‘It’s not too late. The Bible says that “God is not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.” God doesn’t want to send you to hell. Jesus said that He didn’t come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance. He loves you. He wants to save you.’
“I don’t see that.”
‘You know, the fact that you see yourself as a sinner is not a problem; it’s a good thing. Many people never get to the point of seeing themselves as a sinner. Even though the Bible says in Romans chapter 3 that “all have sinned,” many people think that they are basically good people and that their goodness is enough to deserve heaven. The fact that you recognize that you are a sinner who deserves to go to hell means that you’ve already taken the first step to getting saved. Nobody gets saved without taking that first step.’
“I’m going to send you a New Testament and some other stuff to read. Please read it.”
“I ain’t got nothing else to do so I’ll read whatever you send me but it ain’t going to do no good.”
Matt watched Red hang up the phone and then turn and walk away. Matt hung up the phone in his hand and headed back out to the parking lot. What would be the best reading material to send Red? Perhaps if he wrote him a letter himself it would be better. What would he write? As he walked back to the car and then started to drive home, ideas jumped around in his head.
When he got home, he sat down at his computer and started to compose a letter. He finished writing it before going to bed that night. The next morning he mailed it. He also called a man he knew who volunteered at the jail and asked him to give Red a New Testament.
******
One of the volunteers brought Red a New Testament. Later that afternoon, Red received a letter from Matt. He sat on the bed holding it and just looking at it unopened for several minutes. Finally, he opened it and began to read…
Dear Red,
Please read this letter through carefully. I know you think it strange that I would even want you to trust Christ but it’s what my daughter Robin would have wanted and I know it’s what God wants. God loves you and He wants to give you eternal life so that when you die, you can go to Heaven with Him. “And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in His Son [Jesus Christ]. He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life.” (1 John 5:11, 12) It’s very important that you make sure that you have Jesus Christ before you come to the end of your life here. God does not want to judge you and send you to hell. “The Lord is … not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.” (2 Peter 3:9) God loves you and He wants you to repent and receive Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. He wants you to spend eternity with Him in Heaven. “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” (John 3:16-18)
God has always existed. He is one God but He exists as three persons, God the Father, God the Son [Jesus Christ] and God the Holy Spirit. God is holy, righteous, pure and perfect. When God created the first two human beings, Adam and Eve, He created them righteous, they were not sinful. But God created them with the ability to choose to love and obey Him or to choose to disobey Him. God put them in a perfect environment, the Garden of Eden. He gave them everything that they needed and He spent time with them in fellowship. Because God made them and gave them life and because He loved them and blessed them with everything that they needed; they should have loved God. They should have been willing to obey God, but instead, they chose to disobey God. This was sin. When Adam and Eve sinned, they became sinners. Because they had sinned against a holy and righteous God, they deserved to be punished; they deserved to go to Hell. God is a righteous Judge who must punish sin. But God still loved them. Therefore, He planned that God the Son [Jesus Christ] would be born into the world as a human, live a perfect, sinless life on this earth, and then die on the cross to pay the penalty for Adam and Eve’s sin and also for the sin of everyone of their descendants, the whole human race. Before Jesus came, people didn’t know the details of God’s plan but they knew that God had promised to one day send a deliverer (savior) who would pay for their sins. Those who believed God’s promise and put their trust in God would be saved from Hell. “Even as Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.” (Galatians 3:6) Today it is the same, “But as many as received Him [Jesus Christ], to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His name.” (John 1:12) In order to be saved from Hell and to go to Heaven when you die, you must receive Jesus Christ, you must believe on His name. It doesn’t matter how bad your sin is, you murdered my daughter but many people who have committed the sin of murder have received Christ. “Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.” (Isaiah 1:18) When Jesus was dying on the cross, two criminals were crucified with Him, one on each side. As the three were hanging beside each other on three crosses, “One of the malefactors [criminals] which were hanged railed on Him, saying, If thou be Christ, save thyself and us. But the other answering rebuked him, saying, Dost not thou fear God, seeing thou art in the same condemnation? And we indeed justly; for we receive the due reward of our deeds: but this man hath done nothing amiss. And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom. And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, to day shalt thou be with me in paradise.” (Luke 23:39-43), “But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.” (Isaiah 53:5, 6), “And Jesus answering said unto them, They that are whole need not a physician; but they that are sick. I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.” (Luke 5:31, 32), “But God commendeth [shows] his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8, 9), “For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the Scriptures.” (1 Corinthians 15:3, 4)
But what does it mean to receive Christ, to believe on His name? The Apostle Paul broke it down into two simple steps: 1) repentance and 2) faith in Jesus Christ. “And how I kept back nothing that was profitable unto you, but have shewed you, and have taught you publickly, and from house to house, Testifying both to the Jews, and also to the Greeks, repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Acts 20:20, 21) Repentance means turning away from sin in your heart. Admit to God that you are a sinner, enslaved by sin and unable to stop sinning. Tell God that you are sick of your sin, that you are sorry for your sin and that you don’t want to go on living in sin any more. Tell him that you know that Jesus died on the cross to pay the penalty for your sins and then ask Jesus to come into your heart, wash away your sins, and take control of your life (be your Lord [boss]). Tell God that you want Him to change your heart and help you to live for Him so that you will be able to do right instead of continuing to do wrong. If you ask God to do all this and really mean it, not only will He deliver you from Hell but He will change you inside. “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature, old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” (2 Corinthians 5:17), “Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son: In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins … And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works,
yet now hath he reconciled In the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and unblameable and unreproveable in his sight:” (Colossians 1:13, 14, 21, 22)
If you give your life to Christ, you will never regret it. Robin is in Heaven now but if she could come back, I know that she would beg you to trust Christ.
Sincerely,
Matt Sinclair
******
It was four or five days since Matt had mailed the letter to Red. He had prayed a little bit for him off and on but now, it seemed like he couldn’t stop praying for Red’s salvation. Every time he tried to quit praying, he felt almost guilty. He knew that it was the Holy Spirit Who was burdening him to pray and so he prayed for Red for several hours. Suddenly, the compulsion to pray for Red was gone. Why? Had Red gotten saved? Had he turned away Christ for the last time and now it was too late to pray for him? “Lord, show me what this means,” he prayed.
While Matt was praying for Red, Karen and her children were also praying for him. They finished praying about the same time that Matt did.
The next morning, as Matt was reading his Bible as part of his regular devotional time, he came to the New Testament reading for the day. Today he was reading Hebrews 13. When he got to verse three and read, “Remember them that are in bonds, as bound with them” he wondered to himself, “This verse is talking about believers in bonds. Is God speaking to me through this verse? Am I supposed to remember Red because he is now a believer?” Matt could hardly wait until the next visitation day. It seemed too good to be true and yet with God all things are possible.
******
A few days later, Matt came to visit Red again. As before, he had to wait his turn for a window. As soon as Red came to the window Matt knew that there was something different about him. It wasn’t that he looked happy but he seemed more relaxed and more at peace than before.
“I got your letter. When I first read it, I thought that you were wrong, that it was already too late for me. For the next few days, I read your letter over and over and I also read the Gospel of John because the volunteer told me to. But I kept thinking that I was too wicked and too guilty, I could never get saved. Then one afternoon, the thought kept coming back to me that I needed to trust Christ right then. I fought it for hours but finally, I knew it was God speaking to my heart and I just couldn’t fight Him any more so I did like you said to in the letter. I turned away from my sin and asked Christ to come into my heart and clean me up and change my heart. I gave my life to Him. I still feel terrible about what I did; I don’t think I’ll ever stop regretting it. But I feel a lot more peace than I did before.”
“That’s terrific. A few days ago, I felt like God was telling me to pray for you to get saved. I guess you could say that I had a burden to pray for you. I prayed for a long time before the burden went away. I’m glad that you got the New Testament I sent.”
‘Yes, since I got saved, I’ve been reading it some more and I’ve got some questions. First, I read in Matthew where it says that you’re not supposed to resist evil. That means that if I go back to prison I’m not supposed to resist but if I don’t resist, that will make me victim. The number one rule in prison is “don’t be a victim” if I don’t resist, they’ll think they can do what ever they like to me. How can that be right.’
“I can’t tell you what to do about that. All I can tell you is that you have to obey God. If you think that God wants you to not resist then you need to obey. God can take care of you. He may keep them from beating you up but he may allow them to beat you up. Jesus was not only beaten up but also crucified for us. Sometimes, God calls us to follow in His footsteps and face persecution.”
“But why would God allow me to be beaten up? If I’m a Christian, doesn’t that mean that God wants me to fight them so they’ll see that a Christian is stronger than them?”
‘That isn’t how God works. When Paul first got saved, Jesus said to him, “I will show him how great things he must suffer for my name’s sake.” Later, Paul said, “when I am weak, then am I strong.” I know that doesn’t make a lot of sense to you but God doesn’t always protect His children from suffering in this life. God can use your suffering not only to help you grow as a Christian but also to help others see Christ in you. When someone who doesn’t know Christ sees you suffer and sees that you still are trusting God and living for God, it can help them to realize that God is real and that they need God. There’s also the matter of reaping what you sowed. God’s Word says, “Whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.” That doesn’t change just because someone gets saved. The Apostle Paul had Christians thrown into prison and he persecuted Christians to the death. After he got saved, he spent years in prison and finally was beheaded. He reaped what he sowed. But, after he got saved, Christ let his suffering be for Christ’s name. Jesus' death on the Cross paid for our sin so, if we're saved, we don't have to pay for our sin in hell but while we are still on this earth, the law of sowing and reaping is still in effect. God is not going to change His law of sowing and reaping but if you live for Christ, anything you suffer will not be in vain, it will be for Christ. ’
“So you’re saying that, no matter what I do I’m going to suffer because I have to reap for all the bad stuff I’ve sowed but if I live for Christ my suffering will count for something.”
“Exactly.”
******
The next day, Red called Karen on the phone. When she heard the good news that Red had gotten saved, she was ecstatic. Even the reality that Red was facing either the death penalty or life in prison couldn't mar her joy.
******
Red’s attorney sat down at the table across from him. “I’ve just talked to the DA. He says that the victim’s family has requested that they not go after the death penalty so the DA is willing to plea-bargain. If you will plead guilty to murder one, you can avoid the death penalty and get a sentence of life without the possibility of parole.”
“Okay. I’m willing to do that. I’m guilty. If we can avoid a trial that’ll be better for their family and also for my family.”
******
Red got on the bus and sat down. Several other sentenced inmates also got on. After a while, they arrived at Kirkland in Columbia. He would be classified and assigned to a correctional institution there.
“Line up against the wall.” The correction officer called out in a loud voice. Red and the other men from the bus lined up. “Take off all your clothes.” Red complied with the request. It was chilly standing there with no clothes. “Turn around, bend over and cough.” Again, Red complied. Their heads were shaved, they were then sprayed with delousing spray, and ordered to take a shower. Finally, they were given, clothes, a mattress and bedding and sent to their dorms.
The next morning and every morning thereafter, he was awakened at 5:00 a.m. for breakfast. Then, after count, he would go to the various “call outs” each day. Over the next few weeks, Red took medical and psychological tests and then met with someone in Classification. Based on his test results, the type of crime that he had committed and on the fact that he had a previous record, he was assigned to Hunter Correctional Institution, a maximum-security institution considered by most to be one of the toughest prisons in the state.
Five weeks after arriving at Kirkland, he found himself on a bus on his way to Hunter.
The prison transport van pulled up at the gates of Hunter Correctional Institution. Red was escorted through the gates into the Sally port and then searched. He was processed. He was placed in an intake cell for observation. Eventually, he was assigned a regular cell.
One of the other inmates in the cell was Kyle Matthews. Kyle was black, his complexion was a dark, ebony color. His head was shaved and he had a tall, heavy, athletic build similar to an NFL linebacker. He was the self-appointed leader of the cellblock. As soon as Red moved in to the room, he made it clear that he was in charge. Red didn’t argue with him.
The other person in the cell, a tall black man with a medium
complexion and a slender but well muscled build, introduced himself, “I’m Marcus King.”
“Red Jones.”
“Welcome to Hunter.”
That night, he bowed his head and prayed that God would use him there and that He would save his cellmates. Then he read for a few minutes in his Bible.
“Are you a Christian?”
Red looked up. Marcus was looking at him suspiciously.
“Yes, I got saved in jail before I came here.”
“Religion won’t do you any good here”, said Marcus.
“I was guilty and on my way to hell. Now, I have peace in my heart and I know I’ll go to heaven when I die. If Jesus never does anything else for me, it doesn’t matter. I didn’t get saved to make my time here easier.”
“Yeah? Well, just keep your religion to yourself.”
The next day, Red woke up about 5:00 a.m. and walked over to the chow hall for breakfast. He sat down at an empty table. The food was on a tray. Instead of a fork, spoon and knife, all he had was a plastic spork which was bright orange and much larger than the disposable ones you can buy at the grocery store. Shortly afterwards, another guy sat down across from him. The other guy was also white and had blonde hair and fair skin.
“Hi, I’m Florida Blakely.”
“Red Jones. Are you from Florida?”
“No, I’m from Aynor, South Carolina. That’s over near Conway.”
“Why do they call you Florida then?”
“That’s a long story. Maybe I’ll tell you some time.”
After breakfast, they all went back to the dorms for count. They each went into their cell and the officers came around and counted them, checking to be sure that each inmate had an ID Card that matched him. They ended up having to recount after the first time so it took almost an hour. After count, they had free time until lunch. Red joined a game of basketball for a while in the small rec area behind the dorm, and then went back to the dorm for a while before lunch. At 11:00 a.m., they had count again and then they went back to the chow hall for lunch. The afternoon was the same as the morning. Later, they had count and then supper and finally, around 10:00 p.m., they were locked down in their cells for the night. After a couple of days of this routine, Red asked for a job.