The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

Zephaniah 1:7-13, “Be silent before the Lord God! For the day of the LORD is near, for the LORD has prepared a sacrifice, He has consecrated His guests.

8 “Then it will come about on the day of the LORD’s sacrifice, that I will punish the princes, the king’s sons, and all who clothe themselves with foreign garments.

9 “And I will punish on that day all who leap on the temple threshold, who fill the house of their lord with violence and deceit.”

10 “And on that day,” declares the LORD, “there will be the sound of a cry from the Fish Gate, a wail from the Second Quarter, and a loud crash from the hills.”

11 “Wail, O inhabitants of the Mortar, for all the people of Canaan will be silenced; all who weigh out silver will be cut off.

12 “And it will come about at that time that I will search Jerusalem with lamps, and I will punish the men who are stagnant in spirit, who say in their hearts, ‘The LORD will not do good or evil!’

13 “Moreover, their wealth will become plunder, and their houses desolate; yes, they will build houses but not inhabit them, and plant vineyards but not drink their wine.”

These are but a few of the tumultuous words spoken by the prophet Zephaniah. Things are what they are now, but in the days ahead, things will be different. While there is a jealousy “which must never be associated with God…, there is a jealousy which is the natural outcome of His love.” And it is this latter jealousy that we must associate with God. All that He performs is for the good of those who love and follow Him! Are you loving and following Him?

Heartily in Christ Jesus,

(Dado III)

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

United States of America

“We will never know that Christ is all we need

until He becomes all that we have.”

– Corrie ten Boom

Dear Grands,

Habakkuk 1:2-11, “How long, O LORD, will I call for help, and Thou wilt not hear? I cry out to Thee, ‘Violence!’ Yet Thou dost not save.

3 Why dost Thou make me see iniquity, and cause me to look on wickedness? Yes, destruction and violence are before me; strife exists and contention arises.

4 Therefore, the law is ignored and justice is never upheld. For the wicked surround the righteous; therefore, justice comes out perverted.

5 “Look among the nations! Observe! Be astonished! Wonder! Because I am doing something in your days—you would not believe if you were told.

6 “For behold, I am raising up the Chaldeans, that fierce and impetuous people who march throughout the earth to seize dwelling places which are not theirs.

7 “They are dreaded and feared. Their justice and authority originate with themselves…

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9 “All of them come for violence… They collect captives like sand.

10 “They mock at kings, and rulers are a laughing matter to them. They laugh at every fortress, and heap up rubble to capture it.

11 “Then they will sweep through like the wind and pass on. But they will be held guilty, they whose strength is their god.”

How often have you observed wrong being tolerated by society? Authorities know, but nothing is being done to prevent it! This is the cry of Habakkuk. He sees wrong being ignored, just as we observe it in our time. People are laughing at the authorities! What’s to be done? Something will be! Habakkuk says, “…they will be held guilty, they whose strength is their god.”

How often we observe the same in our time! We must do what we can, yet we must ultimately trust the LORD to control every situation. Prayer is always vital!

Heartily in Christ Jesus,

(Dado III)

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

United States of America

“We will never know that Christ is all we need

until He becomes all that we have.”

– Corrie ten Boom

Dear Grands,

Nahum 1:1-7, “The book of the vision of Nahum the Elkoshite.

2 A jealous and avenging God is the LORD; the LORD is avenging and wrathful. The LORD takes vengeance on His adversaries, and He reserves wrath for His enemies.

3 The LORD is slow to anger and great in power; and the LORD will by no means leave the guilty unpunished. In whirlwind and storm is His way, and clouds are the dust beneath His feet.

4 He rebukes the sea and makes it dry; He dries up all the rivers. Bashan and Carmel wither; the blossoms of Lebanon wither.

5 Mountains quake because of Him, and the hills dissolve; indeed, the earth is upheaved by His presence, the world and all the inhabitants in it.

6 Who can stand before His indignation? Who can endure the burning of His anger? His wrath is poured out like fire, And the rocks are broken up by Him.

7 The LORD is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble, and He knows those who take refuge in Him.”

Nahum was a native of Galilee. His contemporaries were Hezekiah and Isaiah. When Assyria invaded Galilee, Nahum escaped to Judah, taking up residence in Jerusalem.

The theme of the book of Nahum is the destruction of Nineveh. It was written some 150 years following Jonah’s mission to Nineveh – a city that had known only violence and cruelty and was to be doomed in a similar manner.

“Behold, I am against you,” declares the LORD of hosts; “and I will lift up your skirts over your face and show to the nations your nakedness and to the kingdoms your disgrace.”

What the LORD declared He will do with Nineveh is a solemn warning. The LORD is capable of doing precisely that with all of those who follow their own inclinations instead of allowing Him to be the Director of their lives and their nation. Borrowing a saying of my maternal grandmother, “They had better watch their p’s and q’s.” And so had we!

Heartily in Christ Jesus,

(Dado III)

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

United States of America

“We will never know that Christ is all we need

until He becomes all that we have.”

– Corrie ten Boom

Dear Grands,

Micah 6:6-8, “With what shall I come to the LORD and bow myself before the God on high? Shall I come to Him with burnt offerings, with yearling calves?

7 Does the LORD take delight in thousands of rams, in ten thousand rivers of oil? Shall I present my first-born for my rebellious acts, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?

8 He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?”

People everywhere have curious habits, sometimes carryovers from their parents or peculiar to their country. I remember well an Australian ringing the doorbell of our home in Sydney. When I answered the door, I discovered a man holding a bag of cookies and asking, “Would it be possible to find a cup of tea beyond this door?” It was a visiting pastor, new to our family. When we learned what the question was truly all about, we quite joyously invited him into our home.

The prophet Micah sets forth how he and others should behave when coming into the presence of the LORD. What does the LORD require? Does He want livestock? Does He desire children, the offspring of a man and his wife? What is it possible to present to Him that will satisfy His desire? The answer is simple: He desires justice, kindness, and forthright humility – all actions and attitudes borne out of love. Is it with such qualities that you can open the door? I think you know Who’s knocking at your door.

Heartily in Christ Jesus,

(Dado III)

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

United States of America

“We will never know that Christ is all we need

until He becomes all that we have.”

– Corrie ten Boom

Dear Grands,

Jonah 1:1-5, “The word of the LORD came to Jonah the son of Amittai saying,

2 “Arise, go to Nineveh the great city, and cry against it, for their wickedness has come up before Me.”

3 But Jonah rose up to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the LORD. So he went down to Joppa, found a ship which was going to Tarshish, paid the fare, and went down into it to go with them to Tarshish from the presence of the LORD.

4 And the LORD hurled a great wind on the sea, and there was a great storm on the sea so that the ship was about to break up.

5 Then the sailors became afraid, and every man cried to his god, and they threw the cargo which was in the ship into the sea to lighten it for them. But Jonah had gone below into the hold of the ship, laid down, and fallen sound asleep.”

This biblical account of Jonah may well be one of the best-known in all the Bible.

Jonah had always been a servant of the LORD, yet on this occasion, he balked at his assignment. The LORD had commissioned him: “Go to Nineveh…”; but “Jonah rose up to flee to Tarshish…” What’s more, his movement was “away from” the presence of the LORD. There’s always a “ship” going away from the LORD. Well, Jonah found it, paid the fare, went on board, went below deck, and quickly fell asleep.

Running away from God is always expensive — both in energy and in currency. Yet, it would cost Jonah even more! In fact, he nearly lost his life! Turns out, it was a lesson the LORD was teaching him. And it wasn’t over! Thrown overboard, swallowed by a whale, spit out on the shore… it caused such commotion that the King of Nineveh became involved and helped Jonah carry out the mission the LORD had originally intended.

None of this recitation is to encourage you to divert from the LORD’s intention for your life. Jonah had forgotten who was “Lord.” That is the one sure facet we must never forget! HE IS LORD! Any deviation from that and we are headed for sure disaster!

Heartily in Christ Jesus,

(Dado III)

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

United States of America

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