The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

James 3:6-10, “And the tongue is a fire, the very world of iniquity; the tongue is set among our members as that which defiles the entire body, and sets on fire the course of our life, and is set on fire by hell.

7 For every species of beasts and birds, of reptiles and creatures of the sea, is tamed, and has been tamed by the human race.

8 But no one can tame the tongue; it is a restless evil and full of deadly poison.

9 With it we bless our Lord and Father; and with it we curse men, who have been made in the likeness of God;

10 from the same mouth come both blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not to be this way.”

Did your mother ever give you a “tongue lashing”? Well, mine did! What’s more, it hurt more than that willow switch, but in a different way. James has already given us a thrashing in 3:1-5; now, he lays it on us with even more ferocity! His tongue is telling us about ours! He says the tongue is a fire of iniquity! We can sin with our eyes, with our hands, even with our ears; but the tongue –your tongue and mine—ruins our lives and others, body and soul, and finds its origin in Hell itself! Wow! That’s heavy!!

Virtually everything else in life can be tamed and controlled, but not the tongue! It restless in that it wants to spout out words, often to the hurt of others. And there’s yet another aspect of the tongue that’s even worse: that same tongue that

is utilized in praying to the LORD (which is good), is tuilized in cursing men (which is not good) –men who have been created in the likeness of God! We can understand the vileness of a lost person’s speech. But when saved men and women, whose lives have ostensibly been committed to the LORD Jesus Christ, when they use their tongues to pray lovingly to God on the one hand, and simultaneously curse their fellowmen on the other, that’s too much! God is not pleased with that!

So before the LORD Himself gives you (and me!) a “tongue lashing,” we had better get a grip on our tongues! When was the last time you earnestly prayed to the LORD? And when was the last time you spoke scathingly to someone else? Who was behind what you said? Prayer won’t work in a situation like that! The LORD knows when we are consistently clean and faithful, and when we are not. Believe me, HE alone can control your tongue! When He does, you will begin to get answers to your prayers.

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.”

Dear Grands,

James 3:1-5, “Let not many of you become teachers, my brethren, knowing that as such we shall incur a stricter judgment.

2 For we all stumble in many ways. If anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to bridle the whole body as well.

3 Now if we put the bits into the horses’ mouths so that they may obey us, we direct their entire body as well.

4 Behold, the ships also, though they are so great and are driven by strong winds, are still directed by a very small rudder, wherever the inclination of the pilot desires.

5 So also the tongue is a small part of the body, and yet it boasts of great things. Behold, how great a forest is set aflame by such a small fire!”

James begins this chapter with a stern and valuable caution! Believe me, I am paying close attention, too. But why would he say that to teachers? Because teachers have a proclivity to behave as if they know what they’re saying. If they don’t know what they’re saying, why are they in a position that says that they do? Further, those who listen to teachers,

accept that the teachers know what they are saying, whether or not they do. So, if the teacher misinterprets what he teaches, his listeners will never come to rightly understand the subject. Being a teacher is a huge responsibility!

James further emphasizes that none are perfect, even if they are teachers. Thus, they must submit to discipline. He then uses several illustrations from practical, everyday life. Bits are placed in horses’ mouths to force them to obey their riders. Ships have rudders that guide them when strong winds would carry them off course. The human tongue is very small when compared to other body parts, but it’s often boastful and causes difficulties like small fires cause in forests.

The tongue is controlled by the mind; and the mind is controlled by the Spirit. I’ve always been a “talker!” My mother said that I talked before I walked. I honestly believe that it is the LORD’s gift –but it must be under the Holy Spirit’s control or it can be my greatest curse! There is a time and an opportunity for everything. Just as I completed writing that last underscored line, my watch signaled me that it was time to “breathe.” Since I was talking about submission, I stopped and did a breathing exercise. I don’t know what my watch knows about my breathing, but if I cannot submit to little mechanical things, I will never learn to submit to the Voice of my LORD. Take a tip from a talker: Don’t talk too much! Listen to the Holy Spirit! If you’re not prepared for a task, don’t undertake it! Get prepared! Share only what you know. Be cautious as to whom you listen! Check everything out with the Spirit of the LORD Jesus Christ. He makes NO mistakes!

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.”

Dear Grands,

Titus 3:1-5, “Remind them to be subject to rulers, to authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good deed,

2 to malign no one, to be uncontentious, gentle, showing every consideration for all men.

3 For we also once were foolish ourselves, disobedient, deceived, enslaved to various lusts and pleasures, spending our life in malice and envy, hateful, hating one another.

4 But when the kindness of God our Savior and His love for mankind appeared,

5 He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit…”

When I’m reading a passage of Scripture, I like to outline it. Outlining is like seeing the bones without the flesh. Often it helps in understanding the passage as a whole. This passage outlines like this:

1. Instruction given (vv. 1-2)

2. Confession made (v. 3)

3. Transformation occurs (vv 4-5).

It’s always best to commence with the positives. Keep your atttitude positive. Show respect to those who are in authority. I once an author overseas. A friend kindly introduced us; but I had to add that I had read his book, but didn’t find anything with which I could agree. STOP!!! Not the right thing to say. While it was the truth, it flew in the face of Paul’s positive instructions.

Then, in verse 3, Paul cites things he had done that he ought not to have done. (This is where my comment on the man’s book should be found –if it needed to be referenced at all.) Paul’s mention of negatives in his past life has the purpose of drawing a picture of what he once was in variance to what he is at the time of writing. In other words, he was saying, “I know what you are and what you’ve done because that’s how I was and lived before I met Jesus Christ.”

*Notice that Paul says less about what he was then, than he does about what he is now because of Christ.

The ultimate emphasis is on what Christ Jesus did to and for him and that it is all Christ’s doing, not his own!

Thus, the glory all goes to the LORD! We who know Him have been saved, spiritually washed, forgiven of our past indulgences and made spiritually new and indwelled by the Holy Spirit. It is He who will keep us on the right path and keep our attitudes soft, but positive regarding what the LORD can and will do!

Please don’t ever give up! Even as a saved person, you won’t live totally outside of sin. But, that will require you to seek continual forgiveness. When you’re hungry, you keep going back for food. When you sin, you keep asking the LORD for forgiveness. Each time, however, He will give you added strength until you conquer that transgression! This happens to me on a daily basis! And I’ve been a Christian for 77 years! Surprised? Stay in the Word (Bible) daily! Pray specifically and often! The LORD wants to know that you are serious about being a true Christian.

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.”

Dear Grands,

Titus 2:11-14, “For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men,

12 instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age,

13 looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus;

14 who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself a people for His own possession, zealous for good deeds.”

The theme of Paul’s letter to Titus is “God’s Ideal.” Earlier in his letter, Paul laid down the principles of righteousness that were required of those who were to hold leading positions in the Church. Here in these verses he sums up how all believers are to live, what they are to do, and why they are to do it. Paul does not take for granted that all believers live as they ought to live, but cites how we are to be to the praise and glory of the LORD Jesus Christ.

It is by God’s grace alone that we have (or can have) salvation. Once saved, we must then turn 180 degrees away from all ungodliness and worldliness and live to the pattern of Christ Jesus Himself. “But it’s hard,” you say. Yes, it is; but it is not impossible! Keep “looking for the blessed hope,” the coming of our LORD Jesus Christ. He died as the Sacrifice for our sins –something He alone could do! Trusting Him to forgive us, He then redeems us (literally, buys us back) and purifies us for Himself. We then become His personal possession, and we become excited to be and live zealously the

way the LORD desires.

It should be said here that the Cretans were arguably the toughest and most ungodly people on Earth at that time. Titus was charged with a monumental task. His abilities alone were not enough. He needed to rely fully and completely on the LORD for his strength and wisdom. So it is with us. We live in a tough and ungodly era of life. We have problems that world leaders seem impossible to solve. Only those who know and live as born-again believers in Christ are capable of turning our world around. Keep your eyes on the LORD! Listen to the indwelling Holy Spirit. And charge ahead with the confidence the LORD is ever and always with you. He never fails!

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.”

Dear Grands,

2 Corinthians 13:5-6, “Test yourselves to see if you are in the faith; examine yourselves! Or do you not recognize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you– unless indeed you fail the test?

6 But I trust that you will realize that we ourselves do not fail the test.”

The last letter I wrote to you dealt with “transcripts” –spiritual transcripts. This letter deals with the test that led to that transcript. .At first thought, it may seem to you that I have things backwards. Normally, the test comes first; then, if we pass the test, we get the transcript. But, in defense of myself I must call to your attention that I am following Paul’s own order. The transcript is found in chapter 11, the test in chapter 13.

If you’re “normal,” –and I’m sure that you are! – there are times that you wonder if you’re really and truly saved. Such feelings are normal, because Paul himself said “Test yourselves to see if you are in the faith…” The Corinthian Church had innumerable problems! There were a lot of false teachers that had led to their confusion. There are a lot of false teachers today that cause the same kind of confusion. Barnes says, “Faith in Jesus Christ, and in the promises of God through Him, is one of the distinguishing characteristics of a true Christian; and to ascertain whether we have any true faith, therefore, is to ascertain whether we are sincere Christians.”

What we need is to recognize that upon our repentance of our sin against God, and our belief and trust in His saving grace, Christ comes to live within us in the Person of the Holy Spirit. “But, how do I know He lives in me?” you ask.

Barnes has a method that should kick-starts the test for us all. He says, “The best way to prove our (life is in Christ) is to subject it to actual trials in the various duties and responsibilites of life. A man who wishes to prove an axe to see whether it is good or not, does not sit down and look at it, or read all the treatises which he can find on axe-making, and on the properties of iron and steel, valuable as such information would be; but he shoulders his axe and goes into the woods, and puts it to the trial there. If it cuts well; if it does not break; if it is not soon made dull, he understands the quality of his axe better than he could in any other way. So if a man wishes to know what his (faith) is worth, let him try it in the places where (faith) is of value.”

So, I conclude this letter by saying with Paul, “I trust that you will realize that I have not failed the test.” And I trust that you have not failed it, either. Be alert that the Holy Spirit is in you and with you at all times. The LORD will allow you to be tested, and He will exert His power through you in the midst of the test. God bless you! You will not fail because He never fails!

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.”