2nd Corinthians - Wayne Barber

A Look at the Book - 2nd Corinthians

Dr. Wayne Barber

This month Dr. Barber begins a new study by taking a general look at the book of 2 Corinthians and making some observations about what the book teaches.

The God of All Comfort - Part 1 - 2 Cor. 1:1

Dr. Wayne Barber

Well, turn with me to 2 Corinthians and we’re going to look a little deeper into that little fact of “God is good, all the time.” All the time! We’re going to see His goodness as we talk about the “God of All Comfort,” and this is part 1.

The God of All Comfort - Part 2 - 2 Cor. 1:3

Dr. Wayne Barber

God took pleasure in making the apostle Paul. He made him an apostle in the New Testament and God took great joy using the apostle Paul. When we finally come to that place in our life and begin to realize that God wants to use us, and as long as our heart is beating, then God has a purpose for us; when we begin to realize, then we begin to understand that God wants to do His work through us. Not about us doing anything for Him, it’s what He wants to do through us. Then we begin to realize that to use us He locates us. He puts us where we can be the most influential to the world which is around us.

The God of All Comfort - Part 3 - 2 Cor. 1:4-7

Dr. Wayne Barber

Well, today we’re going to find out even more about that comfort. We looked at that verse 3 last time of how he praises the God of comfort. He praises him first of all for Who He is. Now he begins to get into what He has done and what he has experienced and knows about this God of all comfort. He’s brought comfort to all the believers in Corinth and Greece, or He can. And Paul wants them to know that.

The God of All Comfort - Part 4 - 2 Cor. 1:8-11

Dr. Wayne Barber

One of the great things about studying the scripture, at least in my life it is, is that it teaches us, and this is my words, but life is like a quarry. You know what a quarry is? That’s where all that rock is chipped out. Life is like a quarry. You see, life and all the circumstances of life, are used of God to shape us and conform us into the image of Christ.

The Ingredients of a Pure Testimony - 2 Cor. 1:12

Dr. Wayne Barber

Today we want to look at what a pure testimony is and hopefully as we do this you’ll be examining yourself because we’re getting ready to take the Lord’s Supper this morning. I want you to think about what a pure testimony is. I want you to think about your life and let God speak to your heart.

Evidence That God Proves Us Guilty - 2 Cor. 1:12

Dr. Wayne Barber

Well, today in our text in 2 Corinthians 1, we’re going to see that the apostle Paul had all the evidence that was needed to convict him as being guilty of being a Christian. Now it is this evidence in our lives that people see. This is the evidence in our lives that touches people that don’t know about the Lord Jesus Christ.

Church Discipline and God's Forgiveness - 2 Cor. 2:6-11

Dr. Wayne Barber

We’re going to see that church discipline, when it’s done right, always involved the forgiveness of Christ and always has as its purpose to restore the individual back into usefulness. If it doesn’t involve God’s forgiveness, then what it does is it can go too far. And what it ends up doing is destroying the sinful individual.

Experiencing Christ - 2 Cor. 2:12-17

Dr. Wayne Barber

We’re going to look deeper today and find three things in Paul’s life, and you could make a list so long in Corinthians of how, when we experience Jesus, what are some of the things we’re going to experience. We’re going to see this in his life today. When we choose to say yes to Him and allow Him to overcome us, what do we experience?

Authentic Ministry - 2 Cor. 3:1-3

Dr. Wayne Barber

We are servants of a new covenant, and today we’re going to see one of the things that the new covenant enables, which is authentic ministry.

Authentic Ministry - 2 Cor. 3:1-3

Dr. Wayne Barber

We are servants of a new covenant, and today we’re going to see one of the things that the new covenant enables, which is authentic ministry.

The Adequacy of Ministry - 2 Cor. 3:7-11

Dr. Wayne Barber

Today in our text Paul is going to begin to talk more and more about God’s presence in us. It’s amazing how he does it. How that God’s presence in us changes us from the inside out and qualifies us as being authentic and makes us adequate in Him.

The Presence of His Glory - 2 Cor. 3:7-11

Dr. Wayne Barber

What we’re talking about now, servants of a new covenant. This is part 3, and we’re talking about the presence of His glory, verses 7-11.

Living in the Freedom of the Spirit - 2 Cor. 3:12-18

Dr. Wayne Barber

First of all, walking and living in the freedom of the Spirit means the passion to speak without fear. Oh, my. When Christ lives in us and is allowed to live through us, His Spirit in us gives us an incredible not only ability to speak boldly the message of Christ, but the motivation to do it.

Symptoms of One Who Has Lost Heart - 2 Cor. 4:1

Dr. Wayne Barber

Now, I'm not going to completely cover every text, all of the context and all, because there are five of them. We’re not going to go to every scripture where this is mentioned, but I want you to understand what the symptoms are of one who has lost heart. We’re going to talk about that in verse 1.

The Secret of Not Losing Heart - 2 Cor. 4:1-5

Dr. Wayne Barber

The last time we saw the symptoms of one who has lost heart. But now we’re going to talk about the secret of one who has not lost heart.

Learning the Basics - 2 Cor. 4:7-11

Dr. Wayne Barber

If we’re going to live without losing heart, we’re going to have to learn the basics. Now this is going to be verses 7-11.

Living the Life of Faith - 2 Cor. 4:11-15

Dr. Wayne Barber

In verses 11-15 he shows us what is involved in living the life of faith. Now we have only two options: lose heart or live the life of faith. There are only two options: you’re one side or you’re the other. There’s no in-between at all. But what’s involved in living the life of faith?

Looking at Life from God's Point of View - 2 Cor. 4:16-18

Dr. Wayne Barber

Now let me introduce this to you by just saying that death is a subject that all of us have to face. You’ve either experienced it with a loved one, maybe you are facing it in your own life right now with a very serious illness or whatever, but death is stalking each one of us in this place today, and one day it will conquer its prey. But we as believers should never fear death.

The Great Departure - 2 Cor. 5:1-5

Dr. Wayne Barber

When we as believers do what we’re supposed to do, when we allow God’s Word to renew our minds, it completely changes our way of thinking. Then that which we cannot humanly understand is divinely revealed to us by His Spirit and His Word. You see, we fear what we do not understand and so many people do not realize that if they’ll just get in the Word with a yielded heart, God’s Spirit will reveal truth to them that will dismiss their fear.

Courage In the Face of Life and Death - 2 Cor. 5:6-10

Dr. Wayne Barber

We must see how life on this earth has direct results as to when we see Him one day. Paul understood it and again I’m going to say it over and over again, Paul understood this very well. He was unafraid of death and as a result he lived life on this earth by faith and with hope and with confidence.

The Character of an Ambassador for Christ-Part 1 - 2 Corinthians 5:11-13

Dr. Wayne Barber

We’ve been looking at conquering the fear of death. But tonight we’re going to open up a new series called “Ambassadors for Christ.” This is part 1, and again it’ll be in verses 11-13.

An Undeserved Mission of an Ambassador for Christ - 2 Cor. 5:18-21

Dr. Wayne Barber

First of all, the mission that we’re on involves a message that is undeserved. Look at 2 Corinthians 5:18. He says, “Now all these things are from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ.” Now, when Paul says, “all of these things are from God,” he’s referring to all that God has done to reconcile us to Himself.

What is Involved in Working Together With God - 2 Cor. 6:1-4a

Dr. Wayne Barber

Working together with God involves immediate caution, a window of opportunity, and a lifestyle.

What Can We Expect - 2 Cor. 6:4-5

Dr. Wayne Barber

Now we’ve looked at what it involves, last time, to be a worker with God, what is involved. Today we’re going to talk about “What Can We Expect?” What can we expect once we choose to be a worker together with God?

How Do You Identify a Worker with God - 2 Cor. 6:6-7a

Dr. Wayne Barber

We’ve been talking about “Working Together With God” as we push our way through 2 Corinthians. That’s the theme Paul has brought up. This is part 3. Today we want to talk about “How Do You Identify a Worker with God?”

The Recipe for Right Relationships - 2 Cor. 6:11-18

Dr. Wayne Barber

Now we’ve been talking about being workers together with God; we’ve been talking about being ambassadors for Christ; now, what’s the importance of right relationships in the body of Christ. And today’s message is going to be “The Recipe for Right Relationships.”

The Requirements of Right Relationships - 2 Cor 7:1-5

Dr. Wayne Barber

The God of all comfort, when your walk matches your talk, all the different things we’ve seen up until now. But now we’re talking the importance of right relationships. This is part 2.

The Repentance in Right Relationships - 2 Cor. 7:6-11

Dr. Wayne Barber

We’re talking about the importance of right relationships, and today it’s going to be about the repentance in right relationships. Now we’ve seen so far the recipe of right relationships. You know a recipe is when you have ingredients, when put together the right way, turns out the right way. We talked about the requirements of right relationships, but today is going to be a tough message: the repentance that is necessary for right relationships.

Rejoicing in Repentance (2 Cor 7:12-16)

Dr. Wayne Barber

We’re going to be looking at verses 12-16 tonight. We want to talk about the rejoicing in repentance. This is part 4 of "The Importance of Right Relationships."

The Miracle of Grace Giving (2 Cor 8:1-5)

Dr. Wayne Barber

We’re going to be talking about a brand new subject, as Paul brings it up in chapter 8 and chapter 9. We’re going to be talking about the grace of giving, and this is part 1. Our first message is going to be on the miracle of grace giving.

The Principles of Spontaneous Giving (2 Cor 8:6-12)

Dr. Wayne Barber

We’ve been talking about the “Grace of Giving” and this is part 2 as we study through 2 Corinthians. When you study verse by verse you just can’t skip things. And Paul brings this up.

The Soundness of Grace Giving - 2 Corinthians 8:13-24

Dr. Wayne Barber

We’re talking about the grace of giving. I didn’t write this: Paul brought it up and the timing seems to be so appropriate this time of year. This message is part 3 of that and we’re going to talk today about the “Soundness of Grace Giving.”

The Effectiveness of Grace Giving - 2 Corinthians 9:1-5

Dr. Wayne Barber

We’ve been talking about the grace of giving and this is part 4 of that series. Today we want to talk about the effectiveness of grace giving. What effect does grace giving have on other people?

The Attributes of Grace Giving - 2 Corinthians 9:6-10

Dr. Wayne Barber

New beginnings automatically denote change and a fresh start. That’s what I love about them. With that in mind, what a time, now this is God’s timing, what a time for us as a church to be in 2 Corinthians 9, starting a fresh new year. I can’t think of a better time for us and especially those of you that have never experienced the journey of just participating in grace giving.

The Gift of Giving (2 Cor 9:8-15)

Dr. Wayne Barber

We’ve been in chapter 8 and chapter 9 talking about the grace of giving. And today our title is going to be “God is Able.” You know we’ve a saying God is good, all the time, all the time God is good. Let’s change it: God is able all the time, all the time God is able. Don’t ever forget that: God is able.

Before You Do Anything... - 2 Corinthians 10:1-3

Dr. Wayne Barber

We’re going to begin a brand new topic here as Paul opens up with the last four chapters and I’m going to call it “Poise in the Face of Persecution”, and this is part 1.

Choose Your Weapons - 2 Corinthians 10:4-6

Dr. Wayne Barber

This is “Poise in the Face of Persecution”, part 2 today, and we’re going to talk about “Choose Your Weapons.”

The Weakness of Fleshly Weapons - 2 Corinthians 10:7-8

Dr. Wayne Barber

There are some awesome things that God is saying to us. I’m calling the whole series “Poise in the Face of Persecution,” and this is part 3.

Who Is and Who Isn’t - 2 Corinthians 10:9-18

Dr. Wayne Barber

We’ve been talking about “Poise in the Face of Persecution.” This is part 4 of that series. Actually it’s going to last us all the way through the last chapter of this wonderful epistle.

The Heart of a True Teacher - Part 1 - 2 Corinthians 11:1-3

Dr. Wayne Barber

I’m not real good with titles but when I got into chapter 11, I realized that he’s going to now take us into a real intense study on the “Danger of Spiritual Deception.”

The Heart of a True Teacher – Part 2- 2 Corinthians 11:4-6

Dr. Wayne Barber

What is the heart of a true teacher in the danger of deception? In the midst of it, what’s the heart of a true teacher when deception is on every corner? To get you into this, let’s talk about some things for a moment.

The Bad and the Ugly - 2 Cor. 11:12-15

Dr. Wayne Barber

“The Danger of Spiritual Deception – Part 3. When it comes to people who are supposed to be teaching God’s Word, I’m very sorry to say that in Christianity what some people call it today, we have the good, the bad, and the ugly.

The Pain of Persecution- 2 Corinthians 11:16-29

Dr. Wayne Barber

We’re going to be talking about “Suffering for the Sake of Christ;” part 1 today, “Pain in the Midst of Persecution,” the things that Paul had to go through. And we’re going to look at some of the things that come as a result of our surrender to the Lord Jesus Christ.

The Prize Hidden in Weakness - 2 Corinthians 11:29-12:9

Dr. Wayne Barber

we talked about the pain of persecution last time, but this time, the prize that is hidden in weakness. In the humanistic world in which we live, the word “weakness” is not an acceptable term. This is "Suffering for the Sake of Christ" – Part 2

Ce Mare Har (What Great Grace) - 2 Corinthians 12:9-10

Dr. Wayne Barber

We’ve been talking about “Suffering for the Sake of Christ.” This is part 3. But today the message is entitled, “Ce Mare Har.” Do you know what that means? It means “What (Ce) Great (Mare) Grace (Har)”; What Great Grace.

The Part People Play In Weakness - 2 Corinthians 12:11-21

Dr. Wayne Barber

We’ve been talking about “Suffering for the Sake of Christ” and this is Part 4 of that mini-series as we’ve been going through 2 Corinthians verse by verse. I want to talk today about the “Part People Play in Weakness.”

Evidence of Rejoicing - 2 Corinthians 13:11-14

Dr. Wayne Barber

The book of 2 Corinthians chapter 13. It’s like saying goodbye to an old friend. We’re going to talk today about evidences of rejoicing.