sin blinds

So just less than 10 minutes ago, I was in a yelling match with my little brother. It was over something stupid. During the course of a conversation he asked where jack (not the real name) has been. To which I said “Jack kind of did what you did. Go to church for a couple of months, get involved, get baptized, than just stopped showing up. (short pause) which is bad”. My brother responded “why do you have to be such and (beep), all the time” it escalated from there since I don’t much like being called names and my brother doesn’t like being told what he should do.

On The whole this doesn’t bother me, we are brothers we been in many fights with each other over lesser thing and it has all worked out in the end. What does bother me, however, is that since Sunday I have also upset two other friends. Had this been just one incident I don’t think that I would have bothered me. But being three it perks my interest. I know from firsthand experience that sin blinds and changes us. Also I would add that it causes us to project our sin on to others, seeing our own fault in them. But then again it may be them that are in sin and I just am, by pointing out there wrongs, chafing their spirit to the point of anger. So I am wondering and trying to search my soul for some un-repented sin. And here is a poem about it.

Fractional Love

You’re a pompous stuck –up arrogant fool,
But somehow you think you’re cool.
You say you’re friendly and want people around
But you only treat them like a dirty hound
You’re their friend till you get bored.
Shoo them away you medieval lord

You must not realize your attitude
The ideal Christian you think you exude
But being blind to your own actions
Is no excuse for love in fractions

You strut around like you’re the best
You don’t even care about the rest.
Your discipline is something you flaunt
But your gifts of love man their gaunt
You’re never wrong and always right
You just make me want to fight

You must not realize your attitude
The ideal Christian you think you exude
But being blind to your own actions
Is no excuse for love in fractions

Of your friendship some people want part,
But all you do is break their heart.
Your exclusionary tactics you try to hide
It’s a poor excuse, a thin disguise
You know friendship is a two way street,
But at your end we all must meet.

You must not realize your attitude
The ideal Christian you think you exude
But being blind to your own actions
Is no excuse for love in fractions

All your sins I’ve tried to show
But your pride you won’t let go
and as I see things now much clearer
it is not you but I in mirror
it was I who did these loveless deeds
it was always me choked with weeds

I did not realize my attitude
The ideal Christian I think I exude
But being blind to my own actions
Is no excuse for love in fractions

the poem "Fractional love" is copyrighted by Chris Carey 2008

Easter, Passover Sacrifice

With Easter this week and Passover coming soon (a shame that our calendar and the Jewish calendar don’t match well this year), I would like to talk about the Cross. I have heard that some people professing to be Christians are not taking it seriously. Especially, I have heard the so called pastor of Brian McLeran has call it “cosmic child abuse”; also the guy that claims to have found Christ’s tomb says that having a dead body of Christ would not affect his Christianity. I’m sure there are many more that don’t realize the power and necessity of the cross, and it is a shame.

This poem I think explains why the Cross was not child abuse and one of many ways that the bible is unified as one book and yet separate in many books. As for the Jesus tomb guy the poem doesn’t answer his heresy; so I’ll attempt s short answer here. If your god cannot conquer the grave, through a bodily resurrection and never die again and ascend to on a cloud, then what hope is there for you to conquer the grave? For me my God died for a purpose (the substitutionary atonement of my sins) and defeated death by raising from the dead; so first my sins are paid for second I can count myself dead to sin but alive in Christ, and third I do not have to fear death since I’ll live forever in the presence of my King.

*as a side note what I think is cool about this poem is that the first letter of each line corresponds with the first letter of the books of the bible in order G-Genesis E-Exodus L-Leviticus

the Sacrificial Plan

God spoke and all was created
Expressly from the words he stated
Lead, over creation, Adam presided
Needing a helper, Eve, God provided
Days, it took, less than seven
Judging it good, both earth and heaven
Joyous to walk forever and free
Required not to eat of but one tree
Surely, eating it would bring death
Serpent, deceiving with every breath
Knowing the wrath that they would incur
Keenly made Eve, question God’s word
Choosing to eat from the forbidden tree
Causing man to enter sin’s slavery
Eyes being open they did perceive
Nakedness they tried to hide with leaves
Evading God, ashamed of their sin
Jehovah, covered them with animal skin
Prophesying that the snake would make Him bleed
Permanent redemption comes from women’s seed
Eden was closed with flaming swords
Several generations passed, the Bible records
Israel’s sons, one brother despised
Joseph, sold to slavery but pharaoh advised
Living in Egypt four hundred years
Egyptian rulers stared to fear
Depopulation is what pharaoh decides
Hebrew children would face genocide
Jeopardized by what pharaoh decreed
A Levite woman built an ark of reed
Out of the river saved from the slaughter
Joined like a son to pharaoh’s daughter
Moses got angry, Egyptian blood he shed
Next day, to the land of Midian he fled
Hearing, I AM, from a bush that burned
Zealous for God, to Egypt returned
Heroically proclaiming, let my people go
Zero tolerance for this, pharaoh said no
Moses continued to preach God’s plan
Many plagues, would befall the land
Many times, pharaoh’s heart was made stone
Legendary power of God, made Known
Jehovah stretched out his mighty hand
An angel of death flew across the land
Red blood from a perfect lamb
Covered the doors, post and jamb
Continuing what God did in the Garden
Giving an animal for sins to be pardoned
Even the law had that at its root
Passing for now it was not absolute
Christ the messiah the prophets foretold
The one that would come, the law to up hold
The Baptist named John did proceed
The way he made straight for the women’s seed
The virgin gave birth in Bethlehem
To the Lord Jesus, fully God, fully man
Preaching that He was the way truth and light
Healing the lame and giving blind back their sight
Jesus Christ the only sinless man
Perfect sacrifice, the spotless lamb
Punished for sinners, He hung on the cross
Justice was served and death had lost
Just by one man sin entered the world
Joyously by one grace was unfurled
Justification for those who believe
Repentance and faith eternal life to achieve

the poem "the Sacrificial Plan" is copyrighted by Chris Carey 2008

Psalm 8:3:4

When I consider thy heavens,

the work of thy fingers,

the moon and the stars,

which thou hast ordained;

What is man, that thou art mindful of him?

and the son of man, that thou visitest him?

Psalms 8:3-4

I love this passage. It’s Job and Luke in a neat tidy short package. Job in God’s power and majesty. Luke in that God Came to seek and save the lost. I love it for this, it comes so quickly on the heels of Job. So you have all this majesty of God coming out of the whirlwind

Can you control the weather?

Can you control the seasons?

Can you control the stars?

God asks that in a way to say you can’t I can. And I can do more.

I make mountains.

I make lakes and streams and rivers and oceans

I make the horses and lions.

All of the power and sovereignty of God just a mere 8 chapters away; only 3 pages separate them, in my bible. So, if you read the bible straight through its still fresh in your mind. God is powerful! God is powerful is the perfect set up for these questions.

It’s like David is saying look, look at the heaven. That is power. That is beauty. That is awesomeness, that can’t be denied. Now look at me I’m a horrible, dirty, sin filled, sinful man. There is nothing good in me. I can do nothing but evil. So Why, Why does God even bother with us. There is so much beauty out there, there is so much good out there. Why does he care about what’s in here. When I find a torn, dirty, soiled rag I toss it in the garbage fire. And yet here God is to pick us up clean us and mend us. WHY? I guess it doesn’t matter, because the fact that he cares makes him even more powerful even more great even more excellent.

5 degrees of seperation

This may not be as unusual as I think, but the distances over which it takes place, make my mind ponder the enormity of this feet. It goes something like this (names have been changed so as to protect those 18 years and younger) Christian is friends with Evangelist and Faith, Evangelist is friends with Hope, Faith is friends with Mercy, Evangelist does not know Faith and Faith does not know Evangelist, but Faith’s friend Mercy is friends With Evangelist’s friend Hope, and Christian, knows of, but is not friends with Hope or Mercy. Like I said it is nothing unique just a basic five degrees of separation. A circle with 5 points, were the adjacent points are friends.

Now the unique part; first step, Christian is from a town that is almost a suburb of Cleveland Ohio. He leaves there to attend a private university in northern Indiana that is 151 miles away from home. While there he becomes best friends with Evangelist. Evangelist is from a small town in between Muncie and Richmond Indiana that is 189 miles from Christian’s home town. Next, Christian good friends with Faith through a small church they both attend in Christian’s home town. Second step, Evangelist knows and is friends with Hope though his church. Faith is friends with Mercy through high school. Now for the real crazy part step three. Mercy became friends with Hope in Africa (>1K miles from their respective hometowns), where they were on the same mission trip, through TeenMania Global Expeditions.

Is it not Astounding that 5 people, that live about 200 miles apart, share a common friendship? It is, especially, since this recent news article from the New your times that calls the “six degrees of separation theory” an academic myth. So what do I make of this? Why do I write of this coincidence? Mostly, I think that this is another display of God’s providence. Why would God cause this to happen? I really don’t know. Other than, in the bible most miracles are done so that “All might know that I Am God” (Ex 6:7, Lev 23:43, Deut 4:35, Josh 4:24, 1 Sam 17:46, 1 King 18:47, ect).

But then again it has been my experience that people of a solid Christian faith tend to be friends with other solid Christian faith. For as much as “bad company corrupts good character” (1 Cor. 15:33 NIV) so also that iron sharpens iron so a man sharpens his friend (Prov. 27:17) and “He that walketh with wise men shall be wise; but a companion of fools shall be destroyed,” (Prov. 13:20) So that, Evangelist and Hope would be friends and that Christian and Faith would be friends through church is no surprise. So it is no surprise, since they all share the common bond of Christ, and still a great surprise because of the distance. God is awesome.

(if you were wondering were I got the names from Read “Pilgrims Progress” by John Bunyan. you can get it free at Google here or also free in audio book form here)

My Friends

On this blue sphere where charity’s forgone
My friends eclipse the heartless throng
With compassion that flows like a mountain stream
And joy that radiates like the sun’s summer beams
Their love is rooted in God’s holy grace
An unblemished mirror they reflect His face
On tough journey to the heavenly gates
Their presence helps ease the grueling gait
Correcting, encouraging, patience and kind
I’m forever thankful our lives intertwined

the poem "My friends” is copyrighted by Chris Carey 2008