The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

Numbers 32:20-23, “So Moses said to them, ‘If you will do this, if you will arm yourselves before the LORD for the war, 21 and all of you armed men cross over the Jordan before the LORD until He has driven His enemies out from before Him, 22 and the land is subdued before the LORD, then afterward you shall return and be free of obligation toward the LORD and toward Israel, and this land shall be yours for a possession before the LORD. 23 “But if you will not do so, behold, you have sinned against the LORD, and be sure your sin will find you out.’”

The news has overflowed this week concerning high-ranking officials who have engaged in unlawful tactics to get their college-aged children into some of America’s most prestigious universities. My purpose is not to negotiate their guilt (or innocence) on this page, but to emphasize that sinful acts, even acts that might have escaped the fine points of the law, will ultimately come back to haunt them.

Hermeneutics is the science of biblical interpretation. One of the principles of that science is that interpreters must look at the context – the overall aspect – in which a word or phrase appears. In other words, we are not free to just pick a verse and apply it willy-nilly to anything that suits our fancy. We must ask, “What did the word or verse mean when it was originally used in Scripture?”

At the same time, strangely enough, there are those verses that apply universally to almost every

aspect of life, irrespective of the verse’s biblical context. One of those emphases lies in the verse above: “…be sure your sin will find you out.” It’s another way of saying, “You can’t do wrong and get by.” Somewhere, someday, our acts of fraud or evil-intention will come to the attention of some-one, and we will pay the penalty. “Oh,” but you say, “a lot of people get away with wrongdoing. Maybe I can, too” Someday you and they will stand before Almighty God and will be forced to account for all sin. There is no “getting by!”

People called into court to accout for wrong-doing, spend serious time preparing their case. They seek the finest legal advice money can buy. Doesn’t it make even more sense that we, too, prepare, seeing that we will be called to answer to the King of Kings, the LORD God Almighty? There is no Advocate like the LORD Jesus Christ. If we know Him in the free-pardon of our sins, His counsel will be adequate to present to His Father, the Supreme LORD of Lords. Get on God’s side! Let Him clean up your act! If you don’t, “be sure your sin will find you out.”

We pray for you daily, and sometimes more often,

Nana & Dado III

(Rose Marie & Gene)

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas 72764

United States of America

“We never know that God is all we need

until He becomes all that we have.”

Dear Grands,

Numbers 32:10-14, “So the LORD’s anger burned in that day, and He swore, saying,

11 ‘None of the men who came up from Egypt, from twenty years old and upward, shall see the land which I swore to Abraham, to Isaac and to Jacob; for they did not follow Me fully,

12 except Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite and Joshua the son of Nun, for they have followed the LORD fully.’

13 “So the LORD’s anger burned against Israel, and He made them wander in the wilderness forty years, until the entire generation of those who had done evil in the sight of the LORD was destroyed.

14 “Now behold, you have risen up in your fathers’ place, a brood of sinful men, to add still more to the burning anger of the LORD against Israel.”

Did you ever offer something to someone only to have it rejected? How did you feel? I once came into possessin of book that I thought my pastor at that time would appreciate. I waited until after the evening service and made my way to him and politely said, “I came across something I think you will like, and I want to give it t you.” He looked at the book title and rather bruskly replied, “I already have it.” I was not angry, but his refusal was certainly a rebuke to me. Could he not have said, “Thank you. I appreciate your thinking of me” and politely accepted the book?

Back in Genesis 13, the LORD showed Abram the land we now know as Israel. “I will give it to you and to your descendants forever,” the LORD said. But when the time came for Israel to possess the land, they balked. This angered the LORD, and He said, “None of the men who came up from Egypt, from twenty years old and upward, shall see the land which I swore to Abraham, to Isaac and to Jacob; for they did not follow Me fully…” So, He made them wander around in the wilderness until all of them who were disobedient died.

Remember what I wrote about children following in the footsteps of their parents? You don’t? Well, you and I learn what to do and what not to do by watching our parents. Moses himself said it: “Now behold, you have risen up in your fathers’ place, a brood of sinful men…” You’re just like your dads!

The LORD was angry because they rejected what He promised them. They refused to take possession of the land.

How does this apply to us? Well, what has the LORD given to us? Salvation and blessings of life, He has given, but we have turned against Him and pushed back His well-intentioned gifts. Shame on us!! We ought to be praising the LORD every day. He gave His Son, Jesus Christ, to die in our place. He raised Jesus from the dead, and gave us His Holy Spirit to instruct us from the Word. What “land” does He want us to possess? Why, the souls of those who rebel against Him. Are we

praying for the lost? Are we talking to the lost? Are we rejecting participation in the evil, sinful things of this world? We are not if we love Him. Take inventory of your life. Let it count for Christ!

We are praying for you,

Nana & Dado III

(Rose Marie & Gene)

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas 72764

United States of America

“We never know that God is all we need

until He becomes all that we have.”

Dear Grands,

Psalm 71:1-5, “In Thee, O LORD, I have taken refuge; Let me never be ashamed.

2 In Thy righteousness deliver me, and rescue me; Incline Thine ear to me, and save me.

3 Be Thou to me a rock of habitation, to which I may continually come; Thou hast given commandment to save me, For Thou art my rock and my fortress.

4 Rescue me, O my God, out of the hand of the wicked, Out of the grasp of the wrongdoer and ruthless man,

5 For Thou art my hope; O Lord God, Thou art my confidence from my youth.”

Kids have no difficulty speaking their minds. Have you noticed? Oh, they may be shy when it comes to things they do not know or clearly understand; however, when they know something with certainty, they freely and openly speak their minds.

In the first three verses above, the psalmist calls the LORD as his refuge, his rescuer, his savior. He calls the LORD his “rock of habitation” and his “fortress.” In verse four, the psalmist cries out for help. He wants security from “the hand of the wicked.” In verse five, he acknowledges the LORD as

his hope, and tells us that the LORD is and has been his “confidence from (his) youth.”

From where did that confidence come? It came from his youth, from his naur, his early life. We all obtain our beliefs and our manner of living from our parents. I only knew one of my grandfathers. My paternal grandfather died in the same year I was born. My maternal grandfather was a teacher, a coach, and a preacher. I went to all of the games he coached, and I saw and admired his demeanor in all he did. But, my parents were my greatest influence. They led me to faith in Christ, and the factors of their lives and habits became mine almost by osmosis.

All that is to say that the pattern of our lives are based upon what we see of our parents’ lives. Had the psalmist had parents whose lives were centered on themselves or on material possessions, he could never have said that the LORD had been his “confidence from (his) youth.” Of course, people can change. Adults can come to know Christ as their LORD and Savior, too. Salvation is not exclusively reserved for children. But our steps, spiritually and morally, are anchored in the lives of our parents.

If you are a parent, model Jesus Christ to your children. If you are a youth, and your parents are not committed believers in Jesus, model your life on the finest Christian adults you know! Just don’t get left out of the joy of “confidence” in the LORD. Ultimately, He is your only Hope!

Lovingly praying for you each day,

Nana & Dado III

(Rose Marie & Gene)

P. S. Do to an exceedingly high “white count” in her blood, the procedure scheduled for tomorrow has been

postponed until Wednesday, March 20. Prayers are never “wasted.” The LORD knows our hearts when

we pray, and time is not an element of the LORD’s concern. We rejoice that she has never been in pain.

It is only that she is exceedingly weak. Our prayer is that this procedure will bring an end to her

weakness. God bless you for praying for us!

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas 72764

United States of America

“We never know that God is all we need

until He becomes all that we have.”

Dear Grands,

Galatians 1:3-7, “Grace to you and peace from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ,

4 who gave Himself for our sins, that He might deliver us out of this present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father,

5 to whom be the glory forevermore. Amen.

6 I am amazed that you are so quickly deserting Him who called you by the grace of Christ, for a different gospel;

7 which is really not another; only there are some who are disturbing you, and want to distort the gospel of Christ.

We may not agree with all the aspects of the discipline of psychology, but Paul certainly utilized it unsparingly when he lovingly addressed those who had wandered from the faith. His love is wrapped up in the words “grace” and “peace” with which he commences this Letter to the Galatians.

The words “to you” carry the meaning of “to your advantage,” and that comes from the the Father through the Son. It was Jesus Christ, the Father’s “only begotten Son,” who became the Father’s Supreme Sacrifice for our sins.

Furthermore, our salvation was His purpose in order that He might rescue us from the ways of “this present evil age.” All of this is according to the will of God. Certainly, it is beneficial for us, but the major purpose of our salvation is to glorify God.

The news recently told of a father who died in the flames of his own house in his effort to rescue his son. Think about that. Who was ultimately hailed as the hero? It was the father. Heroes are those who offer and give their own lives in the rescue of those who cannot save themselves. A small boy phoned 911 in the effort to save his mother’s life. It was all he could do; he was a hero. Just ask his mom! How calous we are to know that the Father sent His Son to die for our sins, when we desert Him and turn back to our previous, evil lifestyle!

Paul is amazed that the Galatians were deserting the LORD for a different gospel (the King James Version uses the word “another” heteros –a gospel that is not of the kind that first brought them God’s salvation). Paul then goes on to say that gospel is really not “another” allos, meaning another of the same kind. He then adds that “there are some who are disburbing you and want to distort the

(true) Gospel of Christ.

There’s a lot that could be said here. The Galatians were a wild, on-again-off-again type of people. They jumped from one thought to another and seemed never to know that the two thoughts were opposites. Some pastors today prosper because they have congregations that will believe anything! Be very, very careful! If your pastor is personally a godly man and studies the Word and declares it

without equivocation, love him for his courageous (can I say heroic?) ministry. There’s a lot of bad teaching in churches today. Satan is on the prowl. The Galatians were affected by bad teaching. Many are suffering from it today.

Our prayers are with you all,

Nana & Dado III

(Rose Marie & Gene)

P.S. Rose Marie is scheduled for an angiogram on Wednesday. The surgeon hopes to be able to

insert a stent to enable the blood to flow properly. He is a Christian doctor, and we would

greatly appreciate your prayers for both of them.

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas 72764

United States of America

“We never know that God is all we need

until He becomes all that we have.”

Dear Grands,

2 Timothy 2:15, “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, handling accurately the word of truth.”

Have you noticed the plethora of incidents that have arised in our society recently? This man painted his face black 20 years ago, now he is being crucified in the press. This woman was molested 12 years ago and has just now come forward with the situation in the news. A legislator in my home state of Arkansas has put forth a bill to allow doctors to assist in patient suicides. Another bill allows pharmacists to sell medication that has not been approved by a doctor.

Beyond that, religious organizations that have always stood solidly in the Word are being plagued by their memberships to allow women to actively pastor their churches. Others church groups are begging for their churches to be allowed to minister “social doctrines” as well as biblical doctrine.

What have we come to in these times? Who is reading the Bible? And who is mingling “political correctness” with Scripture? We are encountering an anti-spiritual storm in our churches, on televison, in video games, on movie screens, and in music! It has gotten so bad in some churches – churches we would call “evangelical” – that there is now an outcry from within the church against some of the wild, LOUD, pseudo-worshipful “music” that has smothered the great theological hymns of the faith.

What are we to do? Paul advised Timothy to “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God…”

God is sovereign, and He is in control whatever the church’s theological slippage. Yet, we as believers, are responsible for what we allow to penetrate our minds and souls. “Well,” you ask, “why don’t the pastors do something about it?” Perhaps that is so because they are “not diligent” in following their calling. If half of a congregation wanted one thing and the other half another, the pastor is in the dilemma of losing half of his congretation either way. So what? Who called him to be a minister of the Gospel, anyway? If it were not the LORD, then why is he occupying that position?

Ministers, as well as all believers, are admonished to live so as to be approved by the LORD. We are all to be His “workmen,” and unashamed of our stand for His Truth! His Truth is accurately recorded in His Word, the Bible! When we omit parts that condemn us, we are just as guilty of

spiritual adultery, as we are in singing vain repetitions. “Whipping up the crowd” is not worship, regardless of who says it is! His Word says, “Be still and know that I am God” (Psa. 46:10a).

No workman needs to be ashamed if he handles accurately the Word of Truth.” Are you an

unashamed workman? I pray that you are! The Time is upon us!

Nana & Dado III

(Rose Marie & Gene)

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas 72764

United States of America

“We never know that God is all we need

until He becomes all that we have.”