Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we listened to the words of the Scriptures which we are again reminded of the great joy that we are celebrating during this time of Easter when we rejoice most wonderfully because of Our Lord having Risen from the dead, triumphed over sin, evil and death. And as He has shown us therefore the path to eternal life and salvation, all of us are reminded again this day of what it truly means for us to be Christians, that is to be filled with joy of the Resurrection, to be free from the dominion and attachments to sin and darkness present all around us so that we are truly an Easter people, a people full of God’s Light, Love and Hope, armed and strengthened with the knowledge that God has triumphed, and we too shall be triumphant with Him if we remain true and faithful to Him, despite the many challenges and trials that we may have to face.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Acts of the Apostles of the moment when the two Apostles, St. Peter and St. John, came to the Temple of God in Jerusalem and encountered a man who was crippled from birth, and who asked them for some money, begging for his livelihood. We heard how St. Peter and St. John instead miraculously cured the man from his ailments, in the power and Name of the Risen Lord, showing the grace and love of God, which He has shown to those who have faith in Him and in His Providence. The Lord healed the crippled man through His Apostles, and with that, many of the people saw firsthand the power of God’s healing through His Risen Son, proving everything that the Apostles had been proclaiming about in those days regarding the Resurrection of the Lord.

The Apostles had testified before the people of God about everything that they themselves had heard, witnessed and seen from the Risen Lord, having experienced the glory of the Resurrected Christ and beheld Him with their very own eyes. The Lord had also commanded them all to proclaim His truth, Good News and His Resurrection to all the whole world, calling on them to go forth and to reveal Him to the people of all the nations, which the Apostles and disciples took up faithfully, courageously going forth to the various places where they spoke fearlessly about the Lord and everything that He has taught them. Thus, we heard the testimony of faith of St. Peter and St. John, who proclaimed God’s healing and salvation by the healing of the crippled man, among other works.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard from the Gospel of St. Luke the account of what happened on the day of the Lord’s Resurrection, when the disciples first heard about the Lord Jesus having risen from the dead, and then how two disciples of the Lord who were on their way towards the village of Emmaus just outside of Jerusalem were debating and discussing about what they had heard about the Lord’s resurrection. Those two disciples could not agree and were still in disbelief at everything that had happened during those momentous few days since the Lord’s crucifixion, and then later on with His glorious Resurrection from the dead. The Risen Lord then appeared to them, albeit in the form that the two disciples could not yet recognise at first, and He journeyed with them down that road to Emmaus.

We heard how the Lord discussed the matter with the two disciples throughout the journey, and how He quoted the Scriptures and the words of the prophets, to highlight to them that everything had happened exactly as how the Lord Himself had wanted it to be, and just as how the prophets had proclaimed earlier on. He strengthened their faith and gave them courage through His words and what He had gone through with them, and finally, at the end, revealed Himself to them, that He was indeed the Lord, having risen from the dead, and was no longer in the tomb. This was one of the many incidences and moments when the Risen Lord appeared to His disciples, showing them that He has indeed risen as the others had said, and many became witnesses of His Resurrection, His triumph against sin, evil and death.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, through what we have heard in today’s Scripture readings, all of us are reminded of the Resurrection of the Lord, which is one of the core beliefs and tenets of our Christian faith. At every moments and times when we profess our faith in the Creed, we always mention our faith in the Lord Who has risen from the dead after His crucifixion and death. But do we truly believe in this truth, brothers and sisters? Do we really embody this faith we have in the Risen Lord, believing that through Him we can be free from the tyranny and dominion of sin, and receive the assurance of everlasting life and true joy with Him. Do we truly trust in Him and allow Him to lead us in our lives so that by walking in the path that He has shown us, we may enter into the more holy and worthy existence in God’s Presence?

Let us all be strengthened and encouraged by what we have heard from the Scripture passages today, being reminded as always that what we believe in is truly the truth. The Apostles and disciples of the Lord had themselves witnessed all these in person, and many of them willingly endured sufferings and hardships, trials, imprisonments and martyrdom, all because they truly believed in the truth of God, His love and everything that He had done for our salvation, which culminated in His glorious Resurrection. Had there been no Resurrection of the Lord, then their movement and efforts would have floundered and fizzled off just as what had happened to the many False Messiahs that were aplenty at that time. The fact that the message of God’s truth and His Resurrection remains strong till this very day is a reminder for all of us of this immutable truth and the mission which we all have, that is to proclaim His Resurrection and Good News to the whole world.

May the Risen Lord continue to help and strengthen us in our respective missions and vocations in our lives, that we may always strive to be truly worthy and good in all of our every actions, words and deeds, so that we may be good role models and inspirations to everyone all around us. May all those who witness us, our words and works may continue to be inspired and called to follow the Lord ever more worthily, so that through our lives we may be the shining beacons of God’s Light and salvation, and more and more people may come closer to Him, to be touched by His light and grace, and come out from the darkness and sin that is all around us in this world. Amen.