The Master‘s Class, LifeChange Church Wichita

THE TABERNACLE (Hebrews 8:10 to 9:6)

So many people ask the questions, what must I do to become acceptable to God?  How can a person gain access to God, in order to fellowship and commune with Him?  How can a person come to know God in a real and personal way, so personal that the person can know that God is looking after and caring for him?  How can a person gain and maintain a relationship with God?  Men have tried to approach God in the past under the Old Covenant and the old dispensations:

• Through prophets
• Through angels
• Through Great Leaders who are great men of God
• Through priests
• Through covenants and law or by trying to be as good as they can

But, every one of these approaches to God are inadequate.  They are imperfect and incomplete.  They may tell us some things about God.  They may help us to understand God to some degree, but they don’t give us the full story, nor do they reveal the whole nature of God.  They are only shadows and faint copies of the truth.  They show us only a part of the truth about God.  They don’t reveal God to us, nor do they make us acceptable to God or give us fellowship with God.  

In the Old Testament, the children of Israel built a Tabernacle.  The Tabernacle was a place where they sought to worship and become acceptable to God.  But, this approach to God was just as inadequate as all the other approaches.  Earthly sanctuaries and earthly worship cannot bring us near to God.  Earthly sanctuaries and earthly worship cannot make us acceptable to God.  Only Jesus Christ can bring us near and make us acceptable to God.  This is the point of this passage of Scripture, to show that Jesus Christ is the Greater and more perfect Minister of the Tabernacle.  He is the only Minister who brings us to God.  

Click on the link below to hear a message on why the new heavenly tabernacle is better than the old.  

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

Amen.

THE NEW COVENANT (Hebrews 8:3-13)

The message of the book of Hebrews is that Christ is alive and working for you, right now.  You need to bring Him into your life.  This is a relationship with God that the Jews never had with the Old Testament, or Covenant, that was the Mosaic Law and the Temple rituals.  The death and resurrection of Jesus Christ ushered in a new Covenant, a new relationship with God, and it was actually the fulfillment of all that God had given man in the Old Covenant.  

Under the New Covenant, it is in Christ that we have a better priest; we have a better sacrifice; and we have a better tabernacle.  All of this converges in Christ because He is all three.  He is a better priest that ministers there.  He is the better sacrifice because He offered Himself, and He ministers in a better tabernacle, for He offered his own blood for your sin and mine.  Christ is the Mediator of the better Covenant because it contains better promises.  First, the New Covenant is better than the Mosaic Covenant, not morally, but because it has the power to produce the desired result.  The New Covenant gives us Christ as the Perfect Mediator.  Second, it is established on better, unconditional, promises.  

Under the New Covenant we obey God as a result of our worship of God.  Not because we fear His judgment; that has already been settled by Christ, but because of our faith and love.  True worship means the living Christ is real to you, you walk with Him daily, and you serve and obey Him.  Then, we have a better covenant because the New Covenant secures the personal revelation of the Lord to every believer.

Click on the link below to hear a message on the fact that with Christ as our Great High Priest, and the New Covenant that God has made with man, that we now have a salvation that is secure, and the power of the Holy Spirit in our heart to enable us to do the will of God in our lives.

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

Amen.

LET US GO ON TOWARDS CHRIST (Hebrews 6:1-12)

If you cease to be better, then you cease to be good, and when you cease to be good you are living a life of sin.  To stop growing in Christ, means that you are living a life of sin.  The Christian who is living a life of sin, meaning they are truly saved, but not living a life in the will of God, is going to lose the rewards that God has promised them.  These are the joy of living with Christ in your heart in this life, and the crowns, or rewards, that we will receive for living a life doing the will of God.  You cannot lose your salvation, for that is secure in the hand of God, and no man can pluck you out.  But, you can lose the opportunity to have our dear Lord and Savior say “Welcome my faithful servant” as you step into Glory forever and ever.  Nothing would hurt me more than disappointing my Lord, Jesus Christ.

Click on the link below to hear a message where the writer of Hebrews tells Christians, “I am persuaded that you are going to live for God, that you are going to receive the things that accompany salvation, the joy of the Christian life, and the rewards for your work done through the Holy Spirit living in you.”

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

Amen.

TO BE A GROWNUP-PART II (Hebrews 6:1)

Did you know that it is possible to be healthy and not mature? For example, most young children are perfectly healthy, but they’re not mature.  In the same way, you can be a healthy Christian, but not a mature Christian, because it’s not time for you to be mature yet.  You can be someone who has just begun their walk with God as a believer and be spiritually young.  There’s nothing wrong with you in this stage.  It doesn’t matter if you are 10 years old or 70 years old, if you have just become a Christian, then it is perfectly legitimate if you’re what the Bible calls “a babe in Christ.” 

So, what is a grownup Christian?  Paul gives us the answer, the model for maturity is Jesus Christ.  Do you know that the measurement of my ministry as a teacher is?  The measurement of your maturity, and do you know the measurement of your maturity is how much more you’re becoming like Jesus every day? You measure any man’s ministry by this: Is he, by his preaching and teaching and praying, causing people to be like Jesus?  That’s what maturity is—that you are becoming like the Son of God.

Now, that’s the mark of maturity, and maturity is not something that one day you don’t have, and the next day you do have.  Maturity is a lifelong process. Maturity is not a hundred-yard dash and it’s over.  It is a lifetime marathon.  I don’t care who you are, there’s always room for growth.  If you fail to grow, if you fail to get better, you cease being good. I don’t care how good you are right now. The moment you cease to grow you begin to decay.

Click on the link below to hear a message on how to be a grownup Christian.  The Bible tells us, Obey what you know, and God will give you more. Serve where you’re able, and you will grow in ability.

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

Amen.

TO BE A GROWNUP-PART I (Hebrews 5:7 to 6:1)

The Bible teaches that Jesus Christ died for your sins, my sins, the whole world’s sins, and then He rose again so that we might have everlasting life if we will make Him our Lord and Savior.  Jesus stands today, alive, in the Holy Tabernacle of Heaven as our Great High Priest so that our salvation will be a forever, and ever, salvation.  

So, now that you are saved.  Now, that you know all that Christ has done for you, what should your reaction be?  What should your duty to Christ be?  God answers this question with a command, not a suggestion, but a command to grow as a Christian.  To become a grownup Christian.

Heb 6:1
1 Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God,
KJV

It is one thing to become saved, it is another thing entirely to become a full-grown Christian.  I want to put a thought in your mind, and I pray that it will bother you.  I pray that it will bother you so much that it will spur you into action.  I want you to write this down someplace that, every morning when you open your Bible for your quiet time, it reminds you of something very important.  It says, “When I cease to be better, I cease to be good.”

Click on the link below to hear a message that says, if you have stopped growing, then you have begun decaying. Decay always begins when growth ends. The Bible says we are to go on to maturity.  There is more to life than being born. A Christian is a tree planted, not a post stuck in the ground.  We are commanded to grow. There is a “must” about it.  The Holy Spirit of God has so much more for you to know about the grace of God, the blessings of God, and the work of God, but He cannot tell you these things until you are no longer a baby spiritually.

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

Amen.

OUR GREAT HIGH PRIEST-PART III (Hebrews 7:7 to 8:2)

As Christ followers, we believe in the doctrine of the priesthood of the believer.  That just means that each believer is a priest with direct access to God.  We have no need of an earthly priest because we already have direct access to God.  This doctrine of the priesthood of the believer is clearly taught in the New Testament.

1 Peter 2:5
5 Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.
KJV

This position of “royal priesthood” for the believer is made possible by the completed work of salvation of Christ at Calvary.  Christ’s sacrifice and resurrection abolished the need of earthly priests and their sacrifices, for Christ became the sacrifice for all.  As believers, the Bible tells us that we have full, unfettered, access to God.  Yet, it is true that, like Job, we all have needs and we need someone to help us approach God.  Listen, if the idea of boldly approaching the very throne of The Almighty God, so that you can speak to Him, does not intimidate you, then I am not sure you fully understand who God really is.  Jesus Christ is that Mediator, that High Priest that brings God to us, and us to God.

There is a man in heaven, and His name is Jesus Christ. This is the place of His ministry. He is there at the right hand of the Father, co-equal, co-eternal with God the Father, and the place of His ministry is the place of His majesty, at the right hand of God forevermore.

Click on the link below to learn what a Savior we have! He is King. He is priest. He is the King of Righteousness. He is the Prince of Peace. And I’ll tell you, if you’ll make Him your King, you’ll know righteousness and you will know peace. I promise you on the authority of the Word of God that is true. And you will have a high priest, someone who will bring God to you, and someone who will intercede for you before the Father.

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

Amen.

OUR GREAT HIGH PRIEST-PART II (Hebrew 5:5-6; 7:1-8)

OUR GREAT HIGH PRIEST-PART II (Hebrews 5:5-6; 7:1-8)

Sometimes, people say that Protestant denominations like Baptists, or Methodists, or Presbyterians don’t believe in priests.  Oh, but we do! We have a great high priest, and His name is Jesus.

Now, God wants us to learn, and so God gives us His Word, the Bible. The Bible is a great book in many ways, and it has many figures, pictures, and illustrations to help us learn about God.  One such illustration of Jesus as our high priest is a man named Melchizedek, and he has a lot to do with you.  He is a shadow of the Lord Jesus Christ in the Old Testament that pictured and prophesied our Savior in the New Testament and for ever and ever.  I say, he pictures Jesus, however, he may indeed have been Jesus. Some expositors believe that Melchizedek was just another name for a pre-incarnate appearing of the Lord Jesus Christ when Jesus came to earth and appeared for a little while and then went back to heaven before His birth at Bethlehem. Now, whether or not Melchizedek was a pre-incarnate appearance of the Lord Jesus, or whether he was just an incredible, wonderful illustration and picture of the Lord Jesus, the truth is there that when we learn about Melchizedek, we’re going to learn about our High Priest, Jesus Christ.

Now, you may feel that you don’t need a high priest, but you do. A high priest is a mediator. You see, a priest is someone who can bring God to you and someone who can go to God for you. Now isn’t that what you need? Don’t you need somebody who will bring God, and make Him real to you, and mediate Him to you? And don’t you need somebody who can plead your case for you? Well, that is a priest. That is our great high priest, the Lord Jesus.

Click on the link to hear a message on how we protestants find out that we do have a priest, and He is so much better than any earthly priest.  Better than Aaron, and better than any other local priest at a church.

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

Amen.

JESUS, OUR GREAT HIGH PRIEST (Hebrews 4:13-5:4)

Jesus Christ is our Great High Priest, that is the role that Christ is playing in our lives today.  He has completed His work of salvation, and now He is in heaven as our Great High Priest.  

In the Old Testament, one of the functions of the priest was to hear the confession of sins so that a sacrifice could be made to obtain forgiveness of that sin.  Un-confessed sin was and is a burden upon the person who sins.  However, as a believer that has made Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior, in this age of grace, we know that all of our sins have already been forgiven.  We already know that we will not have to face the penalty of our sin, for Christ has already done that for us.  Yet, sin is still a burden on our spirit, and we are certainly told to confess our sins. 

We confess our sins out of obedience and a desire for cleansing.  If we do not acknowledge our sin, it becomes like a malignancy which spreads to consume our energy, our spiritual zeal, and it is always present with us draining our ambition to serve the Lord.  It robs us of the joy of being in God’s will, and for the Christian, being in God’s will is the zone, it is that special place we want to be.

Hebrews 4:16
16 Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.
KJV

This is telling us that we can come with great freedom unto the Throne of Grace.  We can speak freely to the Lord Jesus Christ.  We can tell Him things we wouldn’t tell anyone else.  He already knows everything there is to know about us, so why not speak freely with Him.  Christ understands us; He knows all of our weaknesses.  And when we approach that throne of Grace it is so “that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.” We can come with full confidence that He will hear us, and He wants to extend to us His Grace, and Mercy, when we are in a time of need.

Click on the link below to hear a message on the fact that our sin is not a secret, God sees it all, and God expects us to confess that sin.  The message today is about the One who now stands in the office of High Priest, and to whom we must confess.  Jesus Christ, God’s Son, is the Supreme High Priest.

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

Amen.

THE WORD OF GOD-PART II (Hebrews 4:12)

When you open the Word of God, Jesus steps out. It is a living book. It presents a living person. Jesus Christ is alive and well, and He says, “… the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.” The Bible is alive!

The Bible says that the gospel is a saber of life unto life, or death unto death. It is the sword of God. It is quick. It is powerful. It is sharper than any two-edged sword. 

Heb 4:12
12 For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.
KJV

This says that the Bible is “quick.” Now that word quick means alive, but it also means that it is something that continues to go on. It will never die. This book, the Word of God, will live through the ages. It cannot die. It is alive, and it is deathless. It is the Word of God that liveth and abideth forever.

It’s the Word that the body of Christ, the church of believers, is built on. And in this day, when everything that’s not nailed down is coming loose, and the devil is pulling nails out as fast as he can, you had better build your life on the Word of God.

Click on the link below to hear a message that tells us that there is no way possible that you are going to be a growing Christian if you neglect the one book that God has provided to give you energy, power, sustenance, and strength, wisdom, knowledge, and faith; and that book is, the Word of God.  If you do not spend time daily in the Word of God, then you cannot lead a victorious Christian life.  

Amen.

THE WORD OF GOD (Hebrews 4:8-12)

God’s favorite characterization of His Book is the phrase, “The Word of God.” God’s favorite title for the Bible is the Word of God.  Did you know that nowhere in the Bible will you find that God calls this book “The Bible?”  Now, I am not saying that the Bible is not an appropriate title for this book, because it is.  It recognized the world over as God’s book.  Yet, it is not what the Bible calls itself.  Over and over and over again you can find where the Bible calls itself the Word of God. 

Now, that’s very important because when it is the Word of God, then it is what? God speaking. Now, if it is God speaking, then we have to pay attention to it. You see, God gave the same name to His own dear Son. Jesus Christ is called the same thing that the Bible is called. Jesus is called the Word of God. For example, in Revelation 19, verse 13, speaking of Jesus when he comes again:

Rev 19:13
13 And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God.
KJV

Now, that’s also very important because the character of both are linked together. The Bible is called the Word of God; Jesus Christ is called the Word of God. One is the written word; the other is the living word. The Bible is the Word of the Lord, and Jesus is the Lord of the Word. And so, the living word, Jesus, honors the written word. The written word, the Bible, presents the living word, the Lord Jesus Christ.

Click on the link below to hear a message that tells us there is no way possible that you are going to be a growing Christian if you neglect the one book that God has provided to give you energy, power, sustenance, and strength, wisdom, knowledge, and faith; and that book is, the Word of God.  If you do not spend time daily in the Word of God, then you cannot lead a victorious Christian life.  

Amen.

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