Based on the web search results I was able to retrieve, November 9, 2025 falls within Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary (Year C runs from Advent 2024 through Christ the King Sunday 2025, with Year A beginning at Advent 2025). From the search results, this is the Thirty-Second Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C.

Let me now compile the comprehensive lectionary research document:

Lectionary Research: November 9, 2025

Thirty-Second Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C)

Date: November 9, 2025
Liturgical Season: Ordinary Time (Season after Pentecost)
Liturgical Color: Green
Year: C

Liturgical Context

The Thirty-Second Sunday in Ordinary Time falls late in the church year, approximately three weeks before the First Sunday of Advent. This period of “the end times” in the lectionary often features eschatological themes—teachings about death, resurrection, the last judgment, and the life everlasting. The church is being prepared for the coming Advent season while also being reminded of Christ’s ultimate return and the hope of the resurrection.

Green, the color of growth and life, continues to mark this season of the church’s growth in grace and the Christian life.

Old Testament Reading: Haggai 1:15b–2:9

The prophet Haggai ministered during the post-exilic period (circa 520 BC), when the returned Jewish exiles were rebuilding the temple in Jerusalem. The historical context is crucial: the people had returned from Babylonian captivity with high hopes, but the reality of rebuilding was discouraging. The second temple appeared shabby compared to Solomon’s magnificent first temple.

Key theological points:

The Glory of the Latter House (Haggai 2:9): God promises that “the latter glory of this house shall be greater than the former.” This is not merely about physical splendor but about God’s presence and the coming Messiah. From a christological perspective, this prophecy finds fulfillment in Jesus Christ, who would teach in Herod’s expanded version of this second temple. The true glory is not gold and cedar but the Word made flesh dwelling among His people.

Divine Presence Over Human Achievement: The people’s discouragement stemmed from comparing their work to past glories. God redirects their focus: “My Spirit remains in your midst; fear not” (Haggai 2:5). The temple’s value lies not in architectural magnificence but in God’s covenantal presence. This speaks powerfully against works-righteousness—our accomplishments mean nothing without God’s gracious presence.

Eschatological Shaking (Haggai 2:6-7): God promises to “shake the heavens and the earth” and bring the “treasures of all nations.” The New Testament interprets this eschatologically (Hebrews 12:26-28), pointing to the final judgment and the establishment of God’s unshakeable kingdom. The “treasure” or “desire of all nations” has been understood messianically in Christian tradition.

Lutheran Commentary Perspective: The Concordia Commentary tradition emphasizes the Law/Gospel dynamic here. The Law exposes the people’s discouragement and their tendency to rely on visible, external glory. The Gospel comes in God’s unconditional promise: despite their weakness and the temple’s modest appearance, God will fill this house with glory through the coming Messiah. Our justification rests not on the grandeur of our works but on God’s faithful promise.

Psalm: Psalm 145:1-5, 17-21 or Psalm 98

Psalm 145:1-5, 17-21

This acrostic psalm of praise celebrates God’s eternal kingship, faithfulness, and gracious provision for His people. As a royal psalm, it fits the post-exilic context of Haggai, where earthly kingship had failed but God’s kingship endures forever.

Key themes:

God’s Eternal Kingship (vv. 1-2): “I will extol you, my God and King.” Unlike human kingdoms that rise and fall, God’s dominion is everlasting. This provides comfort in times of political uncertainty or cultural decline.

Generational Testimony (vv. 4-5): “One generation shall commend your works to another.” The psalm emphasizes the catechetical task of passing down the faith. In Lutheran practice, this underscores the importance of Christian education, Small Catechism instruction, and family devotions.

God’s Nearness to Those Who Call (vv. 18-19): “The LORD is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth.” This is pure Gospel—God’s accessibility through prayer, not based on our worthiness but on His gracious character.

Preservation and Destruction (v. 20): “The LORD preserves all who love him, but all the wicked he will destroy.” This is the two-fold outcome of God’s judgment: salvation for believers and condemnation for the impenitent. It echoes the eschatological themes present throughout this Sunday’s readings.

Psalm 98 (Alternative)

A psalm celebrating God’s victory and salvation, often associated with the enthronement of the Lord. It calls for joyful worship with musical instruments and anticipates God’s final judgment of the world “with righteousness” (v. 9).

Connection to the readings: Psalm 98 bridges the Old Testament promise (Haggai’s vision of God’s glory) and the Gospel’s fulfillment (Christ’s resurrection victory over death in Luke 20).

Epistle Reading: 2 Thessalonians 2:1-5, 13-17

Paul writes to the Thessalonian church to correct misunderstandings about the Day of the Lord. Some had become alarmed by false teaching claiming the day had already come, leading to anxiety and even idleness.

Key theological points:

The Man of Lawlessness (vv. 3-4): Before Christ’s return, there will be a great rebellion and the revelation of “the man of lawlessness” who exalts himself above God. Lutheran interpretation has historically identified this with the antichrist spirit manifested in various forms throughout church history, including papal claims to authority over Scripture (see Smalcald Articles). However, the primary pastoral concern is not speculation about specific identities but vigilance against false teaching that opposes the Gospel.

The Restrainer (v. 6-7, not in lectionary excerpt): Paul mentions something/someone restraining the man of lawlessness. This has been variously interpreted as the Roman Empire, civil government in general, or the preaching of the Gospel. The ambiguity reminds us that some details of eschatology remain mysterious, and our focus should be on faithfulness rather than detailed timelines.

God’s Election and Sanctification (v. 13): “God chose you as the firstfruits to be saved, through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth.” This verse beautifully summarizes the Lutheran understanding of salvation: rooted in God’s eternal election, effected by the Spirit’s sanctifying work, and received through faith in the Gospel truth. Sanctification is not separated from justification but flows from it.

Stand Firm in the Traditions (v. 15): Paul urges the Thessalonians to “stand firm and hold to the traditions that you were taught.” In the midst of eschatological anxiety and false teaching, the antidote is fidelity to apostolic doctrine—the pure preaching of Law and Gospel as delivered in Scripture and confessed in the creeds.

Comfort and Strength (vv. 16-17): The section ends with a benediction invoking “eternal comfort and good hope through grace.” This is pastoral care: amidst uncertainty about end times, believers have concrete hope grounded not in speculation but in God’s grace in Christ.

Law/Gospel Application: The Law exposes our tendency toward either eschatological anxiety (obsessing over signs and times) or presumption (assuming we have all the answers). The Gospel directs us to the comfort of God’s election, the ongoing work of the Spirit, and the steadfast hope we have in Christ’s certain return.

Gospel Reading: Luke 20:27-38

The Sadducees, who denied the resurrection, pose a riddle to Jesus about a woman married successively to seven brothers (based on the levirate marriage law in Deuteronomy 25:5-6). Their intent is to make the idea of resurrection appear absurd.

Key theological points:

The Sadducees’ Error (vv. 27-33): The Sadducees accepted only the Torah (Genesis through Deuteronomy) as Scripture and rejected later developments like belief in resurrection. Their question reveals a fundamental misunderstanding: they assume the resurrection life is merely a continuation of earthly existence. Jesus exposes this as a failure to grasp both Scripture and God’s power.

The Age to Come (vv. 34-36): Jesus distinguishes between “this age” and “that age” (the age of resurrection). In the resurrection, people “neither marry nor are given in marriage” because they “cannot die anymore” and “are equal to angels.” This is not a diminishment of the goodness of marriage (which is God’s gift for this age) but an indication that the resurrection life transcends the biological and social structures necessary for mortal existence. The focus shifts from procreation and temporal family structures to eternal life as “sons of God, being sons of the resurrection.”

Lutheran Perspective on Marriage: Lutheran theology highly values marriage as a divinely instituted estate for this life, and the Large Catechism affirms it as a “blessed estate.” However, Jesus’ teaching here reminds us that marriage, like all earthly vocations, belongs to the temporal kingdom. The resurrection hope points to something greater: eternal communion with God and the saints, where the purposes served by marriage in this age are fulfilled in a different and higher way.

God of the Living (vv. 37-38): Jesus’ argument for resurrection is brilliant. He cites Exodus 3:6, where God identifies Himself to Moses as “the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob”—using the present tense long after the patriarchs’ deaths. Jesus’ logic: “Now he is not God of the dead, but of the living, for all live to him.” Because God is in eternal covenant relationship with the patriarchs, they must be alive to Him, even if dead to this world. This grounds resurrection not in human speculation but in God’s faithful, covenant-keeping character.

Christological Fulfillment: While Jesus doesn’t explicitly mention His own resurrection here, the early church would have heard this text in light of Easter. Jesus is the firstfruits of the resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:20), the one who decisively defeated death and made bodily resurrection a reality for all believers. His resurrection is the guarantee and pattern for ours.

Law/Gospel Dynamic: The Law is present in the Sadducees’ skepticism, which mirrors our own doubts about resurrection and life after death. The Gospel comes in Jesus’ authoritative teaching grounded in Scripture and fulfilled in His resurrection. We are not left with philosophical speculation but with the concrete promise: because Jesus lives, we shall live also (John 14:19).

Thematic Connections Across the Readings

Resurrection as Central Christian Hope

All four readings converge on the theme of resurrection and eternal life:

• Haggai: Promises future glory beyond present disappointment, fulfilled ultimately in Christ’s resurrection and return.
• Psalm 145: God “preserves” those who love Him—a promise of eternal preservation.
• 2 Thessalonians: Believers are chosen “for salvation” and have “eternal comfort and good hope.”
• Luke: Jesus explicitly teaches the resurrection of the dead based on God’s covenant faithfulness.

Catechetical value: This is an opportunity to teach the Third Article of the Creed: “I believe in the resurrection of the body and the life everlasting.” Many American Christians have a vague, Platonic notion of heaven as a spiritual realm where souls go. The biblical hope is bodily resurrection—a new heavens and new earth, where God dwells with His people.

The Eternal Nature of Persons

The readings provide a theological foundation for understanding human beings as eternal persons, not merely temporal creatures:

From Luke 20:38: “He is not God of the dead, but of the living, for all live to him.” The patriarchs are alive to God because He is in covenant relationship with them. This covenant relationship transcends death and grounds personhood in God’s faithfulness, not human biology.

From 2 Thessalonians 2:13: “God chose you as the firstfruits to be saved, through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth.” Election language speaks to God’s eternal purposes. Before someone was your sibling, parent, friend, or enemy—they were someone chosen by God for eternal purposes.

From Haggai 2:9: God sees the future glory, not just present appearances. The shabby temple will be glorious because God has declared it so. Similarly, God sees the eschatological person, not just present brokenness or conflict.

Dehumanization in the Sadducees’ Riddle

The Gospel reading provides a striking example of how theological arguments can dehumanize:

• The woman in the riddle has no name, no voice, no agency
• She’s reduced to a legal problem: “Whose wife will she be?”
• Seven brothers are numbered and interchangeable
• The Sadducees treat her as a thought experiment, not an eternal soul

Jesus’ response restores personhood: He doesn’t just correct their theology; he reframes identity. In the resurrection, she won’t be defined by marital status or social roles but will be a “daughter of the resurrection, alive to God” (v. 36). Her identity isn’t “wife of X” but a person in eternal relationship with God.

Contemporary application: We similarly dehumanize people in conflict—reducing them to “the narcissist,” “the one who hurt me,” “the difficult sibling.” We turn eternal persons into problems to be solved or threats to be managed.

Suggested Sermon/Blog Post Themes

PRIMARY THEME: “Eternal Persons: How Resurrection Changes Relationships”

Focus: Luke 20:27-38 with connections to all readings

This theme explores how viewing people as eternal beings—grounded in God’s covenant faithfulness, election, and eschatological promise—fundamentally transforms how we approach difficult relationships, especially long-term family estrangements.

Central insight: If you know someone is eternal, it changes everything about how you approach them. The Sadducees’ riddle dehumanizes the woman, reducing her to a problem. Jesus restores her personhood as a “daughter of the resurrection, alive to God.”

Sermon Structure:

1. Opening: The Woman Without a Name

• Begin with the Sadducees’ riddle, highlighting what’s missing: her name, voice, personhood
• She’s reduced to a legal problem to solve
• Application question: When was the last time you thought of that estranged family member as a full person? Or have they become “the one who hurt me,” “the difficult one,” “the failure”?

2. Law: How We Dehumanize in Conflict Expose the ways we reduce eternal persons to categories:

• Scorekeeping: “I’ve forgiven them three times already” (keeping accounts rather than seeing mystery)
• Utility: “They’re not contributing to the family” (worth based on function, not dignity)
• Past wounds: “They’ll never change” (final judgment rather than eschatological openness)
• Self-protection becoming self-righteousness: “I’m better off without them” (closure rather than cruciform love)

The Law cuts: You have done this. You have reduced someone made in God’s image to a problem. You have written someone off as dead when God calls them alive.

3. Gospel: Jesus Restores Personhood

• Jesus doesn’t just correct theology—he restores dignity
• The woman isn’t “wife of #4,” she’s a “daughter of the resurrection”
• The patriarchs aren’t dead ancestors—they’re “alive to God” (v. 38)
• Proclamation: That difficult person? God sees them as eternal. Christ died for them. The Spirit is working on them. They are “alive to Him” even if dead to you.
• And for you: Your sins against them—your hatred, dehumanization, vindictiveness—are forgiven in Christ’s death and resurrection.

4. Application: Four Shifts from Eternal Perspective

Shift 1: From Utility to Dignity

• Their worth isn’t based on what they do for you, but on being image-bearers and heirs of resurrection
• Application: Often siblings become estranged over utilitarian issues—who cared for aging parents, who contributed financially. Are we treating each other as problems to solve or persons to honor?

Shift 2: From Scorekeeping to Mystery

• “All live to Him” (v. 38)—their standing before God is between them and God
• You don’t know the full story of their sanctification, struggles, repentance
• Application: We reduce conflicts to simple narratives (“I’m the victim, they’re the villain”). But if God is sanctifying them over an eternal timeline, you don’t have the full picture. This doesn’t excuse wrongs but cultivates humility.

Shift 3: From Final Judgment to Eschatological Openness

• God called Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob alive while they were dead
• God’s timeline isn’t ours
• Application: We write people off as unchangeable. But resurrection faith means believing God can do the impossible—bring life from death, reconciliation from estrangement.

Shift 4: From Self-Protection to Cruciform Love

• If this person is eternal, and you’ll encounter them in resurrection, your posture now matters
• Application: This doesn’t mean no boundaries or staying in abusive situations. But boundaries held with grief, not vindictiveness; with prayer, not closure.

5. Pastoral Guardrails: What This Does and Doesn’t Mean

What resurrection perspective DOESN’T mean:

• ❌ Minimizing real harm (“Just get over it, we’ll all be in heaven”)
• ❌ Forced reconciliation (“You have to restore the relationship”)
• ❌ Spiritual bypassing (“Focus on eternity, not earthly pain”)
• ❌ Naive trust or removing necessary boundaries

What it DOES mean:

• ✅ Holding persons with open hands: “This is someone God loves, someone God is working on. I don’t control their sanctification, but I can pray for it.”
• ✅ Refusing dehumanization while naming wrongs and protecting yourself
• ✅ Long-term hope without short-term naiveté
• ✅ Entrusting judgment to God: “All live to Him”—their repentance, transformation is between them and God

6. Specific Pastoral Scenarios

For those who need boundaries: You can maintain distance while refusing to dehumanize. You can say “I can’t have a relationship with you right now” while also praying for them.

For those paralyzed by bitterness: Forgiveness doesn’t mean pretending it didn’t happen. It means releasing the person to God’s judgment (Rom 12:19). God knows the full story.

For those hoping for reconciliation: Hope, but don’t manipulate. Pray for the Spirit’s work over decades. Trust God’s timeline, which may extend beyond this life.

For those who’ve been written off: If someone has dehumanized you, reduced you to your worst moment—God sees you as eternal, as a son/daughter of resurrection. Their judgment isn’t final.

7. Conclusion: The God of the Living

• Return to Luke 20:38: “He is not God of the dead, but of the living”
• In God’s eyes, no relationship is as dead as it appears
• We serve the God who raises the dead, who calls into existence things that do not exist (Rom 4:17)
• Whether or not earthly reconciliation happens, we live with eternal hope

Lutheran Theological Framework for This Theme

Two Kingdoms Doctrine:

• Left-hand kingdom (temporal justice): Sometimes requires boundaries, legal separation, protection from harm. A sibling with addiction may need financial boundaries. An abusive parent may need legal distance.
• Right-hand kingdom (spiritual grace): Even when temporal justice requires separation, spiritual grace maintains hope, prayer, and refusal to dehumanize.
• Integration: “In this age, for safety, I cannot have a relationship with this person” AND “In God’s eternal purposes, I pray for their repentance and hope for their salvation.”

Simul Iustus et Peccator:

• The sibling who wounded you is simultaneously saint and sinner under God’s sanctification
• You yourself are both victim AND sinner in most complex conflicts (not moral equivalence, but epistemological humility)
• We don’t know the full story of anyone’s sanctification, including our own

Fifth Commandment (from Small and Large Catechism):

• “You shall not murder” includes:
  • Hatred in the heart
  • Refusing help when you could give it
  • Speaking or thinking ill of someone
  • Desiring revenge
• Application: How you think about, speak about, and pray (or don’t pray) for estranged persons matters

Forgiveness vs. Reconciliation:

• Forgiveness: Unilateral. You release the debt, entrust vengeance to God (Rom 12:19), refuse bitterness. Commanded and enabled by Gospel.
• Reconciliation: Bilateral. Requires repentance, changed behavior, rebuilt trust. Hoped for but not always possible (“If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably” - Rom 12:18).
• Pastoral clarity: You can forgive without reconciling. Forgiveness is always your responsibility; reconciliation requires cooperation.

Vocation and Eschatology:

• Being a sibling, parent, child is a vocation for “this age”
• Jesus: In resurrection, “they neither marry nor are given in marriage” (Luke 20:35)
• Family structures are temporal gifts, not eternal realities
• Liberation: Honor your family vocation faithfully, but don’t make family identity ultimate. Your ultimate identity is “son/daughter of resurrection.”
• This actually frees you to love family better, without crushing expectations

ALTERNATIVE THEMES (if primary theme doesn’t fit context)

2. “The God of the Living: Grace for Living Relationships”

Focus: Luke 20:37-38 applied to relationships that feel dead

God calls Himself “God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob” while they’re dead—because to Him, they’re alive. Apply this to relationships that feel dead: estranged marriages, broken friendships, siblings “dead to each other.”

Gospel message: In God’s economy, nothing is as dead as it appears. His covenant-keeping extends beyond what we can see. If God maintains covenant through death, how much more should we maintain grace through conflict?

3. “This Age and That Age: Navigating Family Conflicts”

Focus: Luke 20:34-36 on the distinction between ages

Jesus distinguishes “this age” (marriage, death, succession) from “that age” (resurrection, eternal life). Most family conflicts are rooted in “this age” concerns—inheritance, property, who did what for aging parents.

Application: Resurrection perspective doesn’t make these unimportant, but relativizes them. How do we navigate necessary “this age” conflicts (legal matters, boundaries, justice) while maintaining “that age” grace?

Liturgical Considerations

Season: Late Ordinary Time, with the church year approaching its end. The focus naturally turns toward eschatology—Christ’s return, the resurrection of the dead, and the life everlasting. This is appropriate preparation for Advent, which begins the new liturgical year with themes of Christ’s coming.

Color: Green, symbolizing growth in grace and the ongoing life of the church between Christ’s Ascension and His return.

Hymn Suggestions (from Lutheran Service Book):

• Opening: “The Day Is Surely Drawing Near” (LSB 508)—eschatological focus
• Sermon Hymn: “I Know That My Redeemer Lives” (LSB 461)—resurrection hope
• Communion: “Jesus, Thy Blood and Righteousness” (LSB 563)—comfort in Christ’s atonement
• Closing: “Jerusalem the Golden” (LSB 672)—vision of the life to come

Prayers of the Church:

• Thanksgiving for God’s faithfulness and the hope of resurrection
• Petition for those grieving the loss of loved ones, that they may find comfort in the Gospel promise
• Intercession for the church, that she may stand firm in apostolic teaching amid cultural pressures
• Prayer for perseverance in faith as we await Christ’s return

Confession and Absolution: Given the eschatological themes, the confession could include acknowledgment of our anxieties, doubts about God’s promises, and failures to live in light of the resurrection hope. The absolution proclaims the forgiveness won by Christ’s death and resurrection, grounding us in the certainty of eternal life through faith.

Post-Communion Collect: Emphasize the Sacrament as a foretaste of the feast to come, connecting earthly communion with the Marriage Supper of the Lamb.

End of Research Document