The Master‘s Class, LifeChange Church Wichita

THE SPIRIT REVEALS (1 Cor. 2:9-16)

How does God reveal Himself to man?  Man perceives the world around him through his eyes, ears, and mind.  Man sees the world around him, yet the Scripture tells us that since the beginning of the world our eye hath not seen certain things.  We have not seen the spiritual things that God has for us.  Man hears the world around him, yet the Scripture tells us that since the beginning of the world our ear hath not heard certain things.  We have not heard the spiritual things that God has for us.  Man's mind is limited by what he can conceive of, prove by experimentation, or hypothesize about, yet the Scripture tells us that since the beginning of the world that our heart has not solved certain things.  We have not solved the mysteries of the spiritual things that God has for us.  Therefore, God uses the presence of the Holy Spirit within the heart of the believer to reveal Himself.  Listen to the attached podcast and rejoice as Paul describes how God reveals Himself to man.

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.

HOW TO GIVE THROUGH GRACE (2 Cor. 8:16-24)

What does the Bible say about giving to God?  Not what some TV evangelist says, whose only motive is to make himself rich, but what does God say in His Word about giving?  God does not want you to be ignorant about what He desires from you and for you.   Listen to this podcast and rejoice as we learn that our giving is always from our increase and for our increase.  God truly wants to use our giving as a door to pour out blessings upon us.

GIVING AS CHRIST GAVE (2 Cor. 8:6-15)

When you hear a preacher talking about giving, what is your reaction?  As a believer do you regard giving as an obligation or an opportunity?  What would you say if I told that God does not want your giving if it is out of compulsion or obligation?  Contrary to what you might think, God does not need our giving, rather it is us that need to give to God.  God has promised blessings to those that give willingly.  If you don't want God's blessing, then God says in His Word that you should not give.  Listen to this podcast and learn what it means to give willingly as Paul uses Jesus Christ as the supreme example of grace giving.

GOD'S CALLING (1 Cor. 1:25-31)

What do you think of when someone tells you about the Cross at Calvary, what do you see?  Do you see the shame and disgrace of a so-called King of the Jews, who could not even save Himself, let alone anyone else?  Unfortunately, this is the view that most of society has of the Cross that Jesus died on.  Yet man's view of the Cross is incomplete, and it is because of this, that man, by his own cleverness, cannot understand the way of the Cross, or the why of the Cross.   It is only when God completes man's view of the Cross that man finds God.  Without God's revelation of Himself, man would never discover the almighty Creator of the Universe.  It is only through the revelation of Holy Spirit that man begins to see the grace of God, and the purpose of God in the gospel message of the Cross.   Listen and rejoice as Paul describes the greatness of God and how God is revealed to man.

GIVING THROUGH GRACE (2 Cor. 7:12 to 8:5)

What do you know about God's grace?  Theologians define grace as the unmerited favor of God, but if that is our only definition then we will miss the rich flavor of this word.  The grace of God is the passion of God to share all His goodness with others.  Listen to this podcast as Paul uses this principle to describe the spirit of a believer towards giving to God.  Paul calls giving a grace.  It is a grace of God.

THE HEART OF PAUL (2 Cor. 7:2-11)

Do your emotions tell others about you?  Do they describe what you are passionate about?  Do they tell the ones you love how sincere you are when you apologize for causing them grief?  Do they reveal how you deal with worry, fear, and trials, as well as joy, happiness, and love?  This is what this lesson is about.  First, Paul lets us into the depths of his heart as he reveal his emotions of fear and then joy.  Then Paul shows us the emotions of a person who genuinely is repenting of the sin in their lives.   Paul will challenge how you go about telling God that you are repentant of the sins you have committed, and then he describes the characteristics of genuine repentance.  Listen and rejoice to the heart of an apostle.

A CALL FOR SEPARATION (2 Cor. 6:15 to 7:1)

What is the separated life of the believer?  This week's podcast describes what the Biblical meaning of a separated life is, and powerful effect it can have on your life and your testimony.  Christ did not call us to live a secluded life.  He called us to live a separated life.   Listen and rejoice to this verse-by-verse study of 2 Cor. 6:15 to 7:1.

THE CHARACTER OF A BELIEVER (2 Cor. 6:7-14)

What is the character of a believer?   Is the world to notice something different in the way the believer lives his life?  In this study, Paul uses the example of his own life, and the challenges that he has faced in the ministry of Christ, to encourage the Corinthians engage in the spreading of the gospel message of Christ.  Rejoice as you listen to how Paul describes the power of the believer, the life of the believer, and the way God protects His messenger.

A CALL TO SERVICE (2 Cor. 6:1-6)

Are you telling yourself that someday you would like to have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ?  You are still young, still busy with life, still waiting for that right time to accept the free gift of salvation that God has provided through His Son Jesus, so you say someday I will take care of things with God.  In His Word, God tells us that now is the accepted time, now is the time for salvation.  Not tomorrow, not next week, not someday, but now is the time that God has provided for you to learn what it means to know Jesus, and to have everlasting life.   This is the message of this podcast.  In 2 Corinthians 6:1-6, Paul makes a plea to all believers to join him in the ministry of sharing the gospel message of Christ to a lost world.  He makes his plea with the sense of urgency that comes from knowing that life is short, sometimes too short.  Don't miss this opportunity to find God as you listen to this podcast.