Cleanliness is next to Godliness
Preacher: The Rev. Logan Hurst
Scripture: Malachi 3:1-4
The season of Advent calls us to prepare—not just for the celebration of Jesus’ birth, but for his transformative work in our lives. Drawing from Malachi and John the Baptist’s proclamation, this message reminds us that God’s refining and cleansing power is an act of love. Like a refiner’s fire or fuller’s soap, God works to purify us, stripping away what is impure, unnecessary, or misaligned with his will.
John the Baptist’s cry echoes to us today: bring your low places to God, where you feel weak or burdened, and let him lift them up. Bring your high places, where self-reliance or pride might have taken root, and let him level them. Bring the crooked places, the areas of confusion, sin, or brokenness, and let him make them straight.
This preparation is not about perfection but about surrender. God doesn’t ask us to clean ourselves up first—he invites us to trust him with the work of refining, making us ready to receive his presence more fully. As we await the coming of Christ, let us open our hearts to his transforming work, trusting in the promise that he will not leave us but will come to us again.
Reflection Questions
What are the “low places” in your life where you need God’s strength and restoration?
What “high places” of pride or self-reliance do you need to surrender to God?
Where are the “crooked paths” in your life that need God’s guidance to become straight?
How does the image of a refiner’s fire or fuller’s soap resonate with your experience of God’s transforming work?
In this Advent season, what steps can you take to welcome God’s refining and cleansing in your life?
