They are arguably the two most important words in all the Bible. The sweetest words to the Christian’s ears. Two words we could never read enough or be reminded of too much. The famed preacher, D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, once said, “These two words, in and of themselves, in a sense contain the whole of the gospel.” James Montgomery Boice claimed that “if you understand those two words . . . they will save your soul. If you recall them daily and live by them, they will transform your life completely.” What are these two most important words? They are the words, But God . . .”
The word, “but,” often means a turnaround or contrast to something else that has recently been stated. Sometimes that may not be a good thing. When you are told that someone would love to come to your party or get together to be disappointed to hear that BUT they cannot because of this, that, or the other. Or the doctor says that your health is looking pretty good BUT there is one major concern that he or she has about it. Kind of like when Jesus in the book of Revelation has John write to those seven churches commending them on several things that are going well with the congregation only to follow that with the statement, “BUT I have this against you” (2:4, 20) or “BUT I have a few things against you” (v. 14). However, often when the word “but” is coupled with God and something He has or will do, it signifies a much needed divine intervention in the midst of our perilous plight and desperate situation or circumstance.
We are told that after God had destroyed every living thing on the earth in the flood and Noah with his family were stuck on the ark as the flood waters remained for 150 days, “BUT GOD remembered Noah and all the beasts and all the cattle that were with him in the ark; and God caused a wind to pass over the earth, and the water subsided” (Genesis 8:1). When things looked pretty grim for Joseph as he had been sold to a man named Potiphar to serve as his slave, we have “BUT YAHWEH [or the LORD] was with Joseph, so he became a successful man” (39:2). Likewise, later when the young man finds himself in prison falsely accused of wrongdoing, “BUT YAHWEH [or the LORD] was with Joseph and extended lovingkindness to him and gave him favor in the sight of the chief jailer” (v. 21). And then looking back at the end of his life, he is able to say to his brothers, “as for you, you meant evil against me, BUT GOD meant it for good in order to do what has happened on this day, to keep many people alive” (50:20). We read of David, “And Saul sought him every day, BUT GOD did not give him into his hand” (1 Samuel 23:14). And regarding ourselves and our salvation, “For one will hardly die for a righteous man, though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die. BUT GOD demonstrates His own love towards us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:7-8). “For consider your calling, brothers, that there were not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble. BUT GOD has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong, and the base things of the world and the despised God has chosen, the things that are not, so that He may abolish the things that are, so that no flesh may boast before God” (1 Corinthians 1:26-29). “No temptation has overtaken you but such is common to man, BUT GOD is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it” (1 Corinthians 10:13). After pointing out to the saints in Ephesus that “you were dead in your trespasses and sins, Paul shares the wonderful good news, “BUT GOD, being rich in mercy because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ-by grace you have been saved-and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus” (Ephesians 2:4-6).
Oh, what hope these two words bring us! That God will not forget us Noahs who have been saved by His grace and preserved from His wrath. When we find ourselves in less than ideal circumstances such as Joseph in slavery to Potiphar and in prison for a crime he never committed to know that in the middle of all that God is with us working out His greater good purpose. That God will not give us into the hand of our enemy, the devil. Or in the moment of temptation when the pull to sin seems so strong to be reminded that God is faithful in not allowing it to get to the point of overwhelming us where we cannot fight against it and even providing the way out so we don’t need to give into it. The times where we may think that God would not want us or desire to use us since there is nothing special about us according to the world’s standards we can be assured that we are exactly the kind of person He chooses. That when no else would even consider to die for us not being a good person or a righteous one, God sent forth His Son to. And that we are not left in the deadness of our sins receiving what we deserve for them. All because of these “BUT GOD’S” in the Bible.
Think about the difference these “BUT GOD’S” make. Without the truth of these words, Noah never would have been able to get off of the ark. Joseph could never have went from Potiphar to prison to Pharaoh to the palace where he and his family, God’s people from whom the promised Seed would come, would be saved. David would have been killed by Saul. None of us would ever have been chosen to be a part of God’s family. We each would still be dead in our sins with no one willing to die to remove those sins and pay the penalty they entailed. No spiritual life being given to us. Temptation would always get the upper hand without any way for us ever to escape it.
None of these things of the “BUT GOD’S” are things we can do ourselves. Noah didn’t have the power and strength to blow the waters of the flood to cause them to subside in the least little bit. It is unimaginable that a Hebrew like Joseph could curry such favor with Egyptians in such a short time left on his own. Young David, as fit and strong as he was, may not have stood a chance against the older King Saul and his forces. We do not have the power to overcome temptation on our own. In fact, we fail at such every time we try. In and of ourselves, we can no more breathe spiritual life into our deadness than a corpse can breathe life back into itself. Than Lazarus or the old dry bones in the valley of Ezekiel’s day could without the Spirit’s working through God’s Word in each of those cases. We cannot save ourselves or earn our salvation in any way. We are not able to go even a day with keeping the Ten Commandments God has given which reveal His righteous standard.
These two words remind us of God’s grace. God would have been fully just to leave Noah on the ark among the flood waters or even to have him perish with the rest of wicked humanity in the flood. After all, we should not forget that Noah and his family were just as much sinners as the rest were. Keep in mind that the statement of Genesis 6:5 is universal without any exceptions given. The evil of man in general was great on the earth and that EVERY intent of the thoughts of his heart was ONLY evil CONTINUALLY or ALL HIS DAYS. Noah would have been included in that statement being a part of sinful humanity and a descendant of Adam sharing his guilt and sinful nature. And we read about his sinful drunken nakedness after the ark as well (9:20-21). The only reason Noah and his family were spared the flood of God’s wrath was the same reason any of us are spared such; God’s grace. Remember that we are told that “Noah found favor [literally “grace”] in the eyes of Yahweh” (6:8). Not merit on account of his own righteousness. The mention of his rightoeousnness and blamelessness FOLLOWED him finding that favor or grace in God’s eyes (v. 9). As is always the case, it is the result of such and not the cause of it. On account of our sins and unrighteousness, we certainly don’t deserve God to intervene in sending His Son to die in our place and to make us alive in Christ. In fact, we give Him every reason not to. Whenever we read these two words in Scripture, we should remember God’s great grace in our lives and be amazed by it.
D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones also said in a sermon one time, “Thank God for the ‘buts’ of the Bible.” Certainly, we should especially thank God for the “But God’s” of the Bible and the difference they make in our lives and praise Him for each of them. Be sure to pay attention to them the next time you come across one in your Bible reading and give thanks.
Celebrating the glorious truths of the “but God’s” with you,
Pastor Lee