Denver Community Church

September 22, 2019: It's A Matter of the Heart – Amanda Lum

There are moments in life when we feel like we have gone too far, really messed things up and maybe even moments when we are beyond forgiveness. These are the times when our “hearts condemn us …” Of course, the opposite is true too, because there are times when our “hearts do not condemn us …” Whatever we feel or think or believe in those moments there is one thing that is always true: God is bigger than our hearts.

 

This ought to fill us with confidence before God. He is not to be feared, but embraced even as he already embraces us. Armed with this confidence and held in his loving embrace, we then are free to reveal what our hearts tell us, and we can know this because of the Spirit given us.

September 15, 2019: More Than Words – Michael Hidalgo

John gets right to it: if we are to know love, then we need to live love. Words will not do. This is the most simple of all things and central to nearly all healthy religious teaching. Nearly everyone has figured out how to talk a good game – the right thing to say at the right time to the right person. However, no matter what we say, our lives and actions reveal what’s really there.

This is why John instructs his community to not to stop at just feeling something (like pity) or saying something (just words) but to move to action that puts love on display. And why does he say this? Because we witnessed love on display in Jesus, the Word, who is not found written or spoken, but in his wild love revealed in his action for us on the cross.

September 8, 2019: Fruit, Meat, and Murder – Michael Hidalgo

Cain and Abel. One a shepherd and the other a farmer. This story loomed large in the Jewish consciousness, and not just about the brothers, mind you, but about what Cain represented. His name was synonymous with murder, violence, hatred and enmity, and while we may not like to admit it, there is a little Cain in all of us. From words we speak, to thoughts we harbor, to forgiveness withheld – we are capable of hate.

While this may be true, this is not who we are, we are lovers not fighters. Because of this we may be objects of hate from others. But here is the thing, the hate directed toward us is not to be reciprocated, rather we are to love. Because the assumption throughout the text is enmity is not something the people of God participate in – our example is Jesus – who died for us when we were still against him. And it is this kind of love that reveals everything.

September 1, 2019: The One About Nature and Grace and the Divine - Michael Hidalgo

We are the Children of God, which is to say, Jesus is our brother. Not only that, but when all is revealed we will be like Jesus – children of the Divine. Is it possible we sell ourselves short by not fully embracing this identity? While this idea may make some uneasy, John insists that we fully embrace who we are as God’s kids and Jesus’ siblings.

What he is getting at is we can be by grace what God is by nature. This is same idea Peter speaks toward when he wrote about our participation in the divine nature. It’s not just that we know about God or that we know God intimately, but that we are like Christ and fully experience a union with the Divine. This is why Scripture speaks so adamantly about us being perfect, and being co-heirs with Jesus and children of God and like Christ. The presumption of the authors is we can (and will) become like Jesus.

August 25, 2019: Only One Thing is Essential? – Scott Oppliger

This verse from I John speaks of the return of Jesus, and John invites us to be ready and prepared for when Jesus comes again. What if our preparation included living each day in light of the reality that Jesus is already here, that he is already with us, that God is around us all the time?  But how do we live this way in the midst of the demands and pressures of life? And what does it mean to experience God’s presence anyway? The story of Mary and Martha’s interaction with Jesus and with each other from Luke 10 provides some fascinating perspectives on being present with the God who is already present with us. 

August 18, 2019: Get Ready - Amanda Lum

Much ink has been spilled about the return of Jesus. But here is the thing: every single bit of what’s been said is total conjecture and speculation. All of it. According to Jesus, we are not to worry about it at all, nor is it something we need to know. So why does John mention it? Because it’s not that it’s not important, but that we have focused on the wrong thing. 

John speaks of the return of Jesus as a time of “revealing” or a time when he will be “made manifest”. This revealing and manifestation speaks toward all things – who we are, what’s in our hearts, what kind of life we have chosen to live – it’s a revelation of it all. This is the insistence of John, not the times, dates, hours or order of events.

August 11, 2019: Baptism Sunday – Michael Hidalgo

Baptism – one of the sacraments of the Church – has long been a tradition and way for us to acknowledge God at work in our lives and our commitment to modeling our lives after Jesus. It is a public expression of our commitment to Jesus and our desire to be identified with him and his death, burial and resurrection. Baptism is a symbolic experience of a change of mind and a change of direction (repentance) and commitment to a new way of life (belief and faith).

August 4, 2019: What Jesus Said About Relinquishing Power – Paula Williams

The most common phrase in the Sermon on the Mount, “You have heard it said ... but I tell you …” (Matt 5.21-48). In these verses, Jesus talks about murder, oaths, adultery, divorce, retaliation and love for our enemies. This was a new teaching in his day that was provacative, and we will ask, “What can it teach us today?”

July 28, 2019: Thou Shalt Not Cancel – Adam Phillips

The most common phrase in the Sermon on the Mount, “You have heard it said ... but I tell you …” (Matt 5.21-48). In these verses, Jesus talks about murder, oaths, adultery, divorce, retaliation and love for our enemies. This was a new teaching in his day that was provacative, and we will ask, “What can it teach us today?”

July 21, 2019: Love Your Enemies - Jasper Peters

The most common phrase in the Sermon on the Mount, “You have heard it said ... but I tell you …” (Matt 5.21-48). In these verses, Jesus talks about murder, oaths, adultery, divorce, retaliation and love for our enemies. This was a new teaching in his day that was provacative, and we will ask, “What can it teach us today?”