Welcome to Hope City Church!

NEW

If you are new to Hope City text “HCNEW” to 33777

CONNECT

Connect with us! Visit the Hope City Church website at https://realhopenow.com/ , connect through the Hope City Church Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/realhopenow or download the Hope City Church Louisville app from the android or apple app store.

CARE

If you or a loved one is in need of prayer or care, we would love to help! Simply open the Hope City Church Louisville app, click on "Pastoral Care" or "Prayer Request" and fill out the form so that we can know how we can help.

GIVE

Our heart is to share as much hope with as many people as possible, and you make that happen because of your generosity. Click the link below to give.

http://www.realhopenow.com/give/

Thank you for tuning in to today's service. We'll see you soon!

Welcome to Hope City Church!

NEW

If you are new to Hope City text “HCNEW” to 33777

CONNECT

Connect with us! Visit the Hope City Church website at https://realhopenow.com/ , connect through the Hope City Church Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/realhopenow or download the Hope City Church Louisville app from the android or apple app store.

CARE

If you or a loved one is in need of prayer or care, we would love to help! Simply open the Hope City Church Louisville app, click on "Pastoral Care" or "Prayer Request" and fill out the form so that we can know how we can help. Or go to https://app.textinchurch.com/groups/webform/MjYxMDg4 and send us your prayer request.

GIVE

Our heart is to share as much hope with as many people as possible, and you make that happen because of your generosity. Click the link below to give.

http://www.realhopenow.com/give/

Thank you for tuning in to today's service. We'll see you soon!

Welcome to Hope City Church!

NEW

If you are new to Hope City text “HCNEW” to 33777

SERMON GUIDE

Book of Galatians Part 5 - Saved Sinners

Big Idea: There’s no such thing as a “better” Christian.

Galatians 3:1-14

1Oh, foolish Galatians! Who has cast an evil spell on you? For the meaning of Jesus Christ’s death was made as clear to you as if you had seen a picture of his death on the cross. 2Let me ask you this one question: Did you receive the Holy Spirit by obeying the law of Moses? Of course not! You received the Spirit because you believed the message you heard about Christ. 3How foolish can you be? After starting your new lives in the Spirit, why are you now trying to become perfect by your own human effort? 4Have you experienced so much for nothing? Surely it was not in vain, was it? 5I ask you again, does God give you the Holy Spirit and work miracles among you because you obey the law? Of course not! It is because you believe the message you heard about Christ. 6In the same way, “Abraham believed God, and God counted him as righteous because of his faith.” 7The real children of Abraham, then, are those who put their faith in God. 8What’s more, the Scriptures looked forward to this time when God would make the Gentiles right in his sight because of their faith. God proclaimed this good news to Abraham long ago when he said, “All nations will be blessed through you.” 9So all who put their faith in Christ share the same blessing Abraham received because of his faith. 10But those who depend on the law to make them right with God are under his curse, for the Scriptures say, “Cursed is everyone who does not observe and obey all the commands that are written in God’s Book of the Law.” 11So it is clear that no one can be made right with God by trying to keep the law. For the Scriptures say, “It is through faith that a righteous person has life.” 12This way of faith is very different from the way of law, which says, “It is through obeying the law that a person has life.” 13But Christ has rescued us from the curse pronounced by the law. When he was hung on the cross, he took upon himself the curse for our wrongdoing. For it is written in the Scriptures, “Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree.” 14Through Christ Jesus, God has blessed the Gentiles with the same blessing he promised to Abraham, so that we who are believers might receive the promised.

Righteousness = to be free from guilt or sin.

Righteousness is being right with God.

CONNECT

Connect with us! Visit the Hope City Church website at https://realhopenow.com/ , connect through the Hope City Church Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/realhopenow or download the Hope City Church Louisville app from the android or apple app store.

CARE

If you or a loved one is in need of prayer or care, we would love to help! Simply open the Hope City Church Louisville app, click on "Pastoral Care" or "Prayer Request" and fill out the form so that we can know how we can help.

GIVE

Our heart is to share as much hope with as many people as possible, and you make that happen because of your generosity. Click the link below to give.

http://www.realhopenow.com/give/

Thank you for tuning in to today's service. We'll see you soon!

Sermon Guide

Book of Galatians Part 4 - "Hypocrites"

Big Idea: There’s no such thing as a better Christian.

Galatians 2:11-21

11But when Peter came to Antioch, I had to oppose him to his face, for what he did was very wrong. 12When he first arrived, he ate with the Gentile believers, who were not circumcised. But afterward, when some friends of James came, Peter wouldn’t eat with the Gentiles anymore. He was afraid of criticism from these people who insisted on the necessity of circumcision. 13As a result, other Jewish believers followed Peter’s hypocrisy, and even Barnabas was led astray by their hypocrisy. 14When I saw that they were not following the truth of the gospel message, I said to Peter in front of all the others, “Since you, a Jew by birth, have discarded the Jewish laws and are living like a Gentile, why are you now trying to make these Gentiles follow the Jewish traditions? 15“You and I are Jews by birth, not ‘sinners’ like the Gentiles. 16Yet we know that a person is made right with God by faith in Jesus Christ, not by obeying the law. And we have believed in Christ Jesus, so that we might be made right with God because of our faith in Christ, not because we have obeyed the law. For no one will ever be made right with God by obeying the law.” 17But suppose we seek to be made right with God through faith in Christ and then we are found guilty because we have abandoned the law. Would that mean Christ has led us into sin? Absolutely not! 18Rather, I am a sinner if I rebuild the old system of law I already tore down. 19For when I tried to keep the law, it condemned me. So I died to the law—I stopped trying to meet all its requirements—so that I might live for God. 20My old self has been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. 21I do not treat the grace of God as meaningless. For if keeping the law could make us right with God, then there was no need for Christ to die.

Discussion Questions

1. Do you have trouble reading the Old Testament because of all rules and regulations? Were you aware that all those laws were made to show you that you need a savior? Name some laws that you think are weird or ridiculous.

2. Like Peter, what is an area in your life where you are most afraid of criticism?

3. What is your “plus”? What other thing besides Jesus do you feel like you need to feel whole, valued, loved? What is it that, if you just got THAT THING, you would feel whole, complete?

Sermon Guide

Book of Galatians Part 3 - Spiritual Leaders

Big Idea: We know God personally but we follow him together.

Galatians 2:1-10

1Then fourteen years later I went back to Jerusalem again, this time with Barnabas; and Titus came along, too. 2I went there because God revealed to me that I should go. While I was there I met privately with those considered to be leaders of the church and shared with them the message I had been preaching to the Gentiles. I wanted to make sure that we were in agreement, for fear that all my efforts had been wasted and I was running the race for nothing. 3And they supported me and did not even demand that my companion Titus be circumcised, though he was a Gentile. 4Even that question came up only because of some so-called believers there—false ones, who were secretly brought in. They sneaked in to spy on us and take away the freedom we have in Christ Jesus. They wanted to enslave us and force us to follow their Jewish regulations. 5But we refused to give in to them for a single moment. We wanted to preserve the truth of the gospel message for you. 6And the leaders of the church had nothing to add to what I was preaching. (By the way, their reputation as great leaders made no difference to me, for God has no favorites.) 7Instead, they saw that God had given me the responsibility of preaching the gospel to the Gentiles, just as he had given Peter the responsibility of preaching to the Jews. 8For the same God who worked through Peter as the apostle to the Jews also worked through me as the apostle to the Gentiles. 9In fact, James, Peter, and John, who were known as pillars of the church, recognized the gift God had given me, and they accepted Barnabas and me as their co-workers. They encouraged us to keep preaching to the Gentiles, while they continued their work with the Jews. 10Their only suggestion was that we keep on helping the poor, which I have always been eager to do.

Hebrews 13:7-8

7Remember your leaders who taught you the word of God. Think of all the good that has come from their lives, and follow the example of their faith. 8Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. 9So do not be attracted by strange, new ideas. Your strength comes from God’s grace, not from rules about food, which don’t help those who follow them.

Hebrews 13:17

Obey your spiritual leaders, and do what they say. Their work is to watch over your souls, and they are accountable to God.

3 Reasons You Need Spiritual Leaders:

1. To Tell you the truth (v. 3)

2. To Encourage your gifts (v. 9)

3. To Give you direction (v. 10)

Discussion Questions

1.Talk about a time when you ignored wise counsel.

2. Who do you have in your life that you allow to challenge you, to “watch over your soul?”

3. Do you have trouble submitting to authority? Talk about some reasons why people resist authority in their lives.

4. Do you desire more connection and direction from your church community? How can your group be praying for you?

Welcome to Hope City Church!

NEW

If you are new to Hope City text “HCNEW” to 33777

SERMON GUIDE

Book of Galatians Part 2

Big Idea: There’s no such thing as a good Christian.

Galatians 1:6-24

I am shocked that you are turning away so soon from God, who called you to himself through the loving mercy of Christ. You are following a different way that pretends to be the Good News but is not the Good News at all. You are being fooled by those who deliberately twist the truth concerning Christ. Let God’s curse fall on anyone, including us or even an angel from heaven, who preaches a different kind of Good News than the one we preached to you. I say again what we have said before: If anyone preaches any other Good News than the one you welcomed, let that person be cursed. Obviously, I’m not trying to win the approval of people, but of God. If pleasing people were my goal, I would not be Christ’s servant. Dear brothers and sisters, I want you to understand that the gospel message I preach is not based on mere human reasoning. I received my message from no human source, and no one taught me. Instead, I received it by direct revelation from Jesus Christ. You know what I was like when I followed the Jewish religion—how I violently persecuted God’s church. I did my best to destroy it. I was far ahead of my fellow Jews in my zeal for the traditions of my ancestors. But even before I was born, God chose me and called me by his marvelous grace. Then it pleased him to reveal his Son to me so that I would proclaim the Good News about Jesus to the Gentiles. When this happened, I did not rush out to consult with any human being.Nor did I go up to Jerusalem to consult with those who were apostles before I was. Instead, I went away into Arabia, and later I returned to the city of Damascus. Then three years later I went to Jerusalem to get to know Peter, and I stayed with him for fifteen days. The only other apostle I met at that time was James, the Lord’s brother. I declare before God that what I am writing to you is not a lie. After that visit I went north into the provinces of Syria and Cilicia. And still the churches in Christ that are in Judea didn’t know me personally. All they knew was that people were saying, “The one who used to persecute us is now preaching the very faith he tried to destroy!” And they praised God because of me.

Three Ways You Know You Believe the Gospel

1. You felt God call you (vs. 6)

2. Jesus was revealed to you (vs. 11-12)

3. You are being transformed (vs 13 & 23)

Discussion Questions

1. Talk about something you fell for that was “too good to be true”.

2. As you are seeking Jesus, do you feel pushed or do you feel called?

3. Have you had an “aha” moment when you suddenly grasped the Gospel message?

4. What in your life is different that you believe is the result of putting your faith in Jesus?

CONNECT

Connect with us! Visit the Hope City Church website at https://realhopenow.com/ , connect through the Hope City Church Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/realhopenow or download the Hope City Church Louisville app from the android or apple app store.

CARE

If you or a loved one is in need of prayer or care, we would love to help! Simply open the Hope City Church Louisville app, click on "Pastoral Care" or "Prayer Request" and fill out the form so that we can know how we can help. Or go to https://app.textinchurch.com/groups/webform/MjYxMDg4 and send us your prayer request.

GIVE

Our heart is to share as much hope with as many people as possible, and you make that happen because of your generosity. Click the link below to give.

http://www.realhopenow.com/give/

Thank you for tuning in to today's service. We'll see you soon!

Welcome to Hope City Church!

NEW

If you are new to Hope City text “HCNEW” to 33777

SERMON GUIDE

Galatians Part 1 - Rescued

Big Idea: There’s no such thing as a good Christian.

Galatians 1:1-9

This letter is from Paul, an apostle. I was not appointed by any group of people or any human authority, but by Jesus Christ himself and by God the Father, who raised Jesus from the dead. All the brothers and sisters here join me in sending this letter to the churches of Galatia. May God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ give you grace and peace. Jesus gave his life for our sins, just as God our Father planned, in order to rescue us from this evil world in which we live. All glory to God forever and ever! Amen. I am shocked that you are turning away so soon from God, who called you to himself through the loving mercy of Christ. You are following a different way that pretends to be the Good News but is not the Good News at all. You are being fooled by those who deliberately twist the truth concerning Christ. Let God’s curse fall on anyone, including us or even an angel from heaven, who preaches a different kind of Good News than the one we preached to you. I say again what we have said before: If anyone preaches any other Good News than the one you welcomed, let that person be cursed.

The gospel is the good news that your sin is worse than you believe, but God’s grace is better than you deserve.

Because of your sin, someone has to pay the penalty of death and condemnation, but God loves you so much he sent his son Jesus to pay the penalty for your sin, and if you believe in Jesus, you can have eternal life. Jesus became like you so you could become like him.

The gospel says: believe in Jesus and God’s love will change you.

The false gospel says: believe in Jesus, change, and God will love you

Discussion Questions

1. Talk about the “good” things that you were expected to do as a kid.

2. When in your life have you felt like you disappointed God?

3. Talk about some things you’ve tried to get “better at” on your own.

4. Do you struggle with the idea that you can’t get good enough for God and the only requirement is believing in Jesus?

CONNECT

Connect with us! Visit the Hope City Church website at https://realhopenow.com/ , connect through the Hope City Church Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/realhopenow or download the Hope City Church Louisville app from the android or apple app store.

CARE

If you or a loved one is in need of prayer or care, we would love to help! Simply open the Hope City Church Louisville app, click on "Pastoral Care" and fill out the "Care Request Form" so that we can know how we can help you.

GIVE

Our heart is to share as much hope with as many people as possible, and you make that happen because of your generosity. Click the link below to give.

http://www.realhopenow.com/give/

Thank you for tuning in to today's service. We'll see you soon!

Sermon Guide

You & Me Part 3: Close the Gap

Big Idea:

Hebrews 12:14-17

“Work at living in peace with everyone, and work at living a holy life, for those who are not holy will not see the Lord. Look after each other so that none of you fails to receive the grace of God. Watch out that no poisonous root of bitterness grows up to trouble you, corrupting many. Make sure that no one is immoral or godless like Esau, who traded his birthright as the firstborn son for a single meal. You know that afterward, when he wanted his father’s blessing, he was rejected. It was too late for repentance, even though he begged with bitter tears.”

What I Am Responsible For In My Relationship

1. Work at peace (v. 14)

It’s always easier to not talk about it, but it usually takes conflict to have peace. I have to choose to de-escalate situations. What’s your tone? It’s hard to have peace and criticism. I want peace because I love you. Do you want a resolution or do you want to prove a point?

2. Give grace (v. 15)

You have the choice to be offended today or the choice to give grace.

3. Watch out for bitterness (v. 15)

What is the story I keep telling myself and maybe telling my friends? Have I perfected it?

How do you close the gap in your marriage?

1. Pray together

2. Sleep Together

3. Dream Together

Discussion Questions

1. Share a story about an argument you had with someone that you laugh about now.

2. Talk about someone you know that always assumes the best about others.

3. Do you struggle to give grace in your relationships? Why do you think that is?

4. What relationship bitterness story do you keep telling yourself and your friends?

5. Are you someone who avoids conflict? Do you want to argue so you can prove your point? What attitudes about conflict do you need to change?

6. Where in your relationship are you convinced you are “better than” and they are “less than”? How can your group be praying for you to begin to reconcile this perspective?

Welcome to Hope City Church!

NEW

If you are new to Hope City text “HCNEW” to 33777

SERMON GUIDE

You & Me Part 2: Your Love Story

Big Idea: Your marriage story is bigger than you.

Ephesians 5:21-33

21 Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.

22 Wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands as you do to the Lord. 23 For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior. 24 Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything.

25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her 26 to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, 27 and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. 28 In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. 29 After all, no one ever hated their own body, but they feed and care for their body, just as Christ does the church— 30 for we are members of his body. 31 “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.”32 This is a profound mystery—but I am talking about Christ and the church. 33 However, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband.

John 13:34-35

34 So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other.35 Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.

As Jesus loved me, how do I love _______?

Discussion Questions

1. Talk about someone you know that lives out the idea of submitting to others by choosing to sacrificially serve others.

2. Do you struggle with submitting in your relationships? Does it help to think of submitting as sacrificial rather than transactional?

3. How does your view of marriage change knowing God made it to demonstrate the Gospel message?

4. What areas in your marriage/relationships do you struggle to submit (have to be the winner)? How can your group be praying for you?

CONNECT

Connect with us! Visit the Hope City Church website at https://realhopenow.com/ , connect through the Hope City Church Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/realhopenow or download the Hope City Church Louisville app from the android or apple app store.

CARE

If you or a loved one is in need of prayer or care, we would love to help! Simply open the Hope City Church Louisville app, click on "Pastoral Care" and fill out the "Care Request Form" so that we can know how we can help you.

GIVE

Our heart is to share as much hope with as many people as possible, and you make that happen because of your generosity. Click the link below to give.

http://www.realhopenow.com/give/

Thank you for tuning in to today's service. We'll see you soon!

Welcome to Hope City Church!

NEW

If you are new to Hope City text “HCNEW” to 33777

SERMON GUIDE

You & Me Part 1: It’s Complicated

Big Idea: Your marriage is complicated because you are complicated.

Ephesians 5:31-32

As the Scriptures say, “A man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united into one.” This is a great mystery, but it is an illustration of the way Christ and the church are one.

Matthew 19:10-12

Jesus’ disciples then said to him, “If this is the case, it is better not to marry!” “Not everyone can accept this statement,” Jesus said. “Only those whom God helps. Some are born as eunuchs, some have been made eunuchs by others, and some choose not to marry for the sake of the Kingdom of Heaven. Let anyone accept this who can.”

We can get through anything if we’re willing to work on everything together.

How Do Two Become One

Honesty (you don’t have to be perfect but you’ve got to be honest)

Humility (I’m not better than you I’m better with you)

Honor (Honor isn’t earned, honor is given)

Discussion Questions

1. Talk about someone you know that has been happily married for a long time, or someone that has found joy in a committed single life.

2. Were you surprised to hear that Jesus considers singleness on the same level as marriage?

3. Whether married or single, share some complications about yourself that you bring to relationships.

4. Of the 3 things that bind relationships, which one do you struggle with the most? (Honesty, Humility, Honor)

CONNECT

Connect with us! Visit the Hope City Church website at https://realhopenow.com/ , connect through the Hope City Church Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/realhopenow or download the Hope City Church Louisville app from the android or apple app store.

CARE

If you or a loved one is in need of prayer or care, we would love to help! Simply open the Hope City Church Louisville app, click on "Pastoral Care" and fill out the "Care Request Form" so that we can know how we can help you.

GIVE

Our heart is to share as much hope with as many people as possible, and you make that happen because of your generosity. Click the link below to give.

http://www.realhopenow.com/give/

Thank you for tuning in to today's service. We'll see you soon!