I just wanted to take some time this morning and let all of you know that I’m not supposed to be here. And I know that this may come as a shock to many of you because here I am standing up front in my dress and I’ve got my little folder here and it sure looks like I know what I’m doing but in reality I am what you would call a statistical anomaly that should not even exist.
You see I learned this when I was about 9 years old. In elementary school I was your typical child who was a product of a broken home. I tended to get into fights, I tried to play my parents off of each other to get what I wanted, I lied, I got bad grades, and I tortured my sisters. And I still remember one day that my friend Ryan and I were playing spies ( we had just learned in school that week that the penalty for espionage against the U.S. was death) and we decided that my sister’s cabbage patch doll was guilty of espionage. So, just because I wanted to be mean to my sister me and Ryan executed the cabbage patch doll. Now I won’t tell you what I did but it was bad enough that my mom was convinced that I needed counseling. So we went to counseling and talked about feelings and stuff and I will never forget the end of the session. At the end of the session the counsellor gave me a bunch of books and toys and asked if I would play with them while he talked to my mom. And I was always one of those kids who looked like I wasn’t listening but I really was. So I’m sitting there listening to this guy tell my mom things that I wasn’t supposed to hear and some of the things that he said sounded something like this…
-Children of divorce are 2 times more likely to drop out of high school
-Children of divorce are far less likely to graduate college.
-Children of divorce are more likely to have Behavior problems, lower self esteem, tend to trust others less, get lower grades at school and psychological problems. They are also less able to make friends, have a higher risk to use too much alcohol and drugs and have a higher risk to get on the criminal path.
-70 percent of prison inmates are the product of a broken home.
-They struggle with anxiety, can’t hold down a job, more likely to be victims of violence, they are 5 times more likely to get divorces themselves and twice as likely to commit suicide.
And I could go on and on and on sharing with you all of the statistics that prove to you that in all reality Pastor DJ should be living in a van down by the river assuming he’s alive at all. And when my mom and I left the counsellors office that day, I’m pretty sure that guy believed that my failure in life was certain. Mathematically, logically, statistically certain. There are a number of things that are simply impossible for me because of my background.
And I’m pretty sure that in our Gospel reading for today Thomas was weighing the statistics. And don’t get me wrong, Thomas had seen Jesus do some amazing things. Thomas had been following Jesus for a long time and he knew some of the things that Jesus was capable of. Thomas was there when Jesus fed 5000 people. Thomas was there when Jesus walked on the water. Thomas was there when Jesus calmed the storm, when Jesus healed the sick and drove out demons. But even though Jesus was powerful Thomas knew that no one beats death. This world had taught him that 100 percent of people who breathe air, die. And Thomas had been there when Jesus himself died. And Jesus was without a doubt the single most powerful person that Thomas had ever met and he still died. Thomas knows that death always wins and that death will never give up those it has taken. No one comes back from the dead. And Thomas was certain, mathematically, logically, and statistically certain. And I want all of you to know that Thomas is absolutely right.
Until Jesus showed up. And when Jesus showed up in that room everything that Thomas thought he knew about death and resurrection and forgiveness was blown out of the water because if Jesus can conquer death itself then he can do anything.
And even after all these years I look back at that day in that counsellors office and know that everything he said was true. You can’t argue with statistics. I was a failure waiting to happen. A thief, a liar, a troublemaker. Every single thing that man said about me was true and sitting there in that room that day this man painted me a picture of my own future that was absolutely certain. Until Jesus showed up.
What about you? I wonder what the statistics say about you. I wonder how many failures and mistakes and screw-ups have people saying you're doomed. Once a cheater always a cheater, liars never change, quitters never win,alcoholics will always go back to the drink, and adulterers will always be prone to wander. Based on the things that you have done in your life or the things that people have done to you i wonder what kind of picture we could paint of your future. Let's look at your previous choices, your parents, your income level, the town you grew up in, and the type of people you hang out with and I bet we can paint a picture of everything that is going to happen in your life and statistically, logically, and mathematically we can figure out all of the ways that you are doomed.
Until Jesus shows up. It's amazing how his presence changes everything. It's amazing how this man broke all the rules, threw out all of the statistics, and defied logic itself by rising from the dead two thousand years ago and he continues to do the same thing right before our very eyes. Half of the people in this room can give you a laundry list of reasons that they're not supposed to be here. if you've ever thought that the odds are stacked against you ever being forgiven for what you've done or ever overcoming your past welcome to the club.
Look around you, this entire place is filled with liars, thieves, adulterers, murderers, failures, and alcoholics. And every single one of us was doomed to forever suffer for all of the mistakes that we have made. Until Jesus showed up.
He changes everything. He can do anything. If he can destroy death itself by rising up from the grave then there is nothing that can stop him. ANd to be completely honest with you I don't care what your past says about you. I don't care what mistakes youve made or where you come from or how many times you have made the same sinful choice. I don't care what the statistics say, Jesus can save you. And i know that it's true because he already has, he did it two thousand years ago when the world first heard these words "Christ is risen..."
THere's no one he cant save, you and i are living proof of that. And there's nothing he can't do Christ himself is living proof of that. Amen
