3rd Sunday of Easter, Year C
Since the beginning of the Easter season, most of our readings at Mass, if not all of them emphasize the importance of witnessing to and for Jesus Christ, our risen Lord and Savior. All our first readings during this Easter season are from Acts of the Apostles and they tell us the story of the apostles and disciples of Christ and how they witnessed to Him and for Him during their time. Witnessing to and for Christ as we are taught in our Catholic Christian tradition and belief, is that act of sharing our personal experiences, testimonies and faith in God with the world - which involves telling others of how God has touched and impacted our lives, how we became better Christians through the practice of our faith, and how important God is to us. Witnessing to and for Christ as we are taught in our Christian tradition and belief also means living out Christ’s life and gospel in the world, which means showing Christ to others in our examples and actions; and being His light in the world, when we live out His love and truth in everything we do.
In today’s readings, we are reminded of four essential elements in truly witnessing to and for Christ. In the first reading from the Acts of the Apostles, chapter 5, verse 27 to 32, and verse 40b to 41, St. Peter informs us that witnessing to and for Christ is centered on obedience to God rather than men and repentance for our sins.
In the second reading from the Book of Revelation, chapter 5, verse 11 to 14, St. John shares his vision of heaven and the praises offered to Christ, the Lamb of God, as countless number of people cried out in a loud voice saying, “Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches, wisdom and strength, honor and glory and blessing. Praises to the one who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honor, glory and might, forever and ever.”
Then in the gospel reading, from the Holy Gospel according to St. John, chapter 21, verse 1 to 19, Jesus after He revealed Himself again to His disciples at the Sea of Tiberias, and conferring the primacy of St. Peter, reminded him as the head of the apostles to witness to Him in the world by feeding and tending to His lambs and sheep and by following Him.
Hence, today’s readings my brothers and sisters teach us that Witnessing to and for Christ our risen Lord entails Obedience to Him, Repentance for our sins, Praising Him and Following Him. So let us go out into the world today and witness to Christ our risen Lord by being obedient to Him and His teachings; by repenting from our sins, by continuously praising His name for all His blessings, graces and mercies upon us, no matter the difficulties or challenges we face, and by following Him always because He is our Lord and Savior.
