Total Chaos and Total Control

This semester I am taking a course on probability theory. It’s been a fascinating class. One basic concept is that any system involving chance will have some level of control and some level of chaos. For an example consider coin-flipping verses rolling dice. With coin flipping you can have either heads or tails, each has a 50% chance of happening. As for a die you have 6 possible out comes, making the system more complicated. So coin flipping is more controlled, while dice rolling is more chaotic. Also each of these systems is much more controlled compared to say lottery tickets.

Here is another way of looking at it. Suppose you wanted to come up with some number between 0 and 100, but you are going to use American coins to represent that number. How many numbers can you come up with using only quarters? Well that is five: {0,25,50,75,100} How many more could you get using dimes? Or nickels? Or pennies? Each time you are adding more and more numbers making the system more and more chaotic.

So in upper level math we want to think about probability in a general sense. Every system will lie between two extremes: A system of total chaos or a system of total control. Now in probability the chance of something happening is between 0% and 100%. In a system of total chaos anything can happen: 55.29%, 99.44%. You know the number pi? Well in a system of total chaos you could have 3.14159265358979….% chance of happening. Imagine taking that system with coins I mentioned earlier and now add coins worth pi cents. How many outcomes can you get now? I know what you are thinking, “Yuck, how am I suppose to figure that out?” That is exactly what total chaos is, you have no idea what is going to happen. Say jigawatt remember learning about Borel sets last year? Well the rest of you should feel lucky you didn’t. Let me just say that a system of total chaos is very nasty indeed.

The other extreme is a system of total control. There are only two possible outcomes: 0% or 100%. Either some happens or it doesn’t, end of story. There is a guaranteed yes or a guaranteed no. There is no middle or the road.

So basically in probability theory (like in most math) you want to move away from the complicated and towards the simple. So you take any old system and try to boil it down away from the chaos and towards the control.

So this Fall Pastor Scott has been preaching through the book of Hebrews. The system in the Old Testament was a good system, however it wasn’t perfect. You had to approach God through a high priest. What is the probability that any given priest would be faithful? What are the odds that he would intercede appropriately? 17%, 64% 96%? What the author of Hebrews says is that we have a new high priest that is much more consistent. The old system was only a shadow. This new system is the reality.

So I have busy schedule right now. I am taking class while teaching classes at the same time. There are times when I find myself dealing with stress and anxiety. This week I was sitting in my probability class learning about total chaos and total control. This thought came into my head. “Dave what is the probability that Jesus is anxious right now? 0% What is the probability that he is righteous right now? 100%” Everything in this world, even the good things, have some level of chaos. The only constant is Christ. Total Control; that is a good way to describe him. Jesus is always kind, he never lies, he will never leave us, and he will never forsake us. He is always holy, he is always just, and he is always good. 0% or 100% with Christ there are no other options.