The Master‘s Class, LifeChange Church Wichita

THE KINGDOM REVEALED (Genesis 46:26 to 47:26)

THE KINGDOM REVEALED (Genesis 46:26 to 47:26)

Our lessons over the last several weeks have used the story of Joseph and his brothers to present the picture of Christ and His relationship with the people of Israel.  

We have seen that with the rejection of Joseph by his brothers, It has described the Jews rejection of Jesus as their Messiah.  

Then, with the suffering and persecution of Joseph and his ultimate placement at the right hand of the throne of Pharaoh, It has described the suffering of Jesus, His resurrection, and His placement at the right hand of God,  

We have also seen that the very same Joseph that the brothers had sold into the slow death of slavery now stood before them in all glory and power. This illustrates the very same Jesus, that the Jews had the Gentiles crucify, will stand before them in all glory and power.  

With the brothers’ confession of their sin against Joseph, This has described the Jewish people’s confession of their sin when Christ returns to set up His Kingdom. 

Through the grace of forgiveness that Joseph bestowed on His brothers when they recognized him as their brother, It has described the grace of forgiveness that will be bestowed on the Jews when they see Christ and instantly recognize Him as Lord and Master. 

And in today’s lesson, as we describe the kingdom that Joseph establishes, and the role that the Hebrews will play in that kingdom, it will describe the Kingdom and rule of Jesus that will be established when Christ returns and the role of the Jews in that Kingdom.  

This whole dramatic and beautiful story of Joseph is a story about the grace of God.  It is a story about Jesus.  It is also a synopsis of the rest of the Bible as it also tells of the relationship that we as believers have with our Lord and Master as joint heirs in the promises of the Jewish people.  

Click on the play button to hear a message on God’s grace, and God’s purposes being fulfilled.  It is a story of illustration of the things to come as Christ comes again to rule for ever and ever.

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

Amen.

THE FRAMEWORK OF SALVATION (Genesis 45: 1 to 28)

THE FRAMEWORK OF SALVATION (Genesis 45:1-28)

There is something that I want you to know beyond the shadow of any doubt, and that is God wants you to be saved.  There is an old hymn entitled “BLESSED BE THE NAME” with the words, 

“I never shall forget the day,
Blessed be the name of the Lord!
When Jesus washed my sins away,
Blessed be the name of the Lord!”
—CHARLES WESLEY

And I wonder how many people might be singing that song, but they are like iron fountains in the park. You see a lion statue as a fountain, and there is water spewing out of his mouth, but he never tastes a drop of it. And I am wondering if there are those of you who have that song coming out of your mouth without tasting a drop of it.

Was there a time, was there a day, when you said, “Praise God, bless God, hallelujah, I know, that I know, that I know, that I have met Jesus Christ as my personal Savior and Lord.  I have a day to be remembered.”  If not, do you know what my prayer is? My prayer is that this day will be the day that you will be able to sing those words and taste every drop of every word.  The Lord wants you to be saved, and only Jesus can save you. The problem is sin. 

Rom 3:23
23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;
KJV

And there’s only one thing that can be done with sin, and that is to bring that sin to the Lord Jesus Christ. Only the blood of Jesus Christ can cleanse us and make us pure and make us clean.  So, you need to pay attention to the message that God has for us in this story.

Click on the play button so that you can listen to what God has to say about how you can know the Lord Jesus Christ as your personal Savior and Lord.

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

Amen.

REVELATION OF GRACE (Genesis 44:1 to 45:8)

REVELATION OF GRACE (Genesis 44:1 to 45:8)

One of the key promises of God that is found in the Bible is that for a multitude of sins, there are a multitude of mercies.  

Psalms 51:1
1 Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy lovingkindness: according unto the multitude of thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions.
KJV

God states, “according to thy lovingkindness.”  This means that God will never stop loving us because of the sin in our lives.  Our sin hurts God, because it is against God that we sin, but that does not cause God to stop loving us.  Did you know that God does not love us because we are valuable; we are valuable because God loves us.  Know also that God does not love us because we are good.

Romans 5:8
8 But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
KJV

This is important for us to know because we need to have this confidence that no matter what we have done, God loves us.  This tells us that there is nothing you can do to make God love you any more, and there is nothing you can do to make God love you any less.  He simply loves you.

A man put the following ad in the Lost and Found section of the paper: “Lost Dog.  Crippled in front paw, blind in left eye, mange on back and neck, tail missing.  Recently neutered.  Answers to the name Lucky.”  And he was a lucky dog.  I’ll tell you why, in spite of all the stuff that was wrong with him, somebody loved him enough to want him.  You know we are better than a lucky dog, we are blessed dogs.  

Click on the play button to hear a message on how God loves us out of sheer grace.  I want you to have this confidence:  God loves you with an everlasting love.  No matter what you have done, no matter what is wrong with you, God loves you.  That is the sheer grace of God.  

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

Amen.

BACK TO BETHEL (Genesis 35:1-15)

BACK TO BETHEL (Genesis 35:1-15)

Today, I am going to challenge you.  If you have never listened to one of the messages that are attached to these blogs, if all you have ever done is just read this blog, then I am going to challenge you to listen to the recording that is found in this link, because it may be that God is using this message to speak to your heart.  

The message today is about Jacob, and Jacob needed to come back to God. And perhaps today you need to come back to God.  You may indeed be backslidden, just like Jacob was.  Let’s take the test today and find out if you are. Answer these two questions:  

The first one, “Was there ever a time in your life when you loved Jesus Christ more than you do at this moment?”  If the answer is yes, then you are backslidden. 

Alright, let’s say you answered “no” to the first question, then here is the second one.  “Was there ever a time when God was more real to you, and prayer was more precious to you, and the Bible was more valuable to you, than it is at this time, this day, this moment?”  If the answer is yes, then, you are a backslider.  

Today, we will see how we can come back to Bethel.  Back to that condition of your love for Christ like it was when you were first saved.  

Click on the play button below to hear a message on how God is the God of a new beginning. Our God is the God of a second chance. We find that is true all through the Bible. And the God that said to Jacob, “Jacob, come back to Bethel,” is the God that’s saying to you today, if you are away from Him, “Come on back! Come on back! I’m the God of a second chance.”

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

Amen.

THE LAUGH OF FAITH

Have you ever thought of laughter as a part of your faith?  To be honest, I think it is easy for us to forget that our faith is supposed to bring happiness into our lives.  God is truly a wonderful and gracious God, and He blesses us with so much that we don’t deserve.  But from the way most of us walk around, you would think that we have the weight of the world on our shoulders, when instead our problems are supposed to be on God’s shoulders, not ours.  One of my life verses is:

Ps 55:22
22 Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and he shall sustain thee: he shall never suffer the righteous to be moved.
KJV

When I really apply this verse to my life, it simply changes my entire outlook on life.  For, I have to ask myself, what burden do I have that God cannot handle?  Is there anything too hard for God? And if God is handling it, then why not be happy about it?  Why not have the joy of the Holy Spirit in my heart and on my face for the world to see?  

Click on the link below to hear a message on how God has worked in Abraham’s life.  How God has told Abraham on multiple occasions that he will have a son named Isaac, and that he will be the father of many nations.  In this message we get a chance to see the joy of having a God that loves us and fulfills all of His promises to us.  

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

Amen.

THERE IS NO PROBLEM GOD CANNOT SOLVE (Genesis 17:15-17)

These three verses contain four wonderful, wonderful, truths that you need to learn.  I want you to get these four things about a strong faith emblazoned in your heart, etched upon your consciousness.  I want them to reverberate through your soul, because I want for you what I want for myself, a strong faith.

The first is that Strong Faith Releases the Grace of God. Faith is the key.  It just opens the door and gets you in there where grace is, or it gets grace out here where you are. 

The second is that Strong Faith Relies on The Guarantees Of God.  Strong faith always relies on God’s guarantees. It does not rely on you, on what you wish, or what you want, but on what God has said. 

The third is that Strong Faith Recognizes the Greatness of God.  True faith is rooted in the promise, but not only in the promise, but in the One who promised. And so, if you are to have faith, not only must you have the Word of God, and a word from God, you must also understand the character of the God who gives this Word.

The fourth is that strong faith reveals the glory of God. The greatest way that you can glorify God is to believe Him.  

Click on the play button above to hear a message on the most important part of God’s grace that we can apply to our hearts and lives.  It is the foundational truth that we need to understand that our faith is based on. That truth is that There Is No Problem God Cannot Solve.  You will never have to say that something is too difficult for God to do in your life.  It is that truth that lets the peace of God rest in our hearts, for we have the omnipotent, the omniscient, and the omnipresent, God who can solve any issue, and any problem, that we might face as we serve the loving, living, God of all creation. 

God said to Abraham, “Abraham, I’m going to give you a son.” Abraham was 100 years old. Sarah was 90. It was humanly ridiculous, so much so, that Abraham laughed, and yet he turned, and he believed God.  How did he do it? Well, first of all, he said, “I know God that you want to do it by your sheer grace. And so by faith, I’m going to release that grace.”

Faith releases grace. It relies on God’s Word. It doesn’t look for anything else. It just simply takes the Word of God and gets a word from God. And, thirdly, the faith that relies on God, relies on God because it knows God’s character. It just simply is aware of who God is and what God can do. And, therefore, it just glorifies God. It just simply says, “God, I want to give you the praise. I’m going to give you the glory. I’m not going to stagger in unbelief.”

Now, if you’ll do that, then God will make you a person of strong faith. 

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

Amen.

TO BE STRONG IN FAITH (Genesis 17: 15-17)

Archimedes was a philosopher and physicist, and he said, “If you will give me a lever long enough, if you will give me a fulcrum with something to rest it on, and if you will give me a place to stand, I can move the earth.” He was right.  For us, that lever is faith, that fulcrum is the Word of God, and that place where we stand is in His grace.  With it, not only can we move the earth, but we can move heaven as well, if we learn to be strong in faith.

It is strong faith that releases the grace of God.  Rom. 4:16 says, “Therefore it is of faith, that it might be by grace …” meaning that without faith, you will never know grace, “Therefore it is of faith, that it might be by grace; to the end the promise might be sure.” 

What is grace? Grace is “God’s riches at Christ’s expense.” Grace is God giving us and showing us His great wonderful love. There’s nothing we can do to deserve it, or to earn it.  Grace is the unmerited love and favor of God that is just given to us. 

Now, how can you get in on this unmerited love and favor of God?  Only by faith! If you begin to work for it, if you begin to pay for it, then it is no longer grace.  It is no longer grace. If it is by grace, then by definition, it is no longer works, otherwise work is not work.  And, if it is by work, then by definition of the word work, it is not by grace, otherwise grace is no more grace. This is what the Bible says. You can’t mix grace and works, so the only way that grace can be grace is through faith.  That is the only way that grace can be grace.

Now, it is important to understand that unbelief holds grace prisoner.  If you are an unbeliever, grace will never work in your heart and in your life. The Bible says it is by faith so that it can be by grace. 

Click on the play button above to hear a message on how a strong faith is the key to unlock God’s grace in your life.

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

Amen.

GOD’S TESTIMONY TO HAGAR AND ABRAHAM (Genesis 16:7 to 17:14)

The Bible tells us that Abraham and Sarai failed to be patient and wait on God’s perfect timing to accomplish His will in providing a son for Abraham.  The price of that failure was that Hagar was abused, and as a result, she rejected their witness and fled.  Hagar was first given to Abraham by Sarai, and then she was rejected and persecuted by Sarai after she became pregnant.  

Hagar’s rejection led her to flee from the very God that could give her everlasting life.  Hagar had no desire to be like Abraham and Sarai, if the way they treated her was an example of the God they believed in.  So, she turned her face back towards Egypt, back towards the world, back towards death and eternal darkness.  

I am glad that the Holy Spirit of God is able to convict the heart of the lost person in spite of the witness that most of us believers display on a daily basis, especially when we are away from the church, and even worse, within our own home.  Since Abraham and Sarai had so badly represented God to Hagar, God now steps in Himself and shows Himself to Hagar.  

Click on the link below to a message on how God loved Hagar just as much as He loved Abraham.  He sought her and found her, just as God had searched and found Abraham in the land of the Ur of the Chaldees.  From this point forward, the true and living God would no longer just be One about whom Abraham and Sarai spoke, He would be her God as well.  She confessed her faith with her mouth.  

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

Amen.

ABRAHAM’S RIGHTEOUSNESS (Genesis 15:6 to 16:6)

The story of Abraham gives us an opportunity for God to show us the power of His grace, and the power of His silence.  There are lessons for believers in both of these Biblical truths.  

It is by the power of God’s grace alone that our salvation comes.  Not by the works of man lest he should boast, but by the grace of our Heavenly Father that loves us.  It is the power of God’s grace that comes to us when we believe on the promises of God, when we believe what God has promised to accomplish in us through Jesus Christ.  It is when we believe that Jesus Christ has paid the penalty for our sins, and then died and rose again, that the power of God’s grace imputes righteousness to us.  

It is by the power of God’s silence that we learn patience; that we learn the value of faith; and we learn to depend on God rather than on our own wits, our own strength, or the things that the world values and believes as natural.  It is the power of God’s silence that creates a test we rarely pass. We fail this test because we want things on our timing, rather than God’s.  One of the hardest lessons we learn as believers is to wait on God’s perfect timing for His will to be accomplished in our lives.  

Click on the link below to hear a message on how God accounted Abraham as righteous.  Abraham believed God. He just accepted what God said, and he believed God. That is the way each of us get saved.  You must believe that God has done something for you, that Christ died for you and rose again. It is then that God will declare you righteous by simply accepting Christ.

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

Amen.

THE FLOOD-PART II (Genesis 7:2 to 9:17)

As part of the story of The Flood, the Scripture tells us about the patience and long-suffering of God.  It says that once Noah and all the animals were in the ark, God waited for a full week, and nothing happened.  No doubt the crowds outside the ark were having a great time making fun of the whole thing.  Their hearts were already hardened.  Even after years of having God’s prophets warning man of the coming doom, God showed man a final measure of grace by waiting a full week before the flood began.  

This means that for a full seven days they still had the opportunity to accept God’s offer of salvation, yet they abused His long-suffering, His patience, and His kindness for the last time.  That extra week of grace was offered to bring them to repentance, and instead they condemned Noah and His God.  Without a doubt, the people of the time of Noah had “treasurest up unto” themselves “wrath against the day of wrath” and were ready for the “revelation of the righteous judgment of God.”

Click on the play button to hear a message on how God’s final judgment was delivered on a world that had turned away from the Almighty God of all creation.

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

Amen.