From: jesus_is_lord To: List Member Subject: Despised Date: Tuesday, June 13, 2000 9:58 PM jesus_is_lord [Reminder: This list is not for hellbounds. Repent and get washed in the blood of Jesus and it will be for you.] Dear Christian Friend: Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ. A new slideshow is in my mind and I have done some preliminary writing for it. It will be entitled, Lord willing, Fire. It will have equal relevance for the believer and the non-believer. The Lord is already teaching me some things as He guides me to study, fast and write the show. I ask my Christian friends to pray for this endeavor--that the Lord's annointing will be on it--otherwise it will go no where. ************************* Some of you know why I am despised, others don't. Those that do not know may not like me anymore after this email. If you are in this camp, you have some soul searching to do. If I am an offense to you, just send a blank email with "unsubscribe" in the subject line. I won't ask you why you want to unsubscribe and I really don't care to know. My emails are piled up, I am sick, and I have loads to do for the Lord. Yet my Strength and my Rock will see me through all things--just like He always does. Hallelujah and praise Him. I love and embrace everything that He has for me--I want it all and I will do what I must to get it. May Christ be magnified in all who love His appearing. Praise the Lord and amen. *****PREFACE***** I heard some good preaching Sunday, bless God. The text was I Corinthians. As I heard it read, it took my mind to the subject of this email. And so I write. This ain't no pity party (I try to fight that. Tozer said self-pity is the ugliest sin there is--yikes!). This is not for pity, this is an attempt at edification. For, "Iron sharpeneth iron; so a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend." (Proverbs 27:17) This sister, and others like me, are despised within and without "professed Christendom". *****Despised Without***** All true Christians understand this. The Christian man, woman, boy and girl is despised by this world. You see, this world thinks "it strange that ye run not with them to the same excess of riot, speaking evil of you" (see 1 Peter 4:4). We are looked upon as fools with a foolish message. But the message ain't foolish to us, it is POWER, hallelujah. 1 Corinthians 1:18, For the preaching of the cross is TO THEM THAT PERISH FOOLISHNESS; but unto us which are saved it is the POWER OF GOD. The people of this world's kingdom think that they are wise when they are fools. They loudly proclaim their grievous errors. That is a bad combination--to be loud and wrong. They think themselves wise, but in light of God's word, they become complete and utter fools. The worldly wise man, looks wise to other worldly people. But he looks like a fool to those of us who have been taught of God from the Bible (the power and understanding come from the Bible and no other source). It doesn't matter how many PhDs they have. They don't even know the reason for their existence. Their god is in their belly, i.e., their carnal appetites. That is not just the lust of fornication and like transgressions. Carnal appetites include everything in their lives that they use to take up time. When I was unregenerate and hellbound, I read books, travelled, went to school, got a decent job, went to the movies/festivals and other amusements, talked ephemeral talk (I studied economics--talk about mumbo-jumbo), I went on family outings, I attended symposiums, ate at good restaurants, and I contemplated just about everything but the God of the Bible. I thought myself wise, but was a fool and so is every hellbound on this list. What does God say to the fool as he stands in front of Him? I Corinthians 1:19 For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent. 1:20 Where is the wise? where is the scribe? where is the disputer of this world? hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? 1:21 For after that in the wisdom of God the world BY WISDOM knew not God, it pleased God BY the FOOLISHNESS of preaching to save them that believe. 1:22 For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom: 1:23 But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness; The preaching of the cross is foolishness to the unregenerate, but what is it to us? I Corinthians 1:24 But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the POWER of God, and the WISDOM of God. 1:25 Because THE FOOLISHNESS OF GOD IS WISER THAN MEN; AND THE WEAKNESS OF GOD IS STRONGER THAN MEN. Many unregenerates view our website and walk away harder than ever. Some get exceeding angry and say it is the worst on the world wide web. We come to them, in peace, shewing the glad tidings of the kingdom of God, yet we are despised. I can only echo the words of my Lord in Luke 10:11 "Even the very dust of your city, which cleaveth on us, we do wipe off against you: notwithstanding BE YE SURE OF THIS, that the kingdom of God is come NIGH unto you." *****DESPISED WITHIN***** I do not know how possible it is for a true Christian to despise another. I can only believe that those that do have not totally gotten rid of the old man. I don't care about a lot of stuff. It is meaningless and I have pressing business to do for the Master. One thing I don't care about is race. Skin color means nothing. But many white "Christians" cannot say this. The internet is a colorless place. Folks can read what you write and judge it only on the merits of what they read--totally independent of subjective judgments on your appearance. What I look like on the outside does not matter to Christ. What you look like on the outside does not matter to Christ. But I am CONTINUALLY confronted with professed Christians that care about the meaningless. I would not even be writing this treatise if it were not for them. I have no beef with the KKK and other racist groups. They are unregenerates. I can't expect one good thing from them. But for those that profess Christ it is a different story. I am fairly young at 34 (youth is despised by many), I am black (that is even more despised), and I am a woman (which is despised in spite of Acts 2:17--more at http://www.jesus-is-lord.com/woman.htm). In the wisdom of God, He made me a member of the most despised race of people in the world--black people. Praise Him. In His wisdom, He took the most foolish thing in the world, and gave her a word to speak in His name. Hallelujah and amen. "FOR YE SEE your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called: 1:27 But GOD HATH CHOSEN THE FOOLISH THINGS of the world to confound the wise; and GOD HATH CHOSEN THE WEAK THINGS of the world to confound the things which are mighty; 1:28 And BASE THINGS OF THE WORLD, and THINGS WHICH ARE DESPISED, HATH GOD CHOSEN, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are: 1:29 That NO FLESH should glory in his presence." I Corinthians I am foolish to many, but (praise God) in reality, I am hid in Christ. Who is my Jesus, my Beloved, my Groom, my Husband? I Corinthians 1:30 But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us WISDOM, and RIGHTEOUSNESS, and SANCTIFICATION, and REDEMPTION. My case is good for when I am contemptible to the flesh, the glory of Christ only shines brighter. Hallelujah and amen. People look and wonder. Meanwhile, I do not think more highly of myself than I ought for I know that I am despised. It keeps me humble. And we know that God is near to those of a humble, contrite, and broken heart. His wisdom cannot be searched out. When someone speaks well of me, I will not glory in myself. That is vanity. I will not glory in man or the color of his flesh. There is only One that I will glory in. I Corinthians 1:31 That, according as it is written, HE THAT GLORIETH, LET HIM GLORY IN THE LORD. For those who are interested, I wrote short treatise on racism about 2 years ago-- http://www.jesus-is-lord.com/race.htm (another short one on racism against Jewish people http://www.jesus-is-lord.com/race2.htm) I wasn't going to write anything about racism, but the Lord had it just keep coming up. My concern was, and is, for the new convert who is slapped in the face with it. They are new to the faith and do not realize that they cannot look to man for acceptance. We must be accepted in the Beloved. I let my own self down. I cannot depend on my thoughts or the thoughts of man. Jesus and the Bible are my only measure and guide. I perceive that there is more than one prejudiced person on this list. I have sound reasons for believing this. Should I be an offense to you, simply send a blank message with the subject line "unsubscribe". I can only pray that you will learn to judge people based on Biblical standards and not your own feeble brains. Proverbs 14:12 There is a way which SEEMETH right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of DEATH. God speed to all those that love the appearing of the Lord Jesus Christ. May Christ be magnified in you. for Jesus' sake, tracy (a fool for Christ's sake both within and without) -- http://www.jesus-is-lord.com ...I do send thee unto them; and thou shalt say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD. And thou, son of man, be not afraid of them, neither be afraid of their words, though briers and thorns be with thee, and thou dost dwell among scorpions: be not afraid of their words, nor be dismayed at their looks, though they be a rebellious house. Ezekiel 2:4, 6 ______________________________________________________________________ To unsubscribe, write to jesus_is_lord-unsubscribe@listbot.com ______________________________________________________________________ Start Your Own FREE Email List at http://www.listbot.com