Which eye are you looking through?

One of the axioms of life is that we see what we want to see - and hear what we want to hear.

We can hear - but not really listen.

And we can see - but not really comprehend.

Many times the negativity and sin of this world remains oblivious to us - not because we aren't aware of what is going around us - but because we choose not to see and comprehend - and then do something about it.

My dear friends, how long can we "turn a blind eye" to the sins of this world?

How long can we "turn a blind eye" to the sins of the church?

How long can we "turn a blind eye" to our own sins?

How long can we keep blaming and pointing fingers at others without approaching the fact that perhaps we are "turning a blind eye" to our own faults and failures?

The phrase "turn a blind eye," means to ignore undesirable information.  It means to live in denial.

It means to have Pollyanna view of life - that things are great and will only get better.

That's not to say that I am to become a negative person, not at all.  But it is to say that I can be realistically positive - and not turn a blind eye to the evil of this world.

I can turn a blind eye to what is going on in my family.

I can turn a blind eye to what is going on at my job.

I can turn a blind eye to what is going on in my church.

Where did the saying, "turning a blind eye" come from?

The saying comes from a 19th century British naval battle.

Kevin Miller writes:

"On April 2, 1801, during the Battle of Copenhagen, the British fleet was attacking the combined navies of Denmark and Norway.

Three British ships ran aground, so the admiral, Hyde Parker, decide that the fire of battle was "too hot for Nelson to oppose."  So Parker sent an order, thorough signal flags, that the younger admiral Horatio Nelson should "Discontinue Action" and withdraw.

When Nelson heard his own signalman relay the order, the pretended not to hear him.

Mesmerized by the thrill of battle, Nelson had no intention of obeying the order.  He turned to his captain and said, "This day may be the last for us at any moment," even as a Danish cannonball struck his ship's mainmast, scattering splinter all around him.  This was typical of Nelson's stubborn and aggressive approach to war.

In fact, he'd already lost sight in his right yes in a previous battle.  So when he pressed again to respond to Parker's order, Nelson told his flag captain Thomas Foley, "You know, Foley, I only have one eye - I have the right to be blind sometimes," and then Nelson held up his telescope to his right eye and said, "I really do not see the signal!"

Sometimes we are like that.  With one good eye and one blind eye, when an order comes through from God, we hold up the telescope to the blind eye - and we ignore the leading of the Holy Spirit.

We ignore the evil around us.

I, as a pastor and teacher, have the biblical, God-given responsibility to encourage and lift up the "saints of God", but also to remind us of the fact that we can't ignore our sins and failures.

I have been called to confront - but to confront in love.

Just a thought for a Wednesday.