The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

Zephaniah 1:7-13, “Be silent before the Lord GOD! For the day of the LORD is near, For the LORD has prepared a sacrifice, He has consecrated His guests.

8 “Then it will come about on the day of the LORD’S sacrifice that I will punish the princes, the king’s sons and all who clothe themselves with foreign garments.

9 “And I will punish on that day all who leap on the temple threshold, who fill the house of their lord with violence and deceit.

10 “On that day,” declares the LORD, “there will be the sound of a cry from the Fish Gate, a wail from the Second Quarter, and a loud crash from the hills.

11 “Wail, O inhabitants of the Mortar, for all the people of Canaan will be silenced; all who weigh out silver will be cut off.

12 “It will come about at that time that I will search Jerusalem with lamps, and I will punish the men who are stagnant in spirit, who say in their hearts, ‘The LORD will not do good or evil!’

13 “Moreover, their wealth will become plunder and their houses desolate; yes, they will build houses but not inhabit them, and plant vineyards, but not drink their wine.”

Without question, the LORD is foretelling His wrath against Judah! His wrath is authentic (1:1), complete (1:2-a), justified (1:b-6), and calculated (1:7-13). Judah would do well to remember that the LORD’s wrath is both irresistible (1:14-18) and avoidable only through repentance (2:1-3).

Other nations have suffered His justifiable wrath and will continue to do so unless and until they repent of their sin and commence to follow His mandated leadership. So-called “Christian nations” are no exception! We must never, ever forget that!

Heartily in Christ,

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

United States of America

“We will never know that Christ is all we need, until He becomes all that we have.” –Corrie ten Boom

Dear Grands,

Hebrews 13:7-14, “Remember those who led you, who spoke the Word of God to you; and considering the result of their conduct, imitate their faith.

8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.

9 Do not be carried away by varied and strange teachings; for it is good for the heart to be strengthened by grace, not by foods, through which those who were so occupied were not benefited.

10 We have an altar from which those who serve the tabernacle have no right to eat.

11 For the bodies of those animals whose blood is brought into the holy place by the high priest as an offering for sin are burned outside the camp.

12 Therefore Jesus also, that He might sanctify the people through His own blood, suffered outside the gate.

13 So, let us go out to Him outside the camp, bearing His reproach.

14 For here we do not have a lasting city, but we are seeking the city which is to come.”

I recently received a phone call from a dear and valued friend, who was the one who initially shared with me that Liberty University was hiring teachers. Many of the friends I have today were at one time students of mine.

With the highest respect for the numerous students who suffered under my tutelage, I am eternally grateful. My first teacher was my mother. It was she who instilled within me the desire to learn. In time, that desire transitioned into teaching. But first, I had to learn!

Heartily in Christ,

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

United States of America

“We will never know that Christ is all we need, until He becomes all that we have.” –Corrie ten Boom

Dear Grands,

2 Peter 2:1-9, “But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will also be false teachers among you, who will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing swift destruction upon themselves.

2 Many will follow their sensuality and because of them the way of the truth will be maligned;

3 and in their agreed they will exploit you with false words; their judgment from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep.

4 For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but cast them into hell and committed them to pits of darkness, reserved for judgment;

5 and did not spare the ancient world, but preserved Noah, a preacher of righteousness, with seven others, when He brought a flood upon the world of the ungodly;

6 and if He condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah to destruction by reducing them to ashes, having made them an example to those who would live ungodly lives thereafter;

7 and if He rescued righteous Lot, oppressed by the sensual conduct of unprincipled men

8 (for by what he saw and heard that righteous man, while living among them, felt his righteous soul tormented day after day by their lawless deeds),

9 then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from temptation, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment for the day of judgment…”

If this passage grips you like it does me, we had all best get busy reaching
the lost. The airwaves are flooded with false preachers, whose ultimate goal is
to procure $$$ from everyone, and with it to fill their sacks. Yes, the LORD
knows how to “rescue the godly from temptation…” But we must ourselves be
clean and live daily “to the praise of His glory.” May the LORD bless you
abundantly as you live for Him day-by-day. Use this Gospel tract, but trust only
in the LORD!

Heartily in Christ,

Gene L Jeffries, Th.D.
United States of America.

“We will never know that Christ is all we need, until He becomes all that we have.” –Corrie ten Boom

Dear Grands,

1 Kings 1:5-7, “Now Adonijah the son of Haggith exalted himself, saying, ‘I will be king.’ So he prepared for himself chariots and horsemen with fifty men to run before him.

6 His father had never crossed him at any time by asking, ‘Why have you done so?’ And he was also a very handsome man, and he was born after Absalom.

7 He had conferred with Joab the son of Zeruiah and with Abiathar the priest; and following Adonijah they helped him.

8 But Zadok the priest, Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, Nathan the prophet, Shimei, Rei, and the mighty men who belonged to David were not with Adonijah.

9 Adonijah sacrificed sheep and oxen and fatlings by the stone of Zoheleth, which is beside En-rogel; and he invited all his brothers, the king’s sons, and all the men of Judah, the king’s servants.

10 But he did not invite Nathan the prophet, Benaiah, the mighty men, and Solomon his brother.”

“Let’s play baseball! I’m first batter!” Ever hear words like these? If you read anything at all about Adonijah, you have! He was, of course, referring to being king. No one suggested he be king. It was his own idea. No one questioned whether or not he was qualified. He just announced that he was king – and that sealed the deal. Adonijah yelled first, so he got precisely what he wanted. There was only one “hitch” in his scheme: the LORD had not designated Adonijah to be king.

Being the leader does not always guarantee a following. It’s probable that this was not the first time that Adonijah had bullied himself into a position that would have been better filled by someone else. The Coach had not designated him to be the first batsman! Not to “push” the analogy too far, but it’s better that we wait for the decision of the Coach. Everyone who thinks he’s better than anyone else will do well to wait on the Coach.

Heartily in Christ,

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

United States of America

“We will never know that Christ is all we need, until He becomes all that we have.” –Corrie ten Boom

Dear Grands,

Hebrews 13:7-13, “Remember those who led you, who spoke the word of God to you; and considering the result of their conduct, imitate their faith.

8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. 9 Do not be carried away by varied and strange teachings; for it is good for the heart to be strengthened by grace, not by foods through which those who were so occupied were not benefited. 10 We have an altar from which those who serve the tabernacle have no right to eat. 11 For the bodies of those animals whose blood is brought into the holy place by the high priest as an offering for sin are burned outside the camp. 12 Therefore Jesus also, that He might sanctify the people through His own blood, suffered outside the gate.

13 So, let us go out to Him outside the camp, bearing His reproach.

14 For here we do not have a lasting city, but we are seeking the city which is to come.”

Do you not remember imitating people when you were young? You’d watch them carefully, pick up on some peculiar aspect of their walk or talk, and then repeat it over and over again until it almost “became yours”? It is called “mimicking.”

That is what Paul means when he speaks of our imitating their faith. It’s not mocking; it’s the opposite of that. It’s an earnest effort to become like someone else. This is precisely what the LORD wants of us! It’s not fake; it’s a genuine desire to be like the person we admire.

Who do you admire more than Jesus Christ? Hopefully, no one! For there is none other more worthy than Christ. Who is there other than Jesus, who loves you so? There is none!

Heartily in Christ,

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

United States of America.

“We will never know that Christ is all we need, until He becomes all that we have.” –Corrie ten Boom