“You have been trapped by what you said, ensnared by the words of your mouth.”
Proverbs 6:2 NIV
As I awoke this morning, I heard the Lord say, “You're in danger of double jeopardy.”
The Double Jeopardy Law protects a person from being prosecuted for a crime after already being acquitted.
God revealed to me that if I continue to say that I have NOT been persecuted by the enemy when the enemy HAS persecuted me...I am pronouncing the enemy's judgment as “acquitted,” then God can not come back and pronounce a judgment for my restitution from the enemy.
I can not be paid restitution for a crime that was NOT committed against me.
Proverbs 6:2 says I have been “ensnared by the words of my mouth.”
Being raised with good Southern manners and being a Christian, I often try to be gracious and kind with my words, careful to NOT accuse someone of doing me wrong.
When they ask, “Did I hurt you?” I often respond, “No, you did not hurt me!” Even though I know they did, I do not want to be accusatory to them or take a chance to hurt them in return. This is my way of showing forgiveness to them.
But then they have no idea they have done anything that requires an apology so they continue to live with no remorse as if they have done nothing wrong.
After the “crime” or “offense” has been committed against me, I often find no justification or restitution for myself. I continue to internalize the pain and wonder why God does not come to my aid and reprimand them.
I quote the “vengeance is mine says the Lord, I will repay” (Rom 12:19) scripture under my breath while keeping an outward smile for all around me to see no evidence of the pain.
I did not even realize that I had put myself in a double jeopardy situation. I have SPOKEN the opposite of the truth out of my mouth when I say the person DID NOT do that to me. I pronounced a sentence of “not guilty.”
So therefore there is NO judgment or condemnation that can be pronounced against them.
But, more shockingly I have tied God's hands. There can be no ruling by the ultimate Judge (The Lord) that I have been wronged when by NOT correctly declaring the offense has happened, I have stated out of my mouth that there was no wrong done to me.
However, when I DO speak the truth (of course, in love) and say, “Yes, I have been wronged; your actions or words have hurt me”, then God has the authority to come to my rescue, render a sound judgment, and bring restitution.
This revelation brings another scripture to my mind, “The tongue has the power of life and death, ...”
Proverbs 18:21 NIV
If I am asking God to avenge me in one breath but pronouncing “acquittal” in the breath just before that, I can not expect to see a fair and sound judgment on my behalf, be rendered by God.
Today, I am convinced more than ever that I must learn to speak the truth in ALL situations.
I never want to intentionally hurt anyone like they have hurt me but I really do want to find a healthy way to voice my own need for justice. In showing mercy to others, I have found that there has been no restitution for me. No apology. And honestly, no remorse from them for what they have done.
In light of this new revelation; the next time I am faced with someone projecting their hurt by hurting me, I pray I will have the strength to say to them, “Yes, I have been hurt.”
I will still be willing to leave it in God's hands to pronounce justice or restitution but now I know I should not deny that the offense has taken place if I want God to handle it for me.
I want to leave room for God to have the opportunity to minister to the other person by having them face what they have done. Who knows, it may also bring restitution to the other person by bringing them back into alignment with God because they were given the chance to repent!
Blessings, Angel Diane
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