A friend asked that I show the difference between Mercy and Grace. Many believe that because God, in His Mercy, does not destroy “Good people who sin” today that they will be able to “slip into Heaven” because they are a “Good ole boy” and God will just say, “Come on in, you did the best you could do”. Hell, and the Lake of Fire, are going to be a long hard time to regret that mistake.
MERCY VERSUS GRACE
Rev. Mike Jones
MERCY is GOODNESS GIVEN that OVERLOOKS (Generally because of love or concern) bad actions or situations. MERCY means you deserve to be punished but God, in His Love, does not punish you.
GRACE is FORGIVENESS GRANTED for bad actions or situations because PAYMENT or RESTITUTION was made for the bad actions or situations by the entity giving the Grace. GRACE means you deserve to be punished but God TAKES your punishment so you can be relieved from its penalty.
God’s MERCY:
IS NEW EVERY MORNING or a wicked world would be destroyed by God’s wrath: It is of the LORD’S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness (Lamentations 3:22-23).
IS ENTIRELY AT GOD’S DISCRETION and depends entirely on God: For God saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy (Romans 9:15-16). Therefore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth (Rom 9:18).
God’s GRACE is given because God’s Righteous Character Demands Payment for the Judgement YOU DESERVE but God loved you enough until He took your penalty and allows your Faith in His Grace to enable you to escape His Judgement. [God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense]
GOD’S GRACE WAS FINISHED AT CALVARY AND PROCLAIMED AS COMPLETE ON RESURRECTION MORNING. It is only available to those who by Faith trust God (Not their abilities or their goodness) for Forgiveness: For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast (Ephesians 2:8-9).
GOD’S GRACE IS AVAILABLE TO EVERYONE BUT ONLY THOSE WHO RECEIVE IT WILL EXPERIENCE A NEW BIRTH AND BECOME A NEW CREATURE IN CHRIST: For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world; Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works (Titus 2:11-14).
The REASON God saved us was His Mercy. The WAY God saves us is His Grace: For we ourselves also were sometimes foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving divers lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, and hating one another. But after that the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man appeared, Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost; Which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour; That being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life (Titus 3:3-7).
GOD’S MERCY IS FREELY GIVEN BUT GOD’S GRACE MUST BE RECEIVED. MERCY SAVES YOU FROM GOD’S WRATH ON YOUR WRONG DOINGS IN THE PRESENT BUT ONLY GRACE WILL SAVE YOU FROM GOD’S JUDGEMENT ON YOUR SINS FOR ETERNITY. When we were dead in sins, God quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus (Ephesians 2:5-7).