The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

Job 5:1-11, “Call now, is there anyone who will answer you? And to which of the holy ones will you turn?

2 “For anger slays the foolish man, And jealousy kills the simple.

3 “I have seen the foolish taking root, And I cursed his abode immediately.

4 “His sons are far from safety, They are even oppressed in the gate, And there is no deliverer.

5 “His harvest the hungry devour And take it to a place of thorns, And the schemer is eager for their wealth.

6 “For affliction does not come from the dust, Nor does trouble sprout from the ground,

7 For man is born for trouble, As sparks fly upward.

8 “But as for me, I would seek God, And I would place my cause before God;

9 Who does great and unsearchable things, Wonders without number.

10 “He gives rain on the earth And sends water on the fields,

11 So that He sets on high those who are lowly, And those who mourn are lifted to safety.”

Were you ever in a situation that called for answers you simply did not have? Of course, you were.

So has everyone at some point in life. Anger, jealousy, foolish speech – afflictions of various kinds and of numerous numbers – all arrive at strange and awkward times. It’s a rule of life that abuses everyone sometimes, and others quite a lot. What is to be done?

Neither Job nor his friends simply overlook the situation; still, throughout the ordeal, Job is the only one who clearly maintains faith in the LORD. In fact, the LORD is Job’s first contact. Is that what occurs with us? Do we seek His counsel first? Oftentimes, we do not. We turn to someone nearby or someone from whom we’ve received previous counsel. Still, how do we assess the value of human counsel?

No, Job gives us the counsel we need for all times: “…I would seek God, and I would place my cause before God.” Why, then, are we hesitant to lay matters before Him? Could it be that we’re fearful of what He might say? Or could it be that we’ve previously laid matters before Him but did not like what He told us to do? Therefore, we avoid His scolding and our embarrassment. Job concludes by saying, “…we have investigated it, and so it is. Hear it, and know for yourself.”

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,

Colossians 1:15-20, “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. 16 For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities– all things have been created through Him and for Him. 17 He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. 18 He is also head of the body, the church; and He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that He Himself will come to have first place in everything. 19 For it was the Father’s good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in Him, 20 and through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross; through Him, I say, whether things on earth or things in heaven.”

“Who’s in charge here?” Without question, I’m certain you’ve heard an outburst such as this from someone who has just entered the room. It is inevitably a human voice of high decibels, endeavoring to create the belief that he is the one “in charge.” The one who is truly “in charge” speaks in a softer, albeit authoritative, tone.

In our verses above, the Apostle Paul speaks of the One who is truly supreme: the “invincible God.” He is the first of all creation, whether you believe it or not. He created all things, whether you know it or not. He’s the One who keeps all things in motion, and whether you think so or not, He keeps everything from falling apart.

Furthermore, according to the Father, He is the head of the spiritual assembly, known as the church; and He has been granted complete authority over everything — even over those who harbor uncertainty regarding His status. Deny authority if you will, but His authority reigns! He wants you to be on His side! It’s no gamble; He proved Himself by arising from the dead! He’s now looking for others to join His team. It’s your opportunity. Don’t neglect it. You and I don’t live forever; He does!

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,

Philippians 2:1-5, “Therefore if there is any encouragement in Christ, if there is any consolation of love, if there is any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and compassion,

2 make my joy complete by being of the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose.

3 Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves;

4 do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others.

5 Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus,

6 who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped,

7 but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men.

8 Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.”

Were I to ask you if you’d ever done something to help someone else, what would you say?

Oh, I know that you have! Still, if we’re being totally honest, we’d have to say that we’ve done at least some of those things with the thought that we might be able to request something from them at a time in the future. Just “doing for others” without an agenda is often rare, is it not?

Jesus was not like that. He did for others what was needful for them without a thought of the cost to Himself. He wanted them to be healed, so they could walk or see. He wanted them to be healed, so they could view the beauty of things around them. He wanted them to trust Him for the future life He could provide for them.

There are numerous things we could do for others. Why are we not thinking of them instead of ourselves? If we would be like Jesus, we would never “count the cost;” we would share Him with others, and without hesitation. Just think of what He has done for us: He gave His very life!

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,

John 3:1-7, “Now there was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews;

2 this man came to Jesus by night and said to Him, “Rabbi, we know that You have come from God as a teacher; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him.”

3 Jesus answered and said to him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.”

4 Nicodemus said to Him, “How can a man be born when he is old? He cannot enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born, can he?”

5 Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.

6 “That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.

7 “Do not be amazed that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’”

Have you ever heard someone ask, “What does it mean to be born again?” Had Nicodemus possessed Unger’s Bible Dictionary, he could have read: “The new birth is a creative life-giving operation of the Holy Spirit upon a lost human soul, whereby in response to faith in Christ crucified, the believing one, ‘dead in… trespasses and sins’ (Eph. 2:1), is quickened into spiritual life and made a partaker of the divine nature and of the life of Christ Himself.” Of course, Unger’s Bible Dictionary was not available in Nicodemus’ day. Nevertheless, Nicodemus had the supreme opportunity to speak directly to Jesus Himself! Jesus knew everything about the new birth.

There have been numerous ideas as to why Nicodemus would have visited Jesus at night. Possibly, he knew that Jesus was busy with scores of people during the day. It might also be that Nicodemus wanted to conceal his own identity, being that he was a “ruler of the Jews,” and thought to be already knowledgeable of all Biblical and spiritual things.

Jesus then demonstrated the difference between man’s natural and spiritual birth by saying: “That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.”

Whether Nicodemus ever accepted Jesus Christ as his Savior is unknown. We can only hope and trust that he did. More importantly, is whether you have accepted Him. And if you have, whether you have shared Him with others. Oh, by the way, it doesn’t have to be only at night.

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,

Psalm 40:1-5, “I waited patiently for the LORD; And He inclined to me and heard my cry.
2 He brought me up out of the pit of destruction, out of the miry clay, And He set my feet upon a rock making my footsteps firm.
3 He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God; Many will see and fear and will trust in the LORD.
4 How blessed is the man who has made the LORD his trust, And has not turned to the proud, nor to those who lapse into falsehood.
5 Many, O LORD my God, are the wonders which You have done, And Your thoughts toward us; There is none to compare with You. If I would declare and speak of them, they would be too numerous to count.”

There’s an old hymn that says,

“Count your blessings; name them one by one;
Count your blessings; see what God hath done;
Count your blessings; name them one by one;
And it will surprise you what the LORD has done.”

It’s so easy to lapse into self-pity. We look at what we lack and mourn. We focus on hope to the neglect of what we already possess. Watch the children! One has a delightful toy; the other does not. Yet, the one with the delightful toy focuses on the lesser toy, apparently because the other one has it. We look in amazement! Does the boy with the better toy not know that he has the better toy?

Ah, but it is demonstrated in adult life also. No matter what we have, we notice and long for what others have, despite the fact that what they have is often ultimately of lesser value. Call it “competition,” but it’s truly selfishness. It’s simply kids in an adult environment acting as they always have.

The Apostle Paul said, “I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am.” If things were good enough for the Apostle Paul, they are certainly good enough for you and me.

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