Sunday 14th of April 2024 - Third Sunday of Easter

Acts 3:13-15,17-19/ Psalm 4/1 John 2:1-5/ Luke 24:35-48

On this third Sunday of Easter, we are encouraged to consider further the meaning of Easter. What did Jesus achieve by his suffering, death, and resurrection? He paid the price for our sins, not only ours but the sins of the whole world. Our modern society has a self-righteous attitude that fails to see its own faults while being very quick to call out those it sees in others. We do not have to look far to see the sinfulness in the world around us. It can even be found at the heart of the church. The power of evil is extremely strong and flourishes in an environment that refuses to acknowledge it even exists. It is this evil that Jesus overcame on the cross because we cannot overcome it ourselves. Easter gives us a renewal of spirit, a fresh start, a reason to carry on following the way set out for us by Jesus. We can lay all our weaknesses, failing, our sins, at the foot of the cross and rejoice in the freedom Jesus has won for us.

The passage from the acts of the Apostles in the first reading puts the responsibility for the death of Jesus squarely at the feet of the Jewish people. While absolving Pilot from much of the blame Peter acknowledges that his country folk did not realise what they were doing. That said they still had an innocent person put to death not realising that he was the long-promised messiah and in fact was God who had become human. The remedy for their failings is the same for us, repent of our wrongdoings and turn to God for redemption. The second reading continues the same theme calling us to love God by following his commandments striving for God’s love to reach perfection within us.

The Gospel passage follows on from the encounter the two disciples had on the road to Emmaus. As they walked along Jesus joined them. They failed to recognise Jesus and were incredulous that this man had not heard of the recent happenings in Jerusalem. Jesus took them through scripture pointing out the passages that were about himself. When they entered the town Jesus made to continue but the two invited him to stay with them. They had a meal together and they finally recognised Jesus as he broke the bread with them. No sooner had they realised who he was he vanished from their sight. I like to think of this as a clear indication of the presence of Jesus in the Eucharist. He no longer had to be with the two disciples in his physical human form because he is now present in the bread and wine of Holy Communion, the gift he gave us at the last supper.

The two disciples hurried back to join the others in Jerusalem. They were recounting their meeting with Jesus when there he was standing amongst them. No wonder they were alarmed and frightened and even though Jesus said, ‘Peace be with you’ and showed them his hands and feet they were still dumbfounded. Jesus invited them to touch him, to see that he was real flesh and bones. Their fear turned to joy as they realised that here was the risen Jesus standing with them as large as life, even eating with them. Jesus then opened their minds to understand the scriptures, writings they knew well but until then had not understood. Jesus was the fulfilment of scripture, his life, death, and resurrection fulfilled all the scriptural expectations. No wonder their joy was so great. The disciples were the first witnesses to the risen Lord, and we are the continuation of that witness preaching repentance and the forgiveness of sins to all nations.

The two disciples on the road to Emmaus experienced a conversion event in their encounter with Jesus, and their recognition of him. They changed direction completely, returned to Jerusalem and began preaching the message of redemption. This message has been preached continually since then, spreading down the years and across the world. We encounter Christ in the Eucharist and become his witnesses, it is now our duty to continue to spread the message in our time and place.

How can we be witnesses to the resurrection? We were not there and did not see Jesus rise from the tomb. No one saw Jesus come back to life and leave the tomb. The resurrection was not witnessed and captured in a moment of history. The resurrection of Jesus is known through his encounters with people and the evidence of the empty tomb. The gospel accounts we have show how difficult it is to explain the reality of the resurrection of Jesus. He was clearly there in flesh and blood, even his wounds were there to see, but he was somehow different. He was now living his life as God but also the same person as before his death.

The resurrection is known by the fruits that emerged from it, much of which is recounted in the Acts of the Apostles. The resurrection changed the world, it changed people’s lives at the time and continues to do so now. The uneducated simple fishermen and followers who had hidden themselves away became fearless proclaimers of the Gospel message. To see people today are still moved from alienation to conversion and a new direction of life remains the clearest evidence of the risen Christ present amongst us today. To see people of faith galvanise others to change their lives and seek God, to see hatred and hostility change to love and forgiveness is the evidence we need of the risen Lord standing amongst us today as real and substantial as he was in that room with the disciples.

We can become despondent and feel that God is distant from us. It is Easter that gives us the renewal of spirit we need. Take courage, God is very close, he is with us in our community of faith, he is with us in scripture, he is with us especially closely in the Eucharist, and his message is still, ‘peace be with you’.

God Bless Brendan.