The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

1 Corinthians 15:58, “Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable,

always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord.”

Have you ever been puzzled by verses in the Bible? I certainly have. And the verse

above was one that, as a kid, I had great difficulty understanding. Steadfast and

immovable seemed to be much the same, but then Paul says “always abounding.”

If you’re standing still, how can you be abounding at the same time? I knew there

could be no contradiction. After all, this was the Word of God. But, for a long time,

I simply could not figure it out.

When difficulties like that occur, it is always good to take a closer look at the individual

words. So, let’s unpack them and see what exactly Paul meant.

The word steadfast means to be “firmly settled in your thinking about what you believe.”

Immovable means not to allow anyone to unsettle you or mix you up in your spiritual beliefs.

Neither of these words have to do with your physical position; both are to be spiritually understood.

Abounding means overflowing, surpassing the normal, always increasing as to the work of

the LORD. Work means the practical manifestation, the open proof of what you profess to be

the beliefs the LORD has given us in His Word. It’s good to have the truth of God in your

mind, but to do His full work we must demonstrate outwardly what we believe.

The encouragement this verse gives us is that nothing He gives us to do that will glorify Him

is ever in vain or worthless or without result. He does not guarantee that we will always see

the results of our witness, but they will be there to be revealed in eternity.

Years ago in Mexico, I learned of a man, who had “come to the end of his rope.” He took off

his shirt, climbed to the top of a barrier overlooking a river and was about to jump to his death,

when he felt a piece of paper hit his chest. Being curious, he climbed down from the raining and

read the paper. It was a gospel tract, written and published by someone he never knew; but

the message gave him hope. And on that day he came to faith in Jesus Christ. All of those

who produced that tract had worked; and none of it was in vain. So, work and be encouraged!

You are daily in our prayers,

Nana & Dado III

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas 72764

United States of America

“We never know that God is all we need

until He becomes all that we have.”