Denver Community Church

February 17, 2008: The Rule Has Been Disproved (3 of 8) – Michael Hidalgo

The trap is set for Jesus. The question is posed to Jesus about who should or should not pay taxes and if one should or should not pay the taxes to Caesar. This is a loaded question as taxation (or tribute) was symbolic of the oppression of the Romans over Israel. The taxes were burdensome, and in the minds of the Jewish people unfair. Rome was getting rich off their hard work. So if Jesus says that they should pay taxes he immediately loses and audience with the hard core who are Anti-Rome. If Jesus says that they should not pay taxes he is treasonous. So he asks to see a coin … it has an Image on it. Jesus discredits those who are asking the question, because an observant Jew would never have a coin with an image on it, this was breaking the third commandment. Jesus remarks Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s. So just what is God’s? Everything … the whole earth (Ps. 24.1). The implication then is that Caesar has nothing. 

February 10, 2008: Not Exactly a Green Thumb (2 of 8) – Britton Smith

Jesus storms into the Temple and begins to turn over tables of those buying, selling, and trading. Is he angry that people are profiting from “ill-gotten-gain” or is there some connection with the fig tree incident shortly before he heads up there? Israel was referred to as a fig tree often in prophetic literature. Jesus sees a fig tree and thinks it looks good. Then upon closer inspection it no longer looks good. He then curses it - meanwhile he is in the Temple overturning tables - then after that Temple incident the fig tree is withered. Mark, in a clear and compelling story telling device, frames what has happened with Israel and the Temple. What was to be a house of prayer for all people has become a hiding place for thieves and gluttons. The Temple system looks good from afar but is far from good.

February 3, 2008: Kings, Mules, and Horses (1 of 8) – Michael Hidalgo

Here comes the King! Here comes the Savior of Israel! Here comes the one who was promised! Wait, wait, is her crying?!?! What in the world is going on here? At first glance everything was shaping up into a perfect storm for Jesus to ride into Jerusalem the conquering hero. After all this is what Caesar would have been doing on the other side of the city, and it is what was expected to happen according to Zechariah - yet for some reason the conquering hero of this story is weeping for the very people who are celebrating his arrival. Jesus at what some considered the pinnacle of his career was heartbroken - for his people missed his message.

January 27, 2008: What are You Saying – Michael Hidalgo

So often we become formalized in our speech that we stop hearing what we are saying. We develop wrote prayers devoid of meaning and substance and miss out on deep communion with God. Prayer however is something intensely personal between God and us. It is deep intimacy with the Creator of our world. But what does it look like to center ourselves fully on the person of God to whom we speak? What does it look like to draw near to God on his terms - to have our prayers focus on him - rather than draw near to him on our terms? As we commune with God through prayer our life should reflect who he is more and who we are less.

January 20, 2008: Give It Away – Michael Hidalgo

The sages said, “He who gives in secret is greater than Moses” (Babylonian Talmud Baba Batra 9b). As a matter of fact giving alms was considered to be the second holiest act one could do outside of studying Torah. It is no wonder then why some wanted others to know of their unbelievably righteous acts. Consider this - how would such a public display of almsgiving make the one receiving alms feel? What would it be like to be an object used so one could feel good about himself? Giving to the poor was rightfully considered a sacred thing, but to make it public was to make a spectacle of the poor - not to mention placing the credit for the provision of God in your own hands. Jesus points toward giving that is done with no hope for public recognition, but giving that done for the simple purpose of blessing others. 

January 13, 2008: Loving the Haters – Brian Gray

Sigmund Freud said, “The commandment [‘Love thy neighbor as thyself’] is impossible to fulfill … Anyone who follows such a precept in present day civilization puts himself at a disadvantage.” With this hopeful viewpoint of the teachings of Jesus we ask the question … just how can I love someone who hates me? Jesus begins by quoting Rabbinic thought, You have heard it said, “It is a duty to hate the one who is sinning as it is said, ‘to fear the LORD is to hate evil.’” There was a debate in Jesus’ day about who people should love. The question was “Who is my neighbor?” This was asked in reference to Leviticus 19.18. The words for love seems to answer this. The Hebrew word v'ahavtah --is rare and only occurs three times in connection with people loving people. All three times in happens in the context of vengeance. It carries this idea of this being a choice in relation to one who has wronged you -- your enemy. This word was also used in reference to loving God -- love it seems is a choice. Our choice then is, will we love God? This is an important question as Dorothy Day reminds us when she says, “You can only love God to the extent you love the person whom you love the least.”

January 6, 2008: The Art of Nonviolence – Michael Hidalgo

Are we really just supposed to sit back and let evil run its course? I mean what about all of those people who are harassed and helpless - aren’t we supposed to do something to help them? Jesus’ comment about turning the other cheek is so often misconstrued. Jesus is forcefully asserting himself toward those who oppress others. He shows that in his kingdom it is not about swords, clubs, or fists … it is actually about subverting the powers that exist in our world and exposing evil for what it is. 

December 30, 2007: The God of Second Chances – Michael Hidalgo

So many times we see someone do something wrong, and we label them with a name or a description. We do not give many people second chances. For us in our world it is all about first impressions. It is these impressions that often dictate the way we will live our lives, and what opinion we will have of people. This, thankfully, is not how God operates. God gives second chances, even generations later. Saul, the king of Israel, could not obey God and kill Agag - yet generations later the same battle shapes up. This time however, it is in the court of a king in a foreign land - what would the descendants of Saul do now?

December 23, 2007: For Us and Everyone Else (4 of 4) – Michael Hidalgo

When someone is called a Savior, we are forced to ask the question what is he or she saving us from? Both Augustus and Jesus were called Saviors - yet both of them were saving mankind from two different things. As a matter of fact Jesus was saving humanity from the evil of people like Augustus and cultures like Rome. Jesus was calling his people to simple way. A way that was not oppressive but freeing. A way that was not focused on the Kingdoms of this earth, but the Kingdom of Heaven. The way of Jesus proved to be an alternative to the prevailing culture of Rome. So what if Jesus came today? Exactly what would he be saving us from?

December 16, 2007: A Gift From the Gods (3 of 4) – Michael Hidalgo

Good News of great joy was what the people of the Roman Empire were told they were hearing in Augustus' gospel. These are also the words that the Shepherds in the field heard when the host of angels sang in the heavens. So just what is this gospel, good news, and great joy? Why did Caesar believe that he had news that was so worthy? What did those angels know that night - and what did the shepherds hear them say when they used the words like gospel? Those shepherds in that field that night, in the shadow of the Empire, heard the angels tell them of a new reality - a new world in which all things would be new.