Letter to an Inmate

Since my first letter told you who I am, I want to tell you about my approach to Bible teaching, in case you decide to try me.

First of all I will not try to get you to join anything or to quit anything. I feel that is between you and God. Also I won't tell you about a bunch of rules you must follow, or things you must not do. All I am is a finder of Bible ideas.

Many people would not think I am very religious, and I might not come across that way. But I have dedicated much of my life to Bible study. I don't think of it as a duty I must perform, I just love to do it.

As you study the Bible you may be concerned that there are so many disagreements between different denominations. To me this shows how free we are in the faith. Some people are shocked when a person likes a person outside their denomination. There are those who even say that theirs is the only one that can lead to salvation.

Let me make a simple story. Imagine you are feeling extra depressed one day at lunch and you happen to be seated across from a stranger. The two of you start talking and you find you like this person and they like you. As the two of you talk you start feeling better.

Later another person says to you, "Don't you know what kind of person you were just having lunch with? He is from Eviltown, one of the most wicked towns there is!"

You have heard of Eviltown and that their mayor is a really bad man. Yet you like the person you have just met and are sure everyone from there is not evil. How would you resolve this seeming contradiction?

It turns out that although the mayor of Eviltown is totally corrupt, a lot of good people live there. In fact ,you just met one.

So I look at some forms of Christianity as really evil, but people in these systems are your brothers and sisters. Arguments may break out among you, but you are still in the same family.

It seems like the closer you get to the top in almost any country, political party, or religion, the more evil it is. You can get along with the common people though and even learn from them. I don't hate anyone, but I do believe there are evil systems and leaders.

I just try to be as accurate as I can about what the Bible says. I try so hard that people have accused me of having a "know it all" attitude. I do not have this attitude. I believe I have a "try to understand it all" attitude. This is what I offer to you.

My faith is very simple. Believe in Jesus, then finer points come later. I am only a Bible teacher, but I try to be the best one I can.

Sincerely,

Gerald