Homily: ✝️ “GO AND TELL” – THE FIRST MISSION OF RESURRECTION - Theme: Evangelisation Begins at the Empty Tomb - Core Message: Resurrection is meant to be proclaimed - John 20:17-18
✝️ “GO AND TELL” – THE FIRST MISSION OF RESURRECTION
Theme: Evangelisation Begins at the Empty Tomb
Core Message: Resurrection is meant to be proclaimed
John 20:17-18
🌅 1. INTRODUCTION – THE FIRST COMMAND OF EASTER
Beloved
brothers and sisters,
On that
first Easter morning, history changed forever.
The tomb
was empty.
Death was defeated.
Christ was risen.
But the
Resurrection did not end at the tomb—it began there.
Because the
first message of Easter was not just joy…
It was a command:
👉 “Go and
tell.”
The
Resurrection is not given to us as information.
It is given to us as a mission.
🔍 Many people think Christianity is about:
- Knowing Jesus
- Believing in Jesus
- Receiving blessings from Jesus
But the
Resurrection reveals something deeper:
👉
Christianity is about proclaiming Jesus
If the
women had stayed silent,
If the disciples had remained hidden,
If the Church had never preached—
👉 The
Resurrection would remain unknown.
The empty
tomb demands a voice.
The Risen Christ demands a witness.
Hans Urs
von Balthasar says:
👉 “The Church is born not in silence, but in proclamation.”
🎯 Ask yourself:
- Do I keep my faith only inside?
- Do I speak about Christ outside?
- Does my life reveal the Resurrection?
Because:
👉 Faith that is not shared… becomes weak
👉 Faith that is proclaimed… becomes powerful
🔥“An empty
tomb demands a living voice.”
- “The
Resurrection is not to be stored—it is to be shared.”
- “If Christ is risen, silence is not an
option.”
✨ St. Augustine
“We are
Easter people, and Alleluia is our song.”
👉 But a song
must be heard—not hidden.
🌸 The stone is rolled, the grave is bare,
Nobody rests in silence there.
The dawn declares what must be told,
A living truth no grave can hold.
📖 2. BIBLICAL FOUNDATION – THE COMMAND TO PROCLAIM
Let us
stand on the Word of God.
📜 Matthew 28:5–7
“He is not
here… He has risen… Go quickly and tell His disciples.”
📜 Matthew 28:10
“Do not be
afraid; go and tell My brothers…”
📜 Mark 16:6–7
“He has
risen… Go, tell His disciples and Peter.”
📜 John 20:17
“Go to My
brothers and say to them…”
🔍 Notice something carefully:
The
Resurrection is always followed by a command.
God did not
say:
👉 “Go and understand”
👉 “Go and reflect”
He said:
👉 “Go and tell”
Because
truth is not complete until it is shared.
The Gospel
is not private property.
It is public proclamation.
The empty
tomb is not a secret to protect—
it is a message to announce.
🎯 This means:
- You are not called only to attend church
- You are called to be the Church in the
world
- You are not called only to hear the
Gospel
- You are called to carry the Gospel
🔥 “The Gospel is not ‘come and keep’—it is ‘go and tell.’”
- “The
empty tomb is the first pulpit.”
- “Truth that is not shared is truth buried again.”
✨ Pope Paul VI
“The Church
exists in order to evangelise.”
🌸
Do not keep
what you have seen,
Declare the truth of Easter’s scene.
For hearts will rise where words are told,
And faith grows strong when truth is bold.
🌿 3. MARY MAGDALENE – THE FIRST MISSIONARY
Mary came
weeping to the tomb.
📖 John 20:11–16
She stood
weeping… Jesus said, “Mary!”
She came
searching for a dead body…
but she encountered a living Lord.
📖 John 20:18
“Mary
Magdalene went and announced: ‘I have seen the Lord.’”
🔍 Mary did not come as a preacher.
She came as a broken person.
But the encounter
changed everything.
👉 Before
encounter → sorrow
👉 After encounter → mission
This shows
us a powerful truth:
👉 You don’t
need theology first
👉 You need to encounter first
Because:
👉 Encounter produces a proclamation
🎯 If you truly experience Christ:
- You cannot remain silent
- You cannot remain the same
- You cannot remain hidden
Your life
will begin to speak.
🔥 “Encounter leads to mission.”
- “Those
who see Christ cannot stay silent.”
- “A true encounter becomes a testimony.”
✨ St. Thomas Aquinas
“She became
the Apostle to the Apostles.”
🌸 She came in tears, her hope undone,
She met the Lord, the Risen One.
He called her name, her fear was gone,
She ran to tell what had been done.
🔥 4. FROM ENCOUNTER TO PROCLAMATION – THE PATTERN OF THE CHURCH
📖 Luke 24:33–35
“They rose
that same hour… and told what had happened on the road.”
📖 John 20:8
“He saw and
believed.”
🔍 The Resurrection creates a pattern that is
repeated throughout the Church:
👉 Encounter
→ Faith → Movement → Proclamation
This is not
accidental—it is divine design.
The
disciples did not wait for:
- Perfect knowledge
- Perfect preparation
- Perfect confidence
The moment
they encountered Christ,
they moved… and they spoke.
This
teaches us something profound:
👉 Faith is
not complete until it becomes proclamation
A faith
that remains inside the heart
has not yet reached its fullness.
Because the
nature of truth is to spread.
The nature of light is to shine.
The nature of Resurrection is to be proclaimed.
🎯 Ask yourself:
- Has my faith reached proclamation?
- Or is it still only personal and private?
If you
truly believe:
👉 Your life must move
👉 Your voice must speak
🔥
- “Faith that does not move… is faith that
is not alive.”
- “Resurrection faith always becomes
proclamation.”
- “What you truly believe—you cannot hide.”
✨ Pope Benedict XVI
“The Church
grows not by proselytism, but by attraction.”
👉 And
attraction comes from lived witness.
🌸 He saw, believed, and could not stay,
The truth compelled him on his way.
A living fire within his soul,
That made him speak and made him go.
🌍 5. EVANGELIZATION BEGINS AT THE EMPTY TOMB
📖 Matthew 28:19–20
“Go
therefore and make disciples of all nations…”
🔍 The mission of the Church does not begin in
Jerusalem alone—
it begins at the empty tomb.
Because:
👉 Without
the Resurrection, there is no Gospel
👉 Without the Gospel, there is no mission
👉 Without mission, there is no Church
The empty
tomb is not only a place of victory—
it is the birthplace of evangelization.
The Church
exists because:
👉 Someone went
👉 Someone told
👉 Someone believed
🎯 This means:
- Evangelisation is not a program—it is an
identity
- It is not an activity—it is a lifestyle
You don’t
“do” evangelisation sometimes
👉 You are a witness all the time
🔥
- “The empty tomb is the birthplace of
mission.”
- “No Resurrection → No Church → No
Gospel.”
- “Evangelisation begins where the stone is
rolled away.”
✨ St. Paul VI
“Modern man
listens more willingly to witnesses than to teachers.”
🌸
From silent
grave to living word,
A truth too powerful to be unheard.
From empty tomb to distant land,
The message moves by God’s command.
😔 6. THE DANGER OF SILENCE
📖 Acts 4:20
“We cannot
but speak of what we have seen and heard.”
📖 2 Kings 7:9
“This day
is a day of good news, if we remain silent…”
🔍 Silence is not neutral.
Silence is
dangerous.
Because
when truth is not spoken:
- Darkness remains
- Ignorance continues
- Souls are lost
The
Resurrection is the greatest news in history.
To keep it
silent is not humility—
it is neglect.
🎯 Think:
- How many people around you don’t know
Christ?
- How many are waiting for someone to
speak?
And maybe:
👉 You are that someone
🔥
- “Silence buries the truth again.”
- “A silent Christian is a contradiction of
Easter.”
- “If you don’t speak, someone may never
hear.”
✨ St. John Chrysostom
“Not to
share one’s wealth with the poor is to steal from them; not to share Christ is
to rob souls.”
🌸
Truth
unspoken fades away,
Light grows dim without its rays.
But when we speak, the darkness flees,
And hearts are set at last at ease.
🔥 7. FROM FEAR TO COURAGE – POWER OF THE RISEN CHRIST
📖 John 20:19
“The doors
were locked for fear…”
📖 Acts 2:32
“This Jesus
God raised up… we are all witnesses.”
🔍 Before the Resurrection:
- Fear controlled the disciples
- Doors were locked
- Voices were silent
After
encountering Christ:
- Fear disappeared
- Courage was born
- Witness began
What
changed?
👉 Not the
world
👉 Not the circumstances
👉 The
encounter with the Risen Christ
🎯
Your fear
today may be:
- Fear of rejection
- Fear of criticism
- Fear of failure
But
remember:
👉 The same
Christ who strengthened the apostles
👉 Is present in your life today
🔥
- “Witness… don’t whisper.”
- “Fear closes doors—Resurrection opens
them.”
- “Courage is born from encounter.”
✨
💬 St. John
Paul II
“Do not be
afraid. Open wide the doors to Christ.”
🌸
Behind
closed doors, they hid in fear,
Till Christ the Living One drew near.
Then hearts once weak began to rise,
And boldness shone within their eyes.
🌑 8. THE WORLD IS WAITING
📖 1 Peter 3:15
“Always be
ready to give an answer for the hope that is in you.”
🔍
The world
today is not rejecting Christ—
it is searching for Him.
People are:
- Searching for meaning
- Searching for hope
- Searching for truth
But they
are looking in the wrong places.
And God’s
plan is this:
👉 They
should find Christ through you
🎯
Your
workplace
Your family
Your society
👉 These are
your mission fields
🔥
- “The world is not empty—it is searching.”
- “Hope must travel through you.”
- “You may be someone’s only Gospel.”
✨
💬 St. Teresa
of Avila
“Christ has
no body now but yours.”
🌸
The world
looks on with restless eyes,
For truth that never fades or dies.
And through your life, through all you do,
Christ chooses now to shine through you.
🌱 9. PERSONAL MISSION – YOU ARE SENT
📖 Acts 1:8
“You will
receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be My
witnesses…”
🔍
This is not
merely a promise—it is an identity.
Jesus does
not say:
👉 “You may become My witnesses”
He says:
👉 “You will be My witnesses.”
This means:
- Witnessing is not optional
- Witnessing is not for a selected group
- Witnessing is the identity of every
Christian
To be a
Christian is to be a witness.
The Holy
Spirit is given not only for personal holiness,
but for public proclamation.
👉 The Spirit
strengthens you
👉 The Spirit sends you
👉 The Spirit speaks through you
The
Resurrection is not meant to stay within you—
it is meant to flow through you.
🎯
So what
does this mean for your daily life?
It means:
- In your family → speak hope
- In your workplace → stand for truth
- In your struggles → show faith
- In your relationships → reflect Christ
You may not
stand on a stage,
but your life becomes a living sermon.
Even a
small word…
Even a small act…
👉 Can lead someone to Christ.
🔥
- “Every believer is a messenger of the
Resurrection.”
- “If not you, who will tell?”
- “Your life is God’s chosen pulpit.”
✨
💬 St.
Francis of Assisi
“Preach the
Gospel at all times; if necessary, use words.”
🌸
He chose
your voice, your life, your way,
To share His truth in every day.
Do not delay, do not withdraw,
Go tell the world what you have saw.
🔥 10. PRACTICAL EVANGELIZATION – HOW TO GO AND TELL
📖 Matthew 5:16
“Let your
light shine before others…”
📖 Romans 10:14
“How are
they to believe in Him of whom they have never heard?”
🔍
Evangelisation
is not complicated.
It is not
about:
- Big preaching
- Complex theology
- Extraordinary ability
It is
about:
👉 Living
Christ
👉 Speaking Christ
👉 Reflecting Christ
Evangelization
happens in simple ways:
- A word of encouragement
- A testimony of faith
- A life of integrity
The early
Church did not have media, technology, or power.
But they had conviction.
👉 And
conviction spread the Gospel across the world.
🎯
Start where
you are:
- Speak to one person
- Encourage one broken heart
- Share one word of faith
Do not wait
for a big opportunity.
👉 Small faithfulness creates great impact.
🔥
- “Start small—but start now.”
- “Your daily life is your mission field.”
- “One word can change one life.”
✨
💬 St. Teresa
of Calcutta
“Do small
things with great love.”
🌸
Speak a
word, a seed is sown,
A heart once hard may soften, grown.
For simple acts of faith you share,
Can lead a soul to God in prayer.
🌅 11. CONCLUSION – THE FINAL CALL
The
Resurrection is not just an event to remember—
it is a message to proclaim.
The angel
said, “Go and tell.”
Jesus said, “Go and tell.”
Today, that same call is given to each one of us.
The tomb is
empty, but the world is still waiting—
waiting to hear, waiting to believe, waiting to hope.
God has not
chosen angels for this mission;
He has chosen us.
We may feel
weak, unworthy, or afraid,
but the power is not in us—it is in the Risen Christ.
Let us not
keep the Good News to ourselves.
Let us not remain silent in a world that needs hope.
👉 Go with
faith.
👉 Go with courage.
👉 Go and tell—this is your Easter mission.
🌅
The night
is gone, the light has come,
The grave stands still, the stone undone.
Now voices rise across the earth,
Proclaiming Christ, the Risen Birth.
🙏 12. PRAYER
Lord Jesus Christ,
Risen Saviour and Living Lord,
We thank
You for the victory of the empty tomb
and the gift of new life You have given us.
Forgive us
for the times we remained silent
and failed to share Your Good News.
Fill us
with courage and living faith.
Remove every fear that holds us back.
Empower us
by Your Holy Spirit
to become bold witnesses of Your Resurrection.
Help us to
go and tell—
in our homes, in our communities, and in our daily lives.
May through
our words and our lives,
others come to know and believe in You.
Amen.
Homilies by Dr.
ADDANKI RAJU.
Blogger:
https://addankiraju.blogspot.com
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