Ascension Lutheran Church

Last Sunday we heard about the time the Jewish people were being attacked by the Babylonians,
and were defeated and taken into captivity. Our text takes place one hundred years after the end
of the Babylonian Captivity when the Jews had returned to their homeland. At first, they
experienced a period of spiritual revival. But as the years went by most of them had become
indifferent toward God. It was in the midst of this setting that God’s Old Testament prophet,
Malachi, served. It’s much like today, with so many people in the world lost and wandering
further and further away from God. You and I must confess that as we look into our own heart,
we see how prone we are to stray from God. Yet God in His grace seeks to save everyone. Our
text for today from the book of Malachi reminds us once again of the message of Christmas, that
THE SON OF GOD, Jesus Christ, CAME down to earth TO SAVE US FROM OUR SINS.