To Evangelize Is Mandatory

𝐀𝐏𝐑𝐈𝐋 𝟏𝟏, 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟔: 𝐒𝐀𝐓𝐔𝐑𝐃𝐀𝐘 𝐎𝐅 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐎𝐂𝐓𝐀𝐕𝐄 𝐎𝐅 𝐄𝐀𝐒𝐓𝐄𝐑

𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝟏: 𝐀𝐜 𝟒:𝟏𝟑-𝟐𝟏

𝐑𝐞𝐬𝐩𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐏𝐬𝐚𝐥𝐦: 𝐏𝐬𝐚 𝟏𝟏𝟖:𝟏, 𝟏𝟒-𝟐𝟏 “𝐈 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐠𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐤 𝐭𝐨 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐋𝐨𝐫𝐝, 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐦𝐞.”

𝐆𝐎𝐒𝐏𝐄𝐋: 𝐌𝐊 𝟏𝟔:𝟗-𝟏𝟓

𝐊𝐞𝐲 𝐕𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐞: “𝐖𝐡𝐨𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐛𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐢𝐬 𝐛𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐢𝐳𝐞𝐝 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐛𝐞 𝐬𝐚𝐯𝐞𝐝,

𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐰𝐡𝐨𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐝𝐨𝐞𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐛𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐯𝐞 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐛𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐦𝐧𝐞𝐝.” (𝐯.𝟏𝟔) 

       What I find striking in today’s readings is what we read in the first reading in Act 4:20 which says: “As for us, we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard.”

       Such a simple sentence yet with a very profound meaning because this is what should really happen to anyone of us who have encountered Our Lord Jesus Christ one way or the other.

     In my earlier days in the renewal movement, I kept on thinking what my being in the renewal really meant. I may not exactly be a religious person, but I did go to Mass on Sundays, and other days of obligation required of a every Catholic. But I looked at God who sits on his throne in heaven and me down here because that was what I learned from my catechism class.

       During those pre-Vatican II days I was never taught that we could have a personal relationship with God like our relationship with our family and friends. And when Jesus Christ revealed himself to me at the Life in the Spirit Seminar, my view of God dramatically changed.

       Still, the question that lingered in my mind was what the meaning of all this was. Why would Jesus go to all the trouble of bringing me to the renewal and revealing himself to me. The answer came through the formation programs that we attended and completed, and it was then that I realized that each one of us were chosen to use our gifts for the common good – that is to make Jesus known to the ends of the earth.

This is also one of those times when I find myself struggling to find the words as I started to write this Reflection for today’s Gospel reading that we find in 𝐌𝐊 𝟏𝟔:𝟗-𝟏𝟓.. Short this passage may be but this is so full of substance as it partakes of the nature of the last will and testament of Jesus to the people He has come to save.

In this passage we also become witnesses to a beautiful scenario when we see Our Lord Jesus Christ who, after completing his mission, is now going up to heaven where he will sit at the right hand of the Father and, we see the Holy Spirit descending to fill us and be with us so that we may feel the presence of God us all the days of our lives.

This is such a beautiful manifestation of God’s love that he will not leave us orphaned but are eternally under the shelter of God’s wings through the presence of the Holy Spirit.

That we can regard this as the Last Will and Testament of Jesus for his Apostles and for all of us today is clearly seen in his parting words when he said: “𝐆𝐨 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐜𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐠𝐨𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐥 𝐭𝐨 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧.” (𝐯.𝟏𝟓)

Jesus' last words was a reminder for us to keep in mind his saving mission which he is passing on to us as he urges us to be witnesses of his saving death and his glorious resurrection and to proclaim the good news of salvation to all the world.

Thus, our task is to proclaim the Good News of salvation to all the nations because God's love and gift of salvation is not just for a few, or for Israel but it is for the whole world -- for all who will accept it. The Good News is actually the power of God, the power to forgive sins, to heal, to deliver us from all forms of evil manifestations and oppression, and to restore us into a new life.

This is, however, contingent on what he said in 𝐯.𝟏𝟔 “𝐖𝐡𝐨𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐛𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐢𝐬 𝐛𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐢𝐳𝐞𝐝 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐛𝐞 𝐬𝐚𝐯𝐞𝐝, 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐰𝐡𝐨𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐝𝐨𝐞𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐛𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐯𝐞 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐛𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐦𝐧𝐞𝐝.”  For us to be saved, we need to believe. To believe is to listen and put into practice what we hear Jesus telling us in the Sacred Scriptures.

And what we hear is what we need to tell others. This is the great commission which the risen Christ gives to the whole church. And this command is given to all believers for us to be the heralds of the Good News and be the Ambassadors for Jesus Christ. This Gospel passage should remind us of the three major tasks that Jesus wants us to pursue:

1. 𝑾𝒆 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒂 𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒄𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒂𝒔𝒌. 𝑰𝒕 𝒊𝒔 𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒑𝒓𝒊𝒎𝒂𝒓𝒚 𝒅𝒖𝒕𝒚 𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒆𝒍𝒍 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒕𝒐𝒓𝒚 𝒐𝒇 𝑱𝒆𝒔𝒖𝒔 𝒆𝒔𝒑𝒆𝒄𝒊𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒚 𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒔𝒆 𝒘𝒉𝒐 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒏𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒅 𝒐𝒇 𝒉𝒊𝒎.

2. 𝑾𝒆 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒂 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒂𝒔𝒌. 𝑪𝒉𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒕 𝒊𝒔 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒄𝒆𝒓𝒏𝒆𝒅 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒃𝒐𝒅𝒊𝒆𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒎𝒊𝒏𝒅𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑪𝒉𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒕, 𝒕𝒉𝒓𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉 𝒖𝒔, 𝒘𝒊𝒔𝒉𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒃𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒕𝒉 𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒃𝒐𝒅𝒚 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒔𝒐𝒖𝒍 𝒐𝒇 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒔𝒆 𝒘𝒉𝒐 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒃𝒆𝒍𝒊𝒆𝒗𝒆.

3. 𝑾𝒆 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒇𝒊𝒍𝒍𝒆𝒅 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒑𝒐𝒘𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒐 𝒄𝒐𝒑𝒆 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒍𝒊𝒇𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒐𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒅𝒐 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒑𝒐𝒔𝒔𝒆𝒔𝒔. 𝑻𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒊𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒑𝒐𝒘𝒆𝒓 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑯𝒐𝒍𝒚 𝑺𝒑𝒊𝒓𝒊𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒐𝒘𝒔 𝒖𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒖𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒌 𝒐𝒇 𝑪𝒉𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒕 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒍𝒅 𝒘𝒆 𝒍𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝒊𝒏.

Some of you may ask why we need to evangelize which is the act of bringing the Good News to others. But the question that we need to ask is who you expect will do it. Certainly not Jesus. Not the Apostles. This task falls squarely on our shoulders especially those who have committed to a life of discipleship.

Again, many I’m sure will feel anxious to embark on such a mission feeling ill equipped. What we are forgetting is that it is not about us but the concrete manifestation that Jesus is risen and alive is us. It is through us that others would believe about the risen Christ. Again, we ask what we are going to do so that those that we encounter would believe that Jesus is real, risen and alive.

The answer is simple – we need to become another Jesus for others. We must be humble as Jesus is humble, we have to be helpful as Jesus is helpful. We must be loving and forgiving as Jesus is loving and forgiving and so forth.

We have to know how to empathize for Jesus knows how to empathize. We have to stop judging and condemning others as Jesus did not judge neither condemned anyone. In other words, in Jesus we’ll find someone who will listen to us, who will not judge and condemn us for the things that we’ve done in the past. Because Jesus is only concerned of our present and our future with Him.

       This Gospel passage ends with the message that the Christian life is lived in the presence and power of him who suffered, was crucified, died and rose again that we may have life and proclaim his gospel of salvation to all nations. Our marching orders is found in 𝐌𝐤 𝟏𝟔:𝟏𝟓-𝟏𝟔 𝐰𝐡𝐢𝐜𝐡 𝐬𝐚𝐲𝐬: “𝐆𝐨 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐜𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐠𝐨𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐥 𝐭𝐨 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧. 𝐖𝐡𝐨𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐛𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐢𝐬 𝐛𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐢𝐳𝐞𝐝 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐛𝐞 𝐬𝐚𝐯𝐞𝐝, 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐰𝐡𝐨𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐝𝐨𝐞𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐛𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐯𝐞 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐛𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐦𝐧𝐞𝐝.

A few weeks from today we are going to be witnesses to a new Pentecost as the Lord pours out his Holy Spirit upon us to renew and strengthen the body of Christ and to equip us for effective ministry and mission. The question is do we witness to others the joy of the gospel and the hope of the resurrection? (𝘌𝘥 𝘔𝘢𝘭𝘢𝘺 - 𝘈𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘭 11, 2026)