Marc Krevo

For nearly 20 years a group of men from Fruit Cove Baptist Church in Florida go to the chapel in  state prison. This is a discipleship ministry whose mission is to encourage, pray and share the gospel of Jesus Christ with inmates. As a result men are growing in their faith in Christ and also sharing the gospel with other inmates. 

Each week we have a worship service and the events this week were similar in nature, but not ordinary. As the service opens with prayer we ask one of the inmates to volunteer. Then we move into a time of preaching and the reading of God’s word. It is especially encouraging for us to hear the men actively listening and responding to the gospel. Often we hear loud affirming AMEN! PRAISE THE LORD, HALLELUJAH! 

Now comes another high time of worship, the music worship. The music worship is led by the inmate praise  team. Here 8 inmates have accompaniment from drums, guitars, keyboard and saxophone and a solo worship leader singing.. Each man in the perfect symphony leads the service in music worship. The joy on their faces, and the excitement in their voices is all too amazing. Here in prison men are worshiping the one true God, Jesus Christ. It is as if you have been ushered in with the angels. I have to tell you, after worshiping in churches all over the country and abroad, nothing compares to this time of worship in prison. 

Looking around the chapel you see men clapping, singing, and hands lifted up. This is not simply men getting caught up in a beat or clapping hands to a good tune. No, these men are worshiping in Spirit and Truth. Many of the songs are traditional hymns along with some contemporary Christian worship songs. In a chapel the size of a small church that would seat approximately 120 people, its  standing room only. You stand in worship shoulder-to-shoulder with men who are worshiping the Lord with voices that shout the praises of God. The men sing and shout but their hearts shout louder!

Once the meal has ended we move into an interactive time of testimonies. Prison is a place where inmates are vulnerable.  It is very difficult for inmates to share their struggles, hardships, and sins. However these inmates break down that barrier. We heard from inmates who gave their testimony of how they came to faith in Christ. We heard men who struggled with deep anger and sexual sins. We heard testimonies of how men’s lives were changing to the point where they were ministering to family members outside of prison through phone communication and visitation. Some men began to weep in a place where you’re not supposed to weep, Other inmates rushed in to lay hands and pray for inmates who were weeping and struggling. 

Yet perhaps one of the singular moments was a time of testimony where I asked for volunteers to answer various questions about their faith, redemption, forgiveness and salvation. I explained to the men as I asked more questions we would be going deeper into these topics and some might be hard.

Now we are in a chapel in prison with about 100 men. Many of these men are serving life sentences. They will never walk out of prison a free man. As I moved to the last question it was undoubtedly the toughest question I asked: “Would you rather have freedom from your prison sentence or freedom from sin? The two men who volunteered to answer are the most spiritually mature and strongest Christian men I have ever known in my life.

Without hesitation they answered “freedom from sin.” Well that is the answer a person would want to hear in a Christian worship service, but one of the men said he knew God had forgiven him for killing another person. The hard part was asking the families of the victims for forgiveness. It was his deep hurt for what he had done, but he has said on many occasions that only by the shed blood of Jesus on the Cross and faith in Christ alone and repentance could he receive ultimate forgiveness and redemption. He said, “I’ve already been set free.” 

Celebrating with these men on what God has already done through his son, Jesus Christ is the paramount of our  worship time in state prison. I read from the gospel of John 8:36 where the Scripture says, “So if the son sets you free..” then the inmates shouted “you will be free indeed!” Men incarcerated in prison and many for life  know that only the Son, Jesus Christ can set you free from your sins, do you?

There is a great need for all of us. We all need a relationship that is perfect, pure, and right. You may ask why? Because life challenges all of us daily. Because we need a relationship that can mend our souls when we are disheartened. Because we need a relationship that will speak truth rather than judgment. Because we need a relationship in our life that will shine light on truth rather than someone else’s agenda. Because we need a relationship that is eternal rather than a relationship that is temporary only for a season in our life. Because we need answers to all these things. And only God’s word provides the answers to that relationship. We need God through His Word, the Bible. 

In this message we hear that the psalmist declares the accuracy and effectiveness of God’s word. When we spend time with God in His word each day, our reward is Him. Let’s hear how we can know two main values from this text. The passage from this message is from Psalm 19:7-11.

• God’s Word is Matchless Vv. 7-9
• God’s Word is our reward, Him Vv. 10-11

Are you seeking God’s purpose for your life? Jesus told his disciples if they abided in him they could glorify the Father and prove to be his disciples. God wants you to do something with your faith and He challenges us as believers to build His Kingdom. Therefore we can know what God’s purpose is for out life.

In this message we how God has given us three imperatives for those seeking to God’s purpose for their life. They are:

If your seeking God’s purpose for your life it’s imperative you base it on the truth Vv. 1-3

If your seeking God’s purpose for your life it’s imperative you abide in Jesus Vv. 4-6

When you seek God’s purpose for your life by remaining in Christ you will glorify the Father and that’s His imperative Vv. 7-8

For many of us the frustrations of life can discourage us from prayer. Maybe that’s because we hope for an outcome rather than placing our hope in the one who holds our outcome. In this message we hear how we know God better in prayer because hope in prayer is hope in Christ.

Text: Ephesians 1:15-23

• Hope in prayer begins with knowledge from God’s Spirit V. 17

• Hope in prayer is the hope of our call Vv. 18-19a

• Hope in prayer is supplied by the power of Christ Vv. 19b-20

• Hope in prayer is affirmed through the supremacy and sovereignty of Christ Vv. 21-23

Now that we have begun a new year 2022 faces us will types of unknowns. None of of can be certain what will happen in our lives, yet their is one who is certain who holds our life, God. In this sermon we hear how Jesus tells us we stop finding worry when seek God. When we seek God for our lives first we grasp who truly holds our life for all eternity. Today we hear three guarantees in this message from Jesus in the passage of Matthew 6:25-34.

• We are guaranteed to find worry when see ourselves as providers first Vv. 25-30
• We are guaranteed to find our provision when we trust God as our heavenly Father first Vv. 31-32
• We are guaranteed to find everything we need when we seek God first Vv. 33-34

In this message we hear how the problem of lust manifests into a danger in the lives of everyone which brings death. However the grace of God through his Son, Jesus Christ offers redemption to everyone and the power to overcome lust and sin. In the gospel of Matthew 5:27-30 Jesus gives us two imperatives to avoid lust.

• Lust on the inside is just as dangerous as lust on the outside Vv. 27-28
• Lust not taken seriously leads to death Vv. 29-30

The apostle Paul told the Philippians heaven waited for them, but they needed to stand firm in Christ. We need too need to declare our citizenship in heaven by standing firm in Christ rather than something else. In this message we hear how Christians can often get distracted or led away from the cross. Today’s message is from Philippians 3:17-21; 4:1. Let’s hear how we are to heed 3 admonitions from this passage:

• Respond to imitators of the cross V. 17
• Reject opponents of the cross Vv. 18-19
• Remain firm in declaring citizenship in the cross Vv. 20-21; 4:1