Amazing Grace and Mercy
Today as I was reading, I pondered on mercy and grace. In class, we learned how grace could be explained as “getting more (good) than we deserve” and that mercy is “not getting (all the bad) we deserve”. This stuck out to me as being particularly beautiful. I have often been wondering how Christ’s Atonement applies to our daily lives, and studying these principles helps me to realize how Christ is our source of hope, healing, forgiveness, peace, joy, and salvation. It is only through His merits and because of His mercy that we would be forgiven of what we have done and thereby not get all the bad that we deserve. Likewise, it is because of His perfection and willingness to suffer for the ways that we fall short that we can possibly receive exaltation and more than we deserve.
I love my Savior. I am so grateful for His Atonement for me. Today as we read some of the verses from the prophet Isaiah in the Bible that are quoted in the Book of Mormon, I was taught of some of the suffering that He experienced for me and for all of us.
“But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.
All we, like sheep, have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquities of us all.”
-Mosiah 14:5-6
Later on in my personal study, I read Mosiah 12:2. In this verse, Abinadi is prophesying what will happen to the people because they have not repented. As I read this verse (included below), my mind turned to the principles we had learned in class about how Christ was punished for our iniquities.
“Thus saith the Lord, it shall come to pass that this generation, because of their iniquities, shall be brought into bondage, and shall be smitten on the cheek; yea, and shall be driven by men, and shall be slain…”
Jesus Christ willingly took upon Himself the guilt for all of our sins. He suffered for every mistake we will ever make so that we could have something better and so we could become something better. He said, “For behold, I, God, have suffered these things for all, that they might not suffer if they would repent” (D&C 19:16).
But that’s just it. We must repent and apply His Atonement to our lives. Because if we don’t, then we will suffer the guilt of our sins. But our Savior is waiting for open arms to receive us, because He suffered so that we don’t have to.
We still suffer some consequences for our sins. The people that Abinadi preached to were still going to suffer famine because of their wickedness. But, God wanted them to come home, and if they would have repented, then His mercy would have been upon them, and they could have gotten more than they deserved.
I think this is beautiful.
I know that our Savior loves us and does not want us to suffer—that’s one reason why He atoned for all for our sins. He wants us to be happy and to have great things—even all that our Father has.
When we make mistakes, we can turn to Him. He can help us to repent. I have felt His strength as I have sought to repent in the past, and I have felt His peace once I have been healed and made clean. What a wonderful and joyful feeling that is. I don’t fully understand it, but I believe it is real and that we can be forgiven. I believe that we can, through His mercy, be saved and receive more than we deserve at the last day. But I also believe in the importance of following Him, keeping His commandments, and learning of Him. I know that we will feel greater joy in our lives when we truly do so.
Love you!
Abby
