But God...
A Sermon on Ephesians 2:4
Scripture
4But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us,
Sermon Description
In this powerful sermon, preached at Columbia Bible College's Ben Lippen Conference Center near Asheville (North Carolina), Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones expounds on the profound significance of two simple words found in Ephesians 2:4 - "But God." He argues that these words encapsulate the very essence of the Christian gospel and should be the most frequent words on the lips of believers today. Dr. Lloyd-Jones contrasts the hopeless state of mankind apart from God, dead in sin and under the influence of Satan, with the miraculous intervention of God's grace. He emphasizes that the gospel is inherently supernatural and divine, beyond human comprehension or ability. Using examples like Mary and Nicodemus, he shows how even devout people can stumble over the miraculous nature of God's work. The preacher highlights the element of surprise in the gospel - that God would love and save those who were His enemies. He stresses that salvation is entirely of God from beginning to end, not dependent on human effort or decision. Dr. Lloyd-Jones marvels at God's rich mercy, great love, and exceeding grace toward undeserving sinners. He proclaims that through Christ, believers are not only raised from spiritual death but seated with Him in heavenly places. Ultimately, Dr. Lloyd-Jones presents the "But God" of the gospel as the only true hope and encouragement for both individuals and the church in a dark and troubled world. *Please note that some sections of the original sermon were lost in the audio recording. However, we have done our best to make the sermon as seamless as possible.
Sermon Breakdown
- The two words ‘but God’ introduce the gospel and provide hope.
- ‘But’ indicates a transition from our hopeless state to God’s grace.
- The gospel is the only hope for the world. No one else understands the root cause of our problems.
- We were once dead in our sins, following the course of this world and the prince of the power of the air.
- We lived in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling our desires. We were by nature children of wrath.
- 'But God’ introduces the miraculous, supernatural, and divine. The gospel is not explicable by human means.
- Many stumble at the miraculous like Mary and Nicodemus. We must accept it as a miracle of God.
- ‘But’ indicates surprise. The gospel is the most surprising thing. If it hasn’t surprised us, we don’t understand it.
- Paul was surprised to become a Christian. He didn’t understand himself anymore. Only Christ in him explained it.
- ‘But’ shows our salvation is entirely of God, by grace through faith, not of works. God regenerates us.
- God continues to show grace because He is rich in mercy, love, and grace. He is different from us.
- God’s grace quickens us from death, raises us up, and seats us in the heavenly places in Christ.
- If we are in Christ, we are seated in the heavenly places right now, not just in the future.
- ‘But God’ is the only encouragement for the church. Without Him, the situation would be hopeless.
The Book of Ephesians
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899-1981) was a Welsh evangelical minister who preached and taught in the Reformed tradition. His principal ministry was at Westminster Chapel, in central London, from 1939-1968, where he delivered multi-year expositions on books of the bible such as Romans, Ephesians and the Gospel of John. In addition to the MLJ Trust’s collection of 1,600 of these sermons in audio format, most of these great sermon series are available in book form (including a 14 volume collection of the Romans sermons), as are other series such as "Spiritual Depression", "Studies in the Sermon on the Mount" and "Great Biblical Doctrines". He is considered by many evangelical leaders today to be an authority on biblical truth and the sufficiency of Scripture.