The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

Ephesians 1:7-12, “In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace,
8 which He lavished upon us. In all wisdom and insight
9 He made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His kind intention which He purposed in Him
10 with a view to an administration suitable to the fullness of the times, that is, the summing up of all things in Christ, things in the heavens and things upon the earth. In Him
11 also we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to His purpose who works all things after the counsel of His will,
12 to the end that we who were the first to hope in Christ should be to the praise of His glory.”

I have on occasion been called “a man of many words.” It’s not an offense, but it simply pales in every way when laid beside the words of the Apostle Paul. In fact, my words do not deserve to be on the same page. Moreover, Paul’s words are so connected that it’s difficult to know where to begin and end in a Letter like this.

Paul’s major emphasis is always Jesus! Our release from the penalty of sin is through the blood of the LORD Jesus Christ. His blood sacrifice alone affects that release. But, why would God even seek to save us from our sin? He did so because He loves us. Children often displease their parents. Yet, the parents do not disown their children simply out of their displeasure. They ultimately forgive them because they love them. So it is with God, except that with Him forgiveness is much more.

Parents are the ultimate object of praise when their children are socially behaved. God is praised when His children emulate His life. When we trust Him as our LORD and Savior, He puts His Holy Spirit with us to be our spiritual guide and teacher. The Spirit allows us to love well beyond what we would love were without His indwelling presence and guidance.
Is He guiding your life? Is He guiding mine? We are known as Christians by our love.

There’s an old hymn that perfectly pictures the true Christian’s behavior. See how you measure up in the light of its message.
While passing through this world of sin,
And others your life shall view,
Be clean and pure without, within,
Let others see Jesus in you.
Let others see Jesus in you,
Let others see Jesus in you;
Keep telling the story, be faithful and true,
Let others see Jesus in you.
Heartily in Christ Jesus,

(Dado III)

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.
Springdale, Arkansas 72764
United States of America

“We never know that Christ is all we need until He becomes all that we have.” – Corrie ten Boom

Dear Grands,

Galatians 6:7-10, “Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap.
8 For the one who sows to his own flesh shall from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit shall from the Spirit reap eternal life.
9 And let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we shall reap if we do not grow weary.
10 So then, while we have opportunity, let us do good to all men, and especially to those who are of the household of the faith.”

I remember it as clearly as I know my own name. We were kids in a schoolroom engaging in some shenanigans while the teacher was out of the room. The rumpus was over and one of the boys said, “There, she will never know.” Yet, while he boasted, the teacher looked quietly on from just outside the doorway. In fact, she had been looking on for some time. I will leave the results to your imagination.

Paul warned us in the verses above not to deceive ourselves. Self-deception comes from self-arrogance. We think we’re smarter, more intelligent, than everyone else –sometimes, even than God. Yet, Paul says that “God is not mocked.” The word mock means “to laugh at, to turn up your nose.” No, God will not allow that! He will have the last laugh. The wrong we do will inevitably come back to haunt us. God will have the last laugh, as it were. Just as in nature, what we sow is what we reap.

Sometimes we seriously engage in things that are good, but nothing good seems to come from what we do. Just don’t lose heart, the Word tells us. Sometimes it takes longer than we think it should to develop good things and have them to return to us. A child plants the seed for a flower, and goes day after day looking for it to bloom. Eventually, it does! Then and there the uncertainty of the child vanishes. So it is with us.

Still, the opportunity for our doing good will not always be there. We must have faith. We must trust the LORD and His Word! Surely, His promises are greater than our expectations. “Keep on keeping on” is the theme. Pray for your pastor and his family. Pray for those you know are
sick or hurting. Pray for yourself, that you may be what the LORD desires of you. The LORD’s promise is certain: “…in due time – in His time — we shall reap if we do not grow weary.”

Heartily in Christ Jesus,

(Dado III)

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.
Springdale, Arkansas 72764
United States of America

“We never know that Christ is all we need until He becomes all that we have.” – Corrie ten Boom

Dear Grands,

Galatians 5:13-17, “For you were called to freedom, brethren; only do not turn your freedom into an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.
14 For the whole Law is fulfilled in one word, in the statement, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”
15 But if you bite and devour one another, take care lest you be consumed by one another.
16 But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh.
17 For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please.”

From the beginning of time, the LORD God permitted man to live freely. “From any tree of the garden you may eat freely; but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you shall surely die” (Gen. 2:16-17). Paul now addresses true, Christian believers with the same warning. There is a limitation to freedom when we do wrong under its guise. In other words, it’s never right to do wrong to do right.

We are not free to do or say or behave as we like. We are to love others genuinely and serve them sincerely. To live like this is always a battle. We have a natural, sinful desire to do and say whatever is to our benefit. Yet, having committed our lives completely by faith to Jesus Christ –ah, that word “committed” slipped in there! It clearly means we are not as free as we thought.

Heartily in Christ Jesus,

(Dado III)

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.
Springdale, Arkansas 72764
United States of America

“We never know that Christ is all we need until He becomes all that we have.” – Corrie ten Boom

Dear Grands,

Galatians 4:4-5, 16-17, “But when the fulness of the time came, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the Law,
5 in order that He might redeem those who were under the Law, that we might receive the adoption as sons.
16 Have I therefore become your enemy by telling you the truth?
17 They eagerly seek you, not commendably, but they wish to shut you out, in order that you may seek them.”

Only recently did I see mention of a young pastor, who is telling his congregation that the Bible is devoid of truth, not inspired of God and filled with errors. In a way, it is not surprising to hear this, as the LORD warned that in the last days such things would occur.

There were those in Paul’s day that were being misled, also. Paul had earlier ministered to the Galatians. At that time, the people had believed Paul’s message, but now they were following someone who was misleading them. Paul notes that those who were misleading them were doing so in order that the Galatians might seek them for answers.

Inasmuch as we have many false teachers in the world today, how do we know who is telling the truth? We must earnestly study God’s Word! When difficult passages from the Bible come up in our reading, we must seek out men who believe and teach the Bible to help us in understanding it.

There are numerous Bible teachers who support the teaching of God’s Word as truth –too many, in fact to mention here; but, let me commend the men who are featured speakers on the Bible Broadcasting Network, BBN Radio. I have heard them all, and can commend them without hesitation. If your pastor believes the Bible is God’s Truth, pray for him and support him. If your pastor has problems believing the Bible is true and without error, you need to find another pastor. True ministers of God proclaim the Word of God in love and without error. They may differ in their styles of preaching, but they will agree with the teaching of the Scriptures.

We are led to faith in Christ by the Scriptures. We grow in grace as we follow the Scriptures. May the LORD bless you as you read, study and follow the teachings of His blessed Holy Word!

Heartily in Christ Jesus,

(Dado III)

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.
Springdale, Arkansas 72764
United States of America

“We never know that Christ is all we need until He becomes all that we have.” – Corrie ten Boom

Dear Grands,

2 Corinthians 10:1-5, “Now I, Paul, myself urge you by the meekness and gentleness of Christ — I who am meek when face to face with you, but bold toward you when absent!
2 I ask that when I am present I may not be bold with the confidence with which I propose to be courageous against some, who regard us as if we walked according to the flesh.
3 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh,
4 for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses.
5 We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ…”

If the ancient Greeks were proud of anything (and they were—of much!), it was their ability to
speak Greek with purity and accuracy. Thus, they were abundantly bold in criticizing those who
could not reach their elocutionary standard. The Apostle Paul seemed their primary target for
criticism. That’s what led them to accert that Paul was bold in his letters, but meek and gentle
when face-to-face with the congregation. Paul’s response was, We’ll see about that when I
arrive in Corinth.

Paul avowed that he did not and would not utilize anything of his natural gifts against them. Rather, he would resort to divine power that could and would obliterate all speculations that worked against the power of Almighty God. Further, he vowed that he was “taking every thought (of human ability) captive to the obedience of Christ.” That was saying in effect, I don’t need any human power to bring you into line.

Think about that for a moment. Every conceivable thought of human ability, Paul was holding captive, thus, enabling the power of Christ Jesus alone to focus against their haughtiness. What a different life we would have if we were to adopt that attitude! What a different world we would observe, if we prayerfully allowed all necessary changes to be subject to His power alone! The power of the LORD resides in every born-again believer in Christ because of the Holy Spirit’s residence. Quit “trying” and start “trusting” should be our personal motto. Why not allow Christ to deal with your problems? What do you have to lose?

Heartily in Christ Jesus,

(Dado III)

Footnote: As I write, my long-time friend, Dr. Donald J. Ralston, is undergoing surgery
in Tampa, Florida for a melanoma cancer. We would all appreciate your prayers.

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.
Springdale, Arkansas 72764
United States of America

“We never know that Christ is all we need until He becomes all that we have.” – Corrie ten Boom