Carma Police.

(preface: so okay, a religious essay dealing with theology is weird coming from a guy who doubted his faith a few days ago. Whatever, it's all in the struggle.)

As Christians, we shouldn't completely dismiss karma as a purely Buddhist idea, or as one that is not in correlation to our beliefs. The difference between the general idea of karma--that is, doing good and having it come back around to you in a different form during your life--is that, with Christian Carma, we are asked to do good for others, but we are not expected to receive anything in return. Instead, we are to do good in order to store up our treasures in heaven, where thieves don't steal it and moths don't eat it, because where our treasure is, our heart is as well (Mt. 6:20,21). If our treasures, our karmic payoff, are on Earth, then our heart is with the Earth, and everything which we mercifully do or humbly do not do will pass away with our bodies.

With that in mind, we then begin to have confidence in the flesh, which, as Paul writes to the Phillippians, of which we are to have none.

And this idea of Christian Carma is nothing foreign to the writings of Paul. In the closing words of his letter to the Galatians, he writes, "Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap. For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life. And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith."

He knows that we reap what we sow, that we as farmers with plant rows and peas and thusly get peas; if we plant sin and hate and malice, we will reap malice, hate, and sin. He knows that, if we have mercy and humility and expect nothing in return, we will grow weary because we as humans have within us the "What's in it for me?" complex, and, when there seems to be nothing in it for us, we grow weary. We want cognitive results, while Christ Jesus gives us metaphysical results--our souls feel better, our treasures are storing up in heaven.

So we as Christians have Carma. We are to do good and expect good in return. The only difference is that our good will be revealed in heaven, when we pass away from this life. Surely we will get good in return and good will be given to us in our every day life (like someone allowing you to enter a lane to get off the freeway in traffic, or letting you bum a cigarette), but that is not what our ultimate expectation should be.

Our final expectation shouldn't come from man. Because it comes from Christ.