PPE-01 Paul's Imprisonment

In the year 1675 in Bedford, England, the famous puritan preacher and writer John Bunyan was arrested for preaching publicly without a license, and he was jailed for six months. Previously, he had spent twelve years in prison, during which time he had written many books and pamphlets. So, rather than seeing this new imprisonment as a great tragedy, he took an optimistic view of it. He is reported to have said, “I have been away from my writing too long. Maybe this is not so much a prison as an office from which I can reach the world with Christ's message.”

Whether or not these were Bunyan’s precise words, his ministry during this short imprisonment is undeniable. It was during these months that he wrote The Pilgrim’s Progress, an allegory of the Christian life that had worldwide impact and continues to influence people for Christ even today. Now, we should all admire someone who accomplishes so much for Christ while in prison. But as significant as John Bunyan’s work has proven to be, the apostle Paul’s work accomplished something much greater. During his four years of imprisonment in Caesarea and Rome, he wrote epistles that are far more important than Bunyan’s book.

This is the first lesson in our series Paul’s Prison Epistles. In this series we study the letters of Paul that are commonly called his “prison epistles.” These are letters to various churches and people that Paul wrote while he was in prison for his service to Christ. We have entitled this lesson “Paul’s Imprisonment.” In this lesson we will be looking at the circumstances that gave rise to Paul’s letters to the Colossians, Philemon, the Ephesians, and the Philippians.

Our discussion of Paul’s imprisonment will address three main subjects: First, we will look at the background of Paul’s imprisonment first in Caesarea and later in Rome. Second, we will explore Paul’s ongoing ministry during his imprisonment, seeing how he continued to serve as Christ’s apostle even while incarcerated. And lastly, we will examine the theological unity of the prison epistles, focusing on some major themes that they all share. Let’s begin with the background of Paul’s imprisonment.