Did God Really Say...? Series

Did God Really Say…?

From the time we are old enough to communicate, we have questions.

• I think every little kid goes through the, “but why?” phase.

• Questions are a very important way of learning.

• A good teacher will even ask questions to get students thinking and talking out the solution.

Today we will be starting a series that God has laid on my heart where we will be looking over the next few weeks at some famous questions asked in the Bible.

This week, I want us to look at the first two questions of the Bible. The answers to these two questions, truly pertain to most of the questions of life.

Questions can also be used as a way to deceive.

One of the very first questions of the Bible was this kind of question.

Genesis 3:1-4 (NIV)

Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, "Did God really say, 'You must not eat from any tree in the garden'?" The woman said to the serpent, "We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, but God did say, 'You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.'" "You will not surely die," the serpent said to the woman.

In this passage we find a trick question that Satan is still asking and using very effectively today to deceive and lure people towards life destroying sin.

“Did God really say…?”

Did God Really Say…?

Satan is a master deceiver

• Notice the sly, smooth, nonaggressive way that he moves in on someone and isolates them and tries to cast doubt about what God had clearly said.

• He simply asks Eve a question.

• Eve knew the answer, but her knowledge quite possibly was second hand since she was created after God made the command to Adam to avoid the tree of knowledge.

• Satan starts with a question that he knew she wasn’t there to hear the original answer.

• She had heard about the tree so she told the devil what she THOUGHT was the WORD OF GOD.

Satan wants us to answer what we think we know about God’s word

• He knows what is says

• He is just looking for holes in our knowledge (or our faith in that knowledge)

• His whole purpose is to kill, steal and destroy (after all we are created in His image)

• Satan desires to cast doubt about the goodness of God and his good intentions for us.

(Serpent Slide)

You see – if Satan can get us to question God’s Word – to begin to doubt what God has already said – or to ask ourselves did God really mean what He said, then he has the door wide open to make our minds his playground.

• We then entertain the wrong idea and finally put God’s word to the test.

• Then when God doesn’t instantly bring judgment, Satan convinces us that it is okay to continue in it! (You won’t surly die)

• Then that road leads to disaster!

James 1:13-15 (NIV)

When tempted, no one should say, "God is tempting me." For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.

Satan is a master at this…

After all he has a huge percentage of the world believing he doesn’t even exist…

That is why we need God’s Word in our lives. We need to peach it, to teach it, to devour it, and to do what David said in Psalm 119.

Psalm 119:11 (NIV)

I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.

Notice David didn’t say, in his head…?

The question today is…? “What part of God’s word does Satan have you questioning?”

• Did God really say… that He is the only God … there are no other gods before Him?

• Did God really say… that Jesus was born of a virgin?

• Did Jesus really… come back to life in His resurrected body

• Did God really say… that the wages of sin is “death”, both physical and spiritual?

• Did God really say… that Jesus is the only way to find eternal life?

• Did God really say… that if a man dies in his sin that he will be eternally separated from God in a place called Hell?

• Did God really say… that a man is to bring of “his first fruits”; “Tithe” and give those back to God in Worship and honor?