The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

Genesis 15:1-6, “After these things the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision, saying, ‘Do not fear, Abram, I am a shield to you; your reward shall be very great.’
2 Abram said, ‘O Lord GOD, what will You give me, since I am childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?’
3 And Abram said, ‘Since You have given no offspring to me, one born in my house is my heir.’
4 Then behold, the Word of the LORD came to him, saying, ‘This man will not be your heir; but one who will come forth from your own body, he shall be your heir.’
5 And He took him outside and said, ‘Now look toward the heavens, and count the stars, if you are able to count them.’ And He said to him, ‘So shall your descendants be.’
6 Then he believed in the LORD; and He reckoned it to him as righteousness.”

Although there are 50 chapters in the Book of Genesis, the 12TH to the end of the book cover only about 300 years, and they are largely biographical, giving us the accounts of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

One could only wish (and I am not challenging any Scriptural omission) that the opening expression of Abraham’s amazement at the innumberability of stars might have been included in the wording of Scripture! It staggers me to even think of it!

Even more amazing is the distinctive message of Genesis. It cites “the failure of man under every condition is met by the salvation of God” (Lee). More amazing still are the numerous times blessings attend the life and ministry of Abraham. He was far from a perfect man, yet the LORD used and blessed him numerous times. What an encouragement to us! We fail more than we succeed, yet the LORD is exceedingly faithful to us through His abundant provisions!

Try and remember His faithfulness the next time you try to count the stars. My guess is that you will be as surprised as Abraham. Yet, His blessings to us far surpass the number of stars!
Blessings come in abundance when we allow Christ to minister to others through us. That sure
beats merely counting stars, doesn’t it?

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,

James 2:1-5, “My brethren, do not hold your faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ with an attitude of personal favoritism.
2 For if a man comes into your assembly with a gold ring and dressed in fine clothes, and there also comes in a poor man in dirty clothes,
3 and you pay special attention to the one who is wearing the fine clothes, and say, “You sit here in a good place,” and you say to the poor man, “You stand over there, or sit down by my footstool,”
4 have you not made distinctions among yourselves, and become judges with evil motives?
5 Listen, my beloved brethren: did not God choose the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him?”

I will just be honest! When I worship in church, I prefer to be seated by a person or persons I know. There are many reasons for this; however, I have often been seated by persons I had
never met. Nevertheless, it did not harm my focus on either the Scriptures or on the preacher.

We’ve seemingly handled that “gold ring” affair cited in our passage above, because with the lights dimmed, I have not been able to discern whether the one by whom I was seated had any ring, much less, whether or not it was a gold one. Dim lights also discourage noticing whether a nearby person was “properly” dressed. All that being said, I’m more concerned that those people are there!

My parents always “dressed nicely” for church. They weren’t wealthy, so no one was angling his or her head to see if they had jewels. They did not. They came to engage in a corporate meeting of sincere worship with others of “like precious faith.” That’s the training I received; and it’s what my late wife and I sought to instill in our children.

It’s my earnest prayer that we will soon return to the understanding of what true worship is! It is prayer and praise and spiritual absorbtion of the Word that is earnestly proclaimed from the pulpit by a sincere, prayer-provoked male messenger of the LORD God Almighty. I need that
kind of ministry, and where I attend, I receive that kind of ministry. I trust that you do, too.

None of us knows how much (or little) time we have left on this earth. (Please know that I am currently feeling fine.) All the same, we never know when the LORD will call us to be with Him. If we’re focused, as we ought to be on worship, we will never be surprised nor harbor any regrets. And for my readers who are genuinely hindered from attending worship in your church, you can wear whatever you please; “…for God sees not as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart” (1 Sam. 16:7). God bless you! You are always in my prayers. And I trust that I am consistently in yours.

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 1:3-7, “Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of the prophecy, and heed the things which are written in it; for the time is near.
4 John to the seven churches that are in Asia: Grace to you and peace, from Him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven Spirits who are before His throne,
5 and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To Him who loves us and released us from our sins by His blood–
6 and He has made us to be a kingdom, priests to His God and Father– to Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen.
7 BEHOLD, HE IS COMING WITH THE CLOUDS, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him; and all the tribes of the earth will mourn over Him. So it is to be. Amen.”

Being retired has more blessings than I would ever have imagined! I won’t go into specifics, lest you, dear reader, lay aside this small letter in hopes of gaining the joys which surpass it. I will only say that I am currently working my way through Dr. J. Dwight Pentecost’s huge book, Things to Come. It gives insight into what the Scriptures teach of the world situation at the time of our LORD Jesus Christ’s Return, and when the Church is caught up in what is known as the Rapture. Not to discourage your reading it, but it is not for the faint of heart.

Christian Churches of all denominations seem to be in difficulty. For sometime, we’ve all read about the troubles Methodists and Presbyterians were encountering. But, the Southern Baptists have lost thousands of members over the past few years. Have you not noticed this? Have you not wondered what was really going on? Yes, much of it is theological in nature. Yet, far too much of church troubles today centers around money! Men who have never been “called” by the LORD to minister, thirst for money and so work their way into church leadership positions. Some of them, I dare say, have never been saved!

Satan has always been at work discouraging churches. Yet there seems to be a plethora of discouragement invading churches today. Churches desperately need to renew true worship. We who know Christ Jesus in His free pardon of our sin, need to pray more fervently than ever before! Pastors need to dig more deeply into the meaning of Scripture and feed the flock of
believers, who are hungering to be and know more than we are and do.

Let me ask of you what I have asked of myself: How would we respond in worship were we
aware that Jesus would be in our midst next Sunday? Just remember: He IS in our midst and
behave accordingly.

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,

Romans 13:3-8, “For rulers are not a cause of fear for good behavior, but for evil. Do you want to have no fear of authority? Do what is good and you will have praise from the same;
4 for it is a minister of God to you for good. But if you do what is evil, be afraid; for it does not bear the sword for nothing; for it is a minister of God, an avenger who brings wrath on the one who practices evil.
5 Therefore it is necessary to be in subjection, not only because of wrath, but also for conscience’ sake.
6 For because of this you also pay taxes, for rulers are servants of God, devoting themselves to this very thing.
7 Render to all what is due them: tax to whom tax is due; custom to whom custom; fear to whom fear; honor to whom honor.
8 Owe nothing to anyone except to love one another; for he who loves his neighbor has fulfilled the law.

Somewhere in the long, long ago, I recall a “saying” that was often on the lips of those who
were doing evil. It was, “Cheez it! The cops!” Although it undoubtedly originated with those
who were in the act of doing wrong and were fearful of being apprehended, it came to be a
by-word of lesser “criminals,” who were doing something they wanted kept in secret from
parents or guardians or teachers in school.

Whatever those who utilize that expression were intending, the expression simply varied according to the seriousness of the situation. The Apostle Paul used his words noted above
to emphasize the variations of sin in one’s life. “Rulers are not a cause of fear for good
behavior…” If one does what is good, he should never fear the judicial authority. In fact, the
human authority that thieves seek to avoid is, in reality, a “minister of God” to keep us all honest.

Paul then elaborates on authority by saying that we are not all completly honest; therefore, we have human “rulers” (police, judges, etc.) to keep us in line. They are why we pay taxes. Furthermore, we ought to simply “love one another.” When we love others, we need have no rear of the authorities coming down on us! The true “ruler” is the Holy Spirit, who lives within us; and when He lives within us, we truly belong to Christ’s Family!

I earnestly trust that you reside in Christ’s family! If you do, you need to share Him with those
who have yet to meet Him. If you do not reside in His family, you can become His by simply
and honestly confessing your sin to Him and asking Him to forgive you. And yes, it’s really that simple! You are in my daily prayers. Don’t hesitate to write me if you need spiritual help. I’m here for 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,

Colossians 1:1-5, “Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and Timothy our brother,
2 To the saints and faithful brethren in Christ who are at Colossae: Grace to you and peace from God our Father.
3 We give thanks to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you,
4 since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and the love which you have for all the saints;
5 because of the hope laid up for you in heaven, of which you previously heard in the word of truth, the gospel…”

I cannot number the preachers I have met over the years, who have told me, “I never
Intended to be a preacher. I had trained to be something altogether different.” The same was evidently true of Paul. He was trained to eradicate Christians. Still, he is noted above in our passage as “an apostle of Jesus Christ,” and “by the will of God…”

The word “apostle” designates “one who has been sent on a mission with full authority.” Apostle was not a new word to Christians, but it contained new meaning when applied to the faith. In one sense, the word gave rank superior to the local leaders in the early churches. As an “apostle,” Paul had no need to refer problems to a “board of leaders” somewhere. His word was sufficient.

We may occasionally discover things within our churches with which we do not agree. Such should be brought prayerfully to the attention of the leadership (pastors, deacons, etc.) as have been designated by the church. It should always be one’s concern that unity and love be expressed for each other. And that will prevail, if differences are considered and resolved in the spirit of love.

While the Apostle Paul does not suggest this remedy for other situations, the Scriptural reference above works the same for the Christian home, and all other situations that exist among true believers in Jesus Christ. When things of true Importance exist, but are not resolved quickly, they tend to fester and ultimately come to disaster.

Simon Peter speaks in agreement with Paul when he says,

“Above all, keep fervet in your love for one another,
Because love covers a multitude of sins” (1 Pet. 4:8).

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