Friday of the Twenty-fourth Week in Ordinary Time
Matt Maher wrote a song titled Christ is Risen and it is one of my favorites. And not just because it’s a great tune and I have an obsession with his music; I love the song because of the power of the lyrics. The entirety of our faith hinges on the resurrection of Jesus. We live our lives in the hope of the resurrection. The chorus reads:
Christ is risen from the dead
Trampling over death by death
Come awake, come awake
Come and rise up from the grave
Christ is risen from the dead
We are one with Him again
Come awake, come awake
Come and rise up from the grave
The greatest fear that most of us have is death. We do everything in our power to avoid death; we wear seatbelts, we buy insurance, avoid grizzly bears, place warning labels on things that could harm us, and have all kinds of medical plans. Death is not our friend. Death is not a neutral force. Death is “the last enemy” (1 Corinthians 15:26) to be destroyed. It is the sidekick of sin; the wages of sin lead to death. However, we have faith in a God who refuses to abandon us to the corrupting powers of sin and death.
Today, we read from Paul that if the resurrection isn’t true then our faith is in vain. We might as well eat, drink, and be merry because this is it. If there is no resurrection, there is no hope. If there is no resurrection, then everything we thought we knew about God is a lie. If there is no resurrection, then all we have is this life. And the good news that Jesus is proclaiming in the gospel is not really “good news” at all. But this is not all there is; we have the hope of heaven. Let us cling fast to our faithfulness and our joy in the resurrection. We cry out in the psalm, “Lord, when your glory appears, my joy will be full” (Ps 17:15b); there is more to be had. Jesus preached and proclaimed this good news as he journeyed from one village to another with his entourage in today’s gospel. And he is the fulfillment of the good news; Come Awake! He is risen and we shall also be raised with him.
Let us passionately pursue life in light of the resurrection. Let us have courage to confront our vices because we have hope in the resurrection. Jesus has been faithful with us. He died, but he rose from the dead. And now, we will rise with him. Come awake, come awake, Come and rise up from the grave!
May God Bless You,
Brandon Meyer