The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

Matthew 26:69-75, “Now Peter was sitting outside in the courtyard, and a certain servant-girl came to him and said, “You too were with Jesus the Galilean.”

70 But he denied it before them all, saying, “I do not know what you are talking about.”

71 And when he had gone out to the gateway, another servant-girl saw him and said to those who were there, “This man was with Jesus of Nazareth.”

72 And again he denied it with an oath, “I do not know the man.”

73 And a little later the bystanders came up and said to Peter, “Surely you too are one of them; for the way you talk gives you away.”

74 Then he began to curse and swear, “I do not know the man!” And immediately a cock crowed.

75 And Peter remembered the word which Jesus had said, “Before a cock crows, you will deny Me three times.” And he went out and wept bitterly.

Whether we agree or disagree on anything often depends who is with us.

Peter was warming himself by a fire surrounded by men who were not of

his kind. Thus, when he was accused of being with Jesus, it was easier to

side with those around him than to tell the truth. Being in the wrong

company was Peter’s first mistake. When the second servant girl accused

him, he denied knowing Jesus, but the denial came a bit easier. When the

third accusation came, Peter denied even knowing Him; and he accompanied

the denial with cursing and swearing –probably, lapsing back into the language

of his pre-Christian life. Bad companions always produce bad language and bad

actions in us.

Silence is a form of denial, too. The failure to stand up for Jesus, even when

among non-believers, is denial. Sometimes we think silence is a form of escape.

If I don’t speak up, no one will know where I stand or what I believe, and I’ll not

be ridiculed for being a Christian. Sometimes silence is golden; sometimes

it’s yellow! Be sensitive to the Holy Spirit’s leadership. Speaking up may not

make you popular with some people, but who is the more important? Christ

Jesus gave His Life for us! He is our sole Authority! Always honor Him!

His Love in us produces our love for you,

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.”

Dear Grands,

Matthew 26:59-65, “Now the chief priests and the whole Council kept trying to obtain false testimony against Jesus, in order that they might put Him to death;

60 and they did not find any, even though many false witnesses came forward. But later on two came forward,

61 and said, “This man stated, ‘I am able to destroy the temple of God and to rebuild it in three days.'”

62 And the high priest stood up and said to Him, “Do You make no answer? What is it that these men are testifying against You?”

63 But Jesus kept silent. And the high priest said to Him, “I adjure You by the living God, that You tell us whether You are the Christ, the Son of God.”

64 Jesus said to him, “You have said it yourself; nevertheless I tell you, hereafter you shall see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of Power, and coming on the clouds of heaven.”

65 Then the high priest tore his robes, saying, “He has blasphemed! What further need do we have of witnesses? Behold, you have now heard the blasphemy…”

Years ago there was a radio game show called Truth or Consequences. It was a

humorous show, asking contestants questions that were designed to produce

false answers, so consequences could be played out on the contestants. Something

like this was worked against Jesus –only there was nothing humorous in it. The

“religious leaders” simply wanted Him out of the way. His message was Truth, and

truth hindered their position and practices. These “religious” leaders were actually

looking for false witnesses to testify against Jesus. Remember Jezebel? She found

“two worthless men” to testify against Naboth (1Kings 21:10ff). The Law required

two witnesses, which is why she and Jesus’ adversaries required two.

Be careful! Everything you hear is not the truth. Well then, how do we know

when what we hear or read or are taught is or is not the truth? Everything false

always goes against Scripture! It may be “clouded” by law (e.g., abortion); it may

have been “legal” for a long time; but if it runs counter to Scripture, it is false!

All truly born-again Christians are indwelled by the Holy Spirit. He awakens us

against false teachings when we are living in the Word of God and being sensitive

to the Spirit’s alarms. There also may be times when you are alone in the stand

against evil. Don’t worry about that! Don’t worry about what others think! Do what

is right in the sight of the LORD. He and He alone is our ultimate Authority!

Our love for you drives our prayers for you,

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.”

Dear Grands,

Matthew 25:1-13, “Then the kingdom of heaven will be comparable to ten virgins, who took their lamps, and went out to meet the bridegroom.

2 “And five of them were foolish, and five were prudent.

3 “For when the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them,

4 but the prudent took oil in flasks along with their lamps.

5 “Now while the bridegroom was delaying, they all got drowsy and began to sleep.

6 “But at midnight there was a shout, ‘Behold, the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.’

7 “Then all those virgins rose, and trimmed their lamps.

8 “And the foolish said to the prudent, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’

9 “But the prudent answered, saying, ‘No, there will not be enough for us and you too; go instead to the dealers and buy some for yourselves.’

10 “And while they were going away to make the purchase, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding feast; and the door was shut.

11 “And later the other virgins also came, saying, ‘Lord, lord, open up for us.’

12 “But he answered and said, ‘Truly I say to you, I do not know you.’

13 “Be on the alert then, for you do not know the day nor the hour.

Did anyone ever shut a door on you? Why would anyone do that? Why are doors

ever shut? Pretty easy to say, isn’t it? A door serves two purposes: it keeps out

people who are not wanted; and it keeps safely people who are on the inside. The

Old Testament Scriptures speak of opening and closing doors more than 240 times.

(Noah (Gen 6); Lot (Gen 19); Ehud (Jud. 3); Samuel (1 Sam 3) opened the doors;

Amnon ( 2 Sam 13) lock the door; Elisha (2 Kng 4 & 6 & 9) shut the door; Ahaz (2 Chr 28

& 29) closed & opened the doors; Nehemiah (Neh 6 & 7) close the doors; bolt the doors;

Esther (Est 6 & 7) close…bolt the doors; and many, many others.)

In our verses for today, Jesus is talking about His return. He is the Bridegroom. The

Church is His bride. Some have oil in their lamps: they are ready for His Coming! Others

lack oil: they are not ready for His Coming. As with the door to Noah’s ark, the door of Christ’s Coming was then shut. Those on the inside of the door are secure –they were ready for His Coming. Those on the outside of the door were not ready and will be left behind for judgment.

Our Junior Choir at church used to sing:

One door and only one,

And yet its sides are two;

Inside and outside,

On which side are you?

One door and only one,

And yet its sides are two;

I’m on the inside

On which side are you?

Those of us on the inside can rejoice; still, we have an obligation to

reach those, who do not know Him as LORD and Savior. Maybe the

attachment to this letter will help you to help others. The Internet

is a useful avenue for sharing the Gospel. God bless you!

We love you and pray daily for you,

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.”

Dear Grands,

Matthew 24:43-46, “But be sure of this, that if the head of the house had known at what time of the night the thief was coming, he would have been on the alert and would not have allowed his house to be broken into.

44 “For this reason you be ready too; for the Son of Man is coming at an hour when you do not think He will.

45 “Who then is the faithful and sensible slave whom his master put in charge of his household to give them their food at the proper time?

46 “Blessed is that slave whom his master finds so doing when he comes.”

Jesus often spoke to His disciples in parables. A parable (????????, parabole) is

an illustration, a story, “thrown alongside” to clarify the meaning of the message He

was giving.

Over the years, Nana and I have entertained many people in our home. Some were

Missionaries, some were quite notable and important in their Christian responsibilities.

When we knew they were coming (which was most of the time), we made preparations.

The house was cleaned, food had been purchased for meals, and we were dressed

properly for their visits.

In the verses above (and in this entire 24TH chapter), Jesus was speaking about His Coming again. If you knew that a thief were coming to your house to rob you, you would be alert to stop him, wouldn’t you? Of course! Well, Jesus is coming; and while no one knows when, we are cautioned to be alert and ready for His coming. We were saved when we believed upon Him, and He has assigned us the responsibility of making Him known to others. We all have different secular occupations, but we have the common

responsibility to tell others about Him and lead them to spiritual and eternal salvation.

Not everyone will respond as we would like. We are not responsible for whether they accept Him; but we are responsible to share His Message of salvation with them. When will He come? No one knows exactly the day or the hour; but He IS coming! So, be ready! It could be today!

We love and pray for each of you every day,

Nana & Dado III

P. S. We had an early doctor visit yesterday. That’s why there

was no Grands’ Letter.

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas

“We never know that God is all we need

until He becomes all that we have.”

Dear Grands,

Matthew 20:1-15, “For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard.

2 “And when he had agreed with the laborers for a denarius for the day, he sent them into his vineyard.

3 “And he went out about the third hour and saw others standing idle in the market place;

4 and to those he said, ‘You too go into the vineyard, and whatever is right I will give you.’ And so they went.

5 “Again he went out about the sixth and the ninth hour, and did the same thing.

6 “And about the eleventh hour he went out, and found others standing; and he said to them, ‘Why have you been standing here idle all day long?’

7 “They said to him, ‘Because no one hired us.’ He said to them, ‘You too go into the vineyard.’

8 “And when evening had come, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, ‘Call the laborers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last group to the first.’

9 “And when those hired about the eleventh hour came, each one received a denarius.

10 “And when those hired first came, they thought that they would receive more; and they also received each one a denarius.

11 “And when they received it, they grumbled at the landowner,

12 saying, ‘These last men have worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden and the scorching heat of the day.’

13 “But he answered and said to one of them, ‘Friend, I am doing you no wrong; did you not agree with me for a denarius?

14 ‘Take what is yours and go your way, but I wish to give to this last man the same as to you.

15 ‘Is it not lawful for me to do what I wish with what is my own? Or is your eye envious because I am generous?’”

I know I’ve given you a longer-than-usual passage. The substance demands it.

All of us have at some time been envious of others. We argue in our minds that

“we were here first” or “we’ve been here longer” or “we’ve done better work” –the list goes on. There are numerous applications of this parable, but the overriding point is that the one who is paying for labor is fundamentally in charge.

I’ve been by-passed for situations for which I reckoned I was more worthy than the fellows who were chosen. Was I treated unfairly? At the moment, I thought so; but in the long run, I was wrong. How does that figure? For one, it was not my business to determine what the other person needed and whether I could do the job. For another, the LORD is always in charge! Had He determined that someone else was better suited for the situation, who was I to challenge Him or His “fairness”?

Nothing I could use to argue for my being better than another could prevail. I am HIS servant. He is my LORD! He always does what is right! I’ve had to learn to trust Him implicitly! And in my years of doing His work, He has never failed to supply my needs. May you learn this early; it will protect you from the bitterness that selfishness produces.

We love you; Jesus loves you more,

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.”