Homily | April 11, 2026 | Silence Is No Longer An Option (Episode 86)

Well, we arrive on Saturday of the last day of the octave of Easter.

We see that the authorities look at Peter and John and say, They are uneducated, ordinary men.

And yet they are shaken by them.

Why?

Because they recognize one thing.

They had been with Jesus.

That's it.

No degree, no status, not influence, presence.

They had been with him.

And then comes the line that defines everything.

It is impossible for us not to speak about what we have seen and heard.

Not difficult, not inconvenient, impossible.

Now hold that and look at the gospel.

Jesus appears first to Mary Magdalene, she tells the others, and they don't believe her.

Then to two others on the road.

They come back and still they don't believe.

And then finally Jesus stands in front of them.

And what does he do?

He rebukes them for their unbelief, for their hardness of heart.

That's important.

Because we tend to romanticize the apostles.

But at the beginning, they struggled to believe, they hesitated, they doubted.

And yet those same men become the ones who say we cannot stay silent any longer.

So what changed?

One thing.

They encountered the risen Christ.

That's the thread that runs through both readings.

Not talent, not intelligence, encounter.

And that's where this gets very real for us because a lot of people think, well, I'm not qualified, I don't know enough, I don't know the Bible, I haven't really read scripture, I'm not holy enough.

Peter and John were ordinary.

And that was enough.

The real question is not, are you capable?

The real question is, have you been with him?

Have you had an encounter with Jesus Christ?

Because if you have, you don't need to be pushed.

You don't need to be convinced.

You can't stay quiet.

And let's all be honest, for many of us, that's where the tension is.

We believe, but we're quiet.

We've encountered something, but we've kept it private, safe, contained.

And the gospel today won't let us stay there.

Jesus doesn't just appear and say, I'm glad you figured it out.

No, he says, go.

Go into the whole world.

Proclaim what you have seen and heard.

Don't keep it to yourself.

Not live your faith quietly.

No, proclaim it to the whole world.

And that doesn't mean standing on a street corner and shouting.

It means live differently, speak honestly, love boldly, live with integrity, refuse to hide your faith when it matters.

Because people are not converted by arguments.

People are converted by witness.

I want what you have.

I want to know that Jesus.

Why?

Because they see something real in you.

And that's exactly what shook the authorities.

They could not deny the miracle.

They couldn't deny the change.

So what did they try to do?

Well, they tried to silence it.

That hasn't changed.

The world doesn't always agree with faith.

Sometimes it just tries to quiet.

Hey, hey, keep it private, keep it personal, keep it contained.

And Peter says that's not possible anymore.

So here's the question for all of us today.

If someone looked at your life, would they know that you've been with Jesus, that you've had an encounter with Christ, that you have a personal relationship with Jesus.

Not because you say so, but because they see it in you and the way that you act, behave, and react.

Because that's the goal.

Not to become to impress people, not to become recognizable.

And here's the beautiful part: you don't have to be extraordinary.

You just have to be close to Jesus.

Because ordinary people who have truly encountered Christ become impossible to ignore.

So don't underestimate your life.

Don't underestimate your witness.

Don't underestimate the power that you have to preach Jesus Christ is risen from the dead.

Don't stay silent.

Don't live in fear.

Don't try to control everything.

Don't try to just live in comfort.

Because if this is real, if Jesus Christ truly is risen, and he is, he's been raised from the dead, then silence is no longer an option.

So go into your home, into your marriage, into your workplace, into your friendships, into every place, and don't try to be perfect.

Just try to be real.

Because at the end of the day, this is what matters.

You don't need to have all the answers.

You don't need to have it all figured out.

You don't need to impress anybody with fancy talk and all of the scripture of the world.

You need to live His witness.

People need to see that Jesus Christ has transformed your life by the way you live.

Amen.