The Resurrection Power (Easter Sunday, 2021)

INTRODUCTION

We celebrate the biggest day on the Christian calendar. We celebrate the victory of life over death. We are not just celebrating a historic event; we are celebrating the foundation of our Christian faith. St Paul says, “If Christ did not rise from the dead, our preaching is worthless and our faith is empty” (1 Cor. 15:14). As we celebrate, let us renew our faith in the Risen Lord and in the power of the resurrection. In order to do this more worthily then, let us acknowledge our sins and ask for God’s pardon and mercy.     

REFLECTION

In Acts 10:34.37-43, Peter courageously testified about the Risen Lord. Was it not the Peter who tried to prevent Jesus from suffering and dying on the cross? Was it not the Peter who denied Jesus three times? Was he not among the apostles who took to their heels when Jesus was captured? Suddenly, the storyline has changed: instead of seeing a band of cowards; we are seeing a band of courageous people proudly testifying to their faith in the One they denied and avoided. We see a people recreated and transformed from an old life of fear into a new life of courageous witnessing to Jesus. The resurrection power was at work! 

The apostles testified to the point of offering their lives for the sake of the One that they formerly denied, thanks to the power of the resurrection! St Paul, a former zealous Jew and fierce persecutor of Christians, submitted to Christianity, thanks to the power of the resurrection! In Philippians 3:10, Paul prayed, “Lord, grant that I may continue to know you and the power of your resurrection”. The resurrection story of Jesus leaves with me with a fact: that there is hope for us. But are we strongly convinced that we too can rise from our “dead” situations? Do we really believe that the dead bones can rise again? Do we believe in the resurrection power? 

In John 20:1-9, we hear about the empty tomb, the linen cloths and the napkin. An empty tomb is no tomb; it is a deserted tomb. The napkin and linen cloths lying in that empty tomb were of no value anymore. They were rendered useless by the fact of Christ’s resurrection. With faith in the power of Christ’s resurrection, I see that the “linen clothes”, the “napkin” and the “empty tomb” of my limitations have been rendered powerless. Our own situations have been turned around for good. Our eyes, our minds and wills should now be fixed on the higher ideals of love, goodness, joy, etc. 

As a “resurrection people”, St Paul advised that we should seek the things that are above, where Christ is and set our minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth” (cf. Col. 3:1-4): not on things that are buried in the earth; not on our banalities, our weaknesses and our past lives. We ought to have learnt from nature that when a seed germinates, it shoots up and gazes into the sky. It does not look at its husks (it does not look at its decaying parts that are buried in the ground); it does not look at its past life. It gazes into the sky for energy from the sun. That’s the kind of life we are supposed to be living as people of the resurrection. The apostles and the saints did not merely believe in the resurrection power, they allowed that power to be effective in their lives through the efforts they made. 

FAITH AND WORK VIS-À-VIS THE RESURRECTION POWER

During this time, many of us will not fail to make powerful declarations of faith such as: “we are the resurrection people”; “we are immersed in the power of the resurrection”; and so on. Yes, we can’t deny the fact that the resurrection is not just a nice thing that happened to Jesus a long time ago; it is not just a historic event that happened once, and will never happen again. The resurrection is as much an existential reality as it is a historic one. It is still a continuous possibility for you and me. 

But let’s be clear about this: Every venture we undertake should begin not just with a strong belief in what God can do, but also with strong faith in ourselves (faith in our capabilities). And that is what it means to be spiritually mature: believing in God and believing in ourselves. God will not accomplish certain things for us without our efforts. If I believe that God can make me financially great, I must also play my part if my belief is to be actualized. If I believe that God can deliver me from certain bad habits, I must accompany this belief with concrete efforts if I really want to change. If I believe that I can experience some resurrection: resurrection from some vices, resurrection from backwardness, and so on, I must accompany this “my” belief with sincere and relentless efforts.

 

It’s all about faith (faith in the resurrection) and effort (efforts that we make in order to reap the fruits of the resurrection). And that is why St James tells us that “faith without works is dead” (cf. James 2:26). Our faith in the RESURRECTION POWER should not be a passive kind of faith. It must be an active faith that should challenge us to do the needful if we really want to have a full impact of the resurrection power in our lives.

HAPPY EASTER!