Day 16

“Grace and peace to you from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.”

—ROMANS 1:7

In all thirteen of Paul’s letters, you will find he uses the words, ‘grace’ and ‘peace’ in his introduction, but in two of them he adds the word ‘mercy’. The best way to understand ‘grace’ is by contrasting it with ‘mercy’.

‘Mercy’ is not getting what we do deserve. ‘Grace’ is getting what we don’t deserve.

Suppose you drive your car down the freeway at 140 kilometers an hour and a police car pulls you over. You are highly embarrassed, admit your fault, and say, “I am so sorry. I didn’t realize I was going too fast. It’s the first time I’ve ever done this. I’m sorry.” Suppose he answers, “Okay. I’ll let you off this time. Just don’t do it again.” That is ‘mercy’. You did not get what you deserved.

But imagine the same scenario where not only does the policeman let you go (showing mercy) but he also gives you a chocolate bar! That’s grace - giving you something you do not deserve.

Most of us understand ‘mercy’ and we are eternally grateful for the fact that through the death of Jesus Christ on our behalf, God treats us in mercy and gives us what we don’t deserve – forgiveness. But most of us probably have a harder time understanding ‘grace’. Then in addition to not treating us as our sins deserve, He pours into us all the, ‘incomparable riches of his grace’ (Ephesians 2:7). That is, the ever unfolding riches of resources we do not deserve are being poured into our lives.

A misunderstanding of ‘grace’ is to treat it as ‘permission’. I hear some people talk of the grace of God as Him turning a blind eye to our sins and failings which begins to create a mentality that Dietrich Bonhoeffer famously described as ‘cheap grace’ – live any old how and God will be tolerant. That is where we need mercy, but on the grounds of His mercy, we live humbly before God, discovering that His abundant supply of resources is beyond anything we anticipate, and certainly beyond anything we deserve. It really is ‘amazing grace’!

PRAYER: Dear Lord, May I never take your unfailing mercy and abounding grace for granted. Thank You for your continual forgiveness, and may I always live humbly before You.

TO REFLECT UPON: How has God’s unfailing mercy and amazing grace impacted my life?