The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

John 3:1-6, “Now there was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews;

2 this man came to Him by night, and said to Him, ‘Rabbi, we know that You have come from God as a teacher; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him.’

3 Jesus answered and said to him, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.’

4 Nicodemus said to Him, ‘How can a man be born when he is old? He cannot enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born, can he?’

5 Jesus answered, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.

6 ‘That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.’”

I know this is a long passage, but we need it all to clearly understand it.

Nicodemus was an authoritative person among the Jews. But, he realized

that Jesus was truly from God the Father. He also knew that Jesus knew

things he himself did not know. ~ His coming by night was probably because

the rabbis did their studying at night, and he recognized Jesus as a rabbi or

teacher. ~ Jesus told him plainly “You must be born again?” Again is the

Greek word anothen, meaning “from above.” Nicodemus obviously did not

understand. Jesus said, “…unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he

cannot enter into the kingdom of God.” Then, Jesus explained that the

“water” referred to the physical birth (“That which is born of the flesh is

flesh”), while “of the Spirit” referred to the spiritual birth (“that which is

born of the Spirit is spirit.”) ~ Nicodemus was honest in his search for truth.

Some who come to us are honest, also. We need to be clear and honest

with them. Nicodemus admitted he did not understand. Not everyone

understands the Gospel the first time. The big question is: Did Nicodemus

become a Christian? John 19:39 says that he came to the burial of Jesus,

bringing “a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about a hundred pounds weight.”

We would hardly expect a non-believer to bring something. When people

are truly “born from above,” they demonstrate it in some manner. ~ What

are we doing to demonstrate that we know Him?

We love you and pray for you every, single day,

Nana & Dado III

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas

“We never know that God is all we need

until He becomes all that we have.”

Dear Grands,

John 1:45-46, “Philip found Nathanael and said to him,

‘We have found Him of whom Moses in the Law and also

the Prophets wrote, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.’

46 And Nathanael said to him, ‘Can any good thing come

out of Nazareth?’ Philip said to him, ‘Come and see.’”

I have often wondered about Nathanael’s question, “Can

any good thing come out of Nazareth?” Was a simply an

an expression of prejudice against a neighboring city? Or

was it his awareness that Nazareth was never mentioned

as important in the Old Testament by the prophets?

Sometimes, as we witness to others about Jesus, they

ask questions we find difficult or even impossible to

answer clearly. Perhaps Philip’s answer is our best

answer: “Come and see.” Maybe we need to challenge

them to give Jesus Christ an opportunity to do something

with their life. When I was in evangelism, I often said,

“You’ve tried everything else; why not try Jesus? What

have you got to lose?” It was another way of saying,

“Come and see.” You might try asking Philip’s question.

What have you got to lose?

You are our love next to Jesus! You are in our prayers.

Nana & Dado III

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas

“We never know that God is all we need

until He becomes all that we have.”

Dear Grands,

John 1:1-5, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God,

and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God.

3 All things came into being by Him, and apart from Him nothing came

into being that has come into being.

4 In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.

5 And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not

comprehend it.”

Words do matter. In this opening verse, Word is synonymous with

Jesus. He was with God, and He is God. Everything in the universe

was originally created by Him –everything from the huge heavenly

bodies (planets, sun, moon) –everything, even down to DNA and

possibly things we have yet to discover. He is Life, and life is

imparted to all creation, including man. Life is the light of mankind.

Without it, we could not see. And seeing leads to understanding.

Darkness is like death in that it leads to nothing. Jesus’ Light gives

meaning to life; darkness neither understands nor overcomes His Light.

Darkness equates with evil; it is the opposite of Light. Darkness leads

to nothing good. The pitfalls of life are concealed by darkness. We

stumble and fall in darkness. Jesus’ Light gives us the awareness of

of life’s pitfalls, enabling us to avoid them. It’s all very simple, but

man-made philosophies complicate true Life’s simplicity, so that we

stumble. Jesus said, “I came that they might have life, and might

have it abundantly” (Jn. 10:10). Eternal Life and Light are yours

when you choose to follow Him. Darkness awaits those who don’t.

Our prayer for you is that you will have and understand His Life,

Nana & Dado III

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas

“We never know that God is all we need

until He becomes all that we have.”

Dear Grands,

Psalm 145:17-20a, “The LORD is righteous in all His ways,

And kind in all His deeds.

18 The LORD is near to all who call upon Him,

To all who call upon Him in truth.

19 He will fulfill the desire of those who fear Him;

He will also hear their cry and will save them.

The LORD keeps all who love Him…”

As I read these verses this morning, it occurred to me

how little we turn to the LORD with all our troubles.

Certainly, the LORD has called doctors and counselors

to serve us; but do we look more to them than we do

to Him when we encounter difficulties? Our nation

faces some grave issues, but do we pray to the LORD

or merely look to elected officials for solutions?

Who is as righteous (blameless, just) as the LORD?

Who is kinder to us than the LORD?

Who is nearer to us than the LORD?

Who listens to us and answers our prayers?

Who is more capable of fulfilling our desires?

Who keeps, watches and preserves us?

Who loves us and saves us from our troubles?

Yet, we must truly call upon Him in faith.

We must reverence Him more than all others.

We must love Him above all others!

Then the question comes: do we?

We look in love to the LORD to care for you,

Nana & Dado III

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas

“We never know that God is all we need

until He becomes all that we have.”

Dear Grands,

Psalm 138:7-8, “Though I walk in the midst of trouble,

Thou wilt revive me; Thou wilt stretch forth Thy hand

against the wrath of my enemies, And Thy right hand

will save me. 8 The LORD will accomplish what concerns me;

Thy lovingkindness, O LORD, is everlasting; Do not forsake the

works of Thy hands.”

Trouble cannot be averted. It will always be there. Even as I

write, my phone tells of an “active shooter” in Ohio. Life

seems so fragile. But the psalmist is ever positive. He does

not focus upon his trouble; rather, he focuses on the LORD,

whom he acknowledges as his Deliverer. “You will revive me;

You will oppose my enemies; Your right hand will deliver me.”

Negative thinking always brings us down. I can’t do it produces

nothing. Someone said, “Can’t never did anything.” Not every

mother is an encourager to her children. Mine was. She pushed

me with positives until I performed. Looking back, I can see how

she developed me. Not all mothers are like that; but the LORD is

like that! And His strength will work His will in each of us –if we

listen to Him and believe! When trouble arises in your life, don’t

just lose heart and give up. Turn to the LORD. He never fails!

Our love and prayers are always there for you,

Nana & Dado III

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas

“We never know that God is all we need

until He becomes all that we have.”