1. 4/29/2018 pm
Did God Really Mean It?
John 17:13-21
Randy Bowles

2. 4/29/2018 pm
Randy Bowles

3. Absolutely!! Did God Really Mean It?
4/29/2018 pm
Did God Really Mean It?
“… but of the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.”
– Genesis 2:17
Absolutely!!
“Therefore the Lord God sent him out from the garden of Eden to work the ground from which he was taken.” – Genesis 3:23
Randy Bowles

4. “Honor your father and mother.”
4/29/2018 pm
Did God Really Mean It?
“Honor your father and mother.”
Exodus 20:12
Totally!!
“You hypocrites!”
Matthew 15:7
Randy Bowles

5. “Why then did you not obey the voice of the Lord?”
4/29/2018 pm
Did God Really Mean It?
“Now go and strike Amalek and devote to destruction all that they have …”
I Samuel 15:3
Every Word!!
“Why then did you not obey the voice of the Lord?”
I Samuel 15:19
Randy Bowles

6. 4/29/2018 pm
Did God Really Mean It?
“Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul.”
- I Peter 2:11
“These all died in faith, not having received the things promised, but having seen them and greeted them from afar; and having acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on the earth. For people who speak thus make it clear that they are seeking a homeland.” - Hebrews 11:13-14
Randy Bowles

7. 4/29/2018 pm
Did God Really Mean It?
Are more interested in padding their retirement account than helping a brother
Really need that 2nd home but don’t need to help spread the gospel
Prefer to spend social time with cool worldly friends but not with embarrassing or boring brothers and sisters
We need to live our lives with one eye on Heaven. Doesn’t mean we can’t enjoy ourselves.
More focused on their hobby than the Bible
Randy Bowles

8. 4/29/2018 pm
Did God Really Mean It?
“So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.”
- Luke 14:33
Disciples gave up all. This includes having a love for the truth – loving truth more than self (pride), prestige, more than what others say or think
“If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.” - Luke 14:26
Randy Bowles

9. Did God Really Mean It? Every thought (I Corinthians 4:5)
4/29/2018 pm
Did God Really Mean It?
“And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment …”
- Hebrews 9:27
Every thought (I Corinthians 4:5)
I don’t know how God is going to be able to judge all of this. I don’t have to. Related: do you really believe that hell will be all that bad? Also, do you believe God when He tells you how wonderful Heaven will be?
Every word (Matthew 12:36)
Every deed (Revelation 20:13)
Randy Bowles

10. 4/29/2018 pm
Did God Really Mean It?
“He who has believed and has been baptized shall be saved; but he who has disbelieved shall be condemned.” - Mark 16:16
“For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.” - Galatians 3:27
“Corresponding to that, baptism now saves you – not the removal of dirt from the flesh, but an appeal to God for a good conscience.”
- I Peter 3:21
But what about my grandparents? But what about the man that….
Randy Bowles

11. 4/29/2018 pm
Did God Really Mean It?
“For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, ‘Abba! Father!’”
- Romans 8:15
“Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”
- Matthew 11:29-30
Slaves, when they fail, can only expect punishment. Remember the Prodigal Son? “A broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.” (Psalm 51:17)
Randy Bowles

12. 4/29/2018 pm
Conclusions
We serve an awesome God – He does not have man’s characteristics
There are no “throw-away” words in the Bible
God means what He says every time.
Our attitude towards the Bible is the same as our attitude towards God
Randy Bowles