SIXTH SUNDAY OF EASTER, YR A
Acts 8:5-8, 14-17; Psalm 66;
1 Peter 3:15-18; John 14:15-21
GIVE REASON FOR YOUR HOPE
The Easter story is a message of newness. It is a certain encounter and impetus brought about by the resurrection of Jesus. For the Early Christians it was the real experience and faith in the resurrected Lord whom they have seen. For us today, it is the same but our experience is with the power of the Holy Spirit that caused this resurrection. So that, when we are brought to faith in the resurrected Lord, this same power of the resurrection causes some newness in our lives such that we are set free from all the things that hold us back including bad lifestyles.
The apostle in today’s reading, exults us to be able to give reasons for our faith. Some how it is a call to evangelization. To proclaim the message to all nations as Jesus has commanded in Matthew 28:19-20.
The first best and obvious way to defend the faith is to live it. The message of the gospel is essentially a call to a new practical life. Jesus never called anyone to a set of ideologies or theories, he called to a new way of life.
The first recipients of the letter were people who have had a sinful past, they “have already spent enough time in doing what the Gentiles like to do, pursuing a life of debauchery, licentiousness, drunkenness, orgies, carousing, and sacrilegious idolatry” (1Pt 4:3). After their conversion they faced opposition, scorn from all others. It is to these people that Peter writes that they should be ready to give an answer to all these people.
The best and most compelling answer to give would be evidence of a truly transformed life and the joy of finding Jesus. This is the best defense of the faith; living a good and holy life. Tell the story of your encounter with Christ which only you can tell. Personal testimony is one of the most compelling ways to evangelize. Tell the story of your freedom and new life in Jesus.
Another way to get ready to give an answer for the hope we have in Jesus is study. We must be ready to study the word of God, the doctrines of the church and the history of the church. Studying scripture helps us to know how to approach the Bible in order to get a better understanding. We will come to discover how Christ is the centre of the whole scripture and also how the events of history tell the story of God seeking to save man from the devil and from himself. We will better come to know Jesus, God’s will and his call of all men.
But how can we seek to study scripture without a Bible or with a dusty one on our shelves. To have a Bible does not equal studying it or knowing it. Take a chair, sit down, open it and begin to discover the beauty of God’s love for us. Then share it with others.
To defend the faith, you must pray. Prayer is very important and so we do so for two reasons.
We pray for courage. Sometimes it is difficult to put into words how we feel or what we believe. Sometimes too, we lack the ability to speak. Many times, we get cold feet. In this age where religion is ridiculed most of the time it could become a daunting task. It is for this very reason that Jesus assured us when he promised “When you are brought before synagogues, rulers and authorities, do not worry about how you will defend yourselves or what you will say, for the Holy Spirit will teach you at that time what you should say” (Lk 12:11-12). We must not forget to pray to the holy spirit in those moments for the Holy Spirit is the animator of evangelization. I can attest personally to this. Sometimes you just do not know where the vim comes from. Sometimes it is the owe at the appropriateness of the words you need. When it happens to you, you know that that is the Holy Spirit working. Pray to him for Inspiration and courage.
The second prayer we offer is for those who are listing to us. we pray for them and entrust them into the hands of God because He is the one who changes hearts. The prayer is to ask that God touches them in his own way. That they too will have their own personal life changing encounter with God.
We must defend they faith but with gentleness and reverence. Many times, people are repulsed not by the message we preach but by the recklessness of our conduct. This admonition of Peter is a better approach to talking to people. we should not do it in anger or disrespect. It also calls on us to resist all efforts to infuriate us.
When we read Paul’s letter to the Galatians, we find that gentleness is a fruit of the Holy Spirit. (Gal 5:22-23 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law”). This means that in our activities of evangelization and defense of the faith we must be people who bear the fruit of the Spirit.
May your faith bring you joy and may the sharing of it bring your greater joy.
God bless you.
BY Rev. Fr. Delight Arnold Carbonu
