The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

Ezra 9:5-8, “But at the evening offering I arose from my humiliation, even with my garment and my robe torn, and I fell on my knees and stretched out my hands to the LORD my God;
6 and I said, “O my God, I am ashamed and embarrassed to lift up my face to You, my God, for our iniquities have risen above our heads and our guilt has grown even to the heavens.
7 “Since the days of our fathers to this day we have been in great guilt, and on account of our iniquities we, our kings and our priests have been given into the hand of the kings of the lands, to the sword, to captivity and to plunder and to open shame, as it is this day.
8 “But now for a brief moment grace has been shown from the LORD our God, to leave us an escaped remnant and to give us a peg in His holy place, that our God may enlighten our eyes and grant us a little reviving in our bondage.”

Have you ever sinned so deeply that you hesitated to go to God in prayer? Shame that had so gripped Ezra was not his alone; however, he shamefully hid his face from the LORD. The vice-grip of sin tightly held him; prayer was his only alternative. Have you ever been there? Of course, you have! So had the song-writer who penned the words: “Where could I go, but to the LORD?”

Failing to confess sin and receive forgiveness from the LORD only exacerbates the situation. There is no rest this side of forgiveness! Conviction does not fade with the
arrival of sunlight. Guilt prevails until the one against whom we have sinned genuinely forgives us!

Yet, Ezra’s shame was not his own alone. The LORD had given them the land; yet, the kings and priests of Ezra’s day had surrendered it all to those from whom the LORD had seized it! Now, the LORD’s people, suffering from fear, surrendered the land to those from whom the LORD had taken it. Shameless! They feared man more than they
loved and feared God! Ever been there?

To his credit (if he has any), Ezra, “now for a brief moment,” receives Divine Grace
from the LORD. He has extended His grace to the “escaped remnant” and given them
“a peg, or nail,” to which they can fasten their faith in His answer to prayer. May He
“enlighten our eyes” and “grant us a little reviving in our bondage.”

Until the LORD comes again; and until we, who are committed to Him, are caught up to
meet Him in the air, we will be in bondage to sin and in need of His forgiveness. The
answer to relief from bondage to sin is being committed to bondage in the grace of our LORD! It is He, who reminds us: “…My yoke is easy and My burden is light” (Matt. 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,

1 Timothy 1:5-12, “…the goal of our instruction is love from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith.
6 For some men, straying from these things, have turned aside to fruitless discussion,
7 wanting to be teachers of the Law, even though they do not understand either what they are saying or the matters about which they make confident assertions.
8 But we know that the Law is good, if one uses it lawfully,
9 realizing the fact that law is not made for a righteous person, but for those who are lawless and rebellious, for the ungodly and sinners, for the unholy and profane, for those who kill their fathers or mothers, for murderers
10 and immoral men and homosexuals and kidnappers and liars and perjurers, and whatever else is contrary to sound teaching,
11 according to the glorious gospel of the blessed God, with which I have been entrusted.
12 I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has strengthened me, because He considered me faithful, putting me into service…”

It’s the responsibility of a lawyer to express himself to the Court with a pure heart and in a good conscience undergirded with sincere faith. The same responsibility befalls a preacher and a missionary, whether he privately addresses an individual or openly speaks to a congregation. The Apostle Paul was obviously the capture of such a mood.

It was such a mood that I sensed in an Israeli, who was sharing encouraging prayers on the streets of an Israeli city. Identifying himself as Jewish, he read aloud to Jewish people prayerful emails of the greatest encouragement. Each and every one (so far as I could determine) were from American and/or Australian Christians and spoke openly and enthusiastically of the LORD Jesus Christ. Remember: the man reading these emails aloud did not fail to mention that he was Jewish!

All of this shamed me that I do not appear more enthusiastic in my mention of Jesus Christ. It should shame us all that we are not more outspoken of our Savior! Oh, I do
share my faith quite openly, but perhaps not as enthusiastically as I should. I have
discovered that it is quite easy to speak of Christ. Many recipients of my testimony
listen approvingly, but shy away from getting too much “in the weeds” on the topic.

What is your manner of sharing Christ? It can start with a simple question, like “Are
you a Christian?” The response will open the correct way for your next question:
“When did you trust Him as your Savior?”

I have often thought, “Oh, if I could only speak their language!” But, that’s a cop-out! We do speak their language –unless it’s silence! You can tell how you came to faith in Christ, and ask whether or when they trusted Him. The Holy Spirit will surprise you with His “take-over.” What’s more, He will encourage you to share your faith more often and with others, as well. Do it; then let me hear from 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,

Revelation 11:3-11, “And I will grant authority to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for twelve hundred and sixty days, clothed in sackcloth.”
4 These are the two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the earth.
5 And if anyone wants to harm them, fire flows out of their mouth and devours their enemies; so if anyone wants to harm them, he must be killed in this way.
6 These have the power to shut up the sky, so that rain will not fall during the days of their prophesying; and they have power over the waters to turn them into blood, and to strike the earth with every plague, as often as they desire.
7 When they have finished their testimony, the beast that comes up out of the abyss will make war with them, and overcome them and kill them.
8 And their dead bodies will lie in the street of the great city which mystically is called Sodom and Egypt, where also their Lord was crucified.
9 Those from the peoples and tribes and tongues and nations will look at their dead bodies for three and a half days, and will not permit their dead bodies to be laid in a tomb.
10 And those who dwell on the earth will rejoice over them and celebrate; and they will send gifts to one another, because these two prophets tormented those who dwell on the earth.
11 But after the three and a half days, the breath of life from God came into them, and they stood on their feet; and great fear fell upon those who were watching them.”

“Now wash your hands and face and put on some cleaner clothes; we’re having company and they should be her not long from now.” I can still hear my mother’s voice, as she prepared me for the visitors who were coming. But who were these visitors? “Who are they, Mom?” I can hear myself asking; but my mother replied, “You’ll see when they get here. Just do like I told you and be ready.”

It is probably much the same as when we read about the “two witnesses” in verse three. I will not mimic my mother; I will simply share with you that the two witnesses are Enoch and Elijah and will have responsibility to witness to the lost still living on earth, following the Rapture of all believers.

The two witnesses are Enoch, who did not die (Gen. 5:24), and Elijah, who prayed that there be no rain, and rain was withheld from the earth for three and one-half years (Jas. 5:17).

After the Rapture, in which all saved (born-again) will be raised to meet the LORD in the air, these two witnesses (Moses and Elijah) will testify throughout the world that Jesus was and is the Christ, the Son of God. Some will be saved through their witness. Others will mock and ultimately kill the two witnesses. They will lie dead in the streets
of Jerusalem; and multitudes will rejoice over their demise. Then, suddenly the witnesses will be raised from the dead, and fear will grip all who rejoiced over their deaths.

Today we have a vibrant signal to be ready! The lost world’s population, then residing in the Tribulation, will have “two witnesses” (Enoch and Elijah) that will again urge them to accept and believe in Jesus for salvation. How patient our blessed LORD is!

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,

Mark 13:1-10, “As He was going out of the temple, one of His disciples said to Him, ‘Teacher, behold what wonderful stones and what wonderful buildings!’
2 And Jesus said to him, ‘Do you see these great buildings? Not one stone will be left upon another which will not be torn down.’
3 As He was sitting on the Mount of Olives opposite the temple, Peter and James and John and Andrew were questioning Him privately,
4 ‘Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign when all these things are going to be fulfilled?’
5 And Jesus began to say to them, ‘See to it that no one misleads you.
6 “Many will come in My name, saying, “I am He, and will mislead many.
7 “When you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be frightened; those things must take place; but that is not yet the end.
8 “For nation will rise up against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; there will be earthquakes in various places; there will also be famines. These things are merely the beginning of birth pangs.
9 “But be on your guard; for they will deliver you to the courts, and you will be flogged in the synagogues, and you will stand before governors and kings for My sake, as a testimony to them.
10 “The gospel must first be preached to all the nations.”

What our LORD Jesus said to His disciples (and to us!) in Matthew 24, He here repeats it in Mark’s gospel. “Oh, we’ve heard all of that,” some would say. Well, sports activities
are pretty similar to each other, but we don’t stop watching the games! The repetition of
Jesus’ answer regarding the Rapture and the Second Coming has intense purpose! He
wants us to grasp and learn its purpose just as we grasp other things in life.

In brief, the things Jesus said regarding His Coming, noted in Matthew’s Gospel, are precisely what He says in the passage above in Mark. You’ve heard two pastors preach sermons on the same subject and learned more from both than you learned from just one. It’s the same with Matthew and Mark.

According to the Scriptures, the very next thing to occur prophetically is the Rapture.
When Jesus comes in the clouds of the sky (1 Thes. 4:17), every person on earth, who
has been born again, will be caught up to meet Him in the air. No one will have an edge on anyone else. Christ died for all; and those who have confessed their sins to
Him, have been forgiven. That’s the “ticket” for meeting Him in the Rapture! Those
who have experienced physical death prior to the Rapture, will also arise from the grave and meet Jesus in the air.

Remember: none of our good works will help us in that hour! What church we attended
will not help us in that hour! How much we gave to the church or other Christian causes, will not help us in that hour. It all depends upon our relationship with Jesus –
our knowing Him and having trusted Him alone as our Savior!

I’ve attached a Chart and some comments below. Hopefully, these will help you to
further understand what is coming and why it’s important. What’s most important,
however, is that you are ready to meet Him when He comes!

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 24:3-14, “As He was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, ‘Tell us, when will these things happen, and what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?’
4 And Jesus answered and said to them, ‘See to it that no one misleads you.
5 For many will come in My name, saying, “I am the Christ,” and will mislead many.
6 You will be hearing of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not frightened, for those things must take place, but that is not yet the end.
7 “For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and in various places there will be famines and earthquakes.
8 “But all these things are merely the beginning of birth pangs.
9 “Then they will deliver you to tribulation, and will kill you, and you will be hated by all nations because of My name.
10 “At that time many will fall away and will betray one another and hate one another.
11 “Many false prophets will arise and will mislead many.
12 “Because lawlessness is increased, most people’s love will grow cold.
13 “But the one who endures to the end, he will be saved.
14 “This gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all the nations, and then the end will come.”

Of the many Scriptural passages related to “end times” that could be cited, none is more timely than the passage cited above. It was a fair question the disciples asked, and it was addressed to the precise Person capable of providing the answer.

From the beginning of time, there have been wars throughout the world. Some were isolated skirmishes that were hardly noticeable outside of the area in which they occurred. Some, however, were widespread. News agencies, having capturing the eyes and interest of people far removed, have given credence to worldwide rages.

Enraptured as many are of possessing personal fame, it cannot be surprising that even some pastors would claim to have physically seen and or talked to the LORD Jesus –or at most to be Him themselves! Interesting, too, that some who lay claim to such, come to an end of life, sometime by their own hands!

Much of our world today lives with a serious lack of food! Some organizations, claiming to be helpful to the needy, simply fortify their own resources as if the needy did not exist; thus, famines expand and increase. Hatred of others (and jealousy of their possessions) promotes increased betrayal and tribulation. Love is virtually non-existent!

What is the answer to such a hopeless situation? Love and the endurance of the few faithful will proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ throughout the whole world. Many who endure will then be saved, “and then the end will come.”

Salvation is not merely living an honest and upright life. It is not merely treating your neighbor and others with kindness and respect. It is not merely submitting to baptism or holding membership in a church, however, invaluable these things are!. Salvation comes from the LORD Jesus, Who died on the cross for your sin. Salvation becomes real, when you truthfully ask of Him in prayer to honestly forgive you of you sin.

You can miss an important flight and catch another at a later time. It is not so with the LORD Jesus. “TODAY IF YOU HEAR HIS VOICE, DO NOT HARDEN YOUR HEART” (Heb. 3:15).

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