The Master‘s Class, LifeChange Church Wichita

THE RESURRECTION OF CHRIST-PART I (Mark 15:38 to 16:6)

Do you have any core beliefs that you will not compromise on, that you cannot be dissuaded from, and that you will stand up and proclaim no matter the audience, no matter the danger, and no matter the consequences to you?

Such beliefs must be important to you personally for them to have such meaning.  They must be things like your integrity, your belief in the inherent rights of the individual to life, liberty, and their ability to choose how they will exercise that liberty.  For many they include the right to worship God freely in the manner they choose without interference from the government or others.  

These core beliefs are what define you as an individual.  They define how you will react in a given situation, what you stand for, what you will tolerate from others, and what you will choose to put your life at risk for.  They are what drive a young lady to stand when a cowardly man with a gun in his hand demands that all Christians are to stand up.

Every true believer in the gospel message of Jesus Christ has at their foundation two such beliefs:

(1) The death of Christ.  Jesus Christ was crucified on the cross for our sins.  It is the blood of Jesus that was shed on the Cross that makes our salvation possible.

(2) The resurrection of Christ.  Christ rose bodily from the dead.  He conquered death and sin with His resurrection, and because of this, we can have eternal life in heaven with Jesus.

The gospel declares that Jesus was made sin for us, (this means that He took on our sin, He paid the penalty for our sin,) that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him, (our ability to stand before God, clothed in the righteousness of God, is only because Jesus died for us and was raised again for our justification.)

The unique fact of the gospel is the Resurrection. All other religions record the death of their leader. Only the Christian faith records the Resurrection of its Founder. 

All other religious leaders are dead. 

Only Jesus is alive.  Listen to this podcast to learn why this is absolutely important and imperative for you to know and believe.

WHY JESUS HAD TO DIE (Mark 15:33-37)

Have you ever asked the question, Did Jesus really die on a cross or is that just some story from the Bible?

And if Jesus did die on a cross, What does that have to do with the things that I may have done during my life?  How can something that Jesus did have any effect on me and my eternal life?  

These are the basic questions that form the foundation of the gospel message of Jesus Christ.  The answers to these questions are told, retold, and symbolized over and over again, in the Bible from Genesis to Revelation.

God specifically provided an inerrant and infallible book, called the Bible, so that man could know and understand what the life, death, burial, and resurrection, of Jesus Christ means to each of us.  

Each of us has come short of the mark of absolute perfection demanded by a holy, perfect, God.  The penalty for that failure is death.  

As a just God, God must condemn those that have failed to meet this mark of absolute perfection.  

As a loving God, God sent His Son to pay the penalty of death that we deserve.  Jesus willingly took our punishment for us.  

Listen to this podcast to learn Why Jesus had to die.  Jesus tells us that Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.  Listen and learn just how much Jesus loves you.

ATTITUDES THAT CAUSED JESUS TO BE CRUCIFIED-PART II (Mark 15:16-32)

Over the last several weeks our politicians have demonstrated the power of a person’s attitude to do things to hurt others and our nation.  We have seen self-righteousness, hypocrisy, and cowardly compromise, on full display by people who are elected to represent the needs of the people rather than their own enrichment.  We have also seen the courage of a few to demand changes, even in the face of overwhelming condemnation from those in their own party.  

A person’s attitude can also be used to draw people to you, or drive them away.  It is the same in politics as it is in matters of faith.  If your message of faith is positive, affirming, and compassionate, then it will draw people to you.  On the other hand, if your message is negative, condemning, and filled with words of anger and hate, it will drive most people away from you.  Most of all, your attitude must be matched by the way you live your life.  Hypocrisy is in every area of life, and it is easy to spot.  The most dangerous part of hypocrisy is what it does to those around you.  Many people will walk away from the gospel message of Christ because of what they see in counterfeit Christian.  

Listen to this podcast to hear the second part of a lesson on how the attitudes of those around Jesus caused the Creator of all things to be rejected and crucified on a cross.

ATTITUDES THAT CAUSED JESUS TO BE CRUCIFIED (Mark 14:66 to 15:15)

A person’s attitude is a powerful thing.  It has a great deal to do with how we act while we are doing a task, how we think about that task, and how we speak about it.  A simple example is how we approach our job, if our attitude is one of enjoyment, or one of passion for that job, it makes the days go quicker, and we have a true feeling of accomplishment about our job.  You feel good about yourself and who you are.  

On the other hand if our attitude is one of dreading our job, or it is just a thing we do to pay the bills, it creates stress in our lives which has an effect on our health, the days drag on and on, and we are just looking forward to quitting time so we can go and do something we love.

But our attitude about something is even more powerful than that, for it can be used to drive us to do things that we would not ordinarily be capable of.  Consider the attitude a person would need to have in order to knowingly condemn a man to die a horrible, painful, death for a sin that He did not commit.

Listen to this podcast to learn the seven attitudes that lived in the hearts of the people responsible for the death of Jesus Christ.  As you listen, look for these same attitudes in your own heart.  

THE OBEDIENCE OF THE LAMB (Mark 14:37-65)

On a human level it is very hard for us to willingly take the blame for what somebody else has done.  Our natural reaction is to defend ourselves, to make sure that everyone knows who is rightfully to blame, especially when the punishment for the crime carries with it a heavy penalty, such as years in prison, or even death.  It would take a great deal of love for one person, who was innocent, to willingly take the blame for a crime they did not commit to save another from facing that penalty.    

Yet this is what Jesus Christ did for each of us.  

Listen to this podcast to learn why Jesus stood silent before His accusers when He was falsely accused of crimes He did not commit.  Learn why Jesus would allow a mob of men to take Him to be crucified without putting up a fight to resist them.

Jesus did all of this, including dying on a cross, so that you could have everlasting life.  Jesus died in your place. He took your punishment.  He suffered so that you would not have to.  Jesus did all of this because He loves you.    

THE LORD'S SUPPER (Mark 14:22-24)

When was the last time that you participated in taking the Lord’s Supper? 

How did you go about preparing yourself to participate?

Why is the Lord’s Supper an important part of the believer’s life?

Listen to this podcast to find out what the Bible says about the Lord’s Supper.  Jesus instituted this ordinance of the church for us to remember what He has done for us.  Later, Paul tells us that we are to be serious, and not casual or flippant, in our preparation and participation is this very important ceremony.   

This is to be a time of remembrance of the love that God has for us, and it is to be a time of self-assessment and repentance. 

Don’t miss the wonderful message that is to be found in the believer’s heart as they remember the finished work of salvation that Jesus has done for you.

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.

JESUS PREPARES FOR THE CROSS (Mark 14:1-21)

Who was in control of the events that led to Jesus dying on the cross?   

Was it the Jewish religious leadership?

Was it the Romans?

Was it Judas who betrayed Jesus?

Listen to this podcast to discover the answer to this question is that Jesus was in complete control of the events that led to His death on the cross.  He deliberately, knowingly, and willingly walked to the cross.   God so loved each of us as humans that He sent His only begotten Son to die so that none should perish and each of us should have the opportunity for everlasting life. 

Jesus tells us that whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.  Jesus went to the cross to make that possible. 

Join us as we begin a series of lessons that describe the death, burial, and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ.   Listen as God shows us just how much He loves us. 

CAN YOU SEE WHO JESUS IS? (Mark 10:41 to 11:11)

Can you see who Jesus is?

The world sees Jesus as prophet, a teacher, but ultimately they see Him as a failure because He was hung on a cross to die the death of a criminal.  But the world does not see the purpose of Jesus’ death, or the fact of His bodily resurrection.

The disciples saw Jesus as the Promised King of a Promised Kingdom.

Bartimaeus was blind, but he saw Jesus as the hope of a lifetime.  Once he could see he saw Jesus as his Lord and Master. 

The Jews of the city of Jerusalem saw Jesus as the prophet of Nazareth of Galillee.

The Bible tells us that Jesus came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many

Listen to this podcast to learn how Jesus came to this earth to be a minister to others and to give His life as a ransom for many.

Who do you see Jesus as?  I hope you see Him as the one and only path to eternal life.  Jesus wants you to see Him as your Savior and Master. 

THE WISDOM OF THE CROSS (1 Cor. 2:1-8)

When man looks at Jesus dying on the Cross at Calvary he sees a failure.  This is man's wisdom.  When God looks at His own Son dying on the Cross at Calvary He sees the redemption of  man as it was planned at the time of creation.  This is God's wisdom.  The wisdom of the Cross contains the gospel message of the Cross.   Man's wisdom says that we must earn our salvation through some deed or effort.  The wisdom of the Cross says that no man can come to the Father except through the precious blood of Jesus Christ.   Man's wisdom boasts proudly of the good motives and the righteous behavior of man.  The scales of justice determine man's destination and reward in the afterlife, if there is an afterlife.   The wisdom of the Cross says that man's righteousness is as filthy rags before the holiness of God.    The wisdom of man leads to an eternity in Hell.   The wisdom of the Cross leads to an eternity with Jesus in Heaven.   Listen to this podcast and learn how Paul describes the wisdom of the Cross.