Mercy is God's unmerited favor. So, since mercy already provides "unmerited" favor, why would God need grace to do the same thing?
The fact is, God hasn't provided grace as unmerited favour. He has provided grace as His vehicle, His power, that causes the believer to live a life pleasing to God!
Strong's Concordance defines grace in the original Greek as: "the divine influence in the heart AND its reflection in the life."
God's mercy allows Him to excuse our sin. His grace causes us to live holy lives in victory over sin! God's mercy and His grace are VERY different!
One of the greatest days of my life was when I discovered that grace was not God's unmerited favor but His power! My next great discovery about God's grace was that it was not a thing. It was Jesus Himself! Jesus working within me!
"Grace and truth came by Jesus Christ" BECAUSE Jesus IS the truth and He IS the grace! "For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared." And when it [HE] appeared He taught us [through His life's example] that we could [by the power of His personal grace within] deny "ungodliness and worldly lusts" and live "soberly, righteously and godly, in this present world." (John 1:17-18, 14:6; Titus 2:11-14).
Once we know that Jesus is the grace within a believer's heart, that He is the saving grace-power within, things take on a whole new meaning. "But we believe that through the grace [indwelling] of the Lord Jesus Christ we shall be saved, even as they" (Acts 15:11).
A grace that can change a sinner's heart and empower him to live a life in accord with God's will is indeed AMAZING! But there is nothing amazing about a grace that only "covers sin" and leaves the individual "a sinner."
In fact, according to Hebrews 9:13-14, the blood of bulls and goats was sufficient to "cover sins," for they "sanctified the flesh." But Jesus, by the same verse, came to "purge" our hearts from sin and empower us to live a life free from the dictates of sin.
The Salvation Cult purports God's grace and Jesus' blood as only a "covering" of sin. The cult's masses are always saying, "God doesn't see my (STILL BEING COMMITTED) sin, He just sees Jesus." They have a grace and a blood "salvation" that is no different from that of the Old Testament! They should just stick with the blood of bulls and goats--for it "covered!"
God's real, New Testament grace, when applied to a heart by the blood of Jesus, TAKES AWAY SIN. The person who has God's genuine grace, blood, and salvation doesn't have to "go to the altar," or the confessional, every Sunday to deal wit hthe same, old persistent, habitual sins! His mercy has excused and His grace is removing all sin from the true believer's life!
"But in those [or any other] sacrifices there is a remembrance again made of sins every year [or church service]. For [while the blood of bulls and goats can cover sin] it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins" (Heb.10:3-4).
"For Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true; but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us: Nor yet that he should offer himself often, as the high priest entereth into the holy place every year with the blood of others; For then must he [Jesus] often have suffered since the foundation of the world: but now once in the end of the world hath he appeared to put away sin [singular: root sin] by the sacrifice of himself" (Heb. 9:24-26).
"And every priest standeth daily ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins [sinful acts]: But this man [Jesus], after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God;... For by one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified... Now where remission of these is there is no more offering for sin [because they are not just covered they are remitted--gone!]" (Heb. 10:11-12, 14 & 18).
If you had cancer, you would want to find a doctor who could put the cancer in remission so it would go completely away. You certainly wouldn't want a doctor who would just cover it up with a band aid! What kind of "nut" would go around saying "I still have active cancer, but praise my doctor, he has covered it!'
The Salvation cult's salvation, blood, grace and thus Jesus is another gospel and another Jesus because it doesn't DO what the real Jesus' grace, blood and salvation does. It doesn't cause sin to go away--it just covers it up.
Well, friend, God is not into "cover ups"!
I'm glad my past sins are forgotten and forgiven by His blood and mercy (Rom. 3:25) and that my very SIN NATURE is being taken away root by root (II Thes. 5:23-24)! One of the "proofs" I'm saved is the fact that God's grace (Jesus in my heart) has my sin nature well on its way to "total remission."
Hey, I'm not doing it. It's His amazing grace!
All through the New Testament, the only grace we find is an amazing, motivating, sin-purging, and life changing GRACE! Grace is not unmerited favor. It's favor with God. It's the power of God. Just consider these few examples.
In John 1:14, we're told Jesus was "full of grace and truth." Jesus was full of favor and truth, not unmerited favor. This verse proves that "grace" is not unmerited favor.
In Luke 1:28, the angel tells Mary, the mother of Jesus, that she is "highly favored." The Greek word used here is the same word used elsewhere in the New Testament for "grace." This verse clearly shows that grace is favor!
In Acts 4:33, "great grace" was upon the apostles enabling them to give witness to the resurrection of Christ with "great power." This verse clearly states that grace is power.
So how do we obtain, or merit, God's grace--His saving, sanctifying power? "Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God" (Rom. 5:1-2).
"For by grace [God's power] are ye saved [from sin] through faith; and that [the faith] not of yourselves: it [faith] is the gift of God: Not [grace is not obtained] of [our good] works, lest any man should boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them" (Eph. 2:8-10).
Grace is made accessible and entered into BY FAITH. Saving faith is given as a gift if and when a sinner responds to the Holy Spirit's conviction that he is a sinner and repents (Romans 2:4).
It is by EXERCISING God's gift of faith that we have our initial entrance into God's grace. At that point God's grace begins saving and sanctifying us. Through continually exercising God's mercifully provided FAITH, we continue to have access into saving grace.
Faith, by its very nature is a "now' or active rather than a passive thing.
And without faith there can be no grace. And without grace there can be no salvation--no saving relationship with Jesus.
"Without faith it is impossible to please him [the Lord]" (Heb. 11:6).
"I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith: Henceforth [because I have kept the faith and faithfully done what God saved me to do] there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord the righteous judge shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing" (II Tim. 4:7-8).
People love to quote, "By grace are ye saved... not of works" (Eph. 2:8-9), but they hardly ever quote verse 10 about "unto good works." Verse 10 is an inseparable part of the whole truth being taught in this passage about what salvation is and how it works.
This passage teaches us that grace saves. It tells us grace is gained by God's gift of faith and that our good deeds can not cause this grace to be given. But it also proclaims that the individual under grace WILL do good, for God Himself has ordained or predestined this to be so!
The only conclusion, then, is that while good works have nothing to do with GETTING US SAVED, and individual who does not do works of holiness is NOT A SAVED INDIVIDUAL. This is why James wrote: "I will shew thee my faith by my works... But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works [of morality and holiness] is dead? Ye see then how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only" (James 2:18, 20 & 24).
In light of scripture, what a cheap, degrading manifestation of grace and faith the Salvation Cult presents as they live their sometimes-in-church, hypocritical, graceless, sin-riddled lives, smugly testifying: "Hey, I know I'm out of fellowship with the Lord. But, hey, I'm just a sinner saved by grace--once saved always saved, ya know! Besides, nobody's perfect. Everybody sins. And who are you to judge me?"