Transquotation: Genesis 47:23-25

Hello again!

This is what God gave me today in His word:

Verses:

Then Joseph said to the people, “Behold, I have this day bought you and your land for Pharaoh. Now here is seed for you, and you shall sow the land. And at the harvests you shall give a fifth to Pharaoh, and four fifths shall be your own, as seed for the field and as food for yourselves and your households, and as food for your little ones.” And they said, “You have saved our lives; may it please my lord, we will be servants to Pharaoh.” (Genesis 47:23-25)

Transquotation:

Behold, we have been bought by Christ for God, and have been given the seed of the Gospel with which to sow. Let us therefore be glad and willing servants of God!

Explanation of the transquote:

Joseph bought Egypt for Pharaoh, Jesus bought the world for God. Joseph fed all of Egypt. Jesus promises to feed with Spiritual food all those who accept Him into their lives. Joseph gave the people seed to feed themselves with. Jesus gives us Himself, with which we can feed ourselves and others. Because Joseph had saved their lives, the Egyptians became willing servants; giving one fifth of their crop to Pharaoh. Jesus saved our lives, therefore our lives are not our own, but His. We don’t give just one fifth of our crop to God either, seeing as our crop is real people, we give them all to God.

We see a near perfect picture of Jesus in Joseph, here… Alright, granted, Joseph took all the Egyptians money, all their cattle, their land, and they themselves because they had no choice but to give those things to him, and Jesus doesn’t do anything of the sort (in fact, to the contrary, He gave Himself, His possessions, everything up, to save us). Even so, aside from that, we see a near perfect picture of Jesus here in Joseph… Except, for everything Joseph did, Jesus did a hundred times better (and then some).

New Testament confirmation:

⁵ For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus, ⁶ who gave himself as a ransom for all people. This has now been witnessed to at the proper time. (1 Timothy 2:5-6)

And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me.” (Luke 22:19)

Context confirmation:

Why should we die before your eyes, both we and our land? Buy us and our land for food, and we with our land will be servants to Pharaoh. And give us seed that we may live and not die, and that the land may not be desolate.” (Genesis 47:19)

And likewise, when we ask for God to keep us from Spiritually dying, He does so: He gives us the seed of the Gospel so that we may live through His son, Jesus’ death. — This supports the transquote by strengthening the connection, in this passage, between us and the Egyptians.

You are Loved!

Joshua Cleveland

 

Water, Lots and Lots of Water.

Hello again!

This is the talk I had today with God through his word:

When the poor and needy seek water, and there is none, and their tongue is parched with thirst, I the LORD will answer them; I the God of Israel will not forsake them. I will open rivers on the bare heights, and fountains in the midst of the valleys. I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water. (Isaiah 41:17-18)

Well, alright then… So what? I already had plenty of water why would I need more?

³⁷ On the last and greatest day of the festival, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. ³⁸ Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.”^[a] 39 By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified. (John 7:37-39)

³ For I will pour water on the thirsty land, 
   and streams on the dry ground; 
I will pour out my Spirit on your offspring, 
   and my blessing on your descendants. (Isaiah 44:3)

Oh, so what you’re trying to say is that the Holy Spirit is just being “likened to water”. Right? … Alright, but why do I even need the Holy Spirit, sure I get the whole part about how I would spiritually die of thirst without him but so what? What do I care if I spiritually die? In my opinion the here and now is what really matters.

²⁸ Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell. (Matthew 10:28)

²² But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. (Galatians 5:22-23)

So what you’re saying is that I need the Holy Spirit because he in fact effects both my Spiritual and Physical life? Well I suppose that makes sense. But what if I told you I already have all the fruits of the Spirit?

⁵ “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. (John 15:5)

But I am in Jesus (the vine), it’s just I don’t have the Holy Spirit living in me.

⁷ For there are three that testify: ⁸ the^[a] Spirit, the water and the blood; and the three are in agreement. (1 John 5:7-8)

¹⁹ Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name (not names; plural, but name; singular.) of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, (Matthew 28:19)

Ah, so your telling me that if I have Jesus living in me I also have the Holy Spirit living in me… OK then, one last question. Since I am obviously the ”poor and needy person who is seeking water (the Holy Spirit)” talked about in the verse… Why is it  I’m still seeking? After all I have Jesus and therefore the Holy Spirit and God the Father living in me… Is it just that Christians are always looking for the Holy Spirit to lead in guide them?

If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. (James 1:5)

Oh, so what you’re saying is that because everyone needs guidance in everything they do, the Christian always has a hunger for the Holy Spirit and always should be asking God for more Wisdom.

You are loved!

Joshua Cleveland

Related articles:

• “Help!” (pjsprayerline.blogspot.com)
• Will the Real Jesus Please Stand Up (justificationbygrace.com)

 

Fear Not, For I Am With You

Hello again!

This is what God gave me today in his word:

fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. Behold, all who are incensed against you shall be put to shame and confounded; those who strive against you shall be as nothing and shall perish. (Isaiah 41:10-11)

I now feel safe on Earth… But what about after I die, then what?

Fear not, you worm Jacob, you men of Israel! I am the one who helps you, declares the LORD; your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel. (Isaiah 41:14)

Alright but that still doesn’t answer my question does it? What happens after I die? Sure I can feel good and safe here on Earth. But what about afterwards? So far all you’ve told me is that I’m a worm, and that you are my (redeemer)… Oh.

⁷ In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace ⁸ that he lavished on us. With all wisdom and understanding, (Ephesians 1:7-8)

¹⁸ For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors, ¹⁹ but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect. (1 Peter 1:18-19)

OK, I get the picture… God is my physical and spiritual savior and what not. But frankly, so what? What exactly does all of that mean?

 ¹¹ For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people. ¹² It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and Godly lives in this present age, (Titus 2:11-12)

OK but I’m already a pretty perfect fella. I don’t need any help in pride, worldly passions, self-control, or even living uprightly. I don’t even need to be redeemed; my perfection will get me to Heaven no sweat!

All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away. (Isaiah 64:6)

You must have misunderstood; I’m not like that! I really am perfect.

“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23)

“For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, that no one should boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9)

Alright then, point taken… So, how about that grace you were talking about earlier?

That if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. (Romans 10:9)

You are loved!

Joshua Cleveland

 

Grasshoppers and Their Human Qualities.

Subtitled: God is Bigger!

Hello again!

This is what God gave me today in his word:

It is he who sits above the circle of the earth, and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers; who stretches out the heavens like a curtain, and spreads them like a tent to dwell in; who brings princes to nothing, and makes the rulers of the earth as emptiness. (Isaiah 40:22-23)

I’m fairly certain we’ve all hear of grasshoppers, right?

We’ve all seen one of these… Or at least, you have now.

So why on earth would anyone put us to the likeness of grasshoppers? … Because we are tiny in comparison with God. But what of a couple other references of people-grasshoppers? For example when the Israelites called themselves like grasshoppers, that wasn’t in any way related to God. In fact, quite the opposite I’d say:

³³ We saw the Nephilim there (the descendants of Anak come from the Nephilim). We seemed like grasshoppers in our own eyes, and we looked the same to them.” (Numbers 13:33)

The Israelites thought this way because their problem(s) were so big, they thought it made them look small. It’s often the same with us today, our problems can seem so over-overwhelmingly huge it seems like we are practically grasshoppers in comparison. So what’s the point? What I am I trying to get at? Well, as Veggie Tales so quaintly put it… God is bigger than the boogie man. Along with the boogie man, Godzilla, scary furniture and a few other assorted items, God is bigger than all our problems! Though naturally that’s easy to say while sitting reading/writing this post from the comfort of where ever you might be sitting… But I just want you to remember one thing from this; even when it looks like Anak and the boogie-man (or, fill in the blank) are going to get you, God is still Bigger.

Maybe that isn’t what will be racing through your mind should you ever see the boogie-man, uh, I mean a debt collector come calling for your money. But it is true that God always provides a way. Maybe/usually not always in the way that you and I think he may, he always provides a way…

Oh, but wait, you say you want proof?

⁴ But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, ⁵ made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. (Ephesians 2:4)

I’d say that death would be considered a pretty bleak (pardon the pun), situation. Would you? Yet Jesus through dieing and rising again for us made a way for us even in that!

You are loved!

Joshua Cleveland

P.S. This is my all-time most popular post, simply because I added a picture of a grasshopper to it. The thing about it, though, is that I don’t even like it myself! I wrote this post awhile back, and have never bothered correcting the numerous errors in it. So, if you read this, and thought it was absolutely horrible, I ask that you please excuse me and my procrastination towards fixing it.

 

But in Love You Have Delivered My Life

Hello again!

This is what God gave me today in his word:

In those days Hezekiah became sick and was at the point of death. And Isaiah the prophet the son of Amoz came to him, and said to him, “Thus says the LORD: Set your house in order, for you shall die, you shall not recover.” Then Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the LORD, and said, “Please, O LORD, remember how I have walked before you in faithfulness and with a whole heart, and have done what is good in your sight.” And Hezekiah wept bitterly. Then the word of the LORD came to Isaiah: “Go and say to Hezekiah, Thus says the LORD, the God of David your father: I have heard your prayer; I have seen your tears. Behold, I will add fifteen years to your life. (Isaiah 38:1-5)

Behold, it was for my welfare that I had great bitterness; but in love you have delivered my life from the pit of destruction, for you have cast all my sins behind your back. (Isaiah 38:17)

Have you ever felt like you were dead in the sickness of sin? Well, guess what… God sees your tears too! He hears your prayers too! (have cast all my sins behind your back) believe it or not it is for our good… Look what Paul has to say about it:

²⁰ The law was brought in so that the trespass might increase. But where sin increased, grace increased all the more, ²¹ so that, just as sin reigned in death, so also grace might reign through righteousness to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. (Romans 5:20-21) (See Romans 6:1-4!)

We can be on the point of death when God saves us… Why is that? How is it that drowning in our own sin can be good for us (aside from grace increasing)? Well there is always this to consider:

⁷ or because of these surpassingly great revelations. Therefore, in order to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. ⁸ Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. ⁹ But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. (2 Corinthians 12:7-9)

OK sure, I understand all that now. But whats your point? … My point is this:

“Go and say to Hezekiah, Thus says the LORD, the God of David your father: I have heard your prayer; I have seen your tears. Behold, I will add fifteen years to your life.

My point is that God hears our prayers and answers them. Though not always the way we might want him to… In short; because Jesus died and rose again for us our prayers are heard and answered! Back then they had a limited ability to meet with God… Only the high priest could go to the “most holy place”… Whereas now we can all meet with God!

You are loved!

Joshua Cleveland

 

Who Among the gods Can Save You?

Hello again!

This is what God gave me today in his word:

Who among all the gods of these lands have delivered their lands out of my hand, that the LORD should deliver Jerusalem out of my hand?’” But they were silent and answered him not a word, for the king’s command was, “Do not answer him.” (Isaiah 36:20-21)

When the servants of King Hezekiah came to Isaiah, Isaiah said to them, “Say to your master, ‘Thus says the LORD: Do not be afraid because of the words that you have heard, with which the young men of the king of Assyria have reviled me. Behold, I will put a spirit in him, so that he shall hear a rumor and return to his own land, and I will make him fall by the sword in his own land.’” (Isaiah 37:5-7)

Just to give you a quick bit of background information:

The king of Assyria has sent one if his servants to conquer Jerusalem. So the current king; Hezekiah, goes to Isaiah to ask him what God has to say… Now then:

Devil: Hey there Bob. Look over your shoulder, see that guy? He was no match for me even though he worshiped Buda, what makes you think your different? What makes you think that you can stand against me and win? … The truth of the matter is that we can’t stand against the Devil. The truth of the matter is that the only way we can stand against the Devil is if we aren’t the one standing… By that I mean that we can only stand against the Devil if it’s not us but Jesus standing against him.

One of the things you’ll see is that the people on the wall remained silent when “the servant” taunted them. Do you think that has any significance for us? I think so; after all, we have no power over Satan, and therefore we should just remain silent when the Devil talks to us right? Wrong:

⁵ We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. (2 Corinthians 10:5)

Look at this as well:

² And the LORD said to Satan, “The LORD rebuke you, Satan! The LORD who has chosen Jerusalem rebuke you! Is this not a brand plucked from the fire?” (Zechariah 3:2)

Even the Lord rebukes Satan in his own name! Why? Because we can’t say anything that can stop the Devil, but God can. Back In Isaiah again we see Isaiah talking to the King and the High Priests telling them that the Lord will make a way. It’s the same now! … Though not always through a Prophet God will make his way known.

Do not be afraid because of the words that you have heard, with which the young men of the king of Assyria have reviled me.

When God is reviled, he will “stand up for himself”:

⁹ When they came to the threshing floor of Kidon, Uzzah reached out his hand to steady the ark, because the oxen stumbled. ¹⁰ The LORD’s anger burned against Uzzah, and he struck him down because he had put his hand on the ark. So he died there before God. (1 Chronicles 13:9-10)

In short; we can trust our God because he is the one and only true God. We don’t need to fear the Devil because we have God living in us!

You are loved!

Joshua Cleveland

 

Mere Words

Hello again!

Here is what God gave me today in his word:

Do you think that mere words are strategy and power for war? In whom do you now trust, that you have rebelled against me? (Isa 36:5)

What do you think? Will simply confessing Christ as Lord save your soul? It’s a simple yes or no answer. Please, take your time answering… If your still looking at this screen with a blank expression 30 minutes from now… Here’s the answer; No it’s not, and do you know why? Because Christianity isn’t a simple saying of a prayer! It’s much more; it’s giving your very soul to God to do with as he wishes… Which turns out to be a good thing:

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. (Romans 8:28)

But what war are we fighting exactly? A spiritual one? And if so, why on Earth (excuse the pun), would we need battle strategy. I thought God took care of all that stuff on the cross!

1

Yes, we are fighting a Spiritual battle as shown in Ephesians (6):

¹⁰ Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. ¹¹ Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. ¹² For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. (Ephesians 6:10-12)

2

Let’s turn our attention to Hosea now to answer the question about quote and quote why we have to worry about battle strategy against the Devil when Christ  ”already took care of that for us”:

¹ Israel empties his vine;
      He brings forth fruit for himself. 
      According to the multitude of his fruit 
      He has increased the altars; 
      According to the bounty of his land 
      They have embellished his sacred pillars. 
       ² Their heart is divided; 
      Now they are held guilty. 
      He will break down their altars; 
      He will ruin their sacred pillars. 
       ³ For now they say, 

      “ We have no king, 
      Because we did not fear the LORD. 
      And as for a king, what would he do for us?” 
       ⁴ They have spoken words, 
      Swearing falsely in making a covenant. 
      Thus judgment springs up like hemlock in the furrows of the field. (Hosea 10:1-4)

Their battle strategy was to claim to be Christians, yet we see the result was their punishment. This is because their “devotion to Christ” was mere words. As such, they could take it back by the same means. i.e. Mere words… My point being this:

We need to have the “battle strategy” of Jesus! By that I mean simply that Jesus was/is/and will be our battle strategy. It’s true that even though, to put words to it, the snake is still writhing though it’s head has been cut off… And once again as seen in Ephesians (6) God has even provided protection (the armor of God) for us even in that!

Wrap Up

In short; because Jesus died and rose again for us, we have a battle strategy to defend against the Devil with! … If you were wondering, this battle strategy is Jesus himself. Also; “mere words” aren’t enough to fight off the Devil anymore than an ant without military grade armor – us without the armor of God – can defend against a boot crushing it.

You are loved!

Joshua Cleveland

P.S. Here’s a video about the armor of God that my siblings and I made:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=qhnEn-znY0E (will open in new tab)

 

The Might Of the Lord… And Who Can Dwell In It?

Hello again!

First off I would like to apologize for not posting for about 2 days. I was traveling with my day. Anyway, here’s what God gave me today in his word:

“Now I will arise,” says the LORD, “now I will lift myself up; now I will be exalted. You conceive chaff; you give birth to stubble; your breath is a fire that will consume you. And the peoples will be as if burned to lime, like thorns cut down, that are burned in the fire.” Hear, you who are far off, what I have done; and you who are near, acknowledge my might. The sinners in Zion are afraid; trembling has seized the godless: “Who among us can dwell with the consuming fire? Who among us can dwell with everlasting burnings?” He who walks righteously and speaks uprightly, who despises the gain of oppressions, who shakes his hands, lest they hold a bribe, who stops his ears from hearing of bloodshed and shuts his eyes from looking on evil, he will dwell on the heights; his place of defense will be the fortresses of rocks; his bread will be given him; his water will be sure. (Isa 33:10-16)

Giving birth to chaff and being burned in a fire. Not the most pleasant of the thoughts or experiences I dare say. Not only that but apparently, we are all like thorns to be burned in the fire after being cut down to size… I’d have to say that is somewhat depressing, wouldn’t you? And there is no way we can escape this punishment because we would have to be perfect to do so! And as we have seen several time now from Isaiah 64:6. So how is it Christians can be so confident we’re “going up after we’re out of this world” – i.e. going to heaven -?

²¹ For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. (2 Corinthians 5:21)

Starting to get the picture now? … We are unable to do anything for ourself except sin. Whereas Jesus can do and has already saved us… And in fact will continue to, sanctify and intercede for us. That’s how the Christian can be so confident… But wait a minute! That’s Jesus and Jesus alone... You have nothing to do with Jesus’ salvation, and how on earth would his dying for you save you, it just doesn’t make sense! … I’ll answer that with a verse:

¹ What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? ² By no means! We are those who have died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? ³Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? ⁴ We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life. (Romans 6:1-4)

In short; because Jesus died for us on the cross, and we died with him (and rose again with him) we are now saved from the fire (i.e. hell), as it were.

You are loved!

Joshua Cleveland 

 

Until the Spirit Is Poured Out On Us…

Hello again!

This is what God gave me today in his word:

for the soil of my people growing up in thorns and briers, yes, for all the joyous houses in the exultant city. For the palace is forsaken, the populous city deserted; the hill and the watchtower will become dens forever, a joy of wild donkeys, a pasture of flocks; until the Spirit is poured upon us from on high, and the wilderness becomes a fruitful field, and the fruitful field is deemed a forest. Then justice will dwell in the wilderness, and righteousness abide in the fruitful field. And the effect of righteousness will be peace, and the result of righteousness, quietness and trust forever. (Isaiah 32:13-17)

1

What does this mean? Well, let’s change things up a little… Let’s reread the verse (only changed):

for the hearts of my people are growing up in thorns and briers, yes, for all the joyous houses in the exultant city. For my wonderful creation is forsaken, they have left me entirely; the hill and the watchtower will become dens of the Evil one forever, a joy of wild donkeys, a pasture of flocks; until the Spirit is poured upon them from on high, and their hearts becomes a fruitful field full of my Spirit, and the fruitful field is deemed a forest of my Word. Then justice will dwell in the their hearts, and righteousness abide in the fruitful field which is their mind. And the effect of righteousness will be peace, and the result of righteousness, quietness and trust forever.

Now I know what your saying; “But Joshua, that’s not what the passage says at all! You’re reading out and reading into the bible!”… Let me answer that with a question of my own; What is the main point of scripture? What does every single chapter in the Bible talk about? The Gospel! … We were a wilderness of briers and thorns, and – we were plain out prickly – we had forsaken God almighty. Then Jesus his son died on the cross and rose again for us. And in doing so, washed us in his spirit.

I can honestly say the latter, because of this:

- this is part of the unchanged verse - for the soil of my people growing up in thorns and briers, yes, for all the joyous houses in the exultant city.

2

Image via Wikipedia

until the Spirit is poured upon us from on high, and the wilderness becomes a fruitful field

When we have Christ in our lives, we become “fruitful”.

²² But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. (Galatians 5:22-23)

Not only in fact – when we have Christ living in us – do we have the fruits of the Spirit, but we also have peace:

And the effect of righteousness will be peace, and the result of righteousness, quietness and trust forever.

In short; when have the Holy Spirit living in us; we: are saved, start seeing the Gospel everywhere, become fruitful, have peace, and we trust in God forever…

You are loved!

Joshua Cleveland

 

Evil >> Wicked >> Ruin – Noble >> Noble Things >> Stand Firm

Hello again!

This is what God gave me today in his word:

As for the scoundrel–his devices are evil; he plans wicked schemes to ruin the poor with lying words, even when the plea of the needy is right. But he who is noble plans noble things, and on noble things he stands. (Isa 32:7-8)

I for one always enjoy it when little patterns like these pop up in the bible. Here we see the gradual descent of the scoundrel. And the gradual ascent of the “noble”. Let’s start by reviewing the descent of the scoundrel shall we:

¹ Blessed is the one 
   who does not walk in step with the wicked 
or stand in the way that sinners take 
   or sit in the company of mockers, (Psalm 1:1)

1

You can see the decline; from walking, to standing, to sitting with mockers… Just like that, you can see a person declining into “ruin” today as well… First it’s just a bit of quote “dabbling” in evil, such as getting drunk just once, or maybe smoking a little. Then that turns to a full “addiction”, and that leads to the over-all ruin of the person in question… But how can you and I prevent someone, including ourselves, from doing that? After all, there are so many temptations, it seems like an impossible task to even attempt to try to keep ourselves from “going astray” much less anyone else! Well, we can’t. It’s simply impossible to do, for everyone except God.

If you want to keep yourself, your children, or anyone for that matter, out of sin… You need God in your life! Their aren’t any buts, maybes, or possibilities about it! Only through Christ can we keep ourselves and others from being/becoming “scoundrels”.

2

But what about the other part of that? The part about “But he who is noble plans noble things, and on noble things he stands.” What does that mean to us? I mean, I don’t know about you, but this seems to be saying that by doing good deeds, we stand firm. And you and I both know that’s wrong… After all, we can’t earn God:

⁶ All of us have become like one who is unclean, 
   and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; 
we all shrivel up like a leaf, 
   and like the wind our sins sweep us away. (Isaiah 64:6)

So what is it saying? I think it is saying exactly what it looks like it’s saying. That if we do noble things we get a noble foundation. Now, I would like you to think for a minute, before you came to Christ, did you ever, even once, do something that wouldn’t in one way or another benefit you? Well then, – since the answer is no – you haven’t done anything noble. Let’s look at the definition of noble:

the quality of elevation of mind and exaltation of character or ideals or conduct. –  wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn

You see, it’s impossible to do anything noble without Christ! Therefore, we must have Christ living us, before “we can stand on noble things”… – i.e. standing on noble things means standing on Jesus -

 ² The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; 
   my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge, 
   my shield^[a] and the horn^[b] of my salvation, my stronghold. (Psalm 18:2)

I stand on the Rock of my salvation
It’s You, it’s You Lord
I’m resting on a sure foundation
It’s You, it’s You Lord
I will not fear for You are near
You’re the Rock of my salvation

http://www.lyricstime.com/joel-engle-rock-of-my-salvation-lyrics.html

So, in short; we need Christ in everything we do! We need him to prevent ourself and others from falling into ruin… Which would be considered a noble deed. Which we also need Christ in us to do…

You are loved!

Joshua Cleveland