The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

John 3:1, “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.’”

It doesn’t matter who a person is or what his social standing may be,

he doesn’t know everything. Nicodemus was reportedly the wealthiest

man in Israel and the “Chief Justice” of the Jewish Sanhedrin, their

Supreme Court. When you have a problem or a question, it is wise to

seek the best source of information. He did. He went to Jesus. ~ There

have been several speculations as to why he went to Jesus by night.

The best, so far as I am concerned, is that he knew night time was

when rabbis did their studying. Notice, too, that Nicodemus never

really got to ask his question, a question Jesus already knew. So He

said, “If anyone is not born from above (??????), he is not able to

behold the kingdom of God.” Thus, the nicest, richest, most likeable,

most generous, well-spoken person cannot get to Heaven without

being born from Above. This means that all individuals need our

prayers and witness of Jesus Christ.

We thank the LORD for you all every day! Pray for us, too.

Nana & Dado III

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas

Dear Grands,

John 1:51, “And He said to him, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you,

you shall see the heavens opened, and the angels of God

ascending and descending on the Son of Man.’”

There is a saying that says,

The Old is in the New revealed;

The New is in the Old concealed.

This verse opens and validates that truth. Nathaniel had

just testified to Jesus’ deity. His testimony was based upon

Jesus having said that He had seen Nathaniel under the fig

tree before Philip had called him. Jesus then said that he

would see “greater things than these.” It was then that Jesus

spoke the words in our verse for today. But, what was so

special about it? To understand John 1:51, we need to go

back to Genesis 28:12 where Jacob had a dream and saw

a ladder that reached from Earth to Heaven. The angels

of the LORD were ascending and descending upon that

ladder. Now, in the New Testament, Jesus reveals the

true and full meaning of Jacob’s Ladder. He Himself is

that Ladder, and the way to Heaven is through Him alone!

There are many truths in the Old Testament that are

mysteries until they are revealed in the New Testament.

The Book of Revelation is just one of those mysteries.

So, “Seek from the book of the LORD, and read…” (Isa. 34:16).

Merry CHRISTmas to each and all of you!

Nana & Dado III

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas

Dear Grands & All,

A further word about the gifts of the magi in Matthew 2:11…

Ellicott’s Commentary, which is admittedly my first reach, says,

“Gold, and frankincense, and myrrh.—These were natural enough as the traditional gifts of homage to a ruler. Compare the gifts sent by Jacob to Joseph (Genesis 43:11 ), and Psalms 45:8 , for the myrrh and spices; Psalms 72:15 , for the gold; Isaiah 60:6 , for gold and incense. The patristic interpretation of the gifts as significant—the gold, of kingly power; the incense, of Divinity; the myrrh, of death and embalmment…”

Nave’s Topical Bible adds,

“Frankincense

• An ingredient of the sacred oil (Ex 30:34)

• Used with showbread (Le 24:7)

• Used with meat offerings (Le 2:1,2,15,16 6:15)

• Prohibited, in sin offerings when they consist of turtledoves or pigeons (Le 5:11)

• In making an offering of memorial (Nu 5:15)

• A perfume (So 3:6)

• Commerce in (Re 18:11-13)

• Used as an incense (Isa 43:23 60:6 66:3 Jer 6:20).”

All of this notwithstanding, we must never forget that Jesus Christ is ALIVE,

and promises to Return for us, His Church! Thus we must not be found

spiritually asleep, but awake and alert to His Coming!

We love you all and hold you in our prayers daily,

Nana & Dado III

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas

Importance:High

Dear Grands,

John 1:31-34

31 “I did not recognize Him, but so that He might be manifested to Israel, I came baptizing in water.”

32 John testified saying, ‘I have seen the Spirit descending as a dove out of heaven, and He remained upon Him. 33 ‘I did not recognize Him, but He who sent me to baptize in water said to me, “He upon whom you see the Spirit descending and remaining upon Him, this is the One who baptizes in the Holy Spirit.”

34 “I myself have seen, and have testified that this is the Son of God.”

Everything in the Word of God is important. Yet, sometimes we read it so rapidly

or carelessly that we overlook some very meaningful truths. This is one of those

passages. It used to give me trouble. John the Baptist was six months older than

Jesus, yet he says, “I did not recognize Him…” Yet, haven’t we all known someone

whom we haven’t seen for some time and found them looking different than we

remembered? What’s still important about this passage is that despite John’s

failure to recognize Jesus, he kept on with what the Spirit had told him. The LORD

only uses those who are busy in His work! We don’t always have to know everything

about what we’re doing; we just have to keep on doing what we were told to do.

Before Paul and Barnabus were tapped by the Holy Spirit to become missionaries,

they were “ministering to the LORD” (Acts 13:2). It seems that the LORD never

uses people who are idle. The ancient directive holds true until we are given new

marching orders (Eccl. 9:10). So, remain vigilant and active in what you know to do

until He nudges you to do something else. Just keep reading and telling people

about Jesus.

We love you all more than you’ll ever know,

Nana & Dado III

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas

Dearest Grands,

John 1:29, “The next day he saw Jesus coming to him and said,

‘Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!’”

Announcements always stir our emotions. If we are anticipating

something that comes true, we are joyfully excited! If we are

anticipating something that does not come true, we are devastated!

One instance comes to mind: As a young evangelist, I was invited

to conduct a crusade in the only Southern Baptist Church in Gary,

Indiana!! WOW! I was excited beyond what you would believe.

But, then came another announcement: for some reason I never

knew, the church rescinded the invitation. Announcements, good

or bad, always stir our emotions. ~ The announcement that John the

Baptist made was positive and has never been rescinded: Look and

Listen: this Man is the Son of God! What’s His activity? He’s here

to take away the sin that pollutes and drags us down! What’s the

extent of His activity? It includes the whole world! ~ An old song

comes to mind…

Look and live, my brother, live!

Look to Jesus now and live!

‘Tis recorded in His Word, Hallelujah!

It is only that your look and live.

We are alive because of Jesus! Let’s keep sharing this Great

Announcement! Some folks have yet to hear and heed.

Love you all immensely,

Nana & Dado III

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas