The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

Nehemiah 4:1-6, “Now it came about that when Sanballat heard that we were rebuilding the wall, he became furious and very angry and mocked the Jews.
2 He spoke in the presence of his brothers and the wealthy men of Samaria and said, ‘What are these feeble Jews doing? Are they going to restore it for themselves? Can they offer sacrifices? Can they finish in a day? Can they revive the stones from the dusty rubble even the burned ones?’
3 Now Tobiah the Ammonite was near him and he said, ‘Even what they are building– if a fox should jump on it, he would break their stone wall down!’
4 Hear, O our God, how we are despised! Return their reproach on their own heads and give them up for plunder in a land of captivity.
5 Do not forgive their iniquity and let not their sin be blotted out before You, for they have demoralized the builders.’
6 So we built the wall and the whole wall was joined together to half its height, for the people had a mind to work.”

Were I to guess if you’ve experienced something like this, it would almost be
impossible for me to be wrong. For one thing, it is “natural” for the “fallen nature,” (i.e., the sinful, unsaved nature) to think negatively on just about everything. Especially is that so when it comes to something spiritual.

This was precisely the situation of Sanballat, who was entirely opposed to Nehemiah and the rebuilding of the Jerusalem wall.He predates those of our own
day who say, “Don’t bother me with the facts; my mind’s made up!”

Verses 1-3 above are the pattern verses for all negatives of all times. Sanballat and Tobiah are not scientific engineers; they were just evil, first century, negative thinkers. Had the situation been reversed from that of Nehemiah, they would still have been negative toward the rebuilding. (Some people are just negative!)

What are we to do when we’re faced with a mob of negative thinkers? We’re to
follow the pattern of Nehemiah. He turned to the LORD in prayer. Some people
see that like a child running to a parent when he doesn’t get his own way –or
just doesn’t know how to handle the situation.

Truthfully, it doesn’t matter how small the “issue” is, or what others think about our
praying to the LORD for an answer the situation. He loves us and wants us to always depend upon Him.

It’s not a matter of how gargantuan or minimal the situation might be. All that matters is that we recognize our child-to-Father relationship and seek His advice for our speech and our behavior. It will always then be the best from both parties.

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,

Nehemiah 2:17-18, “Then I said to them, ‘You see the bad situation we are in, that Jerusalem is desolate and its gates burned by fire. Come, let us rebuild the wall of Jerusalem so that we will no longer be a reproach.’
18 I told them how the hand of my God had been favorable to me and also about the king’s words which he had spoken to me. Then they said, ‘Let us arise and build.’ So they put their hands to the good work.”

It was a desperate time. The walls of Jerusalem were down and they badly needed attention. Nehemiah was a servant of King Artaxerxes; and when the
King noted Nehemiah’s sadness, he inquired as to what was disturbing him. It’s
good to have leaders who refuse to lose the “common touch.”

Learning of the devastation of Jerusalem’s walls, Artaxerxes sent Nehemiah to
Jerusalem to lead the work on the walls. The king also provided funds for the
rebuilding. It’s good to have leaders who have not lost the “common touch.”

As it turned out, there were some who strenuously opposed the walls rebuilding.
Two lacklusters, Sanballat and Tobiah, played every “trick in the book” to hinder
the Jews from rebuilding the wall. “…it was very displeasing to them that someone had come to seek the welfare of the sons of Israel” (2:10). Although Nehemiah possessed strong faith in the LORD, it required his instruction to the Jews to keep watch against those who opposed the wall’s reconstruction.

In all of this, we are being taught not to take the things of the LORD for granted.
Nehemiah had opposition. Jesus Himself encountered opposition. Whenever we
choose to stand for Christ, we can know from the start that we will face opposition.
We are to trust the LORD and make a strong stand. We live in the midst of a score
of “anti-christs!” Anything that honors Him, they oppose. He possesses absolute
strength! His opposition can never win. At the same time, He expects us to make
a stand on His behalf. And it is to our benefit that we do so at every turn!

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,

Genesis 19:9-14, “But they said, ‘Stand aside.’ Furthermore, they said, ‘This one came in as an alien, and already he is acting like a judge; now we will treat you worse than them.’ So they pressed hard against Lot and came near to break the door.
10 But the men reached out their hands and brought Lot into the house with them, and shut the door.
11 They struck the men who were at the doorway of the house with blindness, both small and great, so that they wearied themselves trying to find the doorway.
12 Then the two men said to Lot, ‘Whom else have you here? A son-in-law, and your sons, and your daughters, and whomever you have in the city, bring them out of the place;
13 for we are about to destroy this place, because their outcry has become so great before the LORD that the LORD has sent us to destroy it.’
14 Lot went out and spoke to his sons-in-law, who were to marry his daughters, and said, “Up, get out of this place, for the LORD will destroy the city.” But he appeared to his sons-in-law to be jesting.”

In the previous chapter, the LORD said, “The outcry of Sodom and Gomorrah is
indeed great, and their sin is exceedingly grave.” Yet, following the LORD’s assessment of Sodom’s sin (18:20), Abraham sought to appease the LORD’s thinking and gradually encourage Him to spare the city.

How like that we are today! “Just leave our sin to us,” we say. “We’ll handle every-
thing.” Yet, we can’t, and we don’t! With a deluge of “preachers” on the internet,
the behavior of the world is moving toward Sodom and its homosexuality. Do you
remember the old saying, “Believe only half of what you see and nothing of what you hear”? –or was it “…half of what you hear and nothing of what you see?” Either works well with the Internet these days.

Only the financial situation seems tenuously holding things together –and that is temporal in that the nations’ need for each other keeps them from outright war. The warning of Holy Scripture is not to be ignored! The LORD has spoken, and only those who heed His warning can hope to survive. Yet, the situation will get worse as time moves rapidly along.

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,

Galatians 6:1-7, “Brethren, even if anyone is caught in any trespass, you who are spiritual, restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness; each one looking to yourself, so that you too will not be tempted.
2 Bear one another’s burdens, and thereby fulfill the law of Christ.
3 For if anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself.
4 But each one must examine his own work, and then he will have reason for boasting in regard to himself alone, and not in regard to another.
5 For each one will bear his own load.
6 The one who is taught the word is to share all good things with the one who teaches him.
7 Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap.”

There’s no mistake about it: Paul speaks his mind and gets right to the heart of
the problem. Most of us believers (myself included) should/must adhere to the
teaching in these verses. Too often we “ah, HA!” when someone is discovered
doing wrong. Paul says that we should be gentle and restore in love and kindness
those who fall into sin.

If you’ve ever been caught doing or saying something you ought not to have done,
you have but to be greatful for those who taught you in kindness and love and
helped your restoration in fellowship with the LORD and with His people. Those
who pretend to be Christians, yet do not assist in the rehabilitation of a sinner, are
living outside of the Apostle’s directive.

Undoubtedly, there are multiple reasons for us to examine ourselves and our
works. It’s so easy to blame others for their sins; yet, we who stand by and look on
are ourselves as guilty as they. There is more than one way to mock God. And we
are warned by instruction that “whatever a man sows, this he will also reap” (v. 7).

This passage warns us even as it encourages us not to “think that (we) are something.” Rather, it is we who have been “taught the Word (and are) to share all good things with the one who (is) teaching (us).”

Pray for your pastors and teachers. They have a heavy burden as they pray for us
and teach us the Word. Don’t ever think (much less, believe) that you’ve arrivedThere’s so much that we do not know — much that we will never know! Thus, we
must study to show ourselves approved of God. He is pleased when He sees us
studying and learning and growing daily to be more like Him.

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,

Galatians 6:1-7, “Brethren, even if anyone is caught in any trespass, you who are spiritual, restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness; each one looking to yourself, so that you too will not be tempted.
2 Bear one another’s burdens, and thereby fulfill the law of Christ.
3 For if anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself.
4 But each one must examine his own work, and then he will have reason for boasting in regard to himself alone, and not in regard to another.
5 For each one will bear his own load.
6 The one who is taught the word is to share all good things with the one who teaches him.
7 Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap.”

There is a natural tendency to chide those we find doing wrong. The Apostle Paul, however, teaches that we are to restore those we find doing wrong. His assumption is that we are spiritual. It’s naural for us to accuse and demean a liar, forgetting that we ourselves are or have been guilty of the same sin.

Bearing another’s burden means to recognize our own sin and be sympathic with the sinfulness of others. If you’ve been taught what is right –what the Word, the Scripture, says is right—you can then share what is right with others.

Be careful not to be misled, and don’t “mock” or “sneer” at God. How you behave toward others, the LORD will cause to others to behave toward 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