April 20, 2025 – West Bend, WI – Happy Easter! Christ is Risen! He is Risen indeed, Alleluia! In the Gospel today Mary Magdalen goes to the tomb and finds it empty. She runs to get Peter and John. They also find the tomb empty. Jesus is not there. He has been raised. He is alive.
There are many titles that we give to Jesus. For example, sometimes we call him Christ the healer. Other times we call him Christ the teacher. But today, he’s best called Christ the victor. By his resurrection, Christ has won the greatest victory ever. He is victorious.
His grace has overpowered the sin of the world. His light has scattered the darkness of the world. His truth has unmasked the lies of the Devil. His goodness has conquered the evil of the Devil. By his resurrection, Christ is victorious!
Now on Good Friday, it didn’t seem that this was the case. On Good Friday, it seemed that Christ was a loser. It seemed that death and sin and darkness would prevail.
In fact, even Jesus’ closest friends lacked faith. Where were the apostles when Jesus was suffering? Where were they when he was nailed to the Cross? Where were they when his hour had come? Why were they not with Mary and John at the foot of the Cross? Because they were afraid. They were afraid of suffering. They were afraid of dying. So they fled. They left Jesus alone.
But if we read the Acts of the Apostles, we know that was not the end of the story. These same Apostles who abandoned Jesus, started to boldly proclaim he was the Messiah. And more than just preach him as the Messiah, these same Apostles, who once abandoned Christ, were willing to die for him.
So what changed? What made these cowardly men into courageous saints? The resurrection of Jesus Christ. They encountered the risen Lord. They were filled with his Spirit. They were given the grace to believe. And this changed everything.
Here at St. Frances Cabrini Church, on the mural in the sanctuary, you can see the Apostles depicted.
Some of them are holding the instruments of their martyrdom. For example, St. Bartholomew is holding the knife with which he was skinned alive. On Good Friday, Bartholomew was afraid of that knife. But after receiving faith in the resurrection, he conquered through the knife. Now it is his prize of victory.
St. Simon is holding the saw with which he was sawed in half. On Good Friday, Simon was afraid of that saw. But after coming to faith in the resurrection, he conquered through it. Now, it’s his prize of victory.
St. James the Less is holding the club with which he was beaten to death. On Good Friday, James was afraid of that club. But after coming to faith in the resurrection, he conquered through it. Now it’s his prize of victory.
St. Andrew is holding the Cross to which he was nailed. On Good Friday, Andrew was afraid of that club. But after coming to faith in the resurrection, he conquered through it. Now it’s his prize of victory.
The resurrection has the power to change you and me too. There are so many things we fear. We fear the future. We fear financial struggles. We fear conflict. We fear for the well-being of our loved ones. We fear that others will disapprove of us. We fear illness. And ultimately, we fear death.
But the grace of the resurrection changes us! By believing in Christ, we defeat our fears and conquer through them. If we believe in the resurrection, then the things that we fear in this life will become our prizes of victory.
So friends, this Easter, let us not be afraid! Christ has defeated everything we fear! So have courage. Take hope. Christ has been raised! He is victorious!