Grace Congregational UCC

“The License Plate”
John 20:19-31
Revelation 1:4-8

April 15, 2007 - Kim M. Henning

Grace to you and peace from God who comes to us decisively in Jesus of Nazareth. Amen.

I was along the Interstate the other day. The radio was not on. I was simply enjoying the quiet as I drove along in my own small world.

An automobile came up behind me, then she quickly passed me. I don’t know but I took notice of her license plate, It read, “Trust No 1.”

Are you a license plate reader?

I enjoy reading license plates, especially the ones I can figure out. This one I could read, but then I started thinking: What do you think the driver of that vehicle is wanting to communicate?

“Trust no one.” Do you think she’s saying, “They’re all out to out to get you.” (Maybe.)

“Trust no one.” Do you think she was saying that once you start trusting you’re going to start hurting?

Trust no one. She might have been divorced. She may have been the victim of gossip at work, maybe even at church. Someone may have taken advantage of her when she was very young, and now her philosophy was, ‘trust no one’—not with her love, not with her money, not with her feelings. No one.

The church, over the years, has preserved some stories of our Lord’s resurrection. A dozen or more stories are preserved from Easter Sunday morning—telling us about Jesus resurrection.

This morning, we read a resurrection story that happens on the evening of Easter Sunday. The disciples—‘for fear’—have locked themselves inside a house. They were scared. They didn’t know what to believe. They didn’t know who to believe. They could not distinguish between fact and fairy tale.

So they did something very human. They gathered together. Then they locked the door. “Trust no one.”

That’s what scared people do. They lock doors (in real and metaphorical ways). That’s what wounded people do. They lock doors.

Our story begins that way, when unexpectedly Jesus appears. Yes. Just like that. Jesus appears—which is so God-like. People of faith never know when God will provide a God-moment. People of faith never know when they will be surprised.

But it will happen. He stands there, as real as I’m standing here. Diogenes Allen notices something interesting. Looking at all the resurrection stories, Diogenes Allen says that our Lord does not appear to the nay-sayers or to the skeptics who never gave Jesus an ounce of their time during his ministry. He does not appear to the Pharisees, he does not appear to Pilate. Who does Jesus appear to? He appears to those who prayed with him. He appears to those who persevered with him. He appears to those who followed along those dusty roads of Galilee.

Today, Jesus appears inside that locked room. And then Jesus says the perfect words, ‘peace be with you.’

Is there anything they needed more than ‘peace be with you’? To settle the nerves.

He shows them his hands and his side.

They could see. Their eyes were not fooling them. The one who died is the one who is alive.

Then Jesus breathes on them, according to that story.

In that mystical, powerful moment that can only be understood b y people of faith, he breathes on them.

Then....as if to express great trust, Jesus says, “if you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.” Jesus takes this business of forgiveness to the church—trusting you, trusting me to become agents of grace.

Now this would be a perfect place to end the story. Yes? Unbelief is turned to belief. Fear is turned into courage. But the story is not over.

One—our beloved Thomas----was not with the other ten. When Thomas returns, they say with all the conviction they can muster, ‘We have seen the Lord.’ But Thomas, Thomas has that license plate with him: ‘trust no one.’

Nope. Thomas said. Not me. I’m not going to be gullible. I’m not going to be a fool. “Unless I see....unless I put my hands in his side... I will not believe.”

Believe. That takes us into a whole different world, doesn’t it—the world of belief. So many promises broken....who do we believe? So many reputations shattered.....what are we to believe?

Our world is getting smaller and smaller, more fearful and more fearful. Who’s telling me the truth? Who do I trust with my heart? Who do I trust with my money? Who do I trust to take care of my children? We live in a world of vandalism, identity theft, and many who are simply, ‘cold hearted.’

I suspect Thomas has many disciples of his own: ‘Unless I see, unless I touch, unless I do a criminal background check, unless we sign a contract..... I will not believe.”

Believe. In Hebrews we read: “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” Jesus said, “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet believe.”

We are not the first to struggle. We are not the first to live anxious, fearful lives.

I was reading this week, Psalm 46. Phrase after phrase, the Psalmist looks around him and he sees the instabilities, the uncertainties..... “the mountains shake in the heart of the sea.....waters roar and foam.....mountains tremble with its tumult.....” The Psalmist knows about living on the edge of uncertainty.....”nations rage, the kingdoms totter.....” And you know....when you live in a world of anxiety, it does not take long until we start feeling anxiety ‘in here’ (heart).

So the Psalmist confidently proclaims, “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” That’s a well know scripture, isn’t it. There is a foot-note at the bottom of my Bible. A very present help..... On the bottom of my Bible, it says that those words, “a very present help” can also be translated, “a well-proved help”. So listen again. “God is our refuge and strength, a well-proved help in trouble.” Do you feel the confidence? The Psalmist talks about God being in the midst of Jerusalem and because God is in the midst of Jerusalem, the city will not be moved.

And the Psalmist utters one of my favorite scriptures in the entire Bible, “Be still, and know that I am God.”

The world is unraveling.... “Be still” ....let God have a voice......

Questions, Anxieties, Frustrations..... “Be still” .....let God have a place inside you.

The Apostle Paul says nothing less than that when he writes to the church, “We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed, always carrying in the body the death of Christ.”

Believe Christ in us, we will not be crushed.

Believe Christ in us, despair will not find a home within us.

Believe Christ in us, we are never forsaken.

Believe Christ is us, destruction will not happen.

We live in a world that has taught us well: “Trust no one.” You see it, you hear it every day.

Today, we are reminded of a contrary word: Trust God. Trust God....with your tears. You will be comforted. Trust God..... with your doubt. You will be strengthened. Trust God, and live.