Hope, Grace, and Mercy

Honesty check....

If you were asked right now to explain the meaning of hope, grace, and mercy- could you?

Many of us know the words to the song Amazing Grace.  I know I hope for a lot of things.

And I know what I feel as I hear the crowds scream mercy as William Wallace is being tortured in the movie Braveheart.

But, what do these words really mean?

We cannot understand 

If we don’t understand mercy and grace. 

Let’s begin with mercy. 

Mercy can be defined in several ways.  

I am going to try to summarize several meanings into one sentence. 

An attitude or act of compassion, patience, or self-control 

toward someone  who may be under your authority, offended you, and/or could be in distress.  

Often mercy is associated with forgiveness in the bible. 

Of course,

 This inquiring mind wanted to know how many times mercy is mentioned in the bible.  Depending on the translation of the bible, there are varying results as to the number of times mercy is mentioned.  What I know for certain is that it was more than once.  

And I am just saying, 

if my dad said something to me more than once…. I better start listening because it is important. 

Let’s look at just a couple of those times

God blesses those who are merciful, for they will be shown mercy.

Matthew 5:7 (NLT)

Let’s go back to that statement about mercy and break that down again. 

God blesses those who have an attitude or act of compassion, patience, or self-control toward someone 

FOR 

Those people will be shown compassion, patience, or self-control when they have offended or are in distress. 

Let’s keep going. 

But God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so much that even though we were dead because of our sins, he gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead.  (It is only by God’s grace that you have been saved!)

Ephesians 2:4-5 (NLT)

But God is so rich in compassion, patience, or self-control and he loved us so much that even though we were dead in our sins, he gave us life when he raised Christ up from the dead. 

For the Lord your God is gracious and merciful.  If you return to him, he will not turn his face from you. 

2 Chronicles 30:9b

Mercy gave the prodigal son a second chance

Compassion for someone who had offended or was in distress gave the prodigal son a second chance.

Patience for someone who had offended or was in distress gave the prodigal son a second chance. 

Self-control for someone who offended or was in distress gave the prodigal son a second chance

When I summarized the definitions for mercy, I did not know exactly the direction this post would take.  I simply began writing as I felt God leading me.  As I wrote those (3) statements, I could not help but think about myself.  I can identify times when those who loved me felt compassion, had to be patient, and have demonstrated self-control.  

And looking back I know that my Heavenly Father’s mercy has been ongoing.  

There are so many times that I deserved a different outcome than what I experienced.

And mercy continues to allow me to come before the Father (Eternal) or home (temporary).

So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God.  There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace when we need it most. 

Hebrews 4:16 (NLT)

 I want to briefly mention grace.  

What is grace?

Grace is an unmerited gift or favor toward the unworthy. 

As a gentle reminder, the story of the prodigal son is a representation of God’s love for each of us.  When you think about the following quote from Max Lucado

The difference between mercy and grace is 

mercy gave the prodigal son a second chance

grace gave him a feast. 

I want you to reflect on your life.  This may get a little uncomfortable for a moment, but you have to get uncomfortable to grow.   

Think about those times when you were given a second or another chance.  

Think about those times when you experienced compassion from someone else.  

Think about those times when you experience patience from someone else. 

Think about those times when the outcome really should have been different than what you experienced.

….and maybe at that time you really could not understand or figure out why.

My hope is that maybe now you are starting to understand why. 

In closing, 

I am learning that when I can see what he has done for me and the impact it has on my life, it is easier for me to understand the importance of my actions and how I respond to others.  

When I began writing this post, I titled it Hope, Grace, and Mercy; as I thought that was the direction this post would go.  However, as I began writing, God led my thoughts down a different direction.  

So whether you find yourself in the role of the prodigal son, the father, or the salty brother (my new nickname for him), I hope that you will read this, reflect, and then seek HIS will for your step.  

May the Lord bless you and protect you.  May the Lord smile on you and be gracious to you.  May the Lord show you his favor and give you peace. 

Numbers 6:24-26 NLT

To be continued…..

Dedicated to Hope