The School of Recognition: Class Is in Session

September 27, 2026

Listen…it’s not an exaggeration to say that we had a time on Sunday! You hear me?!

It was our Family and Friends day, and the theme this time was School Days. Now while everyone looked sharp in their school gear and college apparel, this theme wasn’t just an aesthetic, because baby, we went to class!

Apostle pulled up to the pulpit as Dean of Students and turned the sanctuary straight into a lecture hall.

We got a heavy reality check: a lot of us are out here trying to launch a calling when we haven't even finished the coursework!

Listen, this word was an absolute syllabus review for the soul.

If you're ready to enroll, go ahead and scroll.

Have you ever heard of “I got this” syndrome?

We’ve all known that one student in school who walks into class overconfident, acting like they know it all…and yet, they haven't opened a single textbook all semester.

Now, translate that to the church.

Too many "saints" walk around with that exact same energy. We haven't prayed, we haven't fasted, we haven't worshipped, and we haven't cracked open the Bible in God knows how long, but we strut into church (or through life) like, "I got this."

We want to operate in the power of God without putting in any of the required prep work!

Then, the Teacher walks in and drops three words that instantly shut down all that fake confidence: Clear your desk.

When a teacher tells you to clear your desk, it means it’s test time. You aren't being tested on brand-new material—you're being evaluated on what you were supposed to be studying all along.

In church, we love to get super spiritual and ask God to help us pass the pop quizzes of life, but we refuse to do the homework beforehand. So when God clears the desk and the trial hits... where is your prayer life? Where is the Word you claimed was hidden in your heart?

“God will never waste a lesson.” — M.G. Lewis Jr.

Apostle took us straight to Isaiah 50:4 to set the foundation for how God develops us:

“The Lord GOD has given Me The tongue of the learned, That I should know how to speak A word in season to him who is weary. He awakens Me morning by morning, He awakens My ear To hear as the learned.” — Isaiah 50:4 (NKJV)

Notice the order; before Isaiah ever mentions saying anything, he talks about learning.

You cannot know how to speak if you haven't been sitting down and listening first. Having the "tongue of the learned" simply means your mouth has been enrolled in God's school. He is training your mouth so you learn when to speak, rather than just blurting out whatever sounds good.

A gifted tongue can impress a crowd, but a learned tongue knows how to administer healing, release deliverance, and speak breakthrough into someone's life.

“God knows how to put power in a sentence.” — M.G. Lewis Jr.

Sometimes, what you’re asking God for isn't an open door—it’s just a timely Word that keeps you from quitting on the spot. His Word is really that powerful!

And look at the cadence in Isaiah: "He awakens Me morning by morning."

Class is in session every single day. No matter how "big" or gifted you get, you will never outgrow being a student in God's kingdom. You need to hear Him morning by morning.

We love to complain about our seasons of struggle, but Apostle flipped our perspective real quick. You thought you were just going through a hard time, but Heaven labeled it training. So let's reframe the season you're in right now:

What you called delay, God called development.

What you called isolation, God called study hall.

What you called a closed door, God called a prerequisite.

“Before God releases another dimension to your destiny, He has to educate the version of you that’s going to carry it.” — M.G. Lewis Jr.

God keeps you in class because He is actively training the version of you that can handle the weight of what He placed inside you. He’ll keep running the lesson back until you finally become that version!

“Your calling might be free, but your development will cost you something.” — M.G. Lewis Jr.

Just because you’re gifted doesn’t mean you’ve obtained the anointing. Everybody wants the graduation ceremony, but nobody wants to attend class! We want the promotion without the correction, the microphone without the instruction.

We beg God to give us something to say, but God is saying He wants to enroll our ears first.

Why? Because your ears are the first classroom in God.

If you look at the most powerful figures in Scripture—Moses at the burning bush, Abraham on the mountain, Elijah in the cave, Jeremiah in his youth—they all heard a Word before they ever operated in a demonstration of power.

So it makes sense that scripture tells us in Proverbs that:

“A wise man will hear and increase learning, And a man of understanding will attain wise counsel.” — Proverbs 1:5 (NKJV)

People are being deceived today more than ever before because their ears have dropped out of school. If you aren't a student of the Word, you won't know His voice, and you'll fall for anything.

So make this your daily declaration: Lord, enroll my ears first!

Apostle highlighted two distinct "students" from Scripture to show us what developing an ear actually looks like.

Meet student number 1: Samuel

In 1 Samuel 3, young Samuel is serving in the tabernacle under Eli's leadership. The Bible says Samuel was lying down when the Lord called his name.

Samuel immediately jumped up and ran to Eli saying, "Here I am, for you called me!" But Eli said, "I didn't call you; go lie back down." This happened three times!

But catch this in verse 7:

“(Now Samuel did not yet know the LORD, nor was the word of the LORD yet revealed to him.)” — 1 Samuel 3:7 (NKJV)

Samuel was in the right environment, serving under spiritual leadership, but he didn't know what God's voice sounded like yet.

Some people aren't rejecting God, they're just still learning His voice!

Eli couldn't hear the call for Samuel, but Eli had the spiritual wisdom to teach Samuel how to respond to it.

On the third time, Eli told him: "Go, lie down; and it shall be, if He calls you, that you must say, 'Speak, LORD, for Your servant hears.'"

“Sometimes God will answer your prayer by sending you a teacher.” — M.G. Lewis Jr.

We get mad when God sends us a leader or a mentor instead of a sudden miracle (you know, the immediate deliverance or open door we actually prayed for). But scripture reminds us:

“Where there is no counsel, the people fall; But in the multitude of counselors there is safety. —Proverbs‬ ‭11‬:‭14‬ ‭(NKJV‬‬)

“He who walks with wise men will be wise, But the companion of fools will be destroyed.” — Proverbs‬ ‭13‬:‭20‬ ‭(NKJV‬‬)

Samuel had the encounter, but Eli had the language for it.

Samuel had the call, but Eli had the experience.

Samuel had the potential, but Eli had the perspective.

And notice what Eli told Samuel to do: take the posture of a servant, and stay in his place.

Don't run out of the room when class gets uncomfortable! Stop roaming the hallways the second God starts correcting, exposing, or searching your heart.

“You cannot learn the lesson if you keep leaving the classroom.” — M.G. Lewis Jr.

The classroom can feel vulnerable. When you get called on and don't know the answer, it's easy to feel embarrassed and just pretend you know what you're doing.

But you can't fool the Teacher! The Teacher isn't mad that you don't know—He's frustrated when you pretend that you do.

So it’s okay if the classroom feels a bit vulnerable, because that’s where your deficiencies can be identified and addressed (even if you don’t think you have any). That's why David said it like this:

“Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me, and know my anxieties; And see if there is any wicked way in me, And lead me in the way everlasting.” —Psalms‬ ‭139‬:‭23‬-‭24‬ ‭(NKJV‬‬)

The word of God has a way of searching the parts of you that you don’t show anyone, and revealing things that need to be addressed even when you thought you were okay.

Look at the transformation that occurs when you stay in class: in 1 Samuel 3:3, Samuel couldn't recognize God's voice, but by verse 19, the text says:

“So Samuel grew, and the LORD was with him and let none of his words fall to the ground.” — 1 Samuel 3:19 (NKJV)

Evidence of graduation isn't just passing a test; it's growth.

“God trained [Samuel’s] ears before He trusted his mouth.” — M.G. Lewis Jr.

Samuel represents someone learning how to hear.

Now let’s meet student number 2: Prophetess Huldah.

“So Hilkiah the priest, Ahikam, Achbor, Shaphan, and Asaiah went to Huldah the prophetess, the wife of Shallum the son of Tikvah, the son of Harhas, keeper of the wardrobe. (She dwelt in Jerusalem in the Second Quarter.) And they spoke with her.” — ‭‭II Kings‬ ‭22‬:‭14‬ ‭(NKJV‬‬)

So here’s the backdrop: King Josiah’s men find an ancient scroll of the Law and realize Israel has been completely out of order. They need a prophetic word to know what to do, so they go find Huldah the Prophetess.

Interestingly enough, the King James Version of this verse states that Huldah dwelt in the "college" (the Second Quarter of Jerusalem). Y’all, she was enrolled!

We don't hear anything about Huldah's backstory, but the moment she appears in Scripture, she is already ready!

Samuel showed us how ears develop, but Huldah shows us what happens when ears have been developed.

You don't start preparing the moment an opportunity drops; you prepare simply because you know God placed something on your life. Preparation is what you do in private when nobody is calling your name yet.

“Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” — 2 Timothy 2:15 (KJV)

You don't need a microphone to study. You don't need a title to pray. You don't need a platform, followers, or a viral clip to develop character.

“Your opportunity should meet your preparation.” — M.G. Lewis Jr.

When the king's men came to Huldah, she didn't panic. She didn't say "Speak, Lord" like young Samuel—she stood up and declared, "Thus says the Lord!"

“Then she said to them, “Thus says the LORD God of Israel, ‘Tell the man who sent you to Me,” — ‭‭II Kings‬ ‭22‬:‭15‬ (‭NKJV‬‬)

“You cannot become God's mouth until you learn to become God's ear.” — M.G. Lewis Jr.

Huldah had the Word in her mouth and wasn't afraid to speak hard truth to leadership. When God trains your ear, He equips your mouth to say what needs to be said, even when it's uncomfortable.

Apostle shared a personal reflection from his own journey in ministry: early on, he was prophesying everywhere, operating in heavy spiritual gifts, and getting praised by everyone. But when he got under his Apostolic leader, she challenged him to study the Bible.

No matter how gifted you are, if you don't read your Bible, you will eventually run out of things to say! God's Word is His language, and you can't speak it fluently if you don't study it.

“When God’s word can still move you, your prayer can still move Heaven.” — M.G. Lewis Jr.

What’s causing people to fail today is that everyone claims to "hear God," but there’s no spiritual alignment to test if it's actually Him.

If what's coming out of your mouth cannot be backed up by the Bible... here is your official public service announcement: IT WAS NOT GOD.

You have to learn God for yourself. Get around leadership that has already passed the course you're currently taking. If they give you feedback that makes your flesh uncomfortable, good—that means it's working.

When you don’t know the word of God, you easily get into things that have nothing to do with Him and end up needing rescuing. The best way to stay out of sticky situations is to stay in the word.

“If it doesn’t involve God, don’t involve me.” — M.G. Lewis Jr.

God will turn your classroom into somebody else’s curriculum.

Samuel learned to hear, and an entire nation eventually heard God through him.

Huldah learned God, and a king eventually needed her voice to save his people.

Josiah stayed teachable, and his response transformed a generation.

Don’t start roaming the halls when you feel challenged. Don't drop out when the material gets tough. Don't run when the desk gets cleared.

Stay in class…because today’s lesson might just be the training you need for tomorrow’s assignment.