Hope Because of God's Mercy

January 31, 2025

“Let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most.” Hebrews 4:16 (NLT)

The definition of mercy is “undeserved forgiveness and unearned kindness.” When somebody forgives you and you don’t deserve it, that’s mercy. When somebody shows you a kindness you haven’t earned, that’s mercy. And the Bible says that God wants to show you mercy.

The truth is, you need mercy every single second of your life. The air you breathe and the water you drink are mercies from God. You wouldn’t be alive if it wasn’t for the mercy of God. No matter what you’re going through, you can live with hope. That’s the consistent good news of the Bible.

Peter wrote to those who were already believers, “All honor to God, the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ; for it is his boundless mercy that has given us the privilege of being born again” (1 Peter 1:3 TLB).

Peter didn’t just say that God is merciful. Peter praised God for his “boundless mercy.”  

The more you understand God’s mercy and grace, the more you—like Peter—will be amazed by it. It’s completely undeserved. It’s totally unmerited. It’s not something that you could earn or work for. It’s just a free gift.

God’s mercy is based on his love for you. And you can’t make God love you any more than he loves you right now. You also can’t make him love you any less. That means his mercy toward you will never change.

The Bible, says, “When God our Savior revealed his kindness and love, he saved us, not because of the righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He washed away our sins, giving us a new birth and new life through the Holy Spirit” (Titus 3:4-5 NLT).

This is extremely important to understand. When you make mistakes as a believer, God doesn’t get mad at you. God doesn’t want to get even with you. God doesn’t start planning to mess up your life.

Here’s what God does: He always acts in mercy toward you. Why? Because you’re covered in the blood of Jesus Christ when you have accepted him as Savior.

Because of Jesus, God responds in mercy every time you mess up. And that can give you hope.