Psalm 105:1–5, 8; antiphon, 1 Peter 2:2–3—
The theme for the Second Sunday of Easter is The Power of Faith in Christ. By faith, we receive the forgiveness of sins which Christ won for us on the cross at Calvary. Like Thomas, we have not had a face to face encounter with Jesus, but we believe by the gift of faith bestowed upon us at our Baptism, and nurtured and sustained by hearing the Word of God regularly and receiving the true body and blood of our risen and ascended Lord in the Supper which He instituted. We also have the sure and certain testimony of eyewitnesses, such as St. John in the epistle reading, that Christ is raised from the dead.
This same faith causes us to desire to live our lives in Christ-like obedience to our Father in heaven. Like those in the early Church in the reading from Acts, we care for one another in the Church, whether it be those in our own congregation, or victims of natural disasters, or the less fortunate, such as those served by Bethesda Home, and Lutheran School for the Deaf.
The second Sunday of Easter is sometimes called Quasimodogeniti, Latin for the first words of the Introit, ‘Like newborn infants.’ Just as a newborn eagerly suckles at its mother’s breast, so we, who have been given new life in Christ by His death and resurrection, also do eagerly desire the pure spiritual milk provided by our Lord for our nourishment and good growth. This He gives us through the preaching of His Word and the most Blessed Sacrament of the Altar.
Collect for Psalm 105: God our Father, through the death and resurrection of your Son you have fulfilled the promise to Abraham, Joseph and Moses to redeem the world from slavery and to lead us into the promised-land. Grant us living water from the rock and bread from heaven, that we may serve our desert pilgrimage and praise you forever, through Jesus Christ our Lord.
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