Sun. Oct. 27, 2013 (Janet Boldt)

On Reformation/Heritage Sunday, Janet Boldt spoke on "Clasping of Hands" based on the lectionary texts of Joel 2:23-32, Psalm 65, 2 Timothy 4:6-8 & 16-18, and Luke 18:9-14. The scriptures tell us that God simultaneously transcends time and space, yet is very present with humanity and sustains creation. Current events make it hard to understand God's immanence when human violence is repeated so often. The poetry of George Herbert (1633) included "Clasping of hands" which plays with the possession relationships between us and the LORD in terms of 'I/mine' and 'Thee/thine'. The interlacing of humanity's actions with those of God's are like a dance that begs the question: what is the balance between God's responsibilities and ours? The humble prayer of the tax collector in Luke 18 is story of reversal: re-creation and re-formation as a result of justification by faith. Across the human/divine divide, God reaches towards us in grace, yet we must reach back and grasp that gift -- we cannot be justified by our own initiative. Spiritual disciplines are a way to place ourselves before God and trust in order to be transformed. In conclusion, we heard Ernie Doerksen play guitar and sing Gene MacLennan's "Put your hand in the hand" [of the man from Galilee]. [KH]

Listen to the sermon audio MP3 recording from Sunday, October 27th, 2013 using your browser's preferred media player.