Monday of the Last Week of the Church Year

Reflections

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November 24, 2025

Today's Reading: Malachi 3:13-18

Daily Lectionary: Daniel 4:1-37; Revelation 21:1-8

“You have said, ‘It is vain to serve God. What is the profit of our keeping his charge or of walking as in mourning before the LORD of hosts?” (Malachi 3:14)

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

It doesn’t seem to be going any better for the faithful than they were when Malachi wrote. We aren’t marked as the richest or most successful. We aren’t the healthiest. We don’t avoid natural disasters. It hurts down here for believer and unbeliever alike. Even the people in Malachi’s day noticed and dared to ask. What’s the point of all this? So the prophet responds. “They shall be mine, says the LORD of hosts, in the day when I make up my treasured possession, and I will spare them as a man spares his son who serves him.” It’s not just, “Hey, one day you’ll go to heaven and they won’t, so you’re way better off.” That’s shallow at best, and pretty ugly at worst.

First of all, who do you think seems to shine the sun on the good and the evil alike? It’s God who gives even the unbelievers everything they have. It’s Him who seems to set up a system where even the wicked receive daily bread the same as the faithful. It’s almost like He wants sinners to receive good gifts. It’s almost like He loves us all enough to die for the entire world. Evil people have stuff because God atones for all. Bleeds for all our sin. That’s why the faithful have anything, too. Why do you think God giving you lots of stuff is somehow a great witness for Him and not just…like…really nice for you? The cross where God is even willing to die for His enemies makes a far better claim to His love.

If you want to see the difference between the wicked and the righteous, don’t look to how much they have. Don’t even look to what they’re doing. Look to the Lord, who forgives, saves, and names righteous. Yours is the God who insists on giving good gifts to those who don’t deserve them. He insists there be order we haven’t built, daily bread we haven’t earned, all so that there would be space for us to hear His word that promises even more to us. Forgiveness of sins. Life. Salvation. All of us are born evil. And by the word and sacraments, you believe. Others are brought to faith, too. And if heaven happens to get a little more crowded, you can do more than just lament the fact that someone had nice things and salvation. You can rejoice with all the angels in heaven when one sinner repents.

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

Even so, Lord, quickly come To Thy final harvest home; Gather Thou Thy people in, Free from sorrow, free from sin, There, forever purified, In Thy garner to abide: Come with all Thine angels, come, Raise the glorious harvest home. (LSB 892:4)

Author: Rev. Harrison Goodman, content executive for Higher Things.

Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Richard Heinz, pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church in Lowell, IN.

This new devotional resource by Carl Fickenscher walks you through each week’s readings, revealing thematic connections and helping you better understand what is to come in worship each Sunday.

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