The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

John 15:7-9, “’If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it shall

be done for you.

8 “By this is My Father glorified, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be My disciples.

9 “Just as the Father has loved Me, I have also loved you; abide in My love.’”

Someone recently said, “I never really… When it says, following Jesus, it’s actually turning away from sin. What it talks about in the Bible, there’s no faith without obedience. I had had faith about like, ‘I believe Jesus died on the cross for me, but I never really implemented it into my life.’ I never like, ‘I’m gonna be obedient.” Any idea who said that? It was the singer, Justin Bieber. After all he’s been through, he’s finally catching on.

There are four interpretations of Greeks sentences that use the word “if.” One construction means, “If it be true –and it is.” Another construction means, “If it be true, but it isn’t.” Still a third means, “If it be true –maybe it is, maybe it isn’t.” And the last construction means “If it be true, and I wish it were, but it isn’t.”

You may recall from a previous Letter that the word “abide” means “to settle down and make you home” in Christ the LORD. Add to that what we have in in Jesus’ words above and you can read His words like this: “If you settle down and make your home in Me, maybe you will, maybe you won’t…” But, if you do, you may pray and receive what you ask. Making our home in Him is more than a stop-off place for a rest, and then continuing to live as we did before. Bieber has the idea; do you?

You see, everything in our lives is to be to the LORD’s glory! God wants us to succeed! He just wants us to know that our success in anything is due to His power and love working in us to bring it all about. The minute we forget that, He allows things to crumble. Too often, then, we rail against Him for the crumble, when it’s all our fault for not maintaining our home in Him and thanking Him for what He has done! Isn’t that simple? Then, why are we like we are (note that I’m including the writer of this Letter)? It’s not you, it’s us!

There’s more that could be said, but we need to digest what we know and allow it to bring glory to our LORD first. Practice what you know this week, and see how your life changes!

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.”