Other prison letters and the letter writer we’re remembering today
By Dean Collins
You can learn much from prison. No, I haven’t been incarcerated, though I have visited prisons, spoken with prisoners, and taken students to visit prisons, too. We know prisons house guilty offenders, but others are in prison unjustly. (Bryan Stevenson’s book Just Mercy makes this clear. I highly recommend it as well as the must-see movie by the same title based on the book.)
Some readers have experienced the isolation and fear of prison because they’ve seen a family member or loved one put behind bars. In those cases, they likely have exchanged letters with the prisoner they know. But they are not the only ones to read letters by a leader of the faith who wrote from prison. Most of us have read four such letters, written by the apostle Paul, often grouped and labeled as the “prison epistles”: Philemon, Colossians, Ephesians, and Philippians. We’re not sure, but some scholars say all four were written during the two or so years Paul was in prison in Rome. The letters encourage their leaders and correct wrong doctrine in their circle of believers.
Another letter
Below I’m suggesting you read passages from two of them today, but before that, I’m thinking of a different letter written from prison by a pastor. Many in America are remembering him today. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was arrested and put in a Birmingham jail in April of 1963. While there he wrote a letter to a group of pastors and religious leaders who disagreed with his approach to protesting and exposing the racial injustices common in his time. The following year President Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964. King’s letter from the Birmingham jail was a significant factor that led our nation to begin correcting racial injustice.
Reflecting Jesus
Begin is the proper way to frame this. While we have made great progress, there is still much work to do. As Christians, we must understand our responsibility to live the good news as well as share it. We must allow God to do his work in our hearts so we can demonstrate what the Scripture teaches. God created all people in his image and calls all his followers to unity (see Galatians 3:28, for example).
Each of us has work to do if we are to better reflect the Jesus we claim as Lord. My intent today is simply to call us upward before we try to correct anything outward. The work of God through the people of God must be directed by the Word of God—and not simply when it is convenient or comfortable, but in every situation and at all times.
Changed by God
Some feel they have much to offer in helping resolve current tensions. Some see many ways to welcome others who are different or have less opportunity. If you’re one of these looking to lead change in this current moment, I encourage you to consider the magnitude of change Christ did in Paul’s life.
Paul said that, as a prisoner of Jesus, he was working for the benefit of those who wrongly imprisoned him! (See Ephesians 3:1.) Paul was a Pharisee of Pharisees, Jewish in every way, and a Roman citizen besides. His own country imprisoned him. His previous faith group, the Jews, assisted in having him arrested, even while he was trying to reach them for God. He was radically changed by the gospel, seeking to share it not only with his own people but also the Gentiles he once had deemed subhuman. In his new life, he operated with radical love for all people.
Read from Paul’s prison letters and ask God to use his words to align our hearts and minds in Christ. He is both our starting point, our ultimate victory, and the foundation of every good work—including the struggle to achieve racial justice.
Your time with God’s Word
Ephesians 3:1 ;Colossians 3:1-17 ESV
Photo by Unseen Histories on Unsplash
