As

        I was speaking with a rehabilitation worker on day when a very tall co worker came by.  The one to who I was speaking said, "He's a tall glass of water."  We often use expressions that will tell us something about another person or situation.  I guess such expressions are called "similes."  God uses the term over 3,000 times in the Bible and almost 200 times just in the Book of Psalms.  Psalm 103:12 reminds us, "As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us."  

      The word "as" is classed as an adverb and for a little word of just 2 letters is a word that is used a great deal and does much in our means of conversation and writing.  It is a word that makes us to be compared to something else.  To say that a person is fast as a Gazelle is to describe how fast they can run.  When God uses the word, "as" in His Word, it makes a vivid description that helps us to understand a certain action or trait.  We may wonder at times just how far God has removed our sins from us.  I might take an envelope, put something in it and then seal the envelope and say "Well, it is gone."  That would not be exactly true, because even the sealed envelope might be close at hand.  The above verse of Scripture is an example whereby God reveals to us just how far away our sins are.  We know that compass points are important to directions and that you can go North only for a short time before you begin going South.  It is half the circumference of the earth.  Quite opposite is the fact that East never meets West.  You can travel East for the entire circumference of the globe and never see a point where West would be your new direction.  In fact, East never meets West.  To answer then the question, just how far are our sins from God, He makes the above statement as far as the East is from the West.  That sealed envelop is gone completely.  This is even better than the little song that says our sins are buried in the deepest sea.  While God has removed our sins, our transgressions, our iniquities completely, we have the tendency to keep remembering them.  Not only do we remember our own transgressions, we also have an even greater tendency to recall the transgressions of others that are a part of our lives.  When God forgives our sins, they are gone as far as the East is from the West.  When we say that we forgive someone else, the transgression is only a thought away before we can bring it up again.  Praise God today that His forgiveness  is complete, and the offense never raised up again.