The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

1 Chronicles 4:9-10, “Jabez was more honorable than his brothers, and his mother
named him Jabez saying, ‘Because I bore him with pain.’
10 Now Jabez called on the God of Israel, saying, ‘Oh that You would bless me indeed
and enlarge my border, and that Your hand might be with me, and that You would keep
me from harm that it may not pain me!’ And God granted him what he requested.”

Proper names were very important in the days of the Old Testament. Some are actually prophetic of the person’s character. Who could fail to note the change of Abram to Abraham,
or of Jacob to Israel? So, the LORD’s name, YHWH, and other various designations of deity, denotes His character. What is peculiar about the name of Jabez is that whatever meaning it originally had, has now been lost to us. Some have allowed that Jabez means “pain,” in that
his mother “bore him with pain.”

YHWH was the LORD’s covenant name with His people, Israel. The Hebrews considered
it too sacred to be pronounced aloud. The head of a family of Judah, noted for his “honorable” character, though “his mother bore him with sorrow”; but the phrase, “as if it stood for ya’tsebh,” is an honest commentary caution, indicating that the biblical author is unsure of the origin and meaning of the name Jabez.

What may be more meaningful is the fact that the Jews believed Jabez to be an emminent Doctor of the Law –one whose skill and fame gathered about him numerous scholars, and
for which the City of Jabez was likely named. If true, this lies in sharp contrast with some commentators, who believe the prayer is likely to be from one who sets forth on his own,
as he commences life’s venture into the world. The Jewish concept seems more plausible.

First Chronicles 4:9 also indicates something of Jabez’s status:

“And Jabez was more honorable than his brothers…” While the Hebrew word
translated honorable has several meanings, the thought of prominence
with God and man should likely be assumed. “His brothers” may refer to
natural, physical brothers, born of Jabez’s parents, or simply his countrymen….
and his mother named him Jabez saying, “Because I bore him with pain”
(vs. 9b).

It had long been the LORD’s decree that all women would bear children in pain.
Something, nevertheless, prompted Jabez’s mother to speak of her pain in the birth
Jabez as being intensified. The Hebrew word here may also mean sorrow, in which
case Jabez’s mother would be speaking of her intense sorrow.

Whether she is speaking of physical pain or sorrow connected with Jabez’s birth, or an emotional or spiritual pain or sorrow, we cannot know. In any event, Jabez name is
inextricably bound up with what she believed or experienced at that time.

However few they are in number, all of these notations serve as background for the
pinnacle event: Jabez’s prayer. Now Jabez called on the God of Israel, saying,

‘Oh that Thou wouldst bless me indeed, and enlarge my border, and that Thy
hand might be with me, and that Thou wouldst keep me from harm, that it may
not pain me!” And God granted him what he requested (I Chr 4:10).

All of us like to read stories with good endings. What we have here is nothing short of a blessed account in which the LORD grants the request of His petitioner. The concern of
this writing, however, is not so much what Jabez asked and received as what Jabez had
to be in order to ask and receive it.

We live, unfortunately, in a day of “name-it-and-claim-it” theology. While The Prayer of
Jabez never overtly advocates that, I write with the fear that readers of that book may nevertheless adopt the formula of Jabez’s prayer without adopting the formula of Jabez’s
life. There is a fundamental maxim that we have to be something before we can do
something. Especially is this true in the spiritual realm. Get to know Him and follow His
teachings. That’s the key to a spiritual life!

An excerpt from my book, Before The Prayer of Jabez.

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 105:1-5, “Oh give thanks to the LORD, call upon His name; make known
His deeds among the peoples.
2 Sing to Him, sing praises to Him; speak of all His wonders.
3 Glory in His holy name; let the heart of those who seek the LORD be glad.
4 Seek the LORD and His strength; seek His face continually.
5 Remember His wonders which He has done, His marvels and the judgments
uttered by His mouth…”

Everything that blesses our lives comes from the Lord! Thus, we should stand
ready to praise Him for all He has done!

The Psalmist suggests that we sing praises to Him, songs that remind us of His
wonders. The singing that glorifies Him comes from the deep recesses of our
hearts. Everyone loves harmony in singing; yet, the emphasis lies not upon
how well we sing musically, but upon the condition of our heart.

When our singing originates from the heart, He is glorified. It’s not how well
we sing, measured by those who hear our singing; rather, it is whether our
singing is expressive of praise to the LORD for all He has done.

Singing is also the means of seeking the LORD and His strength, instead of
excusing ourselves for the lack of harmony that is expressed in the singing of
others. While the LORD is surely able to differentiate between good and poor
singing; His interest is primarily focused upon the heart behind the music.

It is true that much of the music we encounter in churches today seems to
have a purpose other than the glorification of the LORD Jesus Christ. Yet, the
Apostle Paul encourages “…speaking to one another in psalms and hymns
and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord;
always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to
God, even the Father…” (Eph. 5:19-20)

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 11:27-30, “All things have been handed over to Me by My Father; and
no one knows the Son except the Father; nor does anyone know the Father except
the Son, and anyone to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.
28 “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.
29 “Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart,
and YOU WILL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS.
30 “For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”

The words of Jesus do not intend to overwrite His Father. He is simply saying that they
are of the same mind and that the Father trusts the work in the hands of His Son. In
what strikes me as quite picturesque, the Father has seen the capabilities of His Son,
and trusts Him to carry out His Father’s will.

On the basis of His trust, the Father allows the Son to reveal Him to others. The Son
then beckons those who will to come to the Father to do so. “It’s not difficult,” the Son
says, “I will give you rest.” Further, the Son assures those whom He has beckoned
that the yoke is easy. The yoke links the two together, making it easier for each.

So, the Son invites us to yoke-up with Him and find “spiritual rest” for our souls. He
assures us that the yoke won’t hurt and the overal burden of bearing the load is not
as heavy as we might have thought. Praise the LORD for His unspeakable Gift!

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,

Exodus 10:12-17, “Then the LORD said to Moses, ‘Stretch out your hand over the land
of Egypt for the locusts, that they may come up on the land of Egypt and eat every plant
of the land, even all that the hail has left.’
13 So Moses stretched out his staff over the land of Egypt, and the LORD directed an east wind on the land all that day and all that night; and when it was morning, the east wind brought the locusts.
14 The locusts came up over all the land of Egypt and settled in all the territory of Egypt; they were very numerous. There had never been so many locusts, nor would there be so many again.
15 For they covered the surface of the whole land, so that the land was darkened; and they ate every plant of the land and all the fruit of the trees that the hail had left. Thus, nothing green was left on tree or plant of the field through all the land of Egypt.
16 Then Pharaoh hurriedly called for Moses and Aaron, and he said, ‘I have sinned against the LORD your God and against you.
17 ‘Now therefore, please forgive my sin only this once, and make supplication to the LORD your God, that He would only remove this death from me.’”

It’s unfortunate, but a lot of people today seem to think they don’t need anything from
anybody – that is, until they encounter something they cannot deal with themselves.
It could be physical; it could be emotional. The nature of the difficulty demands help well
outside of the realm of the one who is afflicted.

The Scripture above occurred in Egypt many years ago. The LORD was in the midst of ordering Pharaoh to release Israel from her bondage in Egypt. The LORD had previously
demonstrated His power to Pharaoh. Now, He is calling for a plague of locusts upon the l
and of Egypt. Ultimately, Pharaoh was convinced that the LORD’s power was extensive
beyond his own; thus, he allowed Israel to be released from Egypt.

Sometimes, the distresses that befall us are due to our resistence to do the LORD’s will.
Such indicators of resistence are far too numerous to list in this small paper; but, sickness is often an indicator (although not always)! Multiplied illnesses are often indicators. The listing would be enormous.

It behoves us, as Christians, to periodically investigate our lives. Has the LORD spoken
to us about something we have ignored? It should be encouraging to us, however, just
to know that He has something He wants us to do. Further, in the light of His salvation, we should be ready and willing to do whatever He demands. Are you willing? Am I?
However difficult His requirement might appear, it is less difficult than what will befall
us if we do not obey! Let’s leave it to Pharaoh to learn the hard way. The LORD’s “yoke
is easy, and His burden is light” (Matthew 11:30).

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,

II Chronicles 26:22-28, “Now in the time of his distress this same King Ahaz became
yet more unfaithful to the LORD.
23 For he sacrificed to the gods of Damascus which had defeated him, and said, ‘Because
the gods of the kings of Aram helped them, I will sacrifice to them that they may help me.’
But they became the downfall of him and all Israel.
24 Moreover, when Ahaz gathered together the utensils of the house of God, he cut the utensils of the house of God in pieces; and he closed the doors of the house of the LORD
and made altars for himself in every corner of Jerusalem.
25 In every city of Judah he made high places to burn incense to other gods, and provoked
the LORD, the God of his fathers, to anger.
26 Now the rest of his acts and all his ways, from first to last, behold, they are written in the Book of the Kings of Judah and Israel.
27 So Ahaz slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the city, in Jerusalem, for they did
not bring him into the tombs of the kings of Israel; and Hezekiah his son reigned in his place.“

So there are degrees of unfaithfulness? Indeed there are! The brevity of the passage before
us prohibits the exhibition of all of Ahaz’s sins; yet, the use of the word “more” in verse 22,
indicates that Ahaz had previously committed similar sins. Yet he was so mesmerized by the
gods that had defeated him, that he offered sacrifices to them! That’s like raising the salaries
of the losing team!

The proliferation of sacrifices to foreign (non-existent) gods provoked the LORD God to
anger! Oh, and by the way, Ahaz destroyed the utensils that were used in the worship of
the LORD, and even “made altars for himself in every corner of Jerusalem.” He burned
incense to virtually every foreign god that did not exist, provoking the LORD to anger! In the
end, Ahaz died, leaving a worthless track record before the LORD.

No doubt you’ve been employing a comparison between yourself and what the LORD both
deserves and requires. The life that He has given us cannot be more worthy than when it
is given to Him. It’s more than just being a born-again Christian; it’s being a Christian whose
life is focused on being like Jesus!

The world has it’s sufficiency of wicked and evil men, wouldn’t you say? It’s time for those
of us who have been born again, to cast of the mantle of selfishness and let the world see
and know what a true Christian is and how deeply we love and treasure our LORD-Provider!

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