{"id":4018,"date":"2011-02-03T06:06:35","date_gmt":"2011-02-03T14:06:35","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/co2mannatoday.com\/wordpress\/?p=4018"},"modified":"2011-02-03T06:31:51","modified_gmt":"2011-02-03T14:31:51","slug":"becoming-the-filth-of-the-world","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/co2mannatoday.com\/?p=4018","title":{"rendered":"Becoming the “Filth of the World”"},"content":{"rendered":"

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February 03, 2011<\/div>\n
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We have been made as the filth of the world . . . \u20141 Corinthians 4:13<\/a><\/div>\n
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These words are not an exaggeration. The only reason they may not be true of us who call ourselves ministers of the gospel is not that Paul forgot or misunderstood the exact truth of them, but that we are too cautious and concerned about our own desires to allow ourselves to become the refuse or \u201cfilth of the world.\u201d \u201cFill up in my flesh what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ . . .\u201d (Colossians 1:24<\/a>) is not the result of the holiness of sanctification, but the evidence of consecration-being \u201cseparated to the gospel of God . . .\u201d (Romans 1:1<\/a>).<\/p>\n

\u201cBeloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you . . .\u201d (1 Peter 4:12<\/a>). If we do think the things we encounter are strange, it is because we are fearful and cowardly. We pay such close attention to our own interests and desires that we stay out of the mire and say, \u201cI won\u2019t submit; I won\u2019t bow or bend.\u201d And you don\u2019t have to\u2014 you can be saved by the \u201cskin of your teeth\u201d if you like. You can refuse to let God count you as one who is \u201cseparated to the gospel . . . .\u201d Or you can say, \u201cI don\u2019t care if I am treated like \u2019the filth of the world\u2019 as long as the gospel is proclaimed.\u201d A true servant of Jesus Christ is one who is willing to experience martyrdom for the reality of the gospel of God. When a moral person is confronted with contempt, immorality, disloyalty, or dishonesty, he is so repulsed by the offense that he turns away and in despair closes his heart to the offender. But the miracle of the redemptive reality of God is that the worst and the vilest offender can never exhaust the depths of His love. Paul did not say that God separated him to show what a wonderful man He could make of him, but \u201cto reveal His Son in me<\/em>. . .\u201d (Galatians 1:16<\/a>).<\/p>\n

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February 3, 2011<\/p>\n

Journal Entry for Today-JDV<\/p>\n

Five days ago the doctor told my brother and me that he has stage four cancer. Yesterday they took him home to make him more comfortable for the few weeks he has left. \u00a0During diagnostic testing and waiting for the lab results I wondered about the capacity and value\u00a0of my love and support.<\/p>\n

And God says\u2026\u201dYour brother belongs to Me. I love him more than you can ever imagine and he is mine. He is my responsibility not yours, but I am speaking with you about how and when I want you to be a comfort from Me.\u00a0 You will notice that I am rebuilding relationships and providing the love and reassurance needed in this circumstance right now. Your role is to stay connected to Me, and listen for My voice. When you hear that clear and still small voice inside your heart, respond quickly and allow Me to make many of your family and friends aware that this is one of those \u201call things\u201d that work for the good of those that are called according to My purpose.\u201c <\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

February 03, 2011 \u00a0 We have been made as the filth of the world . . . \u20141 Corinthians 4:13 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 These words are not an exaggeration. The only reason they may not be true of us who call ourselves ministers of the gospel is not that Paul forgot or misunderstood the exact […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/co2mannatoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4018"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/co2mannatoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/co2mannatoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/co2mannatoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/co2mannatoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4018"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"http:\/\/co2mannatoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4018\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4023,"href":"http:\/\/co2mannatoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4018\/revisions\/4023"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/co2mannatoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4018"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/co2mannatoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4018"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/co2mannatoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4018"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}