The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

2 Corinthians 6:1-3, “And working together with Him, we also urge you not to receive the grace of God in vain–

2 for He says, ‘At the acceptable time I listened to you, And on the day of salvation I helped you’; behold, now is

‘the acceptable time,’ behold, now is ‘the day of salvation’ —

3 giving no cause for offense in anything, in order that the ministry be not discredited…”

In my travels, I have sometimes been given personal gifts. I have never sought for such things, but have accepted

them when it became evident that to have refused would have been to have offended the giver. People in far-away

countries are often more genuinely pleased with giving than those of us in the west are with receiving. That being said,

I have always treated their gifts as priceless, regardless of their inate value.

Paul has precisely this in his thinking when he urges us “not to receive the grace of God in vain.” We are to treat the

LORD’s grace as “priceless” and “beyond all value.” He only wants us to treat His grace as beyond any price. You

cried out for deliverence from sin, He says, and I came to your rescue. Now, it’s time for you to listen to Me: this is

the day of salvation! Further, He admonishes us, as recipients of His saving grace, not to discredit it in the eyes of

the world or in the eyes of the church, by being offensive. We are neither to offend others by a lack of love, nor are

we to ignore them and their need of salvation.

Our habits, our appearance, our language, our attitude –can all be offensive to others. If we are offensive without

knowing it, we should move quickly to correct ourselves. But, we should never ignore the needs of others by justifying

what we do or say. We are the LORD’s children! And when we display ourselves otherwise, we discredit Him! His

personal gift of salvation should be treated with even greater respect than the “things” that people give us. Their gifts,

however humanly precious, do not compare with what the LORD has given us in and through His saving grace.

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 5:19-21, “God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against

them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation.

20Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were entreating through us; we beg you on behalf of

Christ, be reconciled to God.

21 He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”

The one thing you don’t need me to say in this Letter is that our entire world has gone amuck! Everyday’s news informs us of notorious murders, rapes, thefts and hate of virtually everything some group does that another group does – all leading to violence, the likes of which are so vile that we will not describe them here.

In addition to the avalanche coming from the world around us, mainline churches are slipping away from the Truths of Scripture, often siding with those very sins the Scriptures condemn. Pastors are guilty of embezzling funds from their churches, engaging in sexual relations within and outside their churches. When leaders abandon the principles of holiness, the very “spiritual” organizations commissioned to share the Gospel, fall themselves into wanton practices.

The Reconciliation of the world to God is only possible through His Son, the LORD Jesus Christ. We, who recognize our own sins and repent of them toward God, reconnect with God spiritually and begin to demonstrate a holy lifestyle. Jesus paid for our sins by dying on the cross. When we accept Him we are instantly commissioned as ambassadors for Christ, sharing in love the Good News of Jesus’ death for our redemption. No matter how vile a person’s sin, He cleanses and accepts all who turn away from it and embrace Jesus as their LORD and Savior.

Pictorially, we live in a glorious world! It is polluted for living, however, by the wanton lifestyles of sinful men and women. You can help change our world by turning from sin and accepting Jesus as your LORD and Savior. And those of you who have already trusted in Him –you can help clean up the world’s polution by witnessing to those who have not yet accepted Jesus. There’s a big scare on right now concerning the coronavirus that’s quickly spreading worldwide. We cannot ignore such physical factors, but we would do well to think spiritually and help clean our world

of utter sinfulness! I’m trying to help. Will you help me by telling others about Jesus Christ? Pray for the lost and the saved. We all need our LORD’s strength and power! He will bless you abundantly!

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,

1 Samuel 12:2b-4, “I am old and gray, and behold my sons are with you. And I have walked before you from my youth

even to this day.

3 “Here I am; bear witness against me before the LORD and His anointed. Whose ox have I taken, or whose donkey

have I taken, or whom have I defrauded? Whom have I oppressed, or from whose hand have I taken a bribe to blind

my eyes with it? I will restore it to you.”

4 And they said, “You have not defrauded us, or oppressed us, or taken anything from any man’s hand.”

“I want to live my life so there will be no regrets.” I remember hearing those words from the finest Christian I have

ever known. Twelve simple words that encompass what it means to come to the end of life and be ready to meet the LORD.

The prophet Samuel was nearing the end of his life, and his life survey revealed nothing of which he was ashamed.

He had indeed walked with the LORD before the people from the days of his youth. His mother brought him as a young boy to the then-prophet Eli. And from that day forward Samuel faithfully served the LORD.

I have stolen nothing from anyone; I have not defrauded or oppressed anyone or taken a single bribe in judgment, Samuel said. And the people unanimously agreed. He was a pure man, who stood ready to face the LORD and account for how he lived his life. Moreover, the people agreed and took an oath before the LORD to that effect.

Those who cannot in good faith say of themselves what Samuel said, will one day find themselves unprepared to face the LORD God. Yet, we must all stand before God and give account of whether we have accepted His Son, Jesus. Beyond accepting Jesus Christ, we will also have to give account of how we lived. Did we live for Him? Did we yield out lives to Him and be and do all that He commanded us to be and do?

What is your life like? If you were called to meet Him before you concluded reading this Letter, would you be prepared? There’s an old hymn that comes to mind that helps to guide us:

Trust and obey,

For there’s no other way

To be happy in Jesus,

But to trust and obey.

Stay in the Word of God, the Bible, daily! Stay with Him in prayer, throughout the day! Walk where He leads, and He will shield you from evil and give you His Words to speak. God bless you! You are in my daily 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,

Revelation 3:11, “I am coming quickly; hold fast what you have…”

Revelation 22:7, 12, 20, “And behold, I am coming quickly. Blessed is he who heeds the words of the

Prophecy of this book…. Behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to render to

Every man according to what he has done…. He who testifies to these things says, ‘Yes, I am

Coming quickly.’ Amen. Come, LORD Jesus.”

When a crisis occurs and you have need for help, it’s not likely that you will engage the dispatcher on

the phone in a lot of “chit-chat” before getting out the meaningful word — HELP!!! Urgency compels us

to take as little time as possible. You may not even notice the calmness in the dispatcher’s voice. But,

she (they are usually ladies) is, nevertheless, very concerned to get you the help that you need. Name,

address, situation requiring help (fire or robbery, etc.) – all require very few words. Yet, you are likely

to repeat the important words several times: friend, child, not breathing, ambulance, hurry!

That being true of us in an emergent situation, we should not be surprised at the LORD’s use of the word

“quickly” four times in only four verses. And the situation of which He speaks is infinitely more urgent

than any call that we might ever initiate for physical help.

Jesus has completed His task on Earth and has departed to Heaven where He resides with His Father.

Yet, He has not gone forever. He has promised repeatedly that He will come again. In a recent discussion

with a friend concerning how quickly the world seems to be rushing toward its own end and destruction,

it occurred to me that this same “Coming,” of which Jesus spoke, was heard by people a century ago.

As we move through time at what seems to be a milisecond pace, we come closer and closer to the ultimate

end.

“Quickly…quickly…quickly…quickly!” Do you sense the urgency of our LORD’s reminder? At the same time,

He has given us the prophecy of which He speaks. They are contained in His Word, the Holy Scriptures. He

also has an award He is going to bestow upon every one who has done what was laid before him. It might be

reverently referred to as a “spiritual scavenger hunt.” We who have accepted Him as our LORD and Savior

are to be fervently seeking the lost and presenting them with the Gospel of Peace. Are you doing that? Or are

you mired down in the muck of things of lesser value? No eternal reward for that. Are you a true, born-again

believer in Jesus? Quickly accept Jesus as you Savior! Quckly reach out to the lost! Quickly share the Word

with them! Quickly! Quickly! For “night is coming, when no man can work” (John 9:4).

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,

John 16:13-14, “But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak

on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come.

14″He shall glorify Me; for He shall take of Mine, and shall disclose it to you.”

Don’t you hate to see people leave when you have enjoyed their visit? As a child, I can remember hating to see people go. “Can’t you stay a little longer?” I would ask hopefully. “Couldn’t you catch a later bus? I don’t want you to go…”

Jesus ministry was nearing its end. And His disciples felt just like that about His departure. In some ways, I think He would have liked to have stayed. But, remember His Words, “I do always those things that please the Him (the Father”) (Jn 8:29). He had come for the Father’s purpose, and that purpose had been fulfilled. Now, it’s time for Him to return to the Father.

What will the disciples do, being left all alone? Oh, but they’re not being left alone! The Spirit of Truth, the Holy Spirit of God, is coming, and He will be to them even more, in that the Spirit will occupy the soul and spirit of all of those who follow Jesus. Remember after the resurrection, that Jesus appeared to all of His disciples except Thomas? With the Holy Spirit, all who follow Jesus –wherever they are! – will have Him living within them! They won’t miss a thing! If you have accepted Jesus, the Holy Spirit is living in you right now!! And the Spirit will guide and instruct you in all things of the LORD Jesus, explaining His Word as you read it daily.

Hey, remember that bus that my relative had to catch? As a Christian, the Holy Spirit rides with her on that bus! She’s never alone, just as you and I are never alone. And that’s how our lives glorify Jesus! We follow the leading of the Spirit. We don’t have to “act” holy; we are holy – not because of what we do, but because the Spirit leads us. God bless you abundantly!

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.”