The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

Luke 2:21-24, “And when eight days had passed, before His circumcision,

His name was then called Jesus, the name given by the angel before He

was conceived in the womb.

22 And when the days for their purification according to the law of Moses

were completed, they brought Him up to Jerusalem to present Him to the Lord

23 (as it is written in the Law of the Lord, ‘EVERY firstborn MALE THAT OPENS

THE WOMB SHALL BE CALLED HOLY TO THE LORD’),

24 and to offer a sacrifice according to what was said in the Law of the Lord,

‘A PAIR OF TURTLEDOVES OR TWO YOUNG PIGEONS.’”

I’m going back to Luke’s Gospel today to pick up on the Offering of the

Child Jesus to the Father. It was all according to the Law of Moses, and

it took place on the eighth day after His birth. Jesus was circumcised on

the eighth day. One of the discoveries we have from science is that the

best time for coagulation of blood for a newborn is on the eighth day.

It was also on the eighth day that He was officially named “Jesus.”

Under the Law of Moses, every first-born male, even of cattle or sheep,

was holy to the LORD (Deut. 15:19), and was to be offered as a sacrifice.

In the case of human males, however, an animal or a fowl was to be

offered instead. But, what if the parents were too poor to afford

a sacrifice? Leviticus 5:11 says, they could bring “a tenth of an ephah

(bushel) of fine flour for a sin offering.” That is why Hebrews 9:22 says,

“…according to the Law, one may almost say, all things are cleansed with

blood…”; still, “without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.”

Thus, when Christ died and shed His blood, no one, however poor they

might be, has any excuse for not coming to Him for forgiveness and salvation.

Love you all BIG bunches,

Nana & Dado III

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas

Dear Grands,

Matthew 2:12-15, “And having been warned by God in a dream not to return to Herod,

the magi left for their own country by another way.

13 Now when they had gone, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream

and said, ‘Get up! Take the Child and His mother and flee to Egypt, and remain there until

I tell you; for Herod is going to search for the Child to destroy Him.’

14 So Joseph got up and took the Child and His mother while it was still night, and left for Egypt.

15 He remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfill what had been spoken by the

Lord through the prophet: ‘OUT OF EGYPT I CALLED MY SON’” (Hosea 11:1).

The Holy Spirit not only guides us to the LORD Jesus, He warns and guides us

out of impending danger. So it was with the Magi; and so it was with Joseph.

Who, but the LORD, could have known what was in Herod’s mind? Remember

when Pharaoh ordered all the male children to be slain (Ex. 1:22)? It was Satan’s

effort to eliminate the lineage of the Christ-child. Now, Satan uses Herod to

order the same eradication of children for the same evil purpose. But, the LORD

intervened! How often the LORD intervenes in our lives without our having

the slightest knowledge of it. I can look back and see several times when my

own life could have been taken, but I knew nothing of the danger at the time.

Don’t ever take your life for granted! Your greatest protection is always the

LORD! Stay close to Him through His Word and through prayer. You won’t

always understand His leading at the time; but in time you will be able to see

and understand it. And you will say, “He hath done all things well” (Mk. 7:37).

We love and cherish you all abundantly!

Nana & Dado III

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas

Dear Grands,

Matthew 2:8-11, “8 And he sent them to Bethlehem, and said, Go and search diligently

or the young child; and when ye have found him, bring me word again, that I may come

and worship him also. 9 When they had heard the king, they departed; and, lo, the star,

which they saw in the east, went before them, till it came and stood over where the young

child was. 10 When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy.

11 And when they were come into the house, they saw the young Child with Mary His mother,

and fell down, and worshipped Him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented

unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh.”

Jesus called Herod “that fox” (Luke 13:32), and here we see his true character.

He had no intention at all to “worship” the Child. The text leads me to believe

that the wise men might have been fooled; had not the LORD told them “to

go home by another way” (v. 12). There is a lot of speculation about the star.

Was it a “somewhat normal” star? or was it a “special creation”? We may

never know this side of Heaven. And maybe it doesn’t matter. It guided the

Magi to the Christ-Child and that is all that’s necessary. The Magi found Jesus

In a house, not in the stable. He was a “young Child,” not an “new-born infant.”

Notice, too, that they did not worship His “parents”; they only worshipped Him!

Then there were the gfts: the gold represented his Kingship; the frankincense,

His Deity; and the Myrrh, His Death. The LORD would soon direct Joseph to

take Mary and Jesus to Egypt to escape what He knew Herod would do, and

the gifts would supply the money for their venture.

What a wonderful and absolutely complete biblical account we have of

our LORD’s birth! The whole world needs to hear this!!

Love and Blessings to you all. We love you immensely,

Nana & Dado III

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas

Dear Grands,

Matthew 2:5-8, “3 When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.

4 Gathering together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born.

5 They said to him, “In Bethlehem of Judea; for this is what has been written by the prophet:

6 ‘AND YOU, BETHLEHEM, LAND OF JUDAH, ARE BY NO MEANS LEAST AMONG THE LEADERS OF JUDAH; FOR OUT OF YOU SHALL COME FORTH A RULER WHO WILL SHEPHERD MY PEOPLE ISRAEL.'”

7 Then Herod secretly called the magi and determined from them the exact time the star appeared.

8 And he sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the Child; and when you have found Him, report to me, so that I too may come and worship Him.”

Did you ever become angry because someone took or wanted to take your

place, say in a line? Well, Herod was stirred to his socks! He was King!

And now these Magi were saying that some Child was born to be King and

the Child was there in somewhere nearby Jerusalem. Herod kept his composure

with the Magi. But he moved quickly to investigate whether what they said was so.

He summoned the religious leaders, and they confirmed what the Magi had said,

pointing to Micah 5:2. This Child would supplant Herod’s rule and become far

greater than Herod. Bethlehem was only four miles from Jerusalem, so Herod

sent the Magi to find the Child and bring him word. He said he wanted to worship

Him, but he was lying in his teeth. Oh, remember that I said the word for “child”

was important. Luke uses ?????? brephos, an infant, a newly-born; Matthew

uses ??????? paidion, a young child. Later, in verse 11, the Magi find the Child

in a house (????? oikia) instead of a stable. All of this tells us that the shepherds

and the Magi came at different times, not on the same night. And what the

Magi brought was very significant. Just wait!

Love and Prayers to you all,

Nana & Dado III

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas

Dear Grands,

Matthew 2:1-2, “Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea

in the days of Herod the king, magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem, saying,

‘Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we saw His star in the

east and have come to worship Him.’”

I have read rather diligently on this verse in order to bring you what I believe

to be the truth. History is filled with legends that twist this way and that, so

we are left not knowing all we would like about the experience of the Magi,

or Wise Men, as they are sometimes called. The Person (Jesus) and the

Place (Bethlehem) are well-known to be accurate. Herod is Herod the

Great, who reigned from 37 B.C. to A.D. 4 (the time of his death). The

Magi are believed to be astrologers from ancient Persia (Iran), basing their

belief of Jesus’ birth somewhat on the teachings of the Prophet Daniel.

They boldly said to Herod, “For we saw His star in the east and have come

to worship Him.” It might better be translated as, “We in the east have seen

His star…”; for had the star been to the east of the Magi, they would have

journeyed toward Afghanistan and China. ~ What is of prime importance

is that the Magi were not Jewish, but pagans. Some who seek Jesus today

surprise us because they don’t attend any church or belong to a specific

religion, yet they have a longing to know the peace that only Jesus can bring.

Be alert and ready to share Jesus with them. He alone is the solution to their

needs.

Our love and prayers are with you,

Nana & Dado III

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas