The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

Genesis 26:24-31, The LORD appeared to him (Isaac) the same night and said, “I am the God of your father Abraham; do not fear, for I am with you. I will bless you, and multiply your descendants, for the sake of My servant Abraham.”
25 So he built an altar there and called upon the name of the LORD, and pitched his tent there; and there Isaac’s servants dug a well.
26 Then Abimelech came to him from Gerar with his adviser Ahuzzath and Phicol the commander of his army.
27 Isaac said to them, “Why have you come to me, since you hate me and have sent me away from you?”
28 They said, “We see plainly that the LORD has been with you; so we said, ‘Let there now be an oath between us, even between you and us, and let us make a covenant with you,
29 that you will do us no harm, just as we have not touched you and have done to you nothing but good and have sent you away in peace. You are now the blessed of the LORD.'”
30 Then he made them a feast, and they ate and drank.
31 In the morning they arose early and exchanged oaths; then Isaac sent them away and they departed from him in peace.”

It’s amazing how humanly natured some people are when they assess that you are stronger. At the same time, it’s amazing how strong some people are when they simply put their trust in the Hands of the LORD!

In the earlier verses of this same chapter (Genesis 26), Isaac and his servants were digging wells. There was a famine in the land at that time, and water was one commodity that no one could do without. For a time, there was quarreling over the water. Yet, in time, the two groups came together and agreed upon an oath.

What occasioned Isaac’s men to agree with those who oppossed them concerning the wells, was simply the Hand of the LORD. Abimelech, King of the Philistines, assessed that Isaac was the stronger of the two. And Isaac’s strength and Abimelech’s conclusion were due to the Hand of the LORD.

Occasionally, Christians suffer confrontation from non-believers. Yet, the key to friendship always comes from the Hand of the LORD. Like the well-diggers of Isaac, congeniality came when they all agreed to be friendly and took an oath to that end.

Don’t give up on your friends that don’t know Christ Jesus, even when they disagree. Just as the LORD orchestrated unity between Abimelech’s and Isaac’s men, He will orchestrate peace between you and your unsaved friends. Inasmuch as Christianity is stronger, we must take the first few steps. We are not alone! “The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD…” (Psa. 37:23).

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,

Psalm 118:21-29, “I shall give thanks to You, for You have answered me, and You have become my salvation.
22 The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief corner stone.
23 This is the LORD’S doing; It is marvelous in our eyes.
24 This is the day which the LORD has made; Let us rejoice and be glad in it.
25 O LORD, do save, we beseech You; O LORD, we beseech You, do send prosperity!
26 Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the LORD; We have blessed you from the house of the LORD.
27 The LORD is God, and He has given us light; bind the festival sacrifice with cords to the horns of the altar.
28 You are my God, and I give thanks to You; You are my God, I extol You.
29 Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good; for His lovingkindness is everlasting.”

The praise the psalmist raises clearly envisions the coming of the LORD Jesus Christ! Yes, it is from the Old Testament the psalmist is speaking; yet, what could be greater or more worthy of praise than the writer’s greatest anticipation — than the Son of Promise, the One who would take away the sin of the earth?

The world into which the LORD Jesus came was as turbulent as the day in which we currently live. It could be debatable whether our day or that of the psalmist needed Him the most. The psalmist’s day was in turmoil; yet, so is ours!

Let us join with David the psalmist who said, “You are my God, and I give thanks to You…” Set aside the presents for which we looked as children, and look toward Heaven. The Greatest Gift indeed has come!
Merry CHRISTmas!

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,

Ecclesiastes 12:11-14, “The words of wise men are like goads, and masters of these collections are like well-driven nails; they are given by one Shepherd.
12 But beyond this, my son, be warned: the writing of many books is endless, and excessive devotion to books is wearying to the body.
13 The conclusion, when all has been heard, is: fear God and keep His commandments, because this applies to every person.
14 For God will bring every act to judgment, everything which is hidden, whether it is good or evil.”

You can go to a host of places and engage in numerous things, but nothing is truly satisfying when it is limited to the things of man. Solomon out-maneuvered everyone in the attempt to realize satisfaction in life. In nature, he discovered a sameness; in wisdom and philosophy, he discovered little-to-no purpose.

Solomon engaged in numerous pleasures like wine-drinking, the construction of buildings, accumulation of innumerable possessions, including enormous wealth and the simple pleasure of music; yet he found nothing of true satisfaction.

He endeavored to find something worthwhile in religion, but with the exemption of the LORD God. He then sought the simple purity of a moral life, but he was never satisfied.

If Solomon, reputedly the wisest man who ever lived, could not discover the secrets of life, how are we to discover them? It is in his Book of Ecclesiastes that we learn that satisfaction of life comes only in the Life of Jesus of Nazareth.

For it was Jesus, who came from the Father to die on a cross and arise from the dead that we might know true life by dying to self, as we commit ourselves to Him.

May you thirst for the true Waters of Life and may Christ lead you ultimately to the Father, who resides alongside His Son, Jesus Christ.
Oh, that you might know Him and the joy that exudes from His Life!

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,

Ecclesiastes 10:5-10, “There is an evil I have seen under the sun, like an error which goes forth from the ruler–
6 folly is set in many exalted places while rich men sit in humble places.
7 I have seen slaves riding on horses and princes walking like slaves on the land.
8 He who digs a pit may fall into it, and a serpent may bite him who breaks through a wall.
9 He who quarries stones may be hurt by them, and he who splits logs may be endangered by them.
10 If the axe is dull and he does not sharpen its edge, then he must exert more strength. Wisdom has the advantage of giving success.”

We live in many ways what is an exceptional era. Some of you now reading this can recall the old “party-line” telephone. When the phone rang, all who were connected on that same line would pick up their telephones to see if the call were for them. If it were, it was expected that all others on that same line would hang up. Wisdom, however, never assumed that others would hang up. Thus, wise callers with confidential information resisted dispensing that information online.

“Wisdom has (indeed) the advantage of giving success.” Furthermore,
wisdom is applicable to every situation. Looking in retrospect at some
interesting situations, we all can doubtlessly recall times when we ought to have said –or left unsaid— our thoughts with respect to the situations.
Knowledge is possessing information often applicable to a given situation. Wisdom is knowing whether or when to share that information.

I have miserably failed both in knowledge and in wisdom with respect to several past situations. Some, thankfully, have fallen without incident; others have skirted closely toward disaster. Slowly, I am learning to allow all Spirit-control over what I do and say. Let me suggest that you apply wisdom in considering the LORD’s death and resurrection for you!
Trust Him fully! Yield to Him total control of your life! He, who is Wisdom, will always guide you into life’s safe harbors.

Where wisdom is by-passed, however, we will undoubtedly suffer it’s lack. May we seek and find forgiveness for all that we say and do that
does not agree with His sovereign will.

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,

Matthew 2:7-12, “Then Herod secretly called the magi and determined from them the exact time the star appeared. And he sent them to Bethlehem and said, ‘Go and search carefully for the Child; and when you have found Him, report to me, so that I too may come and worship Him.’
9 After hearing the king, they went their way; and the star, which they had seen in the east, went on before them until it came and stood over the place where the Child was.
10 When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy.
11 After coming into the house, they saw the Child with Mary His mother; and they fell to the ground and worshiped Him. Then, opening their treasures, they presented to Him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
12 And having been warned by God in a dream not to return to Herod, the magi left for their own country by another way.”

(1)Notice first that they were Wise because they sought Him.
Joseph A. Seiss’ book, The Gospel in the Stars, sets forth how the
created heavenly lights led these men to the Boy Jesus. It is believed
that the magi came to Israel from ancient Persia, which lay to the east.
Precisely who they were or how many were in their company, it is impossible to know. It is believed, however, that they were ancient astronomers, a dozen or more, whose continual focus on the skies had led them to a star they had not previously discovered. The star moved; thus, they followed it ultimately to the Christ Child.

The “Star” that leads us to the Savior is called the Bible, the Holy Scriptures. Study the Scriptures and you will be enlightened with respect to Jesus and all that His Heavenly Father required of Him to bring about our salvation. Has this been your experience? Have you sought Him?

(2)Notice, too, that They were Wise because they found Him.
There’s a song that says, “I found what I wanted when I found the Lord.”
Yet, there are many who hear of Him from the Scriptures, but never learn from Him. Foolishly, they say, “I don’t want it! I don’t want Him!” Still, there will come a day when they will seek Him and He will not be able to be found. Wisdom says, “Strike while the iron is hot.”

(3)Notice too, that they were wise because the followed Him. Going
anywhere was difficult in Jesus’ day. Especially, is that true of those who
struggled over everything leading up to actually “following Him.” Yet, wisdom is viewable in the lives of those who have followed Him.

In which category do you find yourself? Are you currently “seeking” Him”, or have you “found” Him, or are you following Him by daily reading His Word? There will come a Day for Accounting. We will all stand before Him. Are you ready for the Judgment Day?

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