EASTER SUNDAY

 OUR GOD RISEN IS THE LORD OF LIFE 

DEATH AND EVIL HAVE NO SWAY OVER HIM

 

EASTER SUNDAY, 04 APRIL 2021

1. Easter, the celebration of the resurrection of Christ is the greatest testimony of Life. God is life, and our God is a “living” God, the Emmanuel, God-with-us. No power of Satan, no fetters of death, no forces of evil, no closure of tomb, can restrain him from rising, or separate him from living with us. He lives with us for ever, because he is Life and ever alive. His rising assures and comforts us that sin and death have no power over him. Evil seems to have a loud and mocking laugh over good, but that is only short-lived. The Final smile is of God and of good.

2. Thus the Easter Feast is truly a Victory Day. It is not something peripheral or superficial. It is not just God’s victory over Satan, not just Saviour’s victory over the Evil one, not just the Holy Spirit’s over the evil spirit. It is not a “personal score” that is settled between God and the Evil. But something fundamental and foundational, crucial and essential. It involves the whole creation, the whole humanity. It touches upon the whole life, the whole person, the whole destiny. It is a comprehensive and holistic victory. It is the victory of all of us. It is the victory of our faith. It is victory of good over evil, of love over hate, of mercy over violence, of benevolence over condemnation, of humility over arrogance, of patience over fury, of altruism over egoism, of generosity over greed, of sharing over accumulation, of giving over grabbing, of detachment over clinging, of nobility over fragility, of forgiveness over revenge, of loyalty over disloyalty, of stability over instability, of conviction over compromise, of authenticity over duplicity, of integrity over guile, of truth over falsity, of the spiritual over the unspiritual, of the above over the below, of light over darkness, of life over death,

3. Thus, in this victory of God’s life over the death imposed by evil, first of all we have the greatest comfort and encouragement that God never leaves us. God who rose to life, will not allow any forces, any pressures that stifle and choke life, that diminish and destroy life. It is true that many times, in our society, in our times, in our lives, evil seems stronger than good. Wickedness and insincerity seem more advantageous, while the goodness and honesty seem to be boring, tiring and useless. In those situations, one can easily feel that entrusting oneself to God and dedicating oneself to good, is useless. One feels that it is better, safe and advantageous to follow the world, to walk according to the wind, to compromise with the evil and false values.

4. Precisely in those moments, we must turn our gaze on to the cross, and to the crucified Lord. The battle he made to the end, in confidence, courage and perseverance, is never useless. Trust in good, trust in God, is never wasteful. The struggle of the good, the challenges of those entrusted to God, are only temporary. There is no defeat, there is no fall, there is no loss, for those who trust in God and walk in good. The last victory is always of God, and of good. Clouds will not be permanent in the sky, but only for a while. The darkness will not be long forever, but the light of the Lord shines. Good Friday, darkness and pain are only for a few hours. But the glory, the joy of the resurrection is forever.

5. Jesus asks Mary Magdalene weeping at his tomb, “Woman, why do you weep?” (Jn. 20.15). Yes, the same question is posed to each one of us, especially to those who feel down and let down, those who despair: “My brother, my sister, why do you weep? Why do you lose your heart? Am I not with you? Have I not walked the way of the cross before you and for you? Will I not walk with you now? Will I not wipe away your tears? I died for you and rose for you, to be with you for ever. Trust me and live with me. Peace and joy shall be yours.” 

6. Let the risen Jesus constantly raise our fallen spirits toward heaven, toward what is high and lofty. Therefore we pray that the risen Christ constantly resurrects us, raises our lowered spirits towards heaven, towards what is high and noble.

5. Let us become “living temples” and not “empty tombs”! Let the resurrection experience remove all fears, restore joy and lead to surrender. Let us constantly die to sin and rise up from our fallen state, rise up from our dissipation, and live to grace. Let our daily life be a daily resurrection giving us a foretaste of that final resurrection.