Redemption
What is this word redemption? And what does it stand for? We will take a look at it to see how it affects all of our lives. The Webster's Dictionary states that Redemption is 1. an act of redeeming or the state of being redeemed. 2. deliverance; rescue. 3. Theology . deliverance from sin; salvation. 4. atonement for guilt.
So that lets us know that we are forgiven of our sins. Well the question I want to ask is this? Do we in society forgive those that have done things that we consider to be wrong whether it effects us or not? The only person that can answer that question is you.
Can a person be redeem that is the question? Some might say yes they can through counseling or some other form of treatment. The people that I am going to talk about have done somethings that are to be considered wrong in GODS eye sight as well as man.s eye sights.
The first person I want to talk about is Stan "Tookie" Williams. Mr. Williams was one of the co-founders of a gang called the "CRIPS" they became one of the largest gangs in America. Mr. Williams was convicted of murder. We are not here to judge Mr. Williams one way or the other, but what we are looking at is the fact that while on death row he wanted to effectively make a change in young people lives. Mr. Williams wrote books for children in a effort to keep them from making the same mistakes that he did. Mr. Williams also was nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize, and he was the only person ever to be nominated on death row. They also made a movie about Mr. Williams and it is entitled "Redemption". Did Mr. Williams redeem himself? Only GOD can answer that question.
Below you will see pictures of Mr. Williams and a clip from the movie.
Redemption Movie Trailer
The next person that we want to talk about is Mr. Greg Yance. Mr. Yance was a dope dealer that got caught selling drugs in Chicago. Mr. Yance was convicted and sentence of this crime. We are not judging Mr. Yance one way or the other. By this being Mr. Yance first time in jail they gave him and option of attending a boot camp for first time offenders. Mr. Yance while in the boot camp was trying to redeem himself when the boot camp had to go to a small town and help the people of this town that were putting sand bags on the river banks trying to keep the river from over flowing into their town.
Mr. Yance went onto finish the program and when he had been released he was working hard to try and find a job, but no one would hire him. His friends were trying to talk Mr. Yance into selling drugs again but he refused. He also witness the murder of his best friend right in front of him. After several months of trying to find a job, he finally found one and has been there ever since. They also made a movie about him and it is entitled, "First Time Felon", you can view the clip that is below. Did Mr. Yance redeem himself? Only GOD can answer that question.
First Time Felon Movie Trailer
The final person that we want to talk about is Paul the Apostle in the bible. Saul which was his first name breathed "threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord" (Acts 9:1). Saul's hostility toward the Christians was because of his commitment to protecting God's honor. Later, he wrote how he "was violently persecuting the church of God" because of the zeal he had for his religion (Gal. 1:13-14).
Then something amazing happened. Saul headed for the city of Damascus, looking for Christians, intending to bring them back to Jerusalem to be tried for blasphemy, perhaps hoping they would all meet the same fate as Stephen. On the road, Saul was blinded by a flashing light and then came face to face with Jesus. "He asked, 'Who are you, Lord?' The reply came. 'I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting' " (Acts 9:3-9).
Saul was undone, rendered speechless and blind for several days. He recovered, but was never the same again. On the Damascus road and after Saul had his life turned completely around, symbolized by his new identity, Paul the apostle. His old world came apart.
However, because Paul did sincerely want to do God's will, he was able to receive God's direct revelation to him. He came to follow his new understanding of God's will with full commitment. That Paul had hated Jesus, also Paul came to believe, was in fact the fullest revelation of his God. Jesus was not a blasphemer, but instead was the model for genuine faithfulness to the God of Israel.
This revolution in Paul's worldview led to his transformation away from a zealous and violent persecutor of people he considered to be heretics. He became a man of peace. He remained intensely committed to serve God, but realized that the service God desires is to unconditionally love others, not to seek to do them harm when they offend his belief system.
So the question I ask is this? Can a person be redeemed? And the answer to that is yes. If they truly repent of their sins. In GOD eyes their is just sin, he has no distinction on whether it small or big it is just sin.
Prison Stats
According to the U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) 7,225,800 people at yearend 2009 were on probationparole — about 3.1% of adults in the U.S. resident population. 2,292,133 were incarcerated in U.S. prisons and jails at yearend 2009.
Love
We say that we love Jesus. I want to ask a question? In the six months how many people outside of your normal social circle have you talk to about Jesus. It is easy to talk to those that we feel comfortable with. In Mathew 28: 16-20 it says, 16. Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee, into a mountain where Jesus had appointed them. 17. And when they saw him, they worshipped him: but some doubted. 18. And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying , All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. 19. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: 20. Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo , I am with you alway , even unto the end of the world. Amen.
This is our charge to be witnesses unto him and we are suppose to do this out of love for Jesus. Well their is a way that you can witness to those that are lock up in prison by sending them a book to read. I have a list of the prisoners with their information. You can go to secure site link at the bottom of page and you will be able to tell us were you want book sent.
It is time to heal, The Claude Jones Story
About the Author: With no money, credit, or support the Author started a journey that no one could imagine that would ever come true, but thru his faith, determination, and hard work, has been able to overcome obstacles that seem to be to impossible for most people to believe.
List of Prisioners
Wilcox State Prison Muncy State Prison
PO Box 397 P.O. BOX 180
Abbeville GA 31001 USA Muncy, Pa 17756 USA
Oscar Gates #C-34401 Hattie Tanner #325966
San Quentin State Prison Women's Huron Valley State Prison
4-EB-87 (Death Row) 3201 Bemis Road
San Quentin, Ca 94974 USA Ypsilanti, Mi 48197 USA
