The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

Galatians 1:3-7, “Grace to you and peace from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ,

4 who gave Himself for our sins, that He might deliver us out of this present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father,

5 to whom be the glory forevermore. Amen.

6 I am amazed that you are so quickly deserting Him who called you by the grace of Christ, for a different gospel;

7 which is really not another; only there are some who are disturbing you, and want to distort the gospel of Christ.

We may not agree with all the aspects of the discipline of psychology, but Paul certainly utilized it unsparingly when he lovingly addressed those who had wandered from the faith. His love is wrapped up in the words “grace” and “peace” with which he commences this Letter to the Galatians.

The words “to you” carry the meaning of “to your advantage,” and that comes from the the Father through the Son. It was Jesus Christ, the Father’s “only begotten Son,” who became the Father’s Supreme Sacrifice for our sins.

Furthermore, our salvation was His purpose in order that He might rescue us from the ways of “this present evil age.” All of this is according to the will of God. Certainly, it is beneficial for us, but the major purpose of our salvation is to glorify God.

The news recently told of a father who died in the flames of his own house in his effort to rescue his son. Think about that. Who was ultimately hailed as the hero? It was the father. Heroes are those who offer and give their own lives in the rescue of those who cannot save themselves. A small boy phoned 911 in the effort to save his mother’s life. It was all he could do; he was a hero. Just ask his mom! How calous we are to know that the Father sent His Son to die for our sins, when we desert Him and turn back to our previous, evil lifestyle!

Paul is amazed that the Galatians were deserting the LORD for a different gospel (the King James Version uses the word “another” heteros –a gospel that is not of the kind that first brought them God’s salvation). Paul then goes on to say that gospel is really not “another” allos, meaning another of the same kind. He then adds that “there are some who are disburbing you and want to distort the

(true) Gospel of Christ.

There’s a lot that could be said here. The Galatians were a wild, on-again-off-again type of people. They jumped from one thought to another and seemed never to know that the two thoughts were opposites. Some pastors today prosper because they have congregations that will believe anything! Be very, very careful! If your pastor is personally a godly man and studies the Word and declares it

without equivocation, love him for his courageous (can I say heroic?) ministry. There’s a lot of bad teaching in churches today. Satan is on the prowl. The Galatians were affected by bad teaching. Many are suffering from it today.

Our prayers are with you all,

Nana & Dado III

(Rose Marie & Gene)

P.S. Rose Marie is scheduled for an angiogram on Wednesday. The surgeon hopes to be able to

insert a stent to enable the blood to flow properly. He is a Christian doctor, and we would

greatly appreciate your prayers for both of them.

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.”