The Master‘s Class, LifeChange Church Wichita

KINGDOM AUTHORITY (Ephesians 1:15-23)

KINGDOM AUTHORITY (EPHESIANS 1:15-23)

In our lesson today, we will be talking about a tremendous Biblical truth about a believer’s “Kingdom Authority.”  God wants you to discover Kingdom Authority, to enjoy Kingdom Authority, and to exercise Kingdom Authority. And my heart is so full, because I’m afraid that you’re going to miss the blessing, miss the truth, if you do not listen to what the Holy Spirit has to say to us today.  But my prayer is that God will impregnate your heart with this great, dynamic, life-changing, truth of Kingdom Authority.

Paul tells us in the first chapter of Ephesians about the Kingdom Authority that belongs to the children of God. And if you’re a child of God, meaning that you are a true, twice born, follower of Christ, then I want to tell you something, you have incredible authority and power. Whether you have discovered it or not, it’s there, inherently.  You already have it.

Have you ever seen a real live king? Well, would you like to see one?  Did you know the Bible says that God has made every believer a king and a priest? 

Rev 5:10
10 And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.
KJV

Look to the person to your right, the person to your left. There’s a king, and there’s a priest, if they’re saved. Go home, and look in the mirror, and, if you’re saved, if you’re a child of God, looking back at you will be a king and a priest. God has made us a kingdom of priests.  Now, that is absolutely wonderful!

However, you don’t have to be a preacher, teacher, or even a member of a church, to be a king and a priest, or a queen and a priestess.  Paul, says very plainly, you just have to know the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior, because God has given to all His children Kingdom Authority. And that’s what we’re going to be looking at, and that’s what we’re going to be studying, today. 

Click on the play button to hear a message that describes what Kingdom Authority is, how God graciously gave Adam dominion over all the earth, how Adam legally lost that dominion to the devil, and how Jesus righteously regained that dominion when He came to this earth as a man.

This is a live recording of The Master’s Class Bible Study at LifeChange Church Wichita, KS.

Amen.

SIGNED, SEALED, AND DELIVERED (Ephesians 1:13-14)

SIGNED, SEALED, AND DELIVERED (EPHESIANS 1:13-14)

When Paul talks about a seal, he is talking about a legal seal, and a seal means finality.  It means the transaction is done.  A seal also means security; it means the transaction is safe. And then a seal also means identity; it shows to whom the transaction has been delivered. I want you to think about the fact that Christians have the sealing of the Holy Spirit of God.

Paul says that when we believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, when we’re born again, one of the ways that we know that we are saved, one of the proofs, one of the authenticating pieces of evidence, that we are genuine, bone fide, legally belonging to Jesus Christ, is that God places His seal upon us. Now, the seal that God places upon us is the Holy Spirit of God, because every believer, when he is saved, receives the Holy Spirit of God. 

The Bible is very clear when it says that if you have not received the Holy Spirit, then you have not received Jesus. The only way that you can receive Christ is to receive God’s Holy Spirit. He lives in you; He abides in you. And when He comes into you, it is the same thing to you that a seal is to a legal document. “Ye were sealed”—the Bible says—“with that holy Spirit of promise.” And a seal means finality; it means the transaction is done.  

Now, Paul is telling us that Jesus has purchased you, and there is finality. And when you receive the Holy Spirit of God, that means that the price has been paid in full. There’s nothing else you can do, and nothing else that you need to do.  For, without Jesus, nothing can be done, and with Jesus nothing else needs to be done. 

Click on the play button below to hear a message on the six reasons why I believe the Bible teaches us that we are eternally secure in our salvation.  

This is a live recording of The Master’s Class Bible Study at LifeChange Church Wichita, KS.

Amen.

THE REVELATION OF GOD'S WILL (Genesis 45:9 to 46:7)

THE REVELATION OF GOD’S WILL (Genesis 45:9 to 46:7)

Does God have a purpose in the events of this world? Does God have a purpose for your life?  If the answer to those two questions is “Yes”, and it is, then the better question is do you know the purpose of God for your life?  If not, how do you go about discerning the purpose, or the will, of God in your life?  This is what our lesson is about today.  I want to speak to you about The Revelation of God’s Will.

Your great desire ought to be to know His will.  Your great delight will be to do His will.  Your great danger is to refuse His will.  Nothing is right for you, if it is not God’s will.

It may sound simplistic, but the will of God for you is Jesus, just Jesus.  Jesus is the head of the church, and the church is the body.  What is the will of my body? My head.  What is the will of the church of the body of believers? Jesus, the head of the church.  The will of God for your life is Jesus.  He is your Lord.  Know Him, know the will of God.

Here are three principles about the will of God.

First, The will of God is for your welfare.  It is not something you have to do; it is something you get to do.  

Second, The will of God will never take you where the power of God and the grace of God cannot enable and keep you.

Third, You are free to choose.  God will never force His will upon you.  You are free to choose His will.  You are not free not to choose.  When you say, “Well, I just won’t choose.” You just made a choice.  You are free to choose, you are not free not to choose—and pay attention, you are not free to choose the consequences of your choice.  You make a choice to follow God’s will or not, and that choice chooses the consequences for you.  

So, what should we do to know the will of God? Ask the same questions that Jacob did.

Lord, who are you?  Do you know that Jesus is the Son of God? Do you know Him as your personal Lord and Saviour? Do you have an intimate relationship with Him?  Is your mind conformed to the mind of Christ?

Lord, what do you want me to do? Are you willing to do whatever God will enable you to do?  Are you surrendered to God?

Click on the play button to hear a message on how to know the will of God for your life.

This is a live recording of The Master’s Class Bible Study at LifeChange Church Wichita, KS.

Amen.

JACOB'S LADDER-PART I (Genesis 28:1 to 13)

Sometimes people tell me it’s hard to be a Christian. That is just so ridiculous.  Listen, all you have to do is think about old, unsaved, Jacob down there sleeping on stones, with a rock for a pillow, and tell me it’s hard to be a Christian.  The truth is, it is hard not to be a Christian. The Bible says, 

Prov 13:15
15 Good understanding giveth favour: but the way of transgressors is hard.
KJV

What could be harder than a stone for a pillow? “The way of [the transgressor] is hard.”  It is not hard to be a Christian. Jesus said, 

Matt 11:28-30
28 Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.
30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.
KJV

Now, what did that last sentence say?  “For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”  Jesus is telling us that to be a Christian, a Christ follower, is easy.

I have been teaching the Bible for a long time. Two things I’ve never heard. 

Number one: I’ve never heard any Christian—true Christian, a born-again Christian—say, “I’m sorry that I gave my heart to Jesus Christ.” I never have heard that.

Number two:  Something else that I have never heard: I have never heard any person without the Lord Jesus Christ say, “I want to tell you how much the dear, sweet, old devil means to me.” 

Here is the easy truth, I would be a Christian even if there were no heaven, and if there were no hell.  Now, without a doubt, there are both, but if I had a thousand lives, I’d give every one of them to Jesus Christ.  To know Christ in this life, that is easy. It is the way of the transgressor that is hard.

Here is an old familiar quote, “Nature forms us; sin deforms us; education informs us; penitentiaries try to reform us; but only Jesus can transform us.”  And if you’d like to be transformed, then you can be transformed. You can be made brand new through the Lord Jesus Christ and through the wonderful saving gospel of our dear Savior. 

Click on the link below to hear a message on how the story of Jacob’s Ladder shows us a picture of the sinner, a picture of the Savior, and a picture of salvation.

This is a live recording of The Master’s Class Bible Study at LifeChange Church Wichita, KS.

Amen.

THE MEANING OF THE RESURRECTION OF OUR LORD

Today we are celebrating Easter Sunday.  This is a holiday that most of the western world has celebrated for centuries.  However, for most people the day is simply another holiday, it has no real meaning other than the Easter bunny, egg hunts, and candy for the kids.  

To some, it is a time to go to church for a religious ceremony of some type.  Many of us have memories of attending Easter services in crowded churches, with everyone dressed in new Easter, Sunday-go-to-meeting, clothes.  The women were dressed in hats and gloves, and the men in suits and ties.  The church was crowded with people attending for the one and only time all year that they came to church.  Yet, if you were to ask most of them why they came, why the day was important, many of them could not tell you.  

Why is Easter Sunday an important holiday to celebrate?  It is because on Easter, we are celebrating the resurrection of our Lord Jesus.  If you are a believer, if Jesus Christ is your Lord and Master, then Easter should be every bit as important to you as the celebration of the birth of our Savior on Christmas.  

The resurrection of Jesus Christ means that we have A master to confess. It provides us with a living Jesus Christ sitting on the right hand of God the Father.  He is sitting because He has accomplished all that God has asked Him to do.  

It also means that we have A message to convey. The resurrection of Jesus Christ provides us with a message to tell others About Eternal life.  About Power over sin in our lives.  About The hand of the One who will bring us into the presence of God when we enter Heaven’s Gate.  Where we can stand clothed in the robe of righteousness purchased with His Holy blood.  Christ wields absolute authority and power in Heaven and on Earth.  Angels and Cherubim of heaven, and Principalities and rulers of this world’s darkness, wicked spirits, demons, and Satan himself are held in check by the power and authority of our Lord Jesus Christ.  No kingdom, empire, or nation exists outside of the Lord’s permissive will.  The message of the resurrection is that Jesus is on the throne, wielding all power and authority on earth as in heaven.  This is the message we are to convey.

It also means that we have A mandate to complete.  Jesus has commanded us to go out into the world and preach the gospel of His death, burial, and resurrection, baptizing them in the name of the Lord.  

Praise God that Jesus was willing to be obedient to God’s will, and Praise God that from the foundations of time, the triune God has had our salvation in mind.  God sent His Son that we might have everlasting life, and the power of God raised Him from the grave so that we might walk as a new creation in the newness of life.

Click on the link below to hear a message on why this Easter holiday is so important to us as believers.  Jesus Christ is alive, and we are going to be with Him for all of eternity.

This is a live recording of The Master’s Class Bible Study at LifeChange Church Wichita, KS.

Amen.

ABRAHAM CHOOSES (Genesis 12:9 to 13_8)

One of the great Biblical themes that is taught over and over in Scripture is the effect of the choices that we, as Christians, make between choosing to follow the will of God in our lives and the things of this world.  The fact that the believer even has a choice to follow the will of God is an often misunderstood blessing of our salvation. 

You see, the lost person has no such choice to make.  He is a slave to Satan, and he must follow the will of his master.  His only choice is between heaven and hell.  Between making Christ his Lord and Savior, or keeping Satan as his master.  Once the decision is made to accept Christ’s offer of salvation, the person is freed from the bonds of slavery to Satan and sin.  They now have a daily choice between serving God or serving Satan.  They have the blessing of being able to daily choose God’s will for their lives, instead of Satan’s will.

Click on the link below to hear a message on the effect that Abraham’s choices had on his life, and that of his family.  We will get to see the negative and the positive.  God withholding His blessing from Abram, and God outpouring His blessings on a faithful servant.

This is a live recording of The Master’s Class Bible Study at LifeChange Church Wichita, KS.

Amen.

A TALE OF TWO TREES (Genesis 2:15-17)

A TALE OF TWO TREES (Genesis 2:15-17)

In today’s lesson we are going to be talking about a couple of very important trees that God has given to mankind.  

For the first tree, God had created man, and He placed man there in the beautiful Garden of Eden and gave him absolutely everything he needed for indescribable happiness and for joy and fulfillment. But in order that man might have a will—and a free will—God gave him the moral opportunity of a choice. And so, God created a tree and planted that tree in the Garden of Eden. It was called “the tree of the knowledge of good and evil,” and man was absolutely forbidden to eat the fruit of that tree.  That was the first tree.

For the second tree, we have Calvary’s tree, which is a tree of life.  Now, don’t be confused, this is not the tree of life that was also placed in the Garden of Eden, but it is “The” tree of life.  The tree of eternal life.  The tree that Christ died for our sins on. when you see the cross, and when you see what it did to Jesus, and when you see the wrath of God being poured out, there you have a knowledge of evil. That tree, Calvary’s tree, was a tree of the knowledge of evil, but it was also a tree of the knowledge of good. When you see the cross, when you see Calvary’s cross, there and there alone do you behold the goodness of God, the glory of God, the grace of God, the righteousness of God, the majesty of God—the glory of God—as you’ve never beheld it before, by beholding the cross. 

Click on the play button above to hear a message on the two trees that God has given man.  Trees that give the knowledge of good and evil.  With the first tree we see the sinfulness of man, and with the second tree we receive the wonderful grace of God.

This is a live recording of The Master’s Class Bible Study at LifeChange Church Wichita, KS.

Amen.

IS MAN JUST A CLEVER ANIMAL? (Genesis 1:27-30)

IS MAN JUST A CLEVER ANIMAL? (Genesis 1:27-30)

Today’s message is about the supreme question that divides the secular world that believes in evolution, and those who believe in the creation of all things by God.  The Bible tells us that on the sixth day, God created the man and the beasts of the field.  Now, that means that there must be a relationship between the two.  Today, I want to look at that relationship and answer the question, Is Man Just a Clever Animal?

When we stop and compare men and the animals, we can see a similarity in design, a similarity in diet, a similarity in death.  Now, we need to recognize the similarities between man and the animals, but I also want you to see the differences between men and animals.  

Not only does man have a craving for Deity, and not only does man have a capability for dominion, but man also has a capacity for depravity that animals don’t have. Animals cannot sin, but on the other hand, animals can’t love God.  In order for men to love God, they have to have the capacity, or the capability, to sin. God gave man that ability. You ask, “How could men sin if God made everything perfect?” Well, when God made man, God made him with the capacity to choose. And God had to make him with the capacity to choose. If he didn’t have the capacity to choose, he wouldn’t be a man.

But, most importantly, man has a conception of his destiny. He has a comprehension of the fact that he is going to die. But he knows that doesn’t end it all. You cannot crawl up in the grave and pull the dirt over your face and hide from God. When God made you, God made you in His image. God breathed into your nostrils the breath of life.  You could no more cease to exist than God Himself could cease to exist.  You’re going to exist somewhere—dateless, timeless, endless, measureless. Your soul is worth more than all of the stocks, the bonds, the gold, the silver, the schools, the railroads put together. 

Animals are not going to live forever. When an animal dies, he’s dead.  There was a time when you were not, but there never again will be a time when you shall not be. You were created in the image of God. God says something about man that He doesn’t say about the animals. The Bible says that He made the animals, but He created you. He took animals and made them out of preexisting stuff, but God did a unique creation when He made you, and you are made in His image, and man has a concern for his destiny. I hope you have a concern for your destiny as well. 

Click on the play button to hear a message that answers the question, Is Man Just a Clever animal?

This is a live recording of The Master’s Class Bible Study at LifeChange Church Wichita, KS.

Amen.

A LIFE WITHOUT FEAR (Hebrews 13:5-6)

A LIFE WITHOUT FEAR (Hebrews 13:5-6)

When the old mapmakers were drawing ancient maps, they did not know what we know today. They didn’t have global positioning satellites. They could not see the world from outer space, and they would make maps of what they knew. But there was much that they did not know, and when they would come to the edge of their knowledge, they would often write something like this: “Beyond this, there may be dragons.” And, if you will look at some of the old maps, you will see the sea monster in the ocean right alongside those words.  This is because man has an innate fear of the future, and of the unknown.  The fear of the future is a foe that we all face.  Whether we are young or old, rich or poor, educated or uneducated, we wonder about what is going to happen. Fear has no racial bias. It’s endemic to all people.  

There is a fear of where our country is heading.  There is a fear of the persecution of Christians that is occurring as our country, and world, move further and further away from the Biblical values of God, and God Himself.  There is fear of the violence that is occurring all around us.  There is a fear of financial loss and the inability to pay the bills that are sitting on your table at home.  There is a fear of disease and failing health in a world filled with cancer and pandemics.  These are just a few of the things that we face in an uncertain future, and yet, God wants us to have a future without fear. As a matter of fact, God has not only admonished us, but God has commanded us, not to fear.

Click on the play button to hear a message that will teach you how to live a life free of fear.  

This is a live recording of The Master’s Class Bible Study at LifeChange Church Wichita, KS.

Amen.

LESSONS FROM A BOX OF BONES (Hebrews 11:22)

Man is the only creature who knows he’s going to die, and he’s trying desperately to forget it. If you don’t believe that, look at the woman who wears too much makeup trying to hide those wrinkles and age spots, or the man who has already passed middle age, making a fool of himself in a sports car, and trying to dress like a teenager with a gold chain around his neck. We just don’t like to think about death. If you mention death, people will look at you like you have smallpox. In society today, we don’t talk much about death.  You go to a funeral, and in the funeral, we do all we can do to camouflage the fact of death. Our cemeteries look like memorial parks. We just change the subject of death like we switch channels in a television set.  So, why is that? Well, there is a fear of death, and the Bible teaches that the devil keeps people in bondage through the fear of death.  

I want you to understand this, anybody who’s afraid of death, is in bondage. Are you afraid of death? Then Satan has done a job on you, and you have failed to understand what Jesus Christ has done for you.  I want to say clearly and plainly, no one is ready to live until he’s no longer afraid to die. Jesus has come to deliver us from the fear, and, correspondingly, the bondage, of death.  Jesus Christ is the risen, living, victorious as Savior, and because He lives, we live with Him. We no longer fear death. We no longer fear death because we have a Savior, a dear, loving Savior.

Click on the link below to hear a message on how to live confidently; how to die expectantly, and how to no longer fear death. 

This is a live recording of The Master’s Class Bible Study at LifeChange Church Wichita, KS.

Amen.