Getting Back Up

What is the difference between mercy that forgives and grace that restores?

• When Jesus told the thief on the cross he was forgiven, that was mercy. When he told the thief he would be seated next to him in paradise that was grace.
• When the father told the prodigal he could come back into the house that was mercy. When the father said, “Come in not as a worker but as my son,” that was grace.
• The paralyzed man whose friends lifted him down through the ceiling was told, “Your sins are forgiven.” That was mercy. And now get up, take your mat, and walk. That’s grace.

Forgiveness covers us with God, our creator. Grace restores us now, in this broken world, and places us back where God intended us to be. Forgiveness is reactive (it forgives something that has already occurred). Grace is proactive. Grace says, “Although I could hold it against you, and, in human terms, would be justified in doing so, let’s forget it and move on. Let’s, to the extent we can, reverse the damage done and agree to live with what we can’t fix without holding it over your head.” At some point, grace says, “Let’s act like it never happened.” Forgiveness focuses on me, the person being forgiven. Grace focuses on Jesus and what he wants to do in my future. Hebrews 4:16 states, “Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”

As we noted, forgiveness is Jesus coming to seek and save the lost. Grace is Jesus coming to give us an abundant life (John 10:10). Forgiveness is because Jesus took our place on the cross for the payment of sins. Grace is that he was resurrected on the third day to prove nothing can stop him, not even death, from loving you.

Why do we have so much trouble accepting grace and therein not getting restored to God’s plan for our lives? I think there are a few reasons why accepting restoring grace is so hard, which I’ll list. Then we will explore them in detail.

1. God’s grace makes no human sense.
2. We don’t believe God when he says nothing can separate us from his love.
3. Nothing is free, especially something as good as God’s grace.
4. We measure everything on outcomes (our works).
5. We like everything to be about us; grace is about Jesus.
6. We like to control everything; grace requires letting go.
7. We think we are good enough or have paid enough of a price to not need grace.
8. We’ve made grace a concept and not an experience.
9. Grace causes us to change, and change is scary.

Either this “Christian thing” is real or it isn’t. One contributor to our fall is when

we play at faith. If we really believe Jesus is who he says he is, the Son of God and

our Savior, then that affects everything in our lives. If we don’t believe Jesus is

who he says he is, then why give him any consideration at all?  We either believe

in God’s Mercy, that forgives and Grace, that restores and we accept it or we don’t

believe it at all.  Theoretical mercy and grace are useless.