdom. Luke 4:18, Isaiah 61; Luke 19:10; 1 John 3:8. He had a mission and so do you who are His each have a mission as well.
And when He had said this, He breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, their sins have been forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they have been retained.”
I have given you the power to forgive. Do not say it is too hard and that you cannot forgive. I want you to know that the Son of Man has power to forgive sins. And when My Son speaks of Himself as “Son of Man” He is referring to Himself in His humanity, not to His divinity. It means this is one of the works that He did that believers will do and greater. Just as He told you that you would lay your hands on the sick and they would recover, so He tells you that you have the power to forgive.
And I tell you a lot about forgiveness in My Word. And many people, even those who profess to be believers, totally ignore these Scriptures as if they were not applicable to them.
You must forgive so that I can forgive you. When you stand to pray, forgive so I can forgive you. For I must treat you by the standard you set. If you do not forgive your brothers and sisters from your heart, I cannot release the forgiveness that Christ has already won for you. You are forgiven in Him but unless you receive it (just like salvation) you cannot have it. You must give to receive, there is no other way.
If you forgive the faults of others, I, your Father, will forgive you yours. If you do not, neither will I, your Father, forgive you.
Do onto others as you would have them do unto you. Be merciful as I am merciful. Love your neighbor as yourself. Blessed are the merciful, they shall receive mercy. And mercy triumphs over judgment.
And by the Son of Man you are authorized (given the power) to forgive. Forgiveness is only possible by what Jesus did as Son of God. He gave His eternal life, shedding every drop of His Blood, to redeem you and pay the price for your sins and to cleanse you from all unrighteousness. So forgiveness—that is, the price for it—is bought and paid for by My Son’s death and resurrection. To receive it and authorize Me to apply it to your life you must release it by faith.
You open the windows of Heaven to release forgiveness from the heavenlies where Christ has put His Blood on the Mercy Seat before Me just as you do to release prosperity. My Word tells you that you must first give tithes and offerings and then I will open the windows of Heaven and pour down a blessing you cannot contain and rebuke the devourer from your funds. I tell you to first honor Me with your wealth and your barns will be full and your vats overflow with wine.
You give to receive. A farmer knows this. He has to plant seed to receive a harvest. Nothing comes unless he does something first. You must first give, then you receive. I cannot move, that is, apply to you, what was obtained by Christ for your account, until you open the door in your life to it.
You tithe and give offerings, then I can open the windows of Heaven and poor prosperity into your life. You forgive others and then you open up your own forgiveness from the merits of Christ’s atoning death and the shedding of His Blood. You love and then My love can be poured into your heart by My Holy Spirit. You have opened the door to the blessing. You call, I answer. You draw close to Me, I draw close to you. You give and it is given back to you and more besides.
You initiate the blessings in your life by faith. And faith without works is dead. Do what you want done to you to others, for as you sow you shall reap. What you plant, you harvest. And the measure with which you measure will be measured back to you and more besides.
Forgiving others is not an option or an unattainable goal. I have given you the power to forgive. Do not be sluggish to grasp this treasure. For in forgiving others you receive your forgiveness that is kept for you in Heaven. By forgiving others you open the windows of Heaven to pour down tender mercy, grace, and total forgiveness in such great abundance that it will fill your life and overflow into the lives of others.
Remember that next time you want to take offense and bear a record of the wrong done to you. Love does not take offense or bear a record of the wrong done to it. Deny yourself in this indulgence and instead meditate on My law of love day and night. Speak and think nothing that contradicts it—for My Words are life to those who obey them and health to all your body.
Give forgiveness so that I can give it to you. Your sins and offenses I will remember no more, but to release that you must first open the windows of My Mercy by giving mercy.
I love you. Authorize Me to give you all that is yours already in Christ. Give to open the windows of Heaven and bring down the blessing you desire.