One of my minors in college was children's ministry. Throughout my courses and internship in this minor, the topic often returned to special needs children. Lots of kids have some sort of disability, whether in the form of a learning, mental, or physical disability.
After studying this topic in ministry and hearing the stories of others I met, I came away with a strong impression of the need to make all kids feel that they are welcome, have worth, and are equally loved by God.
This is true not only of special needs children but also of any person, young or old, who experiences a disability or illness or who just feels broken. Far too easily, people who are different or struggling in life can feel excluded in our congregations today.
Whether through lack of preparation, hospitality, knowledge, or the physical commodities of our churches’ meeting places, Christians can directly and indirectly send the message: “You do not belong here.”
But this should not be our message. Jesus’ earthly ministry involved helping those who were sick and in need.
He intentionally paused at key moments to touch the lives of individuals who crossed His path, including those who were different or struggling, whom others often ignored and shunned.
From Christ’s actions in the gospels, we can learn a great deal about the broken, sick, and disabled and how we can better love and serve them in our churches.
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1. The Broken, Sick, and Disabled Are Worthy of Our Attention and Care
Jesus intentionally took the time to give individuals His full attention and care. When Jesus and His disciples were leaving Jericho, a blind man who was begging on the side of the road called out to Christ: “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” (Mark 10:47).
People told this blind man, named Bartimaeus, to be quiet (Mark 10:48). The impression in this passage is that they thought he was not worth the Lord’s time or care. Jesus disagreed.
Christ had the disciples call Bartimaeus to Him (Mark 10:49). Instead of quickly getting the healing over with, Jesus deliberately paused in His ministry to talk to Bartimaeus, a blind beggar. Christ asked the man what he wanted, to which Bartimaeus replied, “Rabbi, I want to see” (Mark 10:51). He was instantly healed by a word from Jesus (Mark 10:52).
Bartimaeus was not only disabled because he was blind, but he also had a broken life. Not able to work because of his disability, he was forced to beg on the street.
People would have treated him as less than a person because of this. Yet, Jesus showed that Bartimaeus was worthy of attention and care, as demonstrated by stopping and listening to him.
All people, regardless of their physical abilities, illnesses, or past, are worth pausing and caring for in life. We should not treat these individuals as annoyances or as charity cases to include in our ministry checklist.
They are the very people Jesus would stop and give attention to. If we love Jesus and want to follow Him, we should do the same.
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2. The Broken, Sick, and Disabled Have Value as Individuals
Connected to Jesus’ actions of pausing and giving attention to others is that He showed that individuals have value. They are not just people to overlook and pass by. Individuals who have experienced brokenness, illness, and disability are just as valuable as others.
Jesus’ actions toward the Samaritan woman help us understand people’s inherent value. This woman struggled with brokenness. She had many husbands during her life, and the man she was with, at the time of her conversation with Jesus, was not her husband (John 4:17-18).
As a result, others looked down on her. There was a reason she was at the well alone — either she was avoiding the stares and comments from the other women of the town, or they were avoiding her.
The disciples also wondered why Jesus talked to a Samaritan woman (John 4:27). Jewish men did not talk or use the same well as a Samaritan, let alone talk to a woman alone (John 4:9).
Jesus cut through these societal customs by engaging in conversation with the woman. He treated her with respect, even as He corrected her view about worshiping the Lord and revealed to her the truth that He is the Messiah (John 4:21-26).
The same respect was shown to the woman with the issue of blood. Numerous people crowded around Jesus, but He chose to seek out the woman (Luke 8:45-46).
She was not just another face in the sea of people. She was a beloved daughter who needed healing (Luke 8:48). Jesus made sure she was seen and heard.
Based on these examples from Christ’s ministry, we understand that every person has worth and dignity. People who have challenging pasts are just as valuable as those who grew up in church.
Individuals with chronic illness, whether physical or mental, are not any less of a person for not having a clean bill of health. Every person is a human being of worth who needs to know they are seen, heard, and loved.
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3. The Broken, Sick, and Disabled Have a Glorious Future in Christ
Throughout Jesus’ ministry on earth, He performed miracles and healed people. These signs were evidence that He is the Messiah and the Son of God (Matthew 11:2-6 and 14:33). However, they were also a foretaste of the Kingdom.
Christians have different views about the nature of Jesus’ Kingdom and when it will occur, or if it is occurring now. However, we know that there is still a future time when people will no longer suffer from disease or disability.
Also, in the resurrection, all people will receive glorified bodies. No longer will anyone have mental, physical, emotional, or spiritual pain. We have the promise that in eternity, “There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain” (Revelation 21:4)./p>
In Christ, those who have illnesses, disabilities, or brokenness have the assured hope of a wonderful future. Like every other follower of Jesus, these believers will feast with Him in the Kingdom and walk in the beauty of the New Heaven and New Earth.
They will see their Savior face-to-face and praise Him with song, regardless of whether they are blind, mute, or struggling mentally now. The promises of Scripture belong to them just as much as any other member of the church.
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4. Experiencing Discouragement, Illness, or a Disability Is Not Due to Personal Sin
When Jesus and the disciples encountered a man who was blind from birth, the disciples immediately jumped to conclusions. They assumed that either the man or his parents had sinned, bringing the judgment of blindness on him (John 9:2).
Jesus, however, quickly dispelled this idea. He told them, “’Neither this man nor his parents sinned,’ said Jesus, ‘but this happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him” (John 9:3).
When the religious leaders heard about the healing of the man and talked to him, they also assumed he had experienced blindness because of sin. As they said when they investigated his healing, “You were steeped in sin at birth” (John 9:34).
Too often, people have unbiblical opinions about why people suffer. They think either the person or someone close to them had to have sinned.
Jesus’ response to the disciples shows the faultiness of this type of thinking. People with long-term illnesses and disabilities did not get that way because of specific sins in their lives or from a loved one’s sins. Rather, individuals struggle with conditions because they live in a fallen world.
What seems broken to other people, though, is exactly what God wants to use to bring glory to Himself (see 1 Corinthians 1:27-28).
He works to display His power and majesty in the lives of those the world ignores and rejects. People might dismiss those with diseases and disabilities as individuals with sin problems, but the Lord does not.
Churches should learn from this and not blame a person’s condition and struggles on sin. If someone suffers, for example, from debilitating depression, the church should seek to support, not shame, them.
Christians should be the very ones speaking hope and encouragement into the lives of those whom the world deems as different or unworthy of concern.
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5. In Jesus, the Broken, Sick, and Disabled Receive New Life and Purpose
As was shown from the example of the Samaritan woman, Jesus repeatedly dismantled and transformed social standards and norms. The religious leaders avoided people with leprosy at all costs, but Jesus healed and laid His hands on them (Luke 5:13).
Lepers were scorned and treated as social outcasts, yet Jesus touched them. He treated them as human beings, not germs. This act brought not only healing but a completely new life for these people. They did not have to live as outcasts anymore.
Christ does the same for people today. They will probably not receive complete healing on this side of heaven, but Jesus does bring transformation into the lives of those who trust Him.
A person can find strength in Him to continue in everyday life despite the difficulty of chronic pain and illness, or physical disability.
Likewise, a person can find meaning in their brokenness by learning ways to minister to others through the ways God has comforted them.
As Joni Eareckson Tada, the founder of Joni and Friends, said in an article by Kristy Etheridge for the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association: “I’m convinced that when people are depressed and discouraged that God has not physically healed them or fixed their problems or changed their situation, (a spiritual change) doesn’t take a long time … God can do a transformation overnight. He can do it in a short month.” When He does, people find renewed hope and a reason to live.
The Lord repeatedly displayed love and care for the blind, deaf, sick, and crippled, as well as for the outcasts and broken. He showed us that they are valuable, both now and in eternity.
As the church, we should follow Christ’s example and ensure we are intentional about serving the broken, sick, and disabled in our communities and congregations.
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Originally published Tuesday, 30 April 2024.