The Grands Letter

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 Him 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 marvel that I said to you, “You must be born again.”’’”

When you’re popular, everyone wants to get to you. They want to shake your hand; they want

to have their picture taken with you; they want to ask a question. This was Jesus’ position in

the days He spent on the Earth. There are a variety of opinions why Nicodemus came to Jesus

by night. The one that best fits, as far as I’m concerned, is that night was when the rabbis did their

studying; and when a teacher is in his “study mood,” it’s the best time to ask him questions.

Nicodemus was a noted member of the Jewish Sanhedrin. He was an expert in Jewish law, and

He was arguably the richest man in Jerusalem. He had obviously been impressed with Jesus’

teachings and miraculous signs. His question seems to simply ask, “Who are you, really?”

Jesus cut to the chase: “…unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.”

Nicodemus understood physical birth, but of what he had never heard was this “born again.”

“How does that work?” he asked. “How does a grown man re-enter his own mother’s womb

and be born again?” Jesus’ replied that one must be born “of water and the Spirit.” He uses

the parallel of the natural birth (water birth) with the spiritual birth. Literally, the Greek word

(anothen) means “from above.”

That’s not news to you (I know whose on this list!), but it’s news to many we know. A lot of

people think they’re “Christians,” who are not. Not being a Muslim or a Hindoo does not make

you a Christian. A true Christian is one who has come to Christ in believing faith and been

“born from above.” Now, those of us who are have a great responsibility to share our faith

with those who are not. Pray for them. Seek them out like Nicodemus did Jesus. The Spirit

will give you the words to say.

We love you and pray for you every day,

Nana & Dado III

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas

“We never know that God is all we need

until He becomes all that we have.”