***
Acts 2: 14, 22-23
On the day of Pentecost, Peter stood up with the Eleven,
raised his voice, and proclaimed:
“You who are Jews, indeed all of you staying in Jerusalem.
Let this be known to you, and listen to my words.
“You who are children of Israel, hear these words.
Jesus the Nazorean was a man commended to you by God
with mighty deeds, wonders, and signs,
which God worked through him in your midst, as you yourselves know.
This man, delivered up by the set plan and foreknowledge of God,
you killed, using lawless men to crucify him.
But God raised him up, releasing him from the throes of death,
because it was impossible for him to be held by it.
For David says of him:
I saw the Lord ever before me,
with him at my right hand I shall not be disturbed.
Therefore my heart has been glad and my tongue has exulted;
my flesh, too, will dwell in hope,
because you will not abandon my soul to the nether world,
nor will you suffer your holy one to see corruption.
You have made known to me the paths of life;
you will fill me with joy in your presence.
My brothers, one can confidently say to you
about the patriarch David that he died and was buried,
and his tomb is in our midst to this day.
But since he was a prophet and knew that God had sworn an oath to him
that he would set one of his descendants upon his throne,
he foresaw and spoke of the resurrection of the Christ,
that neither was he abandoned to the netherworld
nor did his flesh see corruption.
God raised this Jesus;
of this we are all witnesses.
Exalted at the right hand of God,
he poured forth the promise of the Holy Spirit
that he received from the Father, as you both see and hear.”
The Word of the Lord.
***
***
One of the earliest proofs of the resurrection is the complete transformation of Peter’s behavior.
Remember what happened on Holy Thursday and Good Friday: Jesus was betrayed, arrested, abandoned, and crucified. Meanwhile, Peter vehemently denied knowing Jesus three times while warming his hands by a fire.
Only the Apostle John and a few women stayed with the Lord until his death. But even they had no idea he’d be raised three days later.
***
In our first reading, the same cowardly Peter who denied knowing Jesus, now boldly risks his life by preaching to the same crowds who called for Christ’s death.
“This man you killed, using lawless men to crucify him,” Peter says. “But God raised this Jesus; of this we are all witnesses.”
There’s no other logical explanation for this dramatic change in Peter’s behavior – from cowardice to courage, fear to freedom – unless Peter is thoroughly convinced that Christ is alive again.
This is not some short-lived moment of inspiration, either. Peter will spend the next and final three decades of his life proclaiming the same truth that belief in this person, Jesus, leads to salvation and the resurrection.
***
Do I exude the same joy, hope, and faith as Peter? Has my belief in the resurrection thoroughly transformed my perspective on life?
***
We will dive into the Acts of the Apostles during the Easter season to inspire ever greater faith among us, to see and believe in our hearts what Peter did – Jesus is alive again!
Alleluia!
***
***
Image credits: (1) North Heights Church of Christ (2) Church POP (3) Saint Angela Merici Catholic Church