The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

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

If you have ever attempted to witness to a Jew, you probably received the same response that Jesus received from the Jews of His day. Yet, in the first two verses (31-32), some of the Jews had already believed upon Him as the Messiah. Still, Jesus continued to teach them that if they truly believed on Him, they would abide (make their home) in His Word. Just as “the proof of the pudding is in the tasting,” the proof of true conversion is whether we live out the truth we learn from His Word.

The reply some of the Jews gave Him was that they were posterity of Abraham and had never been enslaved. Apparently, they had forgotten Israel’s enslavement in Egypt. It was only 400 years! If we practiced listening as well as we practice talking, we would avoid the same mistake. Sin had enslaved the Jews, and it has enslaved us as well! Jesus said that everyone who sins (and that’s all of us) is a slave to it. Those who are slaves to sin have no right or place in His kingdom. Jesus alone has that right; and if He cleanses us (makes us free), then we are totally free from the penalty of sin and will be allowed to live freely with Him in eternity.

Notice John’s emphasis: “If the Son shall make you free…” It’s not our living a good life, or holding membership in a particular church, or being baptized in water, or participation in the LORD’s Supper – as good as those things are, they do not cover our sin. Only the blood of Jesus does that! And its application to our lives comes by the way of faith in His atonement for us on the cross. But like that pudding, you never know its goodness until you partake of it. And that first bite requires the element we know as faith. Think about that; then trust 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 5:13-17, “For you were called to freedom, brethren; only do not turn your freedom into an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.
14 For the whole Law is fulfilled in one word, in the statement, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”
15 But if you bite and devour one another, take care lest you be consumed by one another.
16 But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh.
17 For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please.”

A prisoner walk out of prison. He has served the appropriate time for having done wrong, and he says to himself, “I am FREE!” In one sense, he is free; but he is not free to simply do as he pleases. That was what caused his imprisonment in the first place. He is only free to live in obedience to the law of the land in which he resides.

I wish I had the space to give you the background to the Galatian people. They were historically an “on-again-off-again” people. Paul had ministered to them of Christ Jesus, and ostensibly they had believed the Gospel. Yet, when someone else came to them with a message contrary to what Paul had given them, they accepted it, turning away from Paul’s true gospel.

We live in just such a day! The avenues of information we possess tell us of numerous preachers who who share a “gospel” that is contrary to what the Scriptures teach. And those who are not grounded in the true gospel are carried away with the various and sundry teachings of misinformation these non-Christian preachers preach as true. Be very careful! You can be carried away with nonsense just like these Galatians were.

The true Gospel is contained in the New Testament alone. Don’t be misled by the aggressive style of these preachers! They are “fleshly,” declaring only thoughts that lead you to follow them! Listen instead only to those who carefully and clearly explain the meaning of the Scriptures, and the love of our LORD Jesus Christ.

Yes, Christ Jesus makes us free. By faith in His death and resurrection, He frees us from the penalty of sin. Yet, we are free only to follow Him, as His Word (the Holy Scriptures) instructs us. When we know Christ as our Savior, the Holy Spirit guides us in understanding the Scriptures. Listen to the Spirit’s guidance, and be free indeed!

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 Corinthians 6:4-10, “…in everything commending ourselves as servants of God, in much endurance, in afflictions, in hardships, in distresses,
5 in beatings, in imprisonments, in tumults, in labors, in sleeplessness, in hunger,
6 in purity, in knowledge, in patience, in kindness, in the Holy Spirit, in genuine love,
7 in the word of truth, in the power of God; by the weapons of righteousness for the right hand and the left,
8 by glory and dishonor, by evil report and good report; regarded as deceivers and yet true;
9 as unknown yet well-known, as dying yet behold, we live; as punished yet not put to death,
10 as sorrowful yet always rejoicing, as poor yet making many rich, as having nothing yet possessing all things.”

One of the opportunities I enjoyed as a teacher was that of writing commendatory letters on behalf of some truly fine students. More often than not, the letters were to other universities, where the students hoped to continue their studies for an advanced degree. Something like that is what Paul is indicating in the first verse of our Scripture above. The difference was that there was no one to write for Paul; he had to commend himself. He was, however, a truly invaluable servant of the LORD Jesus Christ.

The proof of his servanthood lay in the abundance of sufferings he endured for the LORD and for His cause. He was beaten, imprisoned, had innumerable troubles, labors, insomnia, distresses, hunger. Not everything he endured, however, was distasteful. He experienced good times in study and patience and kindnesses and genuine love –all Spirit produced.

Paul lived in the Word of Truth and witnessed in the power of Almighty God. Fighting in spiritual warfare with weapons of righteousness, Paul found the LORD’s provisions more than adequate. He experienced glory and suffered dishonor. He enjoyed good reports and endured evil reports. He experienced deep sorrow, yet kept on rejoicing! He was poor, yet he made others rich in the same spiritual blessings he received. He possessed nothing, and yet possessed everything of value and benefit.

As believers in Jesus Christ, we need to focus on how to live the Christian life. We often wish we possessed things like others possess; yet what we do possess is of far greater value. Be content with what you currently have! There will be a day when the LORD will rate “all things” according to their true worth.

Only one life; it will soon be past;
Only what’s done for Christ will last.

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 Corinthians 6:1-3, “And working together with Him, we also urge you not to receive the grace of God in vain—(as something worthless)–
2 for He says, ‘At the acceptable time I listened to you, And on the day of salvation I helped you’; behold, now is ‘the acceptable time,’ behold, now is ‘the day of salvation’–
3 giving no cause for offense in anything, in order that the ministry be not discredited…”

There is nothing comparable to being linked with Christ Jesus in the ministry of His Word! Granted, there are numerous aspects of His ministry. The one we most often credit as foremost is the pastorate. But there is evangelism, teaching, administration, medical, and numerous categories and sub-categories that can legitimately be called “ministry.” The one category that links them all is witnessing. Witnessing is the effort to win people by faith to Jesus Christ.

Paul entertains no exceptions when he declares that there is an “acceptable time” for trusting the LORD; it is now! “…behold, now is “the acceptable time,” behold, now is “the day of salvation.” The apostle emphasizes “now” simply because it is the only time! Yesterday is past; tomorrow is questionable; it may never come! Now is the accepted time! It is God’s appropriate time for men and women to trust Him fully and completely!

Moreover, we do not wish to conduct ourselves in any manner that would bring discreditation on Christ or His ministry. We are merely His servants; we ourselves are not in charge. The simple truth is that the central purpose of our servanthood is to hold forth Jesus Christ and His ministry. That has been true throughout the ages.

Jesus went to the Cross as God’s Sacrifice for our sin. The proof that His death was acceptable to the Father and that it accomplished His purpose is that God the Father raised His Son Jesus from the dead. What a Savior we have! Do you know Him as your Savior? He is available to you right now! Confess your sins to Him and ask Him to forgive you. I am praying for you as I write.

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 Corinthians 5:17-21, “Therefore if any man is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.
18 Now, all these things are from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ, and gave us the ministry of reconciliation,
19 namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation.
20 Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were entreating through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.
21 He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”

Have you ever experienced a dramatic change in your life? Sometimes things in ordinary life cause us to change. Especially is this true as the years roll by and we become older. There is a spiritual change that alters life when we come to know Jesus Christ personally as our LORD and Savior.

The Apostle Paul writes about this in our verses above. He presents Jesus as the catalist who produces that change in us. When we turn our lives over to Him, He spiritually medicates us so that we become more like Him and less like the world around us. God the Father resides in Jesus, His Son. Jesus died on the cross as the Father’s sacrifice for our sin. When He arose from the dead, He proved Himself to be all that the Father had said He was. When we trust Jesus to save us, He forgives all of our sin. He transforms us and accepts us into His Father’s family.

In our human families, we have responsibilities that enrich family life. So it is with God’s family. We then become His “ambassadors.” We are responsible to live like Him and to tell others about Him. When others accept Him, as we have, their lives are changed, too. What’s remarkable is that the LORD does all the changing. He reproduces His own life in us. Our part is reduced to believing –trusting that He is able to do in and through us all that He intends.

Do you need a life-change? You do if you have not yet trusted Jesus. He does marvelous things in human lives! Give your life to Him and see! You’ll forever be thankful you did!

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