Grace and Mercy for Me! – June 7, 2026

One key truth: God gives us grace and mercy through Jesus.

I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength, that he considered me trustworthy, appointing me to his service. Even though I was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent man, I was shown mercy because I acted in ignorance and unbelief. The grace of our Lord was poured out on me abundantly, along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.

Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst. But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his immense patience as an example for those who would believe in him and receive eternal life. Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory for ever and ever. Amen.
1 Timothy 1:12-17

Grace and Mercy for Me!

What’s the difference between grace and mercy? People sometimes mix them up, but there’s actually a pretty cool difference. Many know the classic definition of grace as “undeserved love.” That’s a good definition, because grace is getting something that you don’t deserve. Mercy is similar to grace because it is sort of the opposite of it. Mercy is when you don’t get something that you do deserve.

Here’s an easy way to think about it: When you break some rules at home and your parents forgive you and still consider you part of the family, that is undeserved love and grace. When they don’t ground you or take away your phone even though you totally deserve it, that is mercy. Or think about school. You bomb a test because you didn’t study. Instead of humiliating you in front of the class, the teacher quietly lets you retake it. That’s mercy. Then imagine the teacher stays after school to help you succeed and encourages you the whole time. That’s grace.

The apostle Paul knew both of these words well. He used to blaspheme Christ and persecute Christians. He literally hunted Christians down. He was an angry and violent man. But God poured out undeserved love (grace) in forgiving Paul and calling him to faith. And God didn’t punish him according to what he had done (mercy). The apostle explains in these verses today that because of God’s grace and mercy to Paul, he now serves as an example of how loving our God is.

Perhaps you have something that’s really bothering your conscience—some sins that are weighing you down and making you feel guilty. Maybe it’s something nobody else even knows about. How quickly we all fall deep into sin! But read Paul’s words carefully here. God shows grace and mercy even to the worst of sinners—even to Paul, and even to you.

That means your worst mistake does not get the final word. Jesus does. Knowing that you have received such love really changes your life! For Paul, it turned him into one of the most bold and zealous missionaries ever. He couldn’t help but share this good news with others. God’s grace and mercy change our lives, too. So think about someone on your team, someone at work, or someone you have class with. Who do you know that feels guilty, left out, ashamed, or like they’ve messed up too badly? Who needs to hear about God’s love from you? Who needs to know that God poured out love and forgiveness to us through Jesus (grace) and punished him at the cross instead of us (mercy)? Find someone to share the gospel with, and then they can join Paul and join us in these wonderful words of thanks and praise at the end of today’s passage: “Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory for ever and ever. Amen.”

Prayer:

Lord Jesus, thank you for living and dying for me and for my sins. My sins are great—sometimes I even surprise myself with how selfish, angry, or sinful I can be. But in grace you have forgiven me, and in mercy you have taken the punishment away from me. When guilt weighs me down, remind me that you already carried my sin to the cross. Give me a renewed joy in your love so that I can be like the apostle Paul and share this good news with others. Amen.