The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

Jude 1:1-4, “Jude, a bond-servant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James, to those who are the called, beloved in God the Father, and kept for Jesus Christ:
2 May mercy and peace and love be multiplied to you.
3 Beloved, while I was making every effort to write you about our common salvation, I felt the necessity to write to you appealing that you contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all handed down to the saints.
4 For certain persons have crept in unnoticed, those who were long beforehand marked out for this condemnation, ungodly persons who turn the grace of our God into licentiousness and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.”

If the old adage be true that “great things come in small packages,” then this Letter from Jude is one of the greatest books we have in the New Testament!

The Apostle Paul wrote the Colossians that the two basic facets of all relevant preaching are admonition and instruction. Admonition is a warning, related to conduct. It calls for repentance from sin and is addressed to the heart. Instruction is teaching, related to doctrine. It calls for faith, and is addressed to the mind.

The Internet has now successfully squeezed itself into our lives, coming between radio and television medias of communication, and increasing as skeptical a great deal of what we are currently receiving as “news.”

As entertaining as media sometimes is, we need to take care concerning what we see and hear. Writers and producers have the habit of interjecting unnecessary and ungodly segments into scripts that would otherwise be acceptable. We are living in ungodly days, and we must never allow media to supplant the rich and pure Holy Scriptures the LORD has given to us.

Heartily in Christ Jesus,

(Dado III)

P. S. Pray for Israel and for our beloved United States!

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,

Mark 13:7-11, “”When you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be frightened; those things must take place; but that is not yet the end.
8 “For nation will rise up against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; there will be earthquakes in various places; there will also be famines. These things are merely the beginning of birth pangs.
9 “But be on your guard; for they will deliver you to the courts, and you will be flogged in the synagogues, and you will stand before governors and kings for My sake, as a testimony to them.
10 “The gospel must first be preached to all the nations.
11 “When they arrest you and hand you over, do not worry beforehand about what you are to say, but say whatever is given you in that hour; for it is not you who speak, but it is the Holy Spirit.”

There is a significant amount of preaching today with regard to the “last days.” While the “last days” of human history are of vital significance, not every passage in either Testament is speaking of “last days” in an eschatological sense.

Old Testament passages that speak of “last days,” include Nehemiah 8:18; Isaiah 2:2, Jeremiah 23:20; and 49:39, Ezekiel 38:16, Hosea 3:5, and Micah 4:1.

The New Testament notation of “last days” includes John 6:39-40, 44 & 54; 7:37 and 11. It should be carefully noted, however, that not every passage that speaks of “last days” is speaking in an eschatological (i.e., “last days”) sense. For example, Nehemiah 8:18, says, “He read from the book of the law of God daily, from the first day to the last day.” The context obviously speaks of a week of seven days. Each passage must be interpreted according to the meaning it had to the people to whom it was originally addressed.

All of that being said, we are, day by day, moving closer to the End Times. There is so much occurring on so many different fronts, that it’s easy to allow the most important things to “slip by.” Hang in there! There’s no news like the Holy Scriptures! Jesus is Coming! And His Book is the only book that gives us a hint of just when.

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,

Ezra 7:1, 10-13, “Now after these things, in the reign of Artaxerxes king of Persia, there went up Ezra son of Seraiah…
10Ezra had set his heart to study the law of the LORD and to practice it, and to teach His statutes and ordinances in Israel.
Now this is the copy of the decree which King Artaxerxes gave to Ezra the priest, the scribe, learned in the words of the commandments of the LORD and His statutes to Israel:
12 “Artaxerxes, king of kings, to Ezra the priest, the scribe of the law of the God of heaven, perfect peace. And now
13 I have issued a decree that any of the people of Israel and their priests and the Levites in my kingdom who are willing to go to Jerusalem, may go with you.

Have you ever wondered what happened to the nation of Persia? Would it surprise you to learn that Persia changed its name to Iran back in 1935? Back then, Persian was a totally different country.

One source says, “In 1935, Reza Shah Pahlavi officially changed the name of Persia to Iran. The decision was made to reflect a new beginning and modernization of the country’s image, distancing it from colonial and oriental connotations associated with ‘Persia.’ The name ‘Iran’ means ‘Land of the Aryans,’ and had been used domestically for centuries.”

Although the change in name was initially inconsequential in itself, it opened the door for some unintentional changes, such as we are witnessing today. Artaxerxes was a good king. Ezra was a faithful priest. Yet in time, the change in name has brought us Iran!

Christianity continues to survive in Iran, although adherents to our LORD Jesus Christ often face “legal” and “social” difficulties. We stand steadfastly with Israel, yet there are true believers living in Iran. We may abhor the governmental positions of Iran; still, we ought to faithfully pray for the believers, who love and serve our LORD Jesus Christ in that ungodly nation.

Pray for the true Christians in Iran and in Israel. One day we will be surprised to learn who the “true Christians” really were.

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,

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

How typical was such a response of the Jews to whom Jesus spoke. “We are Abraham’s descendants,” they boasted. “We have never been slaves to anyone.” In one sense, they were right: as a people, they had never been enslaved by any nation or any lesser group of people.

Still, there are different kinds of slavery. Jesus might have used numerous illustrations to which they were enslaved; yet, He elected the spiritual one –one from which they could not escape. It is also the one from which none of us can escape –without His help, that is.

Prisoners, who concentrate soley upon their physical bondage, are usually wasting their time. They surely would do better to concentrate upon how they came to be in jail in the first place –better yet, on how they might be loosed from their captivity altogether.

Speaking in the physical sense, Jesus said, “The slave does not remain in the house forever…” He comes and goes as is only necessary to fulfill the deeds which have been assigned to him. Not so, however, for the son. He is free to roam throughout the estate. He is a physical son to the owner.

Ultimately, each and every one of us is or has been bound by sin! As such, we are limited to certain responsibilities! Whatever accomplishments lie before us. Pray for me and work on you own sin. Laboring together with Christ will be beneficial to us both!

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,

Gen. 19:15-22, “When morning dawned, the angels urged Lot, saying, ‘Up, take your wife and your two daughters who are here, or you will be swept away in the punishment of the city.’
16 But he hesitated. So the men seized his hand and the hand of his wife and the hands of his two daughters, for the compassion of the LORD was upon him; and they brought him out, and put him outside the city.
17 When they had brought them outside, one said, ‘Escape for your life! Do not look behind you, and do not stay anywhere in the valley; escape to the mountains, or you will be swept away.’
18 But Lot said to them, ‘Oh no, my lords!
19 ‘Now behold, your servant has found favor in your sight, and you have magnified your lovingkindness, which you have shown me by saving my life; but I cannot escape to the mountains, for the disaster will overtake me and I will die;
20 now behold, this town is near enough to flee to, and it is small. Please, let me escape there (is it not small?) that my life may be saved.’
21 He said to him, ‘Behold, I grant you this request also, not to overthrow the town of which you have spoken.
22 ‘Hurry, escape there, for I cannot do anything until you arrive there.’ Therefore, the name of the town was called Zoar.”

Abraham and Lot had agreed to differ. At least, that’s what it looked like before Lot elected to take the lush green valley for himself and his family.
It didn’t quite turn out as Lot had thought it would. The City of Sodom was occupied by homosexuals. When two angels from the LORD arrived at Lot’s dwelling, the men of Sodom swarmed Lot’s house, demanding to have illicit relations with the angels, whom they believed to be men.

When Lot sought to reason with the Sodomites, they became angry and attempted to storm Lot’s house. It seems quite evident that Lot had become friends with the men of Sodom, seeing he called them “my brothers,” and pled with them to “not act so wickedly.”

Eventually, the angels persuaded Lot to gather his family and leave the City of Sodom. The “sons-in-laws,” who were intending to marry Lot’s girls, thought leaving Sodom was a joke and refused to leave. Ultimately, the two angels persuaded Lot and his family to leave.

“When they had brought them outside, one said,
‘Escape for your life! Do not look behind you,
and do not stay anywhere in the valley; escape
to the mountains, or you will be swept away.”
(Gen. 19:17)

It would seem that everyone would hurry and vacate that dangerous city.
Lot’s wife, however, had become so used to the evils of the city; thus, she looked back, evidently grieving for what she had to leave behind.

“Lot’s wife was turned into a pillar of salt because
she disobeyed God’s command not to look back
at Sodom during its destruction. Her action symbolized
a longing for her past life and attachments to the sinful
city, which made her unworthy of salvation. This
transformation served as a punishment and a lasting
lesson about the consequences of disobedience and
attachment to sin” (Perplex).

Our lesson is that we must never become so fixated with the ways of the world that we’re unwilling to follow the directive of the LORD Jesus Christ.
Just think: Who and what would you hesitate to leave behind for the sake of following Jesus? Those are the factors that keep us from Christ! Know any? My guess is that you do.

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