Is There A Biblical Basis for Correctional Ministry?
Cam Abell, M.Div.
Director of Training
Good News Jail & Prison Ministry
Why should you — or anyone else — bother to minister to prison and jail inmates? Why bother to show care and concern to a segment of society that has thumbed their noses and turned their backs on almost everyone within that society? To most among the general public, the incarcerated are social outcasts. They are not the “type of people” that one would associate with or invite into their home. Many among the incarcerated know they are social outcasts and actually revel in that distinction. Is there any biblical basis to minister to them?
In a well known paragraph in John chapter four, there is an intriguing encounter between Jesus of Nazareth and a woman of Samaria . It is even more significant when viewed in light of John’s purpose for his book (cp. John 20:30 -31 ). But before you can appreciate just how intriguing that encounter was, some important background information is essential.
In 722 B.C. the Assyrians conquered the Northern Kingdom of Israel. They re-populated the area with foreigners resulting in intermarriage between these foreigners and the Jews. To pure Jews, the results of this intermarriage produced Samaritans who were not pure in bloodline or beliefs, customs or style of worship. By the time of Jesus, there were racial differences, religious differences, ethnic differences and political differences. The result? Jews and Samaritans just did not like each other.
The attitude of Jews towards Samaritans then was very much like the attitude that many people have toward inmates today. The parallels are significant. Samaritans were unclean outcasts that were to be avoided as much as possible. Culturally considered, this accurately describes the attitude most people have toward jail and prison inmates. As a result, to a Jewish reader, John’s statement that Jesus “needed” to go through Samaria ( 4:4) would certainly capture attention. John was mentioning territory that was not joyfully traveled by Jews. Why then, would Jesus even bother to go through this region? Was it coincidence? Was it a matter of convenience? It was neither. John says that Jesus “needed” to go or “had” to pass through Samaria . But why?
The Gospel writers repeatedly use that same verb to qualify major events in the life of Christ. The verb is used to indicate that Jesus “must go to Jerusalem ” (Matt. 16:21 ). Luke says that Christ “must suffer many things” ( 9:22 ) and “must be delivered into the hands of sinful men and be crucified” (24:7). Referring to Jesus’ crucifixion, John states that “even so must the Son of Man be lifted up” ( 3:14 ) with the result that He “must rise again from the dead” (20:9). All of these things took place in the providential will of God. They were all a matter of divine necessity.
Do you see the point? When John uses the same verb to explain that Jesus “needed” to go through Samaria it is to correct any notion that Jesus was there simply as a matter of coincidence or convenience. Jesus knew people were there who needed to hear about the Messiah. And He knew that many who would hear would respond by believing (cp. John 2:24 -25 ; 4:39 -42). Jesus was in Samaria because it was a reflection of the heart of God for people. He was there because God is interested in people. But you find out more in verses 7-9.
John continues, “A woman of Samaria came to draw water. Jesus said to her, ‘give me a drink’” (4:7). “Then the woman of Samaria said to him, ‘How is it that you, being a Jew, ask a drink from me, a Samaritan woman? For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans’” (v. 9). A better translation here may be “Jews do not use utensils with Samaritans.” Remember, Jews had some dealings with Samaritans because the disciples went into the city to buy food (v. 8).
In that culture it was unheard of for a Jewish male to talk to any woman in public, much less a Samaritan woman. Since women did not rank high on the social scale in those days, a Jew would not even speak to his own wife in public. The Samaritan woman understood the practice of the day, and the prejudice she could expect from the typical Jewish male. But this was no typical Jewish male — this was the sinless Son of God! It did not matter to Him that He was a male and she a female; that He was a Jew and she a Samaritan. It did not matter that there were racial differences, religious differences, ethnic differences and political differences.
Although there are people you may reject for any or all of these differences, Christ’s presence in Samaria was designed to communicate that God is interested in people. When Jesus met this Samaritan woman His request for a drink required that He drink from her utensil (v. 11). With one striking request He was conveying that in spite of what others might think about this woman, there was no prejudice with Him. He wanted to communicate that God is interested in people. More than that, He wanted to proclaim that God is even interested in people who are not interested in Him.
If you are candid, you must got to admit that at one point in your life you were not thinking about seeking Christ. God through His Spirit sought you (cp. John 6:44 , 65 ; 16:8). In the same way, God is working to draw inmates to Himself — even with all of their faults and failures, sins and shortcomings. He is interested in people who are not interested in Him. But there is something more surprising than that in this paragraph.
It is likely this woman purposely came to this well at a time when she expected no one else to be there. Why? John 4:16-18 reveals that she had no long term relationships. The man with whom she was now living was not even her husband. It is likely she did not have any close friends, since her activities had left her a social outcast in the community. In one way or another, all of her relationships had been shipwrecked on the rocks. But Jesus knew her needs were much more than physical. She came to the well with much more than an empty bucket — she came with an empty life.
So when she asks “How is it that you, being a Jew, ask a drink from me, a Samaritan woman?” Jesus answers: “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, ‘Give me a drink,’ you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water” (4:10). This water Jesus describes as “a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life” ( 4:14 ). Significantly, 34 times in John’s gospel Jesus is presented or presents Himself as the source of “life”.1 In John, 16 of these occurrences are specifically qualified as eternal life.2
Did you notice that Jesus was interested in this woman, not because of what she could do for Him, but because of what He could do for her! This encounter clearly proclaims that God is interested in people — even people who are not interested in Him, not because of what they can do for Him, but because of what He can do for them!
Like this woman, most prisoners easily identify with the “empty bucket” syndrome. This is exactly where many inmates are when they enter a correctional facility. They are not interested in God, but He is interested in them. And God often uses the discouragement and despair of imprisonment to capture their attention and turn their hearts toward Christ. When seen in light of the cultural climate, as much as any passage, John 4:3-18 illustrates the heart of God for people – especially those who are despised and looked down upon by others – like inmates! On a related note, the response of the Samaritans recorded in this chapter illustrates how John was fulfilling the purpose for which the book was written (cp. John 20:30 -31 ).
If asked the question, “What is the biblical basis for ministry to inmates?” many no doubt, would point to selected biblical commands to reach out to others. But first ask, “Why are they there?” Because they are a reflection of the heart of God for people! The commands of God to share the good news of Christ flow from the heart of God. This gaze into the heart of God helps you understand the basis for God’s commands which compel the obedient disciple to reach out to others. Inmates are certainly included in those “others.”
What is the basis for ministry to the incarcerated? It is captured in the spirit of John 4:3-18. God is interested in people, even people who are not interested in Him. And He is interested in those people not because of what they can do for Him, but because of what He can do for them! That is the biblical basis for ministry to everyone – but especially inmates.
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1 1:4; 3:36b; 5:24b, 26, 29, 40; 6:33, 35, 48, 51, 63; 8:12; 10:10; 11:25; 14:6; 20:31.
2 3:15-16, 36; 4:14, 36; 5:24; 6:27, 40, 47, 54, 68; 10:28; 12:25, 50; 17:2-3.