Prison: A Tough Place to Plant a Church

For over six years I have been permitted by the grace of God (and the kindness of the men and women in our church who started the ministry) to preach the gospel in Western Regional Correction Facility in Barboursville, West Virginia.

One cannot plant a church in jail, but we do preach Christ. In the past six years a good number of men and women heard the gospel and have trusted Christ as their personal Savior.

Just because we don’t plant churches in jail, we would never withhold the gospel from the inmates.

The inmates have access to discipleship materials, and we obviously encourage them to study the Bible, but we do not plant churches in prison. There is normally no baptism, or formal church membership when the inmates receive Christ. While there may be a chaplain, there are no deacons, and there is no pastor. Some of the saved men and women move on to other facilities only after a few days. Some never get out of jail to join a local church. I am sure there are prisons where it is possible to plant a church, but generally speaking, this is not the case. We do, however, keep preaching Christ. Why? He will build His church.

Withhold the Gospel from the Isolated?

How far would you drive to go to church? How far would you walk? What if you lived on a military base in Puerto Siles, Bolivia, and the closest church was 100 kilometers away?

Should we withhold the gospel from isolated folks if we think it impossible to plant a church there? Of course not.

There is a military base in Puerto Siles, Bolivia, but not much else. (Click here to take a look on Google Maps.) I had the great opportunity to preach Christ there, and a number of soldiers trusted Christ. Later in the day, I met a man and a younger boy on a gravel road riding their bicycles far, far away from any civilization. My friend, and indigenous Bolivia guide, was giving me a ride on his dirt bike. I asked him to stop, and we flagged down the man and the boy. We took some time and preached the gospel to them.

Just Preach the Gospel

I preached the gospel in a far off indigenous reservation. We were told that non-indigenous people could not live on the reservation nor start a church there. However, we were able to present the gospel. Almost the entire population of indigenous reservation came to listen. A total of 14 people, mostly children.

Jesus will build His church whether a church plant is legal or not.

We evangelize, but God gives the increase. Jesus is still building His church. We have watched Christ build His church. We planted an independent, indigenous church in Sucre, Bolivia. Just as amazing are the souls we were able to reach that never, ever came to our church. Some lived just too far away. Others were in the hospital. Some attended college in our town and then moved away.

The point is that we never withhold the gospel. We must make an effort to reach all people, even those who are scattered far and wide. Hence, even if we are not sure how Christ is going to build His church, we preach the gospel anyway. We do what we can to engender growth. Because somehow, some way, Jesus will build His church. The ones that accept Christ go to heaven when they die. Some isolated folks who trust Christ may never have the awesome privilege to become an active member of a church, but if they have trusted Christ as Savior, they will live forever with Him. That’s our faith. Let’s not withhold it!