But God – Ephesians 2:4-10

Recently, I have developed a good habit (yes, I have some good habits) of texting my wife Bible verses when I board my daily train to work. This past week, I was texting my wife Scriptures to encourage her about the grace of God. One particular Scripture that was shared was Ephesians 2:4-10:

But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.

What really stood out to me were the words “But God”. I started looking up verses that had these words in them. I found myself completely in awe of God as I read. These two little words are the essence of grace and the Gospel. What I could never do on my own due to my sin nature, God did on my behalf.

The preceding verse (verse 3) speaks to us as being, by our nature, children of wrath. That is our condition without Christ. We are dead spiritually. I can neither will nor work my way back to God.

I think of Jesus explaining to Nicodemus, in John 3, the nature of the new birth. The Spirit gives life.

Just as I had no part in the day I was born physically, I have no part in the regeneration of my Spirit. My response or faith in the Gospel, as Paul writes, is not of me, it is the gift of God. This is great news.

What is impossible for me is possible for God. I then began to ponder the “But God” moments in my life. My father passed away five years ago. I had prayed for my father for many years to come to know the Lord. The last couple of months of my father’s life were very difficult for him. His financial situation became dim and there were other issues going on in my family. It was in the midst of these difficult times where God allowed me to share the Gospel with him. I began to pray with him and read Scripture to him on a regular basis. My brother called me about two weeks before my father passed. This was a particularly difficult day and he asked if I could come over. As I drove to his house, I started praying and crying out to God that this was it. Lord, please make a way. When I arrived, my brother left to clear his head and I began reading and sharing with my dad. I then asked him if he wanted to receive Christ. There was a delay, but then he responded with yes, he wanted to receive Christ as his Lord and Savior. This was the “But God” moment I had been waiting for since I received the Lord in 1992.

My encouragement to you today, as you read this blog, is that our God is the God of the impossible. The following Scriptures are just a few of the “But God” verses in the Bible. Be encouraged and know the love of God is at the heart of the grace of God, and heaven will be filled with the “impossibles”.

Genesis 8:1

But God remembered Noah and all the wild animals and the livestock that were with him in the ark, and He sent a wind over the earth, and the waters receded.

Genesis 50:20

You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.

Psalm 73:26

My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.

Matthew 19:26

Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.

Romans 5:8

But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

1 Corinthians 1:27

But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong.