SERMON BASED SERIES

BETTING ON HOPE
{ANDY STANLEY}

 

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INTRODUCTION

What is faith? Is it different than hope? How do you even measure faith? If things are going well with you and God, does that mean you have a lot of faith? If things are not going well in your life, if your prayers are not being answered, does that mean you don't have enough faith? Unfortunately, messages about faith today are very me centered. Do I have enough faith? Am I praying or believing enough? In reality, the object of our faith is much more important than the amount of faith we have.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

  1. Is there anything about faith that is confusing for you?

  2. What are some modern misconceptions about faith? How have those misconceptions influenced our views about God?

  3. What is the difference between hope and faith? (When have you been hopeful that something would happen? When have you had faith that something would happen?)

  4. Read Hebrews 11:1. The bridge from hope to faith is the promise or revelation of God. What are some promises from the Bible that have been especially meaningful to you?

  5. Faith is confidence that God is who he says he is and he will do what he promises to do. Have you ever expected God to do things he never promised to do?

  6. How does having faith in God's promises affect the way we live our everyday lives?

THINK ABOUT IT

We tend to resist the biblical definition of faith because it takes faith out of our hands and puts God back in control. Much too often, we don't want God - we want a genie. But the goal of faith is not to get God to do what we want him to do; the goal of faith is to get us to live in accordance with the character and promises of God. Ultimately, faith comes down to trusting that God knows what he is doing. In what areas of your life is it difficult for you to trust that God is in complete control?

WHAT WILL YOU DO?

This week, start your days with this prayer, "God, your will be done." Identify a promise from the Bible that resonates with you and walk by faith, trusting that God will hold true to his promise.

CHANGING YOUR MIND

Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.
Hebrews 11:1