Part 1: The Basics
Lesson 5: Love, Mercy, and Grace
Weekly Meeting
Share testimonies or get clarification if you are having trouble writing yours.
Icebreaker:
- Did anyone share their faith with another person this week? What was it like? What happened?
- When you hear the terms love, mercy, and grace, what do you think of? What do you think they mean? How are they related to each other?
- When someone says, “God is love” what do they mean? What does the Bible mean when it says that?
Introduction:
We’re living in a time and culture that doesn’t really understand the meaning of the terms love, mercy, and grace. Love, to the culture in general usually means total acceptance and affirmation of whatever life choices we make, or it has a romantic tone to it.
In the Greek language there were eight words for love, and the scriptures talked about four of them most of the time: agape, storge, eros, and philia. Therefore, the scriptures were clearer in the original language. When we talk about God’s unconditional love, we are talking about agape. Agape is the most misunderstood in our culture today. Agape does not compromise the truth, and it does not affirm sin or harmful behavior. If we really think about it, if love is defined in this way, then no parent or even Jesus himself ever loved anyone. If a child tells his parent he’s going to eat gummy worms for dinner from now on, does a parent affirm that decision and tell the child okay? If a person decides they want to kill someone, does God say, that’s okay, go ahead? No, affirmation is not always a part of loving someone. Love discerns and is wise. Love cares beyond the “all I want is for you to be happy” platitudes. The kind of love God has for us is a love that wants what he knows is best for us, for our souls, our minds, and hearts.
Just for your information: storge love is family love, eros love is sensual, romantic love, and philia is brotherly or friendship love. These and agape are the ones we see most often in scripture. One other Greek word for love that we see more and more today is philautos which is love of self. We see this used in verses like 2 Timothy 3:2 talking about the last days.
Mercy and Grace are two sides of the same coin in a sense. Grace is God giving us what we don’t deserve, and mercy is God not giving us what we do deserve. When it comes to salvation, we see his mercy in Jesus taking our punishment we deserved, and God giving us his forgiveness and salvation which we do not deserve.
Love, mercy, and grace are God’s greatest gifts to us, and they are the gifts that give us new life in Christ. These are also God’s greatest calling on our lives. He tells us many times to love others, show mercy, and give grace. Every ministry begins with these three.
Scripture Reading: Matthew 5:43-46; Matthew 22:37-40; Ephesians 2:8-9; Romans 11:5-6; 2 John 1:3; Hebrews 4:16
Discussion:
- Do you struggle with showing love, mercy, and grace to others? How do you struggle the most? Why do you think it is difficult?
- How do we show love for someone who is living far from God?
- How would you describe agape love? How is it different from storge or other kinds of love?
- In many scriptures where grace and love are mentioned, peace is also mentioned. Why do you think peace is a part of grace and love?
- How has God’s grace and mercy changed your life?
Key Point:
Love, mercy, and grace are God’s greatest gifts and greatest calling.
Passion in Action: Talk with your group and decide on a way you can share God’s love with someone in your community this week, and plan to do that together. As you minister to this person, share how God’s grace and mercy has changed your life.
Prayer Time: Keep a prayer list and note answered prayer. Share prayer requests as a group, and as you pray, remember to thank God for His generous grace and mercy that has saved us. Thank Him for the relationship we can now have with Him.
On Your Own
Memory Verses: 2 John 1:3; Micah 6:8
Extra Reading: Read Philippians, then 1 and 2 Thessalonians. If you finish those, read 1 and 2 Timothy and Titus. Remember to bring any questions you have about your reading to your discipleship leader, especially to your one-on-one time with them.
Homework: By now you should have your testimony written out and feel comfortable sharing it. Start watching the videos for 3 Circles on YouTube (Zion Church Media has all six videos – plan to watch one each week for six weeks or one every other week for twelve weeks Your group may decide together which they would rather do). If you can, get the book Turning Everyday Conversations into Gospel Conversations by Jimmy Scroggins.
Five Weekly Devotions
Monday: Nothing Can Separate Us from God’s Love
Scripture: Romans 8:35-39 (also Psalm 139)
These verses are so wonderful. They tell us that nothing can separate us from God’s love. He loves us unconditionally, and he sustains our relationship with him. We can do nothing to earn our salvation or our relationship with God. And nothing on earth or in heaven can keep his love from us. Hold on to that. Celebrate it. Thank him for it.
Questions to Ponder:
- Do you ever doubt God’s love for you? How can your group help you or pray for you about this?
- When you read these scriptures, what misunderstanding of God’s love does it help you eliminate, (your own misunderstanding or someone else’s misunderstanding you know about)?
- How do these scriptures help you in your faith?
Prayer for Today: Thank God for his love and for how he holds us in his hands. Pray that we all can walk in peace and comfort in the knowledge of God’s love.
Tuesday: God Has Lavished His Grace and Love Upon Us
Scripture: Ephesians 1:6-8; 1 John 3:1
These scriptures are so powerful. Not only does God love us and give us his grace, but he has lavished them upon us. God is so generous. He doesn’t hold back. Think of a waterfall. That’s what the original word in Greek means. Imagine his grace and love filling every hurt place in your heart and mind. Think about his love filling every empty place where you have lacked the love of someone else or the forgiveness and grace you need from someone else. Let God’s love fill those places and heal your heart and mind as he lavishes his love and grace upon you.
Questions to Ponder:
- Do these scriptures change your understanding of God’s love and grace?
- What does it show you about your walk with God?
- What questions do you have?
- Is there an area in your life that desperately needs God’s love and/or grace right now?
- When you hear the word “lavished” what comes to mind? What picture does it form in your mind?
Prayer for Today: If there is an area in your life where you need God’s love and grace to fill it, ask him to do that now. Let his love and grace completely fill you and heal your heart today. Thank him for his goodness and amazing gifts of love, mercy, and grace.
Wednesday: God’s Grace Is Sufficient
Scripture: 2 Corinthians 12:9
These verses are promises that help sustain us through all of life, the good and the bad. They also help alleviate any fear we may have of what the future holds. Whatever it holds, God’s amazing grace is sufficient to carry us through. It doesn’t mean we won’t grieve or go through hard times, but in every single moment of our lives, his grace is sufficient to carry us through if we will trust in him.
Questions to Ponder:
- What fears plague your mind about the future?
- Do you believe God’s grace is sufficient for all your needs?
- What does that mean to you?
- If there an area of your life where you need that grace firth now?
Prayer for Today: If you are struggling in some area of your life or are going through a hard time, give it to God and ask for his grace to carry you through. Ask him to show you where you need to depend on his strength and grace more today.
Thursday: God’s Mercies Are New Every Morning
Scripture: Lamentations 3:22-23 (or the whole chapter)
These verses are written by Jeremiah who is going through really tough times. He is mocked and mistreated. He is disrespected, and yet, he knows God has called him to walk this road. In the midst of all the chaos and pain, he still hopes in the Lord. He recognizes that God’s mercies are new every morning. Whether we have sinned and need God’s grace and mercy, or we are walking through tough, painful times, God’s mercy is new every morning. His grace, as we talked about yesterday, is sufficient to carry us through. Great is God’s faithfulness even when we are unfaithful or feeling discouraged.
Questions to Ponder:
- If you read this whole chapter, how would you summarize it?
- Do you agree with Jeremiah?
- This book is called Lamentations. We know lament means to cry, grieve, and suffer. Are you surprised that these two verses of rejoicing in God’s mercy are in the middle of Jeremiah’s lament?
- Do you have trouble focusing on and remembering God’s goodness in the middle of suffering? How can you change that?
- What does it mean to you to think of God’s mercies being new every morning?
- How has God shown his great faithfulness to you in your life?
Prayer for Today: Praise God for his faithfulness. Thank him for his mercy. If you know the old hymn “Great Is Thy Faithfulness,” you may want to include that as part of your prayer today.
Friday: Love Your God, Your Neighbors, and Enemies
Scripture: Matthew 22:37-40, Matthew 5:43-46; 2 Corinthians 6:6; 1 John 3:18
Love—it’s the primary command Jesus gives us. We are to love God with all our hearts, souls, minds, and strength (if you read the verse in Deuteronomy or Mark) and our neighbors as ourselves. We are to love one another in the church, and we are to love our enemies. At times, maybe all of them are challenging commands, but loving our enemies is usually our most challenging. The key is to remember who we were in our rebellion and sin and how God loved us. It helps to remember that. It helps to remember that God loves everyone, and we can ask for his help in loving others. Sometimes the challenge in loving others has nothing to do with the difficulties of loving the “unlovable,” but it has to do with our time and focus. Maybe we are so focused on what we need to get done or taking care of our family that we have spiritual blinders on to those around us. We find it hard to love others because we don’t even notice others.
Questions to Ponder:
- How can we notice others and allow the Holy Spirit to show us how we can love those around us?
- What can we do when we don’t want to love someone or find it hard to love them?
- What does it mean to love others? What about those who are doing truly evil things? How do we love them?
- What are some ways you can show love to God, your family, your coworkers, your church family, your neighbors, and others this week.
- One verse (John 13:35) say, “They will know us by our love.” What do you think that verse is trying to tell us?
Prayer for Today: Pray that God gives us a heart filled with his love. Pray that we can see others through his eyes. Pray that we always remember how he loved us and saved us even when we were sinful and rebellious.
