Today, we gather to celebrate the most significant event in human history: the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ, the center of our faith as Christians. The resurrection is not just a historical event but a living reality that continues to transform our lives. The stone was rolled away, and what was once a place of death has become a place of new beginnings. The empty tomb is God’s message that sin and death do not have the final word.
How did we get here? It was early Easter Sunday morning, while it was still dark. Mary of Magdala came to the tomb not to see a risen Lord but to anoint a dead body. Then she received the shock of her life: the tomb was empty. She ran and told the disciples what she saw. Peter and the other disciple (likely John) followed her to the tomb. Today’s Gospel passage shares that when John saw the empty tomb, he believed.
What did John believe? He had been with Jesus for three years. He had heard all that Jesus taught and did. He experienced his miracles, even those the other disciples did not experience. Most of the time, John, Peter, and James would be with Jesus. But he did not fully understand all he heard and saw around Jesus. This episode of the empty tomb finally made everything make sense; at this point, the words and deeds of Jesus Christ added up for John, and so he believed.
Most likely, it was at this point in his experience of the empty tomb that John decided to use the word “sign” instead of “miracle” in his account of the Gospel. The empty tomb opened his eyes to see beyond all the wonderful things Jesus did; the empty tomb opened his eyes to see what they meant.
John does not use the word, miracle, in his account of the Gospel. Instead of “miracle,” he uses the word “sign.” For example, in John 2:11, after narrating the event of the turning of water into wine, John commented, “This was the first of the signs Jesus did at Cana in Galilee.” In John 4:43-54, after narrating the miraculous healing of the royal official’s son, John commented, “Now this was the second sign that Jesus did.” In John 11:47, “The Chief Priests and the Pharisees gathered the council and said, ‘What are we to do? For this man performs many signs.’”
So, what is a sign? The Greek word for sign is semeion, which means something that represents, refers to, or points to something else. As such, the supernatural things Jesus did during his public ministry were not ends in themselves, they were signs that pointed to a reality beyond themselves. They pointed to the divine identity and authority of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. They invite us into an enduring and loving relationship with God.
Even when Jesus brought the dead back to life, it was not an end in itself. Jesus did not come to earth to keep up eternally in this world. All he did was to prepare us for eternal life with the Father in heaven. That is why people like Lazarus, whom Jesus brought back to life, did not live forever in this world. Raising them from death only revealed the divine identity and authority of Jesus, whose power has no limits, who came to lead us to the Father.
Unfortunately, many Christians today are miracle-centered. They focus so much on the miracle without paying attention to its message. When you are hungry and see the signboard of a restaurant, you do not spend the whole day looking at it. You go beyond the signboard to the restaurant to get your food. When you become familiar with the restaurant, you may no longer need the signboard to access it.
In popular parlance, “When a wise person points at the star for the foolish person to see, the foolish person will end up gazing at the wise person’s finger instead of the star.” My dearly beloved in Christ, the empty tomb has changed the meaning of death for Christians. Let us pray that this event of the empty tomb may open our eyes to realize that those who place everything in God’s hands will see God’s hands in everything until we come to our heavenly inheritance through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Homily for Easter Sunday Year C 2025
Thank you for what you do Father Emmanuel! I am now living in Spain but still enjoy your sermons! Muchos Gracias! Happy Easter.
Really! I have been wondering why I have not seen you in a while. Thank you for your kind words. Wishing you all the best in your new home.
HE IS RISEN . THANK YOU FATHER.
Alleluia. Happy Easter.