As we continue our Easter journey in this time slot, chronologically speaking, between the Resurrection and the Ascension of our Lord in just a few more weeks, we are in that time period where Jesus was appearing to various people. And basically, those apparitions were reminders that God keeps His word, that prophecies from the Old Testament are fulfilled in Jesus, who has begun something new—and by new I mean something heroically virtuous: a mode of living which exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and the Pharisees and the Sadducees.
Of them we hear written in today's first reading a jealousy burned for the apostles who were preaching in the name of Jesus, and who were working many, many signs in the presence of the people. And so we are told in the first reading from the Book of Acts, from chapter five, “the high priest rose up and all his companions, that is, the party of the Sadducees, and filled with jealousy, laid hands upon the Apostles and put them in the public jail” (Acts 5:17–18). What a great difference from the love, the tenderness, the generosity of God.
In today's Gospel we hear: “God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, so that everyone who believes in Him may not perish but might have eternal life” (John 3:16). There are those who want to enslave us, and then there is God who wants to give us eternal freedom, eternal life with Him.
And so, my brothers and sisters, as we go on with our Easter journey, let us ask the Lord to give us the same spirit that He gave to the apostles. For although they were placed in jail, they never lost heart, and they would pray and they would sing. And then we are told again in the first reading: “During the night, the angel of the Lord opened the doors of the prison, led them out, and said, ‘Go and take your place in the temple area, and tell the people everything about this life’” (Acts 5:19–20).
My brothers and sisters, when God wants something done, it will get done, whether our persecutors like it or not. And so for you who find yourself struggling because you seem always to come up against a stone-cold wall when it comes to your friends, your loved ones, society at large, your peers at school, your fellow coworkers—if you feel like you are on your own when it comes to faith and your relationship with God—always remember that nothing that all of these persecutors can do will ever thwart the seed that God has planted in your heart: to love Him, to live for Him, to serve Him in serving your brothers and sisters, and to try to give Him your everything.
And we are free, for we are told in the Gospel: “God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through Him” (John 3:17). “Whoever believes in Him will not be condemned” (John 3:18). Whoever believes in Him will not be condemned.
Do you believe in the Lord Jesus? Do you believe that He has risen from the dead? Then rejoice. Rejoice, because you will not be condemned. And let us ask the Lord to give us the grace to live in a way that is worthy of this belief in Him, so that our works reflect our faith. “Show me your faith apart from your works, and I by my works will show you faith” (James 2:18). The works that prove that I believe in the Lord.
Thus, in such a one there is no condemnation. But it is a lifelong journey, and we need to persevere, just like the apostles who were imprisoned. But the angel of the Lord was with them, and he gave them the grace to continue moving forward in their mission, to continue preaching the Good News, to living for Him and for the sake of the Gospel at all costs, whatever persecution might come.
“If God is for us, who can be against us?” (Romans 8:31). And the risen Lord is with you today as you continue your marvelous journey.
Through the intercession of our Blessed Mother Mary, who is now Queen of Heaven and Earth, may Almighty God send you a special blessing today. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
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