We reach the final episode of our journey through First and Second Corinthians, and we end where Paul ends his second letter: with the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit. After working through several chapters at a time this quarter, this week we pause on just three verses and listen closely to what they reveal about God.

In this conversation we consider how grace, love, and fellowship each point to a member of the Godhead, and how together they form a blessing meant for the whole church. We also walk through Paul's closing appeals to rejoice, to grow toward maturity, to be of one mind, and to live in peace, themes that have run throughout this quarter's study.

If you teach Sabbath School, you will find a simple but meaningful suggestion in this episode: bring real prayer into your class. Give people the chance to pray for one another and for the needs around them, so that your time together touches the heart and not only the mind.

This lesson is studied during the week of September 19 to 25, 2026, and is taught on Sabbath, September 26, 2026.

Thank you for listening throughout this quarter. We are glad you spent the time with us, and we hope to see you when a new quarter begins the following Sabbath.

Executive Producer: Carolina Conference of Seventh-day Adventists
Producer: Henrique Gomes
Editing: Henrique Gomes
Logo: Becky Carpenter

Welcome back to Leader's Lesson, the podcast that helps Sabbath School teachers prepare to lead with confidence. This episode covers Lesson 12, "Dealing With False Teachers," from the Third Quarter 2026 study of First and Second Corinthians.

In this conversation, we work through the final chapters of Second Corinthians, mainly chapters 11 and 12, where Paul addresses the teachers he ironically refers to as the "super-apostles." These teachers presented themselves as more impressive than Paul and had drawn some of the Corinthian believers away from the gospel. We talk about how Paul answers them, defending his ministry plainly while keeping the focus on Christ rather than on himself.

Along the way we discuss:

How Paul holds humility and firmness together when confronting false teaching, and why teachers today need both.
What it means that God's power is made perfect in weakness, and how that shapes the way we lead.
The call in Second Corinthians 13:5 to examine ourselves, and the simple test of looking at the fruit in our lives, such as whether we are becoming more patient and kind.
The value of a trusted accountability partner who can help us see what we might miss on our own.

A practical tip for teachers: read through Second Corinthians 10 to 13 earlier in the week instead of leaving it for Friday night or Sabbath morning. The chapters are full, and the lesson's discussion questions give a class plenty to talk about.

Study dates: September 12 to 18, 2026.
Teaching Sabbath: September 19, 2026.

Next week we finish the quarter with Lesson 13, "Grace, Love, and Fellowship." We hope you will listen and prepare with us.

Executive Producer: Carolina Conference of Seventh-day Adventists
Producer: Henrique Gomes
Editing: Henrique Gomes
Logo: Becky Carpenter

What does Christian generosity look like when it is rooted in the example of Jesus? In this episode we study 2 Corinthians 8 and 9, where Paul addresses stewardship, giving, and the care believers show one another. This is Lesson 11 in our Third Quarter 2026 series on First and Second Corinthians. The lesson is studied the week of September 5 to 11 and taught in Sabbath School on Sabbath, September 12.

Paul is responding to a real need: a famine in Judea, and an offering gathered by churches elsewhere to help. We talk through the context, including the very practical work of carrying the gift safely, and then we focus on the reason Paul gives for generosity. In 2 Corinthians 8:8 and 9, he says he is not commanding but inviting, and he points to the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, who became poor so that others might become rich. That makes Jesus the measure of generous giving.

In this conversation we explore what Paul's appeal shows us about God's character, how generosity strengthens unity in the church across distance, and how stewardship becomes worship when we offer everything back to God. We also take an honest look at materialism and the reminder that our hearts follow our treasure.

A note for teachers: pray as you prepare, and teach for both the head and the heart. Sound study is the starting point, but the aim is for the Word to take root in daily life, in your students and in you.

Next week, in Lesson 12, we look at "Dealing With False Teachers." New episodes release every Sabbath to help you prepare to teach.

Executive Producer: Carolina Conference of Seventh-day Adventists
Producer: Henrique Gomes
Editing: Henrique Gomes
Logo: Becky Carpenter

How do we keep serving faithfully when ministry feels heavy and the results are hard to see? In this episode of our Third Quarter 2026 study of First and Second Corinthians, we open Lesson 10, Authentic Christian Ministry, working through 2 Corinthians 3 to 7.

In this conversation we discuss:

• Paul's picture of treasure in jars of clay, and why the fragile vessel makes the glory inside more visible
• Suffering as an honest part of life and ministry, rather than something we can engineer away
• How the cross redefines success, since Jesus reached true victory through apparent defeat
• A personal reflection from five years of mission work in Thailand, and what it taught about depending on God in our weakness
• A look at global statistics on suffering that put our own struggles in perspective without minimizing them

A note for teachers preparing to lead: this lesson works best when you make room for personal stories. The closing discussion question asks where people have seen God use weakness to reveal His strength, and your own honest answer can set the tone for an open, encouraging class.

We study this lesson from August 29 to September 4 and teach it on Sabbath, September 5. Next week brings Lesson 11, Stewardship and Mission, as we continue through Second Corinthians.

If these notes help you get ready to teach, follow the show and share it with a fellow Sabbath School leader.

Executive Producer: Carolina Conference of Seventh-day Adventists
Producer: Henrique Gomes
Editing: Henrique Gomes
Logo: Becky Carpenter

After the familiar language of love in 1 Corinthians 13, this week's study turns to 2 Corinthians, where love becomes very practical in Paul's own ministry. Lesson 9, "Love-driven Ministry," is part of our Third Quarter 2026 series on First and Second Corinthians.

In this episode we look at why Paul writes the way he does to a hurting church. He had intended to visit, his plans changed, and an earlier letter had caused pain. Paul answers by assuring the believers of his love and by defending his ministry to those who doubted it, while being open about the trials he had faced. Through it all he describes God as the Father of mercies and the God of all comfort, the One who comforts us so that we can comfort others.

We also talk about what this looks like for leaders today: the value of sincerity and transparency, the balance between planning wisely and staying responsive to God's will, and the relational work of repairing trust when plans change.

If you teach a Sabbath School class, listen for the teaching tip in this episode. Honest, appropriate vulnerability helps people listen and respond, and a few simple ground rules can keep discussion both open and respectful. We share a practical way to invite different perspectives while gently steering the class back to the text when needed.

This lesson is studied during the week of August 22 to 28, 2026, and is taught on Sabbath, August 29.

Next time we continue with Lesson 10, "Authentic Christian Ministry."

Executive Producer: Carolina Conference of Seventh-day Adventists
Producer: Henrique Gomes
Editing: Henrique Gomes
Logo: Becky Carpenter

If Christ was not raised, Paul says, our faith is empty and we are still in our sins. That is how much weight the apostle places on the resurrection in 1 Corinthians 15, the passage at the center of this episode.

In Lesson 8 of our Third Quarter 2026 study of First and Second Corinthians, we walk through Paul's response to believers in Corinth who doubted the resurrection of the dead. Paul grounds the gospel in real events: Christ died for our sins, was buried, rose on the third day, and appeared to many witnesses. From there we talk about why this matters for everyday life. Because Christ is the firstfruits of those who have died, those who die in Him share the hope of being raised, which means we can face grief and even death without being ruled by fear. We also reflect on baptism as a picture of dying and rising with Christ.

For teachers, this conversation includes a practical tip on participation: how to invite quieter class members to share and how to keep the discussion balanced when a few voices tend to dominate.

In this episode we cover the gospel as Paul defines it, the resurrection as the foundation of Christian hope, and what living as people of hope looks like day to day.

Studied during the week of August 15 to 21, 2026, this lesson is meant to be taught in Sabbath School on Sabbath, August 22, 2026.

Next week we continue with Lesson 9, "Love-driven Ministry."

Executive Producer: Carolina Conference of Seventh-day Adventists
Producer: Henrique Gomes
Editing: Henrique Gomes
Logo: Becky Carpenter

First Corinthians 13 may be the best known chapter in the Bible. People recite it at weddings and post it on their walls even when they read little else of Scripture. In this episode of Leader's Lesson, part of our walk through First and Second Corinthians, we look at why Paul placed this chapter where he did and how teachers can bring it to their classes with care.

Throughout this letter Paul has been addressing a church marked by division and conflict, and his answer is love. We discuss how that love is not simply a feeling we summon on our own but something revealed in Christ and grounded in God's own character. Jesus, patient and kind, strong and yet forgiving, is the clearest picture of what this chapter describes.

In our conversation we also think through the questions a Sabbath School class might wrestle with. Why does Paul rank love above spiritual gifts and even above knowledge, given that knowledge can make us proud while love builds others up? Which quality in Paul's list is hardest for us to live out, whether it is patience, long suffering, or the call for love to believe all things and offer the benefit of the doubt rather than suspicion? And what does true love look like when we measure it against the life of Christ?

For teachers, we spend time on a skill worth practicing: asking good, open ended questions that let discussion rise out of the text itself. We also talk honestly about why it is acceptable to tell your class that you do not know an answer, and how that openness can make a class stronger rather than weaker.

This episode is meant to help you prepare during the study week, which runs from August 8 to August 14, 2026, ahead of teaching the lesson in class on Sabbath, August 15, 2026.

Next week we continue with Lesson 8, "The Power of Christ's Resurrection." New episodes are released every Sabbath to help you get ready.

Executive Producer: Carolina Conference of Seventh-day Adventists
Producer: Henrique Gomes
Editing: Henrique Gomes
Logo: Becky Carpenter

What is the purpose of spiritual gifts, and why does the Holy Spirit give different gifts to different believers? In this episode, part of our Third Quarter 2026 study of First and Second Corinthians, we look at 1 Corinthians 12 and the question of how the gifts of the Spirit are meant to work in the church.

Continuing the theme of unity in Christ, we talk through how Paul uses the picture of the body to show that diversity is not a problem to be solved but a design to be celebrated. No one person has every gift, which keeps us humble and reminds us that we need each other. We also consider why gifts like tongues and prophecy are given for service rather than self-promotion, and we give attention to the quieter gifts that are often overlooked, such as generosity and faithful service behind the scenes.

We close with a distinction worth remembering: while spiritual gifts are distributed among different members, the fruit of the Spirit, including love, joy, peace, and self-control, is meant to grow in every believer.

For Sabbath School leaders, this episode offers a practical word of encouragement. Spend time reflecting on why you teach. Since knowledge puffs up but love builds up, aim to help your class experience the love of God, so that your group becomes a community that prays for one another and cares for one another.

This lesson is studied during the week of August 1 to August 7, 2026, and will be taught in Sabbath School on Sabbath, August 8, 2026.

Next time, join us for Lesson 7, "A Portrait of Love."

Executive Producer: Carolina Conference of Seventh-day Adventists
Producer: Henrique Gomes
Editing: Henrique Gomes
Logo: Becky Carpenter