Praise the Lord, my dear brothers and sisters in Christ Jesus! With the joy of the Risen Lord in our hearts, we move forward with a single mission: to live and share the presence of Christ in our community. It is essential to remember that we cannot share Christ unless we have personally encountered and experienced Him in our lives.
As Holy Mother Church continues to read from the Acts of the Apostles, we are called to marvel at the great fire of the Holy Spirit within them and to reflect on their acts of faith. At the same time, we must look inward and ask ourselves: “Do I share the same fire?” It is important to consider whether we possess the same passion as the early Church. Are we “Acts” Christians, or are we Christians only in name?
The Centrality of the Resurrection
St. Paul emphasizes the significance of the resurrection in 1 Corinthians 15:14: “If Christ has not been raised, then our proclamation has been in vain, and your faith has been in vain.” The resurrection is the foundation of our faith and the reason for our proclamation.
Persecution as a Test and Opportunity
The Acts of the Apostles reveal that the early Christians both proclaimed and lived their faith, driven by the reality of the Risen Lord. The first reading begins with persecution, a true test of faith in the Risen Lord—a Lord who is alive for you and me. If our Lord is truly alive, persecution becomes fertilizer for our faith. In other words, our faith should thrive when the Lord is truly risen in our lives.
That’s the question – Do you thrive under persecution, or do you retreat or seek escape at the first sign of hardship? The resurrected Lord makes all the difference in how we respond.
The early Christians, often referred to as ‘Acts’ Christians, responded to persecution with remarkable faith. Acts 8:1 describes how “a severe persecution began against the church in Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout the countryside of Judea and Samaria.” This scattering was not an attempt to escape persecution but rather an opportunity to preach and fulfill the Lord’s command.
Acts 8:4 further illustrates their response: “Now those who were scattered went from place to place, proclaiming the word.” Despite adversity, they did not retreat; instead, they used the scattering as a chance to proclaim the risen Lord.
Fulfilling the Lord’s Command
In doing so, the early Christians were fulfilling the Lord’s command found in Acts 1:8: “‘But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.’”
When persecution came, they began to preach and witness to the resurrected Lord in Judea and Samaria. This is the hallmark of a true Christian: the more they are persecuted, the more they thrive in their faith by bearing witness to Christ. This is Romans 8:28 in action: “We know that all things (even persecution) work together for good a] (Witnessing Christ) for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose.”
Encouragement in Our Faith Journey
As we share in the joy of the resurrection, my prayer for each of you is that you flourish in your faith journey, fully assured that the Lord is truly risen in your life. May you feel compelled to share the Gospel with those around you.
– Woe to me if I don’t proclaim the Gospel! (1 Corinthians 9:16)
