Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.–Hebrews 4:16
Here’s two things that could occupy our minds forever–God’s mercy is marvellous and His grace is great. I like the way one writer describes them:” Some things in life come in pairs: socks, pant legs, gloves, a bird’s wings, scissors’ blades, and a coin’s sides. Mercy and grace are in that same category. Mercy is not receiving a negative outcome we deserve, while grace is receiving a positive outcome we don’t deserve. Every negative outcome averted is itself a positive outcome; and every positive outcome is a negative outcome averted. If God was a coin, grace and mercy would be His two sides.
Mercy spares us from hell while grace delivers us to heaven. The nation of Israel had been shown mercy many times until God finally sent them into captivity. But then, after 70 years, grace intervened and a remnant of Israel returned to the homeland, the Holy Land. Just as grace gave Israel a place in the temple’s Holy Place, so grace gives us a place in God’s Holy City, the New Jerusalem. Mercy prevents, and grace provides–the two sides of God’s love.
Thank God today for His mercy and grace–the hell you have avoided and the heaven you have attained.”(Turning Point)
When we’ve been there ten thousand years, bright shining as the sun, we’ve no less days to sing God’s praise than when we first begun.
John Newton
