Show Notes
In this episode of Formed for Faithfulness, we reflect on Luke 23 and Colossians 1, considering Christ’s mercy toward the thief on the cross and His ongoing presence among the imprisoned and the overlooked. Through Scripture, reflection, and prayer, we’re reminded that God’s message of freedom often flourishes in confinement—and that the Church is called to bring hope, compassion, and justice to those behind bars. With readings from Luke 23, Luke 1, and Colossians 1, we celebrate the God who reconciles all things through the peace of Christ.
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Episode Transcript
In this 24th week of normal time, many of us will gather with loved ones to celebrate Thanksgiving. There’s no better time to think of those who will be absent from some family tables for one reason or another, separated perhaps by distance, divorce, military service, or even imprisonment. Through His mercy, may those far away know God to be near to them.
A reading from the Gospel of Luke, the 23rd chapter, verses 33 to 43.
33 When they came to the place called the Skull, they crucified him there, along with the criminals—one on his right, the other on his left. 34 Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” And they divided up his clothes by casting lots.
35 The people stood watching, and the rulers even sneered at him. They said, “He saved others; let him save himself if he is God’s Messiah, the Chosen One.”
36 The soldiers also came up and mocked him. They offered him wine vinegar 37 and said, “If you are the king of the Jews, save yourself.”
38 There was a written notice above him, which read: this is the king of the jews.
39 One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at him: “Aren’t you the Messiah? Save yourself and us!”
40 But the other criminal rebuked him. “Don’t you fear God,” he said, “since you are under the same sentence? 41 We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong.”
42 Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”
43 Jesus answered him, “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise.”
Anyone who has spent any time involved with ministries serving those in challenging circumstances knows the discouragement of disinterest. It seems that some people just don’t want to change. As the saying goes, you can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make it drink.
We see this sad reality at the cross, when Jesus is crucified between two thieves. One looks to Jesus just for what he can get. The other acknowledges his sinfulness. But Jesus’s response to the penitent man should be enough to fuel our efforts to bring the good news of ultimate freedom to those facing punishment for wrongdoing, despite the possibility of our facing rejection or exploitation. According to one estimate, there are some 450 Christian-based ministries involved in prison work of some kind across the United States. Supported by around 100,000 staff and volunteers, these different groups offer a wide range of in-prison services and classes, correspondence courses, and re-entry and life skill training programs.
The need far outweighs the current response, however. Currently, there are around 1.8 million people incarcerated in the United States, when you include state and federal prisons, along with local jails. It’s easy for us to overlook or ignore the incarcerated, because out of sight can be out of mind. But Hebrews 13:13 admonishes us to remember those who are in prison as though in prison with them. And beyond this verse, we’ve seen how many times in Scripture God has used imprisonment to shape his people for his purposes. Take Joseph as an example. Then there’s Paul, of course. He preached the gospel to many while locked up. His steadfast example while jailed inspired other believers in their faith. And the letters he wrote from imprisonment continue to shape the church to this day. It shouldn’t surprise us that God’s message of freedom can flourish in confinement.
So, is your church involved in prison ministry in some way, or in helping those reintegrating into society after serving their time? Or perhaps there’s a parachurch prison ministry you could support financially or practically, joining a prison visitation team, or becoming a correspondence mentor. Would the Lord give us open hands and open hearts to bear witness to the hope of the gospel to those imprisoned.
And now let us return to the gospel of Luke, chapter 1, verses 68 to 79.
“Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel,
because he has come to his people and redeemed them.
He has raised up a horn of salvation for us
in the house of his servant David
(as he said through his holy prophets of long ago),
salvation from our enemies
and from the hand of all who hate us—
to show mercy to our ancestors
and to remember his holy covenant,
the oath he swore to our father Abraham:
to rescue us from the hand of our enemies,
and to enable us to serve him without fear
in holiness and righteousness before him all our days.
And you, my child, will be called a prophet of the Most High;
for you will go on before the Lord to prepare the way for him,
to give his people the knowledge of salvation
through the forgiveness of their sins,
because of the tender mercy of our God,
by which the rising sun will come to us from heaven
to shine on those living in darkness
and in the shadow of death,
to guide our feet into the path of peace.”
Let us join in this appeal from the Book of Common Prayer.
Lord Jesus, for our sake you were condemned as a criminal. Visit our jails and prisons with your pity and judgment. Remember all prisoners and bring the guilty to repentance and amendment of life according to your will and give them hope for their future. When they are held unjustly, bring them release, forgive us and teach us to improve our justice. Remember those who work in these institutions, keep them humane and compassionate, and save them from becoming brutal or callous. And since what we do for those in prison, O Lord, we do for you, constrain us to improve their lot. All this we ask for your mercy’s sake. Amen.
A reading from Paul’s letter to the Colossians, chapter 1, verses 9 to 20.
9 For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you. We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives, 10 so that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, 11 being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, 12 and giving joyful thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of his holy people in the kingdom of light. 13 For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
15 The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. 16 For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. 17 He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18 And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. 19 For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.
