The Master‘s Class, LifeChange Church Wichita

DEALING WITH PERSECUTION (Revelation 11:5-13)

The Bible says that all who will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution. If you live for Jesus, and your life is in obedience to the will of God, it is fruitful for God, and you are sharing the light of the gospel to a dark world, then the Bible says that you will suffer persecution.

To know that this is true, all you have to do is read the headlines of the news today. Christians are suffering severe persecution in countries all around the world. So, the question that we will look at today is, How do you deal with this persecution? What are the Biblical truths that we must apply to our lives, if we are to be successful in dealing with persecution on both a physical and spiritual level?

Click on the link below to learn the five factors that the Bible tells us in the book of Revelation about the two witnesses for God, and how they dealt with persecution. These are important lessons that we must settle in our hearts and mind if we are to be victorious in our witness for God.

Amen.

GOD'S TWO WITNESSES (Revelation 11:1-4)

Let me begin this post by asking a question, are you being persecuted for Jesus? If not, why not?

How about other Christians, in countries around the world, are they being persecuted today? Yes, they are, Christians are being killed in our world today in greater numbers than ever before. Yet, in the U.S., up until the last 15-20 years, to be recognized as a Christian was generally a positive thing. In fact, until recently, 80% of the country’s population identified themselves as a Christian. Now, to be certain, in the last 8 years we have had a dramatic shift in people’s attitude in this country towards the morals and values of the Judeo-Christian faith that most of us grew up with. Christians are quickly becoming the targets of ridicule and persecution in our country. Not on the scale of the rest of the world, but even that is not far off. Declare yourself to be a Christian today at most of our major universities, and then stand for your beliefs by speaking out, and you may not even be able to graduate. You will certainly be ridiculed and attacked by both the staff and the other students.

So, the question is, why are some Christians persecuted while others are not? The Bible says in 2 Tim 3:12, Yea, and all who will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution. This says that all shall suffer persecution if they are living godly in Christ Jesus. This would mean that if you are not living godly in Christ Jesus, then you are not going to suffer persecution. Now, persecution can come in many forms, Jesus tells us that,

John 15:20
20 Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also.
KJV

Jesus tells us that if you stand for Him, even in the U.S., you will face persecution. Click on the link below to hear the first part, of a two-part, message on the lessons we can learn about dealing with persecution from God’s two mighty witnesses that rise up during the Tribulation period.

Amen.

JESUS CHRIST THE ALMIGHTY GOD (Revelation 10:3-11)

The Book of Revelation presents to the world Jesus Christ as the Lion of the Tribe of Judah, the Creator of all things, and the Lord of lords and King of kings. Jesus is the One we worship.

One of these days, sin's clock will be stopped, and the mystery of God will be finished, and delay will be no more. Sin has been on a rampage. Righteousness seems to have suffered. It is now coming to a conclusion. God has given the inhabitants of the earth time for repentance, but time is running out. The clock will strike its last note and sin's clock is about to be stopped. God’s mercy for sin is about to end. The time for repentance will come to an end.

Don't get the idea that you have time before the rapture to turn to God, for that may come at any moment. Don't get the idea that even after the rapture, that God will continue to give you time, even if you've never heard the Gospel before. There is coming a time when time will run out. When God's clock stops, that's it! And if you are not on God's train, you are going to be left.

The Book of Revelation tells us about the majesty, the mastery, and the mystery of Jesus Christ. When I see the majesty of Christ that means Jesus, my Savior is due my total worship. When I see the mastery of His power that means that Jesus my Lord is worthy of my total confidence. He is the one who has everything under control. When I see God’s mysteries are revealed, then God’s mercy ends.

Click on the link below to hear a message on our Lord Jesus Christ as He is revealed in The Book of Revelation.

Amen.

THE REVELATION OF JESUS CHRIST (Revelation 10:1-3)

Who do most people say that Jesus Christ is? Do they say that He is the Son of God? No, most people do not. Instead, they say that Jesus was a prophet, a teacher, or just a man who lived in history.

The Bible tells us that Jesus Christ is more than a man. He's more than a great man. The Islamic faith calls Him a prophet, but He's more than a prophet. The liberal looks upon Him as a philosopher, or a teacher, or an example. But the Jesus Christ that is Lord of my life is much more than a philosopher, or teacher. The Jesus Christ that I know personally as my Savior, is much more than just a good example.

Who is Jesus Christ? He is the One and Only Almighty God. The Creator of all things. That's who Jesus Christ is. The rich man is poor, the mighty man is weak, and the educated man is a fool if he does not know who Jesus Christ is. No one can claim to be truly educated who is ignorant of Jesus Christ.

Click on this link to hear a sermon on the glory, the grace, and the power, of the One and Only Almighty God, Jesus Christ as He is revealed in The Book of Revelation.

Amen.

CAN'T GOD DO ANYTHING ABOUT IT? (Revelation 9:15-21)

I think that we can all agree that evil is certainly growing around us today. In spite of the restraint of the Holy Spirit during the day that we live in, evil is still on the rise. Men murder others. Women even murder their own children, and now we have children who become murderers in their own homes and schools.

Yet, most of all, may God have mercy on the murderers of unborn babies. May God send His Spirit to bring repentance to every man and woman who has participated in this most heinous act against defenseless little babies. People today get upset and wonder where the judgment of God is for the perpetrators of terrorism and mass shootings, but the number of people who die all across the world from terrorism is but a fraction of the murders of babies that occur each year in this country. It is a sin that God will hold this country accountable for. It would be easy to wonder where is God in all of this, and why isn’t He doing anything about it.

Click on the link below to hear a sermon on the Biblical truth that timing is more important to God, than time. God has a plan to deal with all of the evil of this world and in all of creation. That plan is on time. God is never early, and He is never late. Nothing, or no one can stop or change that plan. Not Satan, or all of his demons, for Satan is but a creation, and God is sovereign.

We started this series by asking Doesn’t God know? Doesn’t God care? And if God knows and cares, then why isn’t He doing something about it? God knows, and God cares. It is man that has turned his back on God. That no longer wants to know God. That no longer cares about God.  Yet, we have still have a chance during this age of grace that we live in to turn to God. God loves you. Lay aside your pride. May the mercy of God through His Son bring the saving judgment of eternal life to you today, so you will not be lost in the fires of Judgment for all of eternity.

Amen.

WHERE IS GOD? DOESN'T HE CARE? (Revelation 9:12-14)

With events like the terrible tragedy that occurred in Las Vegas last week, it would seem that everything not nailed down is coming loose, and that Satan is busy at work prying loose everything else. Every day it seems that evil is growing and dominating the world. It would be easy to understand if there are people who are asking Where is God? Doesn’t He know? If He knows, doesn’t He care? If He knows and cares, can’t He do anything about it?

Click on the link below to learn that God does know, God does care, and God does have a plan. If you want to know where God is, He is right on time. With God, timing is more important than time. If you want to know if God knows and hears your prayers, the answer is yes, they are before Him as incense. If you to know if God cares, yes He does, He cares so much that He sent His only begotten Son to die on the cross so you do not have to. If you want to why God is not doing anything, God says, just wait, my plan will occur just as I said it will, because I am sovereign, and nothing, and no one, can stop or deter my plan. Amen.

WHEN DEMONS RULE (Revelation 9:1-12)

The Bible declares that there is a day coming when Hell will have a holiday, demons will rule, the Antichrist will come and dominate the world, and Satan’s plan for the earth and mankind will come to fruition for a season. In chapter nine of the Book of Revelation we read that an angel will open the bottomless pit and out of it will come a horde of millions upon millions of the most vile and terrible demon spirits to torment those who are on the earth. They will inflict agony, pain, and anguish to such an extent that men will cry out for death to come, but death will flee from them. It will be a time of great terror upon the earth.

Click on the link below to hear a sermon on when demons shall rule upon the earth and to learn the good news of the gospel message of Christ. As believers today, we can shout praise God, hallelujah, and Amen, because the Bible promises us that before the day when demons will rule takes place, Jesus Christ will come and take the church age believers up to meet Him in the air at the rapture. We will not be on this earth when this day occurs.

Amen and amen.

THE FIRST FOUR TRUMPET JUDGMENTS (Revelation 8:5-13)

There will be three sets of judgments during the tribulation period:

Under the seal judgments, the world is ruined by man. Events recorded under the seal judgments are extensions of things that are very evident in today's world. The chief difference is that the church will be gone, and to a great extent, restraint will be removed. The evil seeds men have sown will grow and bear fruit.

Under the trumpet judgments, the world is ruled by Satan. A vast and new dimension of the supernatural is introduced. Satan is cast down to earth; the planet is invaded by hordes of evil spirits; Satan's plans for this earth are matured.

The last set of judgments during this period will be the vial judgments, where the world is rescued by God. The wrath of God is revealed from heaven. Satan's empire is dealt blow after blow by God Himself, until at last the Lord, accompanied by His saints, returns from glory to put an end to this world’s woes.

Click on the link below to hear a sermon on the start of the trumpet judgments. We will see the power of Satan and his superman the Antichrist ascend to rule the world. The people of the earth will have rejected Christ, and now God is about to let them have what they wanted, a ruler with no morals, no goodness, totally corrupt, and having the destruction of the entire human race as his goal. Make no mistake about it, Satan hates mankind because we are God’s creation. Man was created by God to worship God, and Satan cannot stand that. He has spent every day since he fell trying to corrupt and destroy God’s creation.

Listen to this study of the first four trumpets of the Tribulation Period.

WE SERVE A MIGHTY GOD (Revelation 7:13 to 8:6)

If you become a believer, will God reward you?

How will God reward you? Will you have lots of money? Lots of power? A happy life?

Why will God reward you? Do you have to meet certain standards of goodness?

When will God reward you?

Where will God reward you? Here on earth? In heaven?

A mistake that many people make when they become believers is that they expect God to give them their rewards while they are alive on this world, and that may be true for some, but not for the majority of believers. Your life will not magically turn into all happy, pleasant, problem-free moments. There will be problems in this life. A Christian’s life is not measured by the problems that they receive, but by Who you face those problems with.

Many people view, preach, and teach, about the Christian life in the negative. They say, accept Jesus because you may die, and if you don’t you will go to hell for all of eternity. While this is certainly true, and I have said these words myself, it is only part of the truth, and we must teach all of the truth, if it is to be the truth.

The other half of this truth is that one of the great rewards of being a Christian, is being alive with Jesus in your heart, living each moment with Him supporting you, strengthening you, and loving you. Each moment with Christ in my life is sweeter than any secular reward that I could receive. The gospel message is truly a positive message, accept Jesus and you shall live.

But, without question, I look forward to the rewards that we will receive in heaven. A believer’s most fervent hope is the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ, because we will be with the Lord for the rest of eternity. A believer’s most gracious reward will be eternal life with God in the new heaven and the new earth.

Click on the link below to learn that we serve a mighty God, who has a plan for this universe, and that plan is right on time.

THERE IS NO PERSON TOO HARD FOR GOD TO SAVE (Revelation 7:9-12)

Do you believe that this is a true statement? Is there really no person too hard for God to save? Does God save every person that He could save? Why not?

You cannot stop God from loving you. You can reject His love, but you cannot keep Him from loving you. Neither can you keep it from raining, but you can raise an umbrella to keep the rain from falling on you. You can also raise the umbrella of indifference, or the umbrella of sin, or the umbrella of rebellion, so that you won’t experience God’s love, but you cannot keep God from loving you.

You can turn your back on God; you can blaspheme Him, and you can shake your fist in defiance at Him, but you cannot keep Him from wanting to save you. You cannot keep Him from loving you, for He provided a Savior, His own Son, to die in your place, and you cannot keep Him from wanting to save you. However, you can keep Him from saving you. God could overpower your will and save you whether you wanted Him to or not, but that is not God’s way. Each person is given a choice, to accept Christ or not.

Click on the link below to hear a sermon that shows there is no person too hard for God to save. No matter what you have done, there is no sin too far, and there is no crime too horrible, for God to save you. God loves you that much, but you can refuse to accept that salvation. We know this because God will save great multitudes of people, of every tribe, of every nation, and of every language during the Tribulation Period. There is no person too hard for God to save.