The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

2 Peter 2:1-9, “But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will also be false teachers among you, who will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing swift destruction upon themselves.
2 Many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of the truth will be maligned;
3 and in their greed they will exploit you with false words; their judgment from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep.
4 For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but cast them into hell and committed them to pits of darkness, reserved for judgment;
5 and did not spare the ancient world, but preserved Noah, a preacher of righteousness, with seven others, when He brought a flood upon the world of the ungodly;
6 and if He condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah to destruction by reducing them to ashes, having made them an example to those who would live ungodly lives thereafter;
7 and if He rescued righteous Lot, oppressed by the sensual conduct of unprincipled men
8 (for by what he saw and heard that righteous man, while living among them, felt his righteous soul tormented day after day by their lawless deeds),
9 then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from temptation, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment for the day of judgment…”

The first three verses above appeared in yesterday’s Grand’s Letter. It spoke of false teachers, who entice others to follow them in their destructive, heretical teachings — leading them away from God’s truth and ultimately into Hell itself!

Notice that the LORD “did not spare angels when they sinned, but cast them into pits of darkness,” just as He did the unbelieving in Noah’s day, and the sinful city of Sodom in Lot’s era. Still, the LORD rescued Lot and his family while He kept the unrighteous prisoners, awaiting the final day of judgment.

We have false teachers today! They’re all over television! At the same time, there are faithful servants of the LORD, who are declaring His message of salvation. It’s a war: Truth against error! The Bible teaches us to believe on Jesus Christ as the only means of mankind’s salvation from sin. Others drive people away from Jesus, offering simply “do good” remedies that provide “warm feelings,” but have no resistance to sin and no hope through Christ’s death and resurrection.

I accepted Jesus Christ when I was young! I’ve never been sorry. I have met and witnessed to many who’ve never known Christ. He calls for everyone to trust Him; and those who do, understand how He is different from the world. They have His gift of eternal life. Do you have eternal life? If not, yield your life to Jesus today! He is the difference! And you will know it immediately!

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 Peter 1:20-21, “But know this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of one’s own interpretation,
21 for no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God.

2 Peter 2:1-3, “But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will also be false teachers among you, who will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing swift destruction upon themselves.
2 Many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of the truth will be maligned;
3 and in their greed they will exploit you with false words; their judgment from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep.

The Scripture doesn’t give us much information on Simon Peter as a fisherman, but it certainly gives us information on his knowledge of Scripture and of false teachers. Scripture simply cannot be what one wants it to be. “No prophecy,” Peter says, “was ever made by an act of human will…;” nor can Scripture mean whatever the reader wants it to become. Is there any instruction more needed in our day?

A New Zealand pastor once shared with me that a Bible class in his church voted on the meaning of Scripture! If a difficult verse arose and someone suggested a meaning of the verse, objection would be raised, saying that the class had voted on that verse’s meaning a year or more ago. End of discussion!

Peter warns against false teachers! They are rebellious (2:10-12a); they are animalistic (2:12b) and deceitful (2:13). They are chronic sinners (2:14) and mercenary (2:15-16). Check those descriptions against some of today’s popular “preachers.” Men can twist the Scriptures so as to make them palatable for their hearers; but they cannot derive the truth by making them say what they would like.

The Scriptures were written to guide us to be like Jesus. Read and believe!
There is truly no better way.

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,

John 7:10-17, “But when His brothers had gone up to the feast, then He Himself also went up, not publicly, but as if, in secret.
11 So the Jews were seeking Him at the feast and were saying, ‘Where is He?’
12 There was much grumbling among the crowds concerning Him; some were saying, ‘He is a good man’; others were saying, ‘No, on the contrary, He leads the people astray.’
13 Yet no one was speaking openly of Him for fear of the Jews.
14 But when it was now the midst of the feast Jesus went up into the temple, and began to teach.
15 The Jews then were astonished, saying, ‘How has this man become learned, having never been educated?’
16 So Jesus answered them and said, ‘My teaching is not Mine, but His who sent Me.
17 “If anyone is willing to do His will, he will know of the teaching, whether it is of God or whether I speak from Myself.’”

As we’ve seen in our previous letter, Jesus’ half-brothers did not believe Him to be the Messiah. Others, who were attending the feast, did not believe Him to be the Messiah, either. Unfortunately, there are those today who don’t believe Him. People are substituting various things to replace Him. Yet, the one thing they cannot do is find a suitable substitute for Him! Jesus is unique! He is the “Only begotten Son of God!”

Refusing to believe Christ, however, in no way effects who He truly is. Having reached the feast, He went to the temple and immediately began to teach. Imagine how that affected the Jews! They challenged Him as one who had “never been educated.” Oh, Jesus was educated! He had just never needed to attend a Jewish school. There is a vast difference between having attended a school and being truly immersed in Scriptural Truth.

True education goes beyone having a certificate from a formal institution. “Education apart from Christ simply makes ‘smart devils.’” It’s an immersion, an absorbtion of Scripture –the teachings of Jesus Christ—that truly matters! Far too many institutions today emphasize things that don’t matter –teachings that neither emphasize nor care about the LORD Jesus Christ. Jesus’ words come from His Father.

Those who have trouble believing Him today have allowed the thoughts and teachings
of others to replace His truth. “Believe on the LORD Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved…” (Acts 16:31). It is so simple. Don’t allow the simplicity to crowd out your belief.

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,

John 7:2-7, “Now the feast of the Jews, the Feast of Booths, was near.
3 Therefore His brothers said to Him, ‘Leave here and go into Judea, so that Your disciples also may see Your works which You are doing.
4 For no one does anything in secret when he himself seeks to be known publicly. If You do these things, show Yourself to the world.’
5 For not even His brothers were believing in Him.
6 So Jesus said to them, ‘My time is not yet here, but your time is always opportune.
7 The world cannot hate you, but it hates Me because I testify of it, that its deeds are evil.’”

Did you ever have anyone urge you to do something when you were certain that the time was not right for doing it? Ecclesiastes says, “There is an appointed time for everything” (3:1). Our passage above tells us that it was the time for the Jewish Feast of the Tabernacles (Booths), one of the three great feasts of Israel.

Jesus’ half-brothers urged Him to attend this feast. They were still not believers of His Divine Life and Position. “Show yourself to the world,” they urged Him. Still, they were hardly sincere; it was only a ploy, designed to embarrass Him.

Jesus refused to argue the point. In fact, He even refused to debate the issue. Rather, He demonstrated a spiritual maturity of which they knew nothing! No one is governing your
activites, He said, Your time is always right for doing what you wish. “My time is not yet
come,” He said.

When we elect to follow the LORD’s timing for our activities, we must wait for His
direction. We may be making the right decision, but neglect the right timing for doing it.
How often that has been the way of it in our lives!

Still, there are times when we say and do what is right in our LORD’s eyes, but encounter the hatred of others because His righteousness is offensive to them. The Scripture says,
“The world…hates Me,” Jesus said, “because I testify…that its deeds are evil.”

There’s a children’s chorus we used to sing:

Be careful little feet where you go;
Be careful little feet where you go;
For the Father up Above
Is looking down in Love;
Be careful little feet where you go.

All of that is so true! At the same time, we need to be conscious of what we do!
If we belong to the LORD, we are His children. We must follow His counsel, just
as Jesus always followed His Father.

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,

Philemon 1:1-7, “Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus, and Timothy our brother,
To Philemon our beloved brother and fellow worker,
2 and to Apphia our sister, and to Archippus our fellow soldier, and to the church in your house:
3 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
4 I thank my God always, making mention of you in my prayers,
5 because I hear of your love and of the faith which you have toward the Lord Jesus and toward all the saints;
6 and I pray that the fellowship of your faith may become effective through the knowledge of every good thing which is in you for Christ’s sake.
7 For I have come to have much joy and comfort in your love, because the hearts of the saints have been refreshed through you, brother.”

If you’ve ever read a letter that your grandmother or great-grandmother had written, you instantly know how it differs from one you would write today. Styles of writing change with the times, just like the recipients of the letters do.

In this letter to Philemon, we learn of Paul’s diplomatic effort in reaching out to Philemon on behalf of Onesimus, Philemon’s runaway slave. Subsequently, however, Onesimus, at some point in his affiliation with Paul, come to faith in Jesus Christ. His return to Philemon would be difficult, and Paul wanted to ease the situation with some well-scripted words to Philemon.

Far too often, we allow young Christians to go their own way. We say, “God bless you; the LORD will take care of you.” Of course, He will and He does. At the same time, He surely expects that we will show spiritual and practical concern for young Christians and guide them as far as is possible.

There’s more to Paul’s letter to Philemon, and we would all do well to read and re-read it.
It overflows with love and concern for Philemon and Onesimus. Further, it sets the tone
the LORD wants from all His children. Young Christians need the nurturing that their elders have experienced. Whether in the home or in the church, we all need to “grow in the knowledge of our LORD Jesus Christ.”

Pray for me that I may grow in Him. No matter how long we’ve walked with Him, we still need the prayers of the saints to be offered on our behalf. Thank 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