The Master‘s Class, LifeChange Church Wichita

HOW TO DRAW NEAR TO GOD (James 4:4-8)

When I was a small child, I always wanted to be near my Father, because I knew that he loved me, and that he would protect me.  When I put my small hand into his big hand and we walked somewhere, I always felt secure and safe.  When he hugged me I knew all was right with the world.  

Now that I am a child of God, I want God to be so close that I can feel the warmth of His embrace.   I want God to be so close that I can put my small hand into His infinite hand and I want to walk and talk with Him.   

What is so amazing about our God is that He wants to be close to us as well.  He wants to walk and talk with us in the cool of the afternoon as He did with Adam and Eve.  The Bible tells us that there is a great gulf fixed between man and God, yet God has taken the initiative on this side of the grave.  In an act of infinite compassion God has come looking for us because we are lost.  God has sent His Son Jesus Christ to be the bridge that can bring us to God.  

God has come as far as He can.  He stops short of violating the human will.  He stands at the edge of the bridge with arms outstretched and says Come! Come! Come!

In our lesson today, James tells us how to draw near to God.  How it is possible to have a personal, up-close, relationship with the almighty Creator of all things.  

DO YOU BELIEVE GOD? (James 2:21-24)

Do you believe God?

Not do you believe in God, but do you believe God?  

Do you believe what God says in His Word, the Bible?  

Do you believe God the Father when He said of Jesus Christ, this is my Son in whom I am well pleased?  

Do you believe God when He says that your salvation is by His grace alone, and not by works, lest any man should boast?

Abraham was a man that believed God.  What this means is that Abraham said amen to God. God had said, “I will do this for you,” and Abraham says to God, “I believe You. Amen. I believe it.”  And that was counted to him for righteousness.   Abraham did not work to earn his salvation, it was his faith that was counted for righteousness.  But it was not just faith in anything.

It is important to note what Abraham believed, for God to count it for righteousness.  It was when he believed the promise of THE SEED.  That is when God counted it to him for righteousness.  

Ultimately it is the same for all ages.  It is the faith in Jesus Christ that our salvation rests.  He is The Seed.  

It is not mere faith that saves, but it is the object of your faith that saves.

It is not mere faith that saves, but it is your faith in Christ that saves.  

Abraham just believed God. He just accepted what God said about the promised Seed, and he believed God. That is the way each of us get saved.  That is how we receive God’s gift of eternal life.

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.

Listen to this podcast to learn that it is not good works that will allow you to stand imputed with righteousness before God, but it is when you believe God.  

THE PERFECT LAW OF LIBERTY (James 2:8-13)

What is the perfect law of liberty?

Have you ever considered what it would be like to go someplace where there were no laws, and no police officers to enforce those laws?  To be totally free to do whatever you wanted, for as long as you wanted, and in any way that you wanted to do it?

Sounds pretty good doesn't it?  If I don’t want to get up in the morning, I don’t have to.  If I want to drive my car as fast as it will go, then I can.  

This is pretty much what it was like for the early pioneers who opened up the western part of the United States.  When they stepped out into that wilderness, they were free from the laws and those that would enforce it.  They lived by their wits, their strength, and their courage, for even though there were no societal laws, there were always the laws of nature, and the laws of the strongest shall prevail.  

So the question is, are you truly free when you step out of the boundaries of the laws of a civil society?  Is this true liberty?

Without laws, is there such a thing as criminal behavior?  To be a lawbreaker there must be a law to break.

God, as our Creator, knew that man needed laws to establish the absolute truths about right and wrong, so He gave us His Word that we call the Bible.  It contains the Mosaic Law, The Sermon on the Mount, and it contains Christ’s Law, which is the perfect law of liberty.  These laws identify what is sin for man.  They let man know that he has broken those laws, that the penalty of that sin is death, and that man needs a Savior.  The very Savior named Jesus Christ who died on a cross to pay the penalty for man’s sin.  

As a believer we are no longer under the Mosaic Laws, but our behavior is to be controlled by two commandments.  

The first is, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind.  This is a believer’s responsibility to God.  

The second is, To love thy neighbor as thyself.  This is a believer’s responsibility to others.

How do we find perfect liberty?  Listen to this podcast to learn that the answer is to be redeemed, released, and ruled by Christ.  

HOW JESUS SUFFERED (Mark 14:25-36)

Life often places us in situations where we have a loved one who is suffering in great pain, or emotionally from a loss.  Our natural desire is to be able to reach out and remove that suffering from them and place it on ourselves. We want to take their place, and let us handle the pain.

I remember watching my mother as she suffered in pain from terminal cancer.  There was nothing more that I wanted to do than take that pain away from her and let me bear it.  I wanted to do this because I loved her enough that I was willing to take her place, even if it meant that I would die.  

If we as people are capable of this kind of love, how much more so is a holy God capable of this kind of love?  It is because of God’s love for us that He sent His Son Jesus to die on a cross so that we could avoid the suffering and pain of an eternity spent burning in the Lake of Fire.  Jesus took on our suffering so that we could choose not to.  God loves each of us so much that He desires that none of us should perish.

Listen to this podcast to learn how Jesus suffered great pain on the cross.  How Jesus suffered emotionally on the cross. How Jesus suffered at the hands of a holy God on the cross, and Jesus suffered at the hand of Satan while He was on the cross.  

Most of all, hear why Jesus had to suffer.

TO LOVE GOD WITH ALL THAT YOU ARE (Mark 12:28-37)

If someone were to ask you which law was the most important what would you say?

Would it be that we are not to murder someone?

Would it be that we are not to steal from someone?

How about that we are not to abuse a child?  Even the prisoners in our jail system hate those who would abuse a child.

Listen to this podcast to learn that the most important law in this world is to love God with all of your heart, with all of your mind, with all of your strength, and with all that you are.  The second most important law is to love your neighbor as yourself. 

If you can learn to obey these two laws, then all of the other laws that man can create are no longer relevant.

If you can obey these two laws, and never fail, then you can live in heaven for eternity.

However, if you fail to obey these two laws, even just once, and we will all fail, then you need Jesus as your Savior.   This is the simple message of this lesson, you need Jesus in your heart.

ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE WITH GOD (Mark 10:23 to 31)

All things are possible with God. If it is not the strong, or the wealthy, or the sophisticated, or even the educated that can have eternal life in heaven with Jesus, then who possibly can? In our world these are the ones who are considered worthy of our admiration, our respect, even our worship, but Jesus says that it is easier for a camel to fit through the eye of a needle than it is for one of these to enter into the kingdom of God. If that is true, then it is impossible for man to save himself, or to earn his salvation from God. Listen to this podcast to hear how what is impossible for man to accomplish, is simple for the almighty Creator of all things.  Learn how all things are possible with God.  Learn how Jesus Christ has already completed all of the work for you salvation, all you have to do is accept His free gift of grace.

WHAT MUST I DO TO HAVE ETERNAL LIFE? (Mark 10:13-22)

What must I do to have eternal life?

Eternal life is an issue that each of us must decide how real it is, and if it is real, what we must do to have eternal life.

There are multiple religions, philosophies, and teachings, on what eternity looks like, and what a person must do to enter into it. 

Must you earn it?  Must you be a member of a certain religion? Is there any sin that will be unforgivable, or unpardonable, that would definitely keep you out of heaven?

Now, make no mistake about it, I firmly believe that the only true answer to this question is found in Jesus Christ.  It is found in Jesus Christ and Jesus alone.  There is no other way to eternal life in heaven, but through Jesus Christ. 

Listen to this podcast to learn what Jesus has done, is doing, and will do, to provide you with eternal life.  The answers you seek are in the Bible.  The Bible is the true, the inerrant, and the Holy Spirit inspired Word of God where Jesus tells us what we must do to find eternal life in heaven. 

THE LORD OF OUR NEEDS (Mark 7:31 to 8:8)

How do you go about meeting your family's needs?  You anticipate them.  You plan for them.  You work for them.  You spend hours cooking, cleaning, and making the things that they need.  You get up early every morning to go to a job because you know they are depending on you.  You sacrifice for them.  You want them to be able to depend on you.  You want them to have faith that you will be able to meet their needs because you always have.   You dedicate your life to meeting the needs of the family that God has been gracious enough to give you.  You do this because you love them.  If you, as a parent are capable of doing this out of the love found in your human heart, how much more so can Jesus, as the Son of the living God, meet your needs out of the unlimited love found in His divine heart?    Listen to this podcast to learn how Jesus, as the Lord of our needs, plans methodically and miraculously for our needs.  He structures our experiences to build our faith, and He expects us to have faith that He will always be there for us.  That faith comes as we look back at the things that He has done for us in the past.  That faith comes because He has promised to never, never, never, leave us.  

CAN YOU WAIT TOO LONG? (Mark 6:14-29)

We live in a society that promotes acting now before it is too late. Items that we want go on sale so we rush down to the store to beat the crowd. Ads proclaim buy now while supplies last. There is so much noise, so many offers, that we become desensitized to the messages. When companies call us on the phone we screen our calls using caller ID. We don't answer the phone hoping that they will stop calling. God is knocking on the heart of the unbeliever. God wants everyone to be saved. Not just some elect group of people, but all people. God loves you and He wants you to have eternal life. So God knocks, and God waits. He never barges down your door. He never forces His will upon you. He just knocks and He waits. The question is how long will God wait? Can you wait too long before God stops knocking and walks away? Listen to this podcast to find out if a person can pass that invisible line of God's mercy to God's wrath. Can it ever be too late to accept Jesus as your Savior?

THE ONE WITH THE POWER TO SAVE (Mark 5:21-34)

When we need something done that we cannot do for ourselves, then we begin to search for someone with the power to meet that need. When my car needs repaired, when something in my home needs repaired, I begin a search for someone with the power to meet that need. When my need becomes a desperate need, I look for someone with the power to save me. Listen to this podcast to find the One with the power to meet the most desperate need in each of our lives. Listen and discover that Jesus Christ is the only One with the power to save you. If you are lost in a dark world, then Jesus Christ is the answer to that need. Jesus Christ has the power to save you.