The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

1 Kings 8:26-30, “Now therefore, O God of Israel, let Your word,
I pray, be confirmed which You have spoken to Your servant, my
father David.
27 “But will God indeed dwell on the earth? Behold, heaven and
the highest heaven cannot contain You, how much less this house
which I have built!
28 “Yet have regard to the prayer of Your servant and to his
supplication, O LORD my God, to listen to the cry and to the prayer which Your servant prays before You today;
29 that Your eyes may be open toward this house night and day,
toward the place of which You have said, ‘My name shall be there,’
to listen to the prayer which Your servant shall pray toward this
place.
30 “Listen to the supplication of Your servant and of Your people
Israel, when they pray toward this place; hear in heaven Your
dwelling place; hear and forgive.”

There’s always more to prayer than we think. These words of King
Solomon were prayed against the background of the LORD’s blessing
and from a sincere heart. The prayers of kings are no more honored
than the prayers of the weakest and poorest of the land. The LORD
is LORD of all.

Our hearts may be weary of the sin that infests our lives, but the
warm and sincere Heart of the LORD is always present to attend to
our needs. Solomon was not without sin; yet, he prayed earnestly
and the LORD heard and answered his prayers.

None of us, whether reader or scribe, are free from sin; yet our
hearts and lives are cleansed when we pray. The Blood of our
LORD Jesus Christ cleanses us from sin, whether a slippage or
intentional, whether omission or commission. We are centuries
this side of Solomon, yet the LORD deals with us as surely as
He dealt with the king.

Prayer is the unique opportunity we are afforded to hold others
before Him with the assurance that what He does is best. We
all know someone who needs our prayers. We all know with
certainty that we ourselves need to pray in faith and in trust.

Hear us, oh LORD. You know the burden of our hearts. We
believe in Your ability and we trust in Your power. Thank You
for being faithful in adhearing to our prayers. Amen.

Heartily in Christ Jesus,

(Dado III)

With this email, my brother-in-law, Garrett Conner, is in hospital in St. Louis. He
is in very serious condition, and we all would appreciate your prayers for him.
Thank you.

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,

John 8:25-30, “So they were saying to Him, ‘Who are You?’ Jesus
said to them, ‘What have I been saying to you from the beginning?
26 ‘I have many things to speak and to judge concerning you, but He who sent Me is true; and the things which I heard from Him, these I speak to the world.’
27 They did not realize that He had been speaking to them about the Father.
28 So Jesus said, ‘When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will
know that I am He, and I do nothing on My own initiative, but I speak these things as the Father taught Me.
29 ‘And He who sent Me is with Me; He has not left Me alone, for I always do the things that are pleasing to Him.’
30 As He spoke these things, many came to believe in Him.“

Oh, now I get it! Why didn’t you say that before? Were you ever
Listening to someone without actually absorbing what was being
said? Of course, you have! So have I, and so has everyone. It’s not
that we’ve not appeared to have understood; it’s that other thoughts
have crept into our thinking, and—well, we’ve just listened to certain things and not listened to others.

The crowd referenced in our Scripture above were not good listeners!
Still, Jesus was patient. He had many things to say –things, they and
we need to hear! The Prime Person of whom the Savior spoke was
the Father.

Jesus foretold that they would ultimately crucify the Son of Man! And
at that time, they would learn that Jesus Himself was the Son of Man!
What Jesus was doing was precisely what the Father wanted Him to
do. What Jesus and the Father wanted them to do was believe!

The closing thought in verse 29 is that the Father is always with the
Son, and everything the Son does is always within the Father’s will.
Therefore, the Scriptures above that are with you, are what the Father
wishes for you to know and believe, also.

The “lifting up of the Son of Man” clearly references Jesus’ crucifixion.
He died on the Cross, shedding His blood that it might cover our sin.
When we believe Him and accept His death and resurrection as for
us, His blood covers our sin from the eyes of the Father. That is His
forgiveness. Now, all you need to do is to thank Him for what He did
and accept His gift just as you would accept a gift from a friend.

Pray: Thank You, LORD, for loving and dying for me.
Forgive my sins, come into my heart and life and help
me to live for You, who died and arose from the dead
for me. In Jesus Name, I pray. Amen.

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,

John 8:31-36, “So Jesus was saying to those Jews who had believed
Him, ‘If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine;
32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.”
33 They answered Him, “We are Abraham’s descendants and have
never yet been enslaved to anyone; how is it that You say, ‘You will
become free?’”
34 Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who
commits sin is the slave of sin.
35 “The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son does
remain forever.
36 “So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed.”

If you’ve been watching the news recently, you surely have noticed
the legal entanglements that are front-and-center in Georgia’s Fulton
County. No, I’m not going to rehash it all for you here; I’m only going
to note how the legal entanglements there parallel the Scripture here.
The truth, if we know it—that is, if we embrace it, is the LORD’s sure
guarantee of our freedom.

I once toyed with the idea of studying law. Today, I’m excited that
the LORD had other plans for me. Talk about a “tangled web!” In his
“Book of Signs,” Dr. David Jeremiah notes how the nations of our
world became entangled with other nations, virtually guaranteeing
a coming world government!

“The Roman Empire of Jesus’ day did not end suddenly. It gradually
declined over many centuries, until the Western part of the empire
fell in AD 476. The Eastern part…fell in AD 1453.”

In 1930, 26 nations came together in a coalition that was called “the
United States of Europe.” As other countries joined the group, the
name was again altered to “the European Union.”

All of this is somewhat like numerous families uniting in a way where
it takes a vote to determine what time supper is on!

Time is running out! We had better forget Fani Willis’ troubles and
focus on our own. We need to “shape up” for Jesus’ Coming! If you
haven’t, I urge you to do it now! Confess your sins to Jesus so you
won’t be left behind when He comes! Concern yourself with those
you know, who don’t know Him! There’s nothing like hearing the
words “Sorry; you’re too late. He was here, but you were not ready!”

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,

John 8:31-36, “So Jesus was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, ‘If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine;
32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.’
33 They answered Him, ‘We are Abraham’s descendants and have never yet been enslaved to anyone; how is it that You say, “You
will become free?”’
34 Jesus answered them, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is the slave of sin.
35 ‘The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son does
remain forever.
36 ‘So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed.’”

To some people “being free” means simply “doing whatever you want–no holds barred!” To others, it means possessing time without being
disturbed.

But, what if you are doing something that’s not right? Does freedom
include or allow that?

The speed limit in 70 Mph. But, you can do more than that! Besides,
there are virtually no cars on the road; what could be wrong with going
faster?

The sign says, “Free to take; limit one-per-person.” There is a bunch
of grapefruits. Hardly anyone is taking any. They’ll go bad if not eaten
pretty soon. Is it not beneficial to take more than one?

Jesus had already said, “When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will
know that I am He, and I do nothing on My own initiative, but I speak
these things as the Father taught Me.”

Jesus is speaking truth to His disciples. They did not believe that He
was going to die, especially not for their sins. Yet, there will come a
time when He will die, and for their sins. At that time, they will come to
understand why He had to die, and why for their sins. It was the Father’s
own plan.

This is the Truth! And it is the truth that frees the one who believes
and accepts it. Have you accepted His Truth? Have you come to know that Jesus died on that cross for you?

Think again about what He said: “…you will know the truth, and the
truth will make you free.” Are you really and truly free? Or are you
bound by sin, and hindered from accepting the LORD’s freedom?

Those whom I have known that have accepted Jesus as their LORD,
have rejoiced to be free! You, too, can know that freedom. You won’t
know what it is to be truly free until you accept the LORD Jesus Christ
as your Savior!

Heartily in Christ Jesus,

(Dado III)

If you have failed to receive your copy, please search your computer.
Sometimes incoming mail goes to unintended files.

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 6:5-7, “Then the LORD saw that the wickedness of man
was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his
heart was only evil continually.
6 The LORD was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and
He was grieved in His heart.
7 The LORD said, “I will blot out man whom I have created from
the face of the land, from man to animals to creeping things and
to birds of the sky; for I am sorry that I have made them.”

I won’t ask you, dear reader, whether you have ever been sorry.
I’m more than certain that you have. I am exceedingly certain I
have. I’ve been sorry for things I’ve done; things I’ve not done;
things I’ve said; things I’ve neglected to say, and the list goes on
and on…

The word “sorry,” with it’s cousin, “sorrow,” appears more than
60 times in the Scripture. The list below covers a lot of sorrows:

God is sorry – Gen 6:6-7 (Does that surprise you?)
Benjamin’s brother is sorry – Jdg 21:6
David is sorry – Psalm 13:2; 31:10; 38:17; 39:2
The Wicked are sorry – Psalm 32:10
Christ is sorry – Isa 53:3
Jeremiah is sorry – Jer 8:18
God will NOT be sorry – Ezekiel 24:14
Paul is sorry – 2 Cor 2:1-7, 6:10; 7:8-11; Phil 2:27; Heb. 12:11
Peter is sorry – 1 Pet. 2:19

Sorrow works in two dimentions: we are sorry for what we have
done; and we are sorry for what we have not done! Sometimes
sorrow comes from forgetting to say “Thank you” to someone who
has helped us. Perhaps, more often than not, sorry comes from
doing or saying something we ought not to have done or said.

Quite often, our emotions get ahead of our intentions, and this sets
in motion a new list of “ought nots.” Don’t kick yourself! At my age
(left for your best guess), I still have to work on this. Even our LORD said, “I am sorry…” (Gen. 6:6-7), although He never sins.

Being sorry allows the entrance of prayer. Prayer erases sorrow,
when we confess the wrong we have done or left undone, or spoken contrary to the truth, or intimated our ignorance or knowledge of something, so as to deceive. Prayer is an excellent “conscience
eraser.” At the same time, we must yield to whatever encouragingly opens the door for sin, because sin –OUR SIN– is what sent Jesus
to the cross.

If you truly know Him, you ought to say “Thank You” every day! If
you have yet to know Him, be thankful that you are still alive and are
able to know Him. Then reachout to Him in thoughtfully sincere prayer. Ask Him to forgive you of your sin and make you one of His children. Then, you can sincerely say, “Thank You, 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