The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

Colossians 2:13-15, “And when you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions,

14 having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us and which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.

15 When He had disarmed the rulers and authorities, He made a public display of them, having triumphed over them through Him.”

Death is rarely a good word. I say, “rarely,” because there are instances where it is preferable to suffering. Still, death is of various kinds. It can relate to the lack of freedom. It can mean a forever loss of seeing or hearing. In its usage above, it relates to sin –the involvement of activities that debase the LORD’s intention for us as His created beings.

When we trangress the Laws of God, intentionally or otherwise, we display a spiritual deadness within ourselves. It is so, because Christ alone can and does make us “alive together with Him.” His Life replaces our deadness, when we confess (agree) that we have sin and ask Him to erase it and fill us with new meaning and purpose and love.

In ancient times, personal debts were displayed publicly for all to see. But when a debt was paid-in-full, a spike was

driven through the display for all to see as well. Mankind is indebted to Almighty God for having transgressed His Law. That debt –our debt—was so weighty that it could seemingly never be paid. Therefore, the LORD Jesus Christ Himself offered to pay our debt by simply forgiving it. The Father then allowed men’s spikes to pierce His hands, so that they and we might be forgiven. What stood against our fellowship with God, “He has taken…out of the way” through the death of His Son, Jesus the Messiah.

Those demons (“rulers and authorities”) that plagued us, can plague us no longer! They are forever disarmed! Their power that held and bound us to sin no longer has its strength! What’s more, our LORD’s “public display” of the

death of His Son, encourages those still captive to know they can be free! A serious and complete confession of sin,

and an honest, faithful acceptance of Christ’s death for that sin, drives a stake in the public newsboard that He has

paid our debt. Paid in full, it need never be paid again. Have your sins been forgiven? Only the Hands of Jesus, pierced with Roman spikes can avail for your sin. You can be born anew! Born again! Born from Above! It is triumphant! And then you can teach others of Him.

Heartily in Christ Jesus,

(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.”