Ephesians 2:1-10: ‘But for the Grace of God….’

‘There but for the grace of God go I.’ This is a well-known statement which recognises that apart from God’s gracious intervention left to ourselves we would be lost. This statement is credited to the martyr John Bradford, once while walking past a gallows and as criminal were being led to be hanged, he looked over at them as said, ‘there but for the grace of God go I.’ It is this grateful recognition that Paul is trying to prompt in the Ephesians in 2:1-10. The body of chapter 1 is only two sentences in the Greek, the first sentence was v3-14 a song of praise for the glorious riches we have in Christ as the Father, Son and Spirit work in the past, the present and the future. V15-23 was a prayer for the Ephesians eyes to be opened to these riches and the victory that we have in Christ. 2:1-10 is another single sentence and think of this as a description or demonstration of God’s power at work, showing how God saves a sinner. Paul prayed that we might know the immeasurable greatness of His power towards those who believe, here is an attempt to help us see.

This section has two clear sections. V1-3 tell the story of what we were; v4-10 tells the story of what God’s power and grace accomplish. You get a real sense of these two sections when you look at the beginning of v4 and see those two words, ‘But God.’ We were dead in sins, but God! Our sermon will divide under two headings, firstly, we will look at Paul’s description of our desperate need, and secondly, we will look at God’s gracious provision.