The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

1 Thessalonians 2:13-16, “…we also constantly thank God that when you received the Word of God which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men, but for what it really is, the Word of God, which also performs its work in you who believe.
14 For you, brethren, became imitators of the churches of God in Christ Jesus that are in Judea, for you also endured the same sufferings at the hands of your own countrymen, even as they did from the Jews,
15 who both killed the LORD Jesus and the prophets, and drove us out. They are not pleasing to God, but hostile to all men,
16 hindering us from speaking to the Gentiles so that they may be saved; with the result that they always fill up the measure of their sins. But wrath has come upon them to the utmost.”

Have you ever received something, the joy of which you just could not contain? You just kept saying, “Thank you! Thank you!” again and again. Well, you may have to reach away back into your childhood days for that experience until you experience something extraordinary, something like “peace with God.”

Paul constantly thanked the LORD for the Thessalonians having received His Word because it is the Word than “performs its work in (those) who believe.” At the same time, there is suffering that befalls those who receive it. No, the Word itself does not produce suffering; but the people who accept Christ are often persecuted by the people who have not received Him.

In the situation of our verses above, the Jews who had received the LORD were being persecuted by the Jews who hadn’t received Him. They even hindered Christians from speaking to the Gentiles, keeping them from being saved. All of this is why the LORD will pour out His wrath on the Jews in the coming time of Tribulation.

Ultimately, some Jews will trust in Jesus! And those who do, will be like Gentiles who have. They will be excited to share their newly found faith in Christ Jesus! Do you know some Jewish people? Share Jesus with them.
When they know Him, they make wonderful witneses, just like you!

Heartily in Christ Jesus,

(Dado III)

P. S. If you missed the Gospel Tract I shared with you yesterday, I am attaching it again. Let me know how it is received by those with whom you share it.

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,

1 Thessalonians 2:3-11, “For our exhortation does not come from error or impurity or by way of deceit;
4 but just as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, so we speak, not as pleasing men, but God who examines our hearts.
5 For we never came with flattering speech, as you know, nor with a pretext for greed– God is witness–
6 nor did we seek glory from men, either from you or from others, even though as apostles of Christ we might have asserted our authority.
7 But we proved to be gentle among you, as a nursing mother tenderly cares for her own children.
8 Having so fond an affection for you, we were well-pleased to impart to you not only the gospel of God but also our own lives, because you had become very dear to us.
9 For you recall, brethren, our labor and hardship, how working night and day so as not to be a burden to any of you, we proclaimed to you the gospel of God.
10 You are witnesses, and so is God, how devoutly and uprightly and blamelessly we behaved toward you believers;
11 just as you know how we were exhorting and encouraging and imploring each one of you as a father would his own children…”

Paul assures the Thessalonian Christians that his message of salvation does not come from error or by way of deceit. It is pure, true, and bears the stamp of God’s own approval. Paul does not seek applause from his hearers. Nor is he harsh in the delivery of his message. Rather, he is gentle like a mother with a newly born child. At the same time, he encourages them all in the way a good father treats his own children.

We have to be something before we can do something for Christ! We also have to become nothing before we can become something; that is, what He wants us to be. We have to die to ourselves, to our pride, to our possessions, to our dreams, to everything, before we can become fruitful for Him and meet the standard He has for all who would carry His Message of Salvation.

You are the only Bible some people will ever read! Genuine humility is the backdrop to our Message of Jesus Christ. When we consider ourselves to be nothing, that’s when we are what He wants us to be. Think about that!

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,

1 Thessalonians 1:1-10, “Paul and Silvanus and Timothy, To the church of the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace to you and peace.
2 We give thanks to God always for all of you, making mention of you in our prayers;
3 constantly bearing in mind your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ in the presence of our God and Father,
4 knowing, brethren beloved by God, His choice of you;
5 for our gospel did not come to you in word only, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction; just as you know what kind of men we proved to be among you for your sake.
6 You also became imitators of us and of the Lord, having received the word in much tribulation with the joy of the Holy Spirit,
7 so that you became an example to all the believers in Macedonia and in Achaia.
8 For the word of the Lord has sounded forth from you, not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but also in every place your faith toward God has gone forth, so that we have no need to say anything.
9 For they themselves report about us what kind of a reception we had with you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve a living and true God,
10 and to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, that is Jesus, who rescues us from the wrath to come.”

There’s nothing quite like a young person, who has just become a believer in Jesus Christ! Maybe you can remember how it was with you when you trusted Him. Well, that’s how it was with the Thessalonian Christians, too. Paul and his two companions, Silvanus and Timothy, were rejoicing over these new believers.

It’s truly exciting to see new believers be so enthusiastic! They just want to tell everyone about the Jesus who saved their souls, and how He could and would do the same for them. Those Thessalonian believers had formerly served idols, but they “turned to God from idols to serve a living and true God.” Do you have idols in your life? Are there things you put ahead of the study of the Word of God and serious prayer? If so, you can turn from them just as these Thessalonians did.

They had one other exciting factor in their lives: they were waiting for the LORD Jesus to come for them from Heaven. He had rescued them from “the wrath to come.” That’s part of the reason they were witnessing to others. Are you witnessing to others? Are you aware that there is a “wrath to come”? There is; and what’s more, you and I as Christians have a responsibility to reach them before that time!

Study the Word of God, witness to others of His saving grace, and be alert! He will come back at the least expected moment!

Heartily in Christ Jesus,

(Dado III)

P. S. Please find attached my latest Gospel Tract. It can be sent via text or email. It’s a
simple way to witness to those live too far away to be reached face-to-face.

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,

Acts 8:29-35, “Then the Spirit said to Philip, “Go up and join this chariot.”
30 Philip ran up and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet, and said, “Do you understand what you are reading?”
31 And he said, “Well, how could I, unless someone guides me?” And he invited Philip to come up and sit with him.
32 Now the passage of Scripture which he was reading was this: “HE WAS LED AS A SHEEP TO SLAUGHTER; AND AS A LAMB BEFORE ITS SHEARER IS SILENT, SO HE DOES NOT OPEN HIS MOUTH.
33 “IN HUMILIATION HIS JUDGMENT WAS TAKEN AWAY; WHO WILL RELATE HIS GENERATION? FOR HIS LIFE IS REMOVED FROM THE EARTH.”
34 The eunuch answered Philip and said, “Please tell me, of whom does the prophet say this? Of himself or of someone else?”
35 Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning from this Scripture he preached Jesus to him.”

Believers in the New Testament era had a distinct advantage in that angels often spoke to them. We have a similar advantage in that the Holy Spirit speaks to us. The difference is that the New Testament believers listened more intently than we.

Remember that Philip had been ordered by an angel to venture to a desert road where he would encounter an official from the court of Candice, Queen of the Ethiopians. Philip obeyed and discovered the official reading the Book of Isaiah. The Holy Spirit then said to Philip, “Go up and join this chariot.” How does this happen? Is Philip to stop the chariot, or what?

Asking a question is often the best way to introduce yourself into a conversation. Philip simply asks, “Do you understand what you are reading?” Forgive me for introducing myself into the narrative here, but I very often asked myself this precise question when I was studying Hebrew in the seminary. I can only imagine how much more difficult it would have been to attempt to read Hebrew while bouncing around in a chariot on a desert road. Yet, with the LORD, all things are possible.

The very passage the official was reading (Isaiah 53:6ff) gave Philip the “opening” he needed to share the Gospel, and Philip did not waver. He shared his faith with the man. He spoke forthrightly about Jesus. Everyone wants to know the answer to the question the official asked. When we come to know Jesus, we are prepared to share Him as the answer to the multiple questions others have. Philip had no inkling what the man would ask. Yet, the LORD gave him the answer. He will do the same for you –but only if you obey Him by going where He directs.

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,

Acts 8:25-29, “So, when they had solemnly testified and spoken the word of the Lord, they started back to Jerusalem, and were preaching the gospel to many villages of the Samaritans.
26 But an angel of the Lord spoke to Philip saying, “Get up and go south to the road that descends from Jerusalem to Gaza.” (This is a desert road.)
27 So he got up and went; and there was an Ethiopian eunuch, a court official of Candace, queen of the Ethiopians, who was in charge of all her treasure; and he had come to Jerusalem to worship,
28 and he was returning and sitting in his chariot, and was reading the prophet Isaiah.
29 Then the Spirit said to Philip, “Go up and join this chariot.”

Sometimes it’s best that we not know some things, especially when they’re on the front end of a directive. If space allowed, and if I were inclined to share it, you would be amazed at how the LORD led our family to Australia and around the world three times! Here in our verses, the LORD led Philip first by an angel (v. 26) and then by the Holy Spirit (v. 29).

In our last Letter, Simon the Sourcerer had come to faith in Christ and been baptised. Still, he was a young believer with carnality still lingering in remote areas of his mind. That quickly necessitated his suffering a strong rebuke from Peter. After that reprieve, the witnesses all turned toward Jerusalem, preaching the Gospel as they went. That’s truly how witnessing should be done: as He leads, and as you go…

It was then that the angel of the LORD directed Philip to go south to a desert road, where an official of the Queen of the Ethopians was returning home from Jerusalem. Philip obeyed the angel, and when he arrived at that desert road, the Spirit then instructed him to join the official in the chariot. Even in that day, this was no simple task. Yet, Philip obeyed without asking any questions. We would certainly be blessed if we were to follow the LORD like that!

“What happened after that?” you ask. Stay tuned. I’ll continue the story tomorrow. If you just can’t wait, get your Bible, find the passage in the Book of Acts, and read ahead. See if it reads to you like it reads to me.

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