The Power of Being in Jail

Posted by Rob Kischuk on Jan 25, 2011 in Daily Bread | 2 comments

Most of you reading this are probably not in jail. Paul wrote Ephesians from jail, imprisoned for spreading the message of Jesus. It’s easy to wonder how much more effective Paul could have been outside of jail. Before Paul claimed Christ in his life, Romans 8:3 tells us, “Saul [Paul] began to destroy the church. Going from house to house, he dragged off both men and women and put them in prison.” Paul was extremely effective at doing evil before he knew God, and even more effective at spreading the message of Christ after he came to know God.

Paul would undoubtedly have been doing tremendous things if he were not in jail. But we serve an all-powerful God. If God wanted Paul out of jail, then Paul would be out of jail. We must conclude that God allowed Paul to be in jail for a reason. Paul wrote at least 4 books of the Bible from prison. When Paul visited churches in person, he certainly taught people how “to live a life worthy of the calling you have received”. When he was in jail, he had to write it down, and in doing so, left us the letter to the Ephesians as an enduring record of how to do church.

Perhaps one reason God allowed Paul to remain in jail was to force him to rest, to spend less time directly leading and more time equipping others to lead the church? Paul could spent his time plotting an escape from jail, or could have gone to great lengths trying to micromanage churches from afar through small messages. Instead, he worshipped God, taught principles and equipped leaders, giving us lasting teachings that God put on his heart.

Cumberland Community Church is in a season of growth, and in this time, ministries you serve in may be growing even as obstacles emerge in your own life. You may be having a hard time keeping up with serving God amidst this growth and your own personal situations. Maybe you’re in jail after all? Maybe God is slowing you down a bit so you’ll stop trying to solve things by working harder, and start multiplying the ministry He can do through Cumberland as you equip others. Is there a jail in your affecting you? How can you use it to multiply yourself and the ministry God has designed you for?