The eleven remaining disciples made their way to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had summoned them. At the sight of him those who were still doubting bowed down and worshipped him.
Jesus then approached them and said, "All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations; baptize them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit; teach them to be faithful to everything I have commanded you. And remember that I am with you until the end of the world."
Matthew 28: 16-20
In the first uncertain days after Jesus' death, his disciples were completely at a loss to understand what had happened. They hid in fear, thinking that they too might be in danger. They were stung by the thought that they had deserted him. They struggled with their grief and disappointment. Then word came of a strange occurrence. Someone had seen the Lord, and had sent a message that they should go back to Galilee where it had all started, and there they would see him too.
So they went to Galilee, though they were still deeply troubled and filled with doubts. When they reached the place he had summoned them to, they did see him. Their fears and doubts were put aside, and they fell to the ground and worshipped him.
Their seeing the risen Lord transformed them into the first men of Christian faith. They still did not fully understand all that Jesus was and all he had taught them, but they put their faith in him and accepted his command to proclaim his Word to the world. Those who came after them, even down to our own age, also do not fully understand his teaching, but like the first disciples they put their faith in him and continue to proclaim his Word.
What they believe and proclaim is above all else the profound mystery of Jesus himself - that the one who came among us as a man is so intimately one with his Father that he is God; and that the oneness of Jesus with his Father is so driven by love that it remains in the world as a powerful and Holy Spirit, who is also God.
Many who do not put their faith in Jesus still hold to a sincere belief in God. But their faith, just like ours, says much less about God than it says about ourselves. For the fullness of God is a mystery never to be comprehended by man. We cannot prove or disprove anything about God. We cannot describe or explain him. We can only give assent or turn away.
But when we place our faith in Jesus we acknowledge that God who dwells in unapproachable light has drawn near us, has walked among us, and has become intimately a part of our life. We acknowledge that Jesus is God-for-us, and his Spirit is God-with-us. We acknowledge that by being for us and with us, God draws us into the mystery of his own eternal life. It is for this that we worship Jesus as Lord and proclaim him to all the world.
God our Father, God above us and around us and in us, by your creative power you call all things into being and sustain them with your providence.
Lord Jesus, God for us, by your death and resurrection you overcome the alienation caused by our sin and restore the bonds of love for which we were created.
Holy Spirit, God with us, by your abiding presence you guide us on the journey of earthly life and seal the promise of eternal life.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen
God our Father, God above us and around us and in us, by your creative power you call all things into being and sustain them with your providence.