Merits and Mercy and Grace

In his final words of counsel to his sons, Lehi describes the Atonement of Jesus Christ using a phrase that doesn’t appear anywhere else in the scriptures:

There is no flesh that can dwell in the presence of God save it be through the merits, and mercy, and grace of the Holy Messiah.

2 Nephi 2:8

I can relate to two of those three characteristics of the Savior. Mercy means that He takes away bad things which I deserve. Grace means that He gives me good things which I don’t deserve. But what does Lehi mean by merits?

The word merit comes from the Latin word meritus, which means “earned,” or “deserved.” The earliest uses of “merit” in English relate to getting credit or receiving a reward for something you accomplished. (See Online Etymology Dictionary, “merit.”)

The Book of Mormon is clear that we cannot earn salvation. Aaron taught the father of King Lamoni, “Since man had fallen, he could not merit anything of himself” (Alma 22:14). So we need help from someone who has earned and does deserve the blessings we seek.

Elder Richard G. Scott explained:

Jesus Christ possessed merits that no other child of Heavenly Father could possibly have. He was a God, Jehovah, before His birth in Bethlehem. His Father not only gave Him His spirit body, but Jesus was His Only Begotten Son in the flesh. Our Master lived a perfect, sinless life and therefore was free from the demands of justice. He was and is perfect in every attribute, including love, compassion, patience, obedience, forgiveness, and humility.

“Jesus Christ, Our Redeemer,” General Conference, April 1997, italics in original

With this understanding of merit, I see the second and third characteristics of the Savior as flowing out of the first: Jesus has the power to extend mercy and grace to us because of His merits:

Today I will be grateful for a Savior who is both willing and able to bring us back into the presence of God. I will remember His merits, which uniquely empowered Him to save His Father’s children, and I will remember the gifts I receive from Him in the form of both mercy and grace.