The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

Genesis 49:1-8, “Then Jacob summoned his sons and said, ‘Assemble yourselves that I may tell you what will befall you in the days to come.
2 “Gather together and hear, O sons of Jacob; and listen to Israel your father.
3 “Reuben, you are my firstborn; my might and the beginning of my strength, preeminent in dignity and preeminent in power.
4 “Uncontrolled as water, you shall not have preeminence, because you went up to your father’s bed; then you defiled it– he went up to my couch.
5 “Simeon and Levi are brothers; their swords are implements of violence.
6 “Let my soul not enter into their council; let not my glory be united with their assembly; because in their anger they slew men, and in their self-will they lamed oxen.
7 “Cursed be their anger, for it is fierce; and their wrath, for it is cruel. I will disperse them in Jacob, and scatter them in Israel.
8 “Judah, your brothers shall praise you; your hand shall be on the neck of your enemies; your father’s sons shall bow down to you.”

Taken from the Scriptures of Genesis, we might well believe that there was excitement among the sons of Jacob as he assembled them for a most notable father-son talk. How many of us can relate to such an assembly. “What’s it all about?” one son would say to another. “Oh, our father is going to tell us what is going to take place in the days ahead,” the other would reply. In the end, Jacob’s words would not be received acceptably – at least, not as acceptably as they all would have anticipated.

The words of Jacob would surely have at first excited Reuben, as he was the eldest. But then, it was openly revealed that Reuben’s sin with his father’s wife had without question eliminated his right to be the family leader at the time of Jacob’s demise. (Strangely enough, those “enjoyable” sins are often the most costly!)

Simeon and Levi were doubtlessly fine warriors. We can only imagine that their pride exceeded their ability with their swords because they were known for their violence. Furthermore, they were angry and thoughtlessly slew men and lamed oxen, resulting in their useless endeavor to pull heavy loads.

By the grace of Almighty God, we can avoid these senseless slaughters and become invaluable to the work of the LORD. We ought never to follow the ways of prideful, thoughtless men. “Cursed be their anger,” the Scriptures say, as they cover us as well as the cruelty of Simeon and Levi.

Judah, the last-mentioned son of Jacob, was praised! Jacob’s words so regarded Judah. He was without a doubt, Jacob’s choicest son! The scepter, indentifying rulership, was resident in Judah hands; and it would remain their “until Shiloh comes.”

How does our LORD Jesus Christ rate us? Yes, He redeemed us, and He put responsibilites in our hands. How are we doing? Are we truly like Judah? Or are we too often like Simeon and Levi? We all (this writer included!) need to evaluate our standing day-by-day.

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 15:11-16, “”Who is like You among the gods, O LORD? Who is like You, majestic in holiness, awesome in praises, working wonders?
12 “You stretched out Your right hand, the earth swallowed them.
13 “In Your lovingkindness, You have led the people whom You have redeemed; in Your strength You have guided them to Your holy habitation.
14 “The peoples have heard, they tremble; Anguish has gripped the inhabitants of Philistia.
15 “Then the chiefs of Edom were dismayed; The leaders of Moab, trembling grips them; All the inhabitants of Canaan have melted away.
16 “Terror and dread fall upon them; by the greatness of Your arm they are motionless as stone; until Your people pass over, O LORD, until the people pass over whom You have purchased.’”

Israel was not the easiest nation to command. They were and are a stubborn people. The nations, among whom they mingled, believed in many gods. When things didn’t go well for Israel, she occasionally got sidetracked herself. Yet, when things were going well and the LORD was blessing, Israel cried out in praise, “Who is like You among the gods, O LORD?”

The word “holy” (?????? qodesh) means “apartness, sacredness, consecrated.” In various forms the word is mentioned some 685 times in the Scriptures. Thus, when the Simon Peter says, “…be holy yourselves…in all your behavior…” (1 Pet. 1:15), he is calling us to adopt the same attitude of life as the LORD intended when He called Israel.

The Exodus passage above calls us to holiness just as Israel was in Old Testament times. The LORD wants us to be pure in heart and life, and to live out everything holy that permeates our lives. We are to be and live to the glory of the LORD! When we live holy lives, others will either be fearful of us or will long to become more like us. We, of course, want them to be like Him and be ever and always under His control.

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,

Numbers 14:2-9, “All the sons of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron; and the whole congregation said to them, ‘Would that we had died in the land of Egypt! Or would that we had died in this wilderness!
3 ‘Why is the LORD bringing us into this land, to fall by the sword? Our wives and our little ones will become plunder; would it not be better for us to return to Egypt?’
4 So they said to one another, ‘Let us appoint a leader and return to Egypt.’
All the sons of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron; and the whole congregation said to them, ‘Would that we had died in the land of Egypt! Or would that we had died in this wilderness!
3 Why is the LORD bringing us into this land, to fall by the sword? Our wives and our little ones will become plunder; would it not be better for us to return to Egypt?’
4 So they said to one another, ‘Let us appoint a leader and return to Egypt.’
5 Then Moses and Aaron fell on their faces in the presence of all the assembly of the congregation of the sons of Israel.
6 Joshua the son of Nun and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, of those who had spied out the land, tore their clothes;
7 and they spoke to all the congregation of the sons of Israel, saying, ‘The land which we passed through to spy out is an exceedingly good land.
8 ‘If the LORD is pleased with us, then He will bring us into this land and give it to us– a land which flows with milk and honey.
9 Only do not rebel against the LORD; and do not fear the people of the land, for they will be our prey. Their protection has been removed from them, and the LORD is with us; do not fear them.’”

Some days are just beyond belief! And some are even beyond that! The LORD had led His people under the guidance of men like Moses and Aaron, Joshua and Caleb — great men of faith! Men obedient to the LORD and His every command. Wouldn’t you love to have a pastor like that? Some of us do; but do we listen? Are we following their directives, as they are following the LORD?

The LORD gives each congregation the men He has singled out to be the leader. They’re human, like Moses and Joshua. But are we listening? Are we praying for them? Are we following their lead
as they understand it to be from the LORD? In other words, do they have our trust? –our complete trust?

In one church where I pastored, the previous pastor had stolen money from the church. When the finance committee sought my signature that was required for signing checks, I naturally refused to sign! It was, however, to their credit they trusted me. We have to trust the leadership of our pastors.

It’s not easy to be the leader of anything that is spiritual in nature. The slightest variation can mislead others, bringing the wrath of God down upon them, as well as upon those that they lead. We must trust those whom the LORD has appointed to leadership. And we must follow them willingly and prayerfully, remembering that they, like us, are seeking to follow the supreme leadership of the LORD.

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 Timothy 2:11-18, “It is a trustworthy statement: for if we died with Him, we will also live with Him;
12 If we endure, we will also reign with Him; if we deny Him, He also will deny us;
13 If we are faithless, He remains faithful, for He cannot deny Himself.
14 Remind them of these things, and solemnly charge them in the presence of God not to wrangle about words, which is useless and leads to the ruin of the hearers.
15 Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth.
16 But avoid worldly and empty chatter, for it will lead to further ungodliness,
17 and their talk will spread like gangrene…
18 men who have gone astray from the truth saying that the resurrection has already taken place, and they upset the faith of some.”

Godly, born-again parents will always possess the desire that their children come to know the LORD; thus, they will exercise a behavior that will accredit the LORD to others. The initial four verses in the above passage contain the word “if,” giving the certain impression of their importance. The first two of the four “ifs” are negative; the latter two are positive.

“If we died with Him, we will also live with Him.” Have we truly died to ourselves? Our wants? Our desires? It is imperative that we do so if we intend to live with Him throughout eternity. “If we endure (i.e., “keep on keeping on,” and don’t give up!), we will “reign with Him” throughout eternity. If, however, we are “faithless,” He will nevertheless always be faithful because He cannot “deny” or “disown” what He is!

We, who are believers who follow Christ, are responsible to encourage other believers. We’re not to fuss and fight over the nuances of words. The Bible is clear and understandable to all believers. As believers, we just need to share Him and the Word with others. If we are faithful in sharing the Word with others, the Word will soon take on a life of its own.

Don’t get into wrangles over lesser issues; just stick to the clarity of Scripture and it will itself become alive in the hearts of others. It’s really that easy to share. In the long run, it is not our responsibility whether others believe; it is simply our responsibilty to present the Word in such a way that they will have no difficulty seeing that we believe. I’ve witnessed several people come to faith in Christ in a very short time; others have taken much, much longer. What’s important is our faithfulness. When we are faithful, the LORD will give us His approval. What more could we want?

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 98:1-9. “O sing to the LORD a new song, for He has done wonderful things, His right hand and His holy arm have gained the victory for Him.
2 The LORD has made known His salvation; He has revealed His righteousness in the sight of the nations.
3 He has remembered His lovingkindness and His faithfulness to the house of Israel; all the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.

4 Shout joyfully to the LORD, all the earth; break forth and sing for joy and sing praises.
5 Sing praises to the LORD with the lyre, with the lyre and the sound of melody.
6 With trumpets and the sound of the horn shout joyfully before the King, the LORD.
7 Let the sea roar and all it contains, the world and those who dwell in it.
8 Let the rivers clap their hands, let the mountains sing together for joy
9 Before the LORD, for He is coming to judge the earth; He will judge the world with righteousness and the peoples with equity.

Today, Sunday, 15 September 2024, is a day of worship. The psalmist recollects that the LORD
has done wonderful, including victories for His people. Those victories are “full of wonder!’ They extend much further than we could imagine. Nevertheless, they are victories! The LORD has saved His people. Moreover, He has demonstrated His power to those who lived only to destroy Israel. And neighboring nations have witnessed His phenomenal power!

The shout of joy, which the psalmist expresses is not containable! It is powerful and stretches forth so as to include nations that believed themselves to be unconquerable. Further, it is musical! The people are moved to praise Him with their voices and with instruments –not a performance cloaked as worship—but voices of praise that contain melody and comprehensible words sung to the glory of the LORD alone! Worship such as this is raw praise that shakes the heavens in thanksgiving to the LORD for His glorious love that permeates the depths of the human soul.

But why is all of this praise encouraged? It is because the LORD is coming to judge the earth, so the days will be filled with righteousness, as the LORD intends. Do you believe you will be here on earth when He comes? Believing that is encouraging; not believing that is extremely and eternally dangerous. Yield your life to Him today! Be on the Victory Side of Life!

Heartily in Christ Jesus,

(Dado III)

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.
Springdale, Arkansas 72764
United States of America

“We will never know that Christ is all we need
until He becomes all that we have.”
– Corrie ten Boom