January 15

Who Sinned Here?

               As he walked along, he saw a man blind from birth.  His disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?”  Jesus answered, “Neither this man nor his parents sinned; he was born blind so that God’s works might be revealed in him.  We must work the works of him who sent me while it is day; night is coming when no one can work.  As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.”  When he had said this, he spat on the ground and made mud with the saliva and spread the mud on the man’s eyes, saying to him, “Go, wash in the pool of Siloam” (which means Sent). Then he went and washed and came back able to see.     

John 9:1-7

Who sinned here?  Whose fault is this?  Why would an innocent baby come into the word with a broken body?  There has to be a reason, right?  It has to fit into some cosmic plan…right?

The Jews of the Bible had a very straightforward view on life.  If you were healthy and had money and had good things happen to you it was because you were righteous and God was blessing you.  If you were poor or suffered loss or were crippled it was because you, or someone in your family, had sinned and God was punishing you as payment for those evils.  The disciples saw a man who had been born blind and were wondering how this fit.  Did his parents sin and he was chosen to pay the price?  Had he somehow sinned before he was born?  Maybe God knew he was going to sin and struck him blind before he could do evil in his life?

I wrestle with the same thing.  Where do disabilities come from?  Sometimes there are clear causes:  auto accidents, drinking while pregnant, mistakes in the delivery room.  I know children who have had their lives forever altered because of all of these.  Sometimes the causes are not as clear.  Downs, Autism, Spina Bifida.  I know children who were born with all these whose parents are the pictures of health and responsibility.  So what happened?  Who is to blame?  I’ve heard, “God wanted to teach the parents to rely on Him.”  How is that different than the child having to pay for the parents’ sins and character flaws?  I’ve heard, “Having special needs builds up a person’s faith and character, drawing them closer to Jesus.”  It is true but it is also insufficient.  I’ve heard, “Heaven needed another angel.”  Come on.  There is no sound theology in that.  Whose fault is it?

We still carry with us the view of the ancients.  Healthy and wealthy equals God’s favor.  Suffering means God’s punishment.  We don’t say it that plainly, but we believe it.  Our basic assumption is that if we are faithful, we will have enough money to do what we want and have healthy children…because anything else would include suffering and why would a loving God introduce more suffering into our lives?

Jesus looked at the blind man and rejected the entire paradigm.  The man was not blind because of his family’s sin.  He was born blind so that God’s work could be seen by the world through him.  Just as Joseph had been born to save his family or Moses had been born to save his people.  The blind man was to be a testimony to the world of God’s power and God’s love.  His healing showed more about God’s character than any book or sermon ever could.

My belief is that we have disabilities in this world so that God can show His power and His love to this world through His works.  And the way that He primarily works in this world is through His people…the church.  The Church is to show God’s power through praying for those with broken bodies and seeing healing.  It is to show God’s power through advocating for social changes to better the lives of people with special needs.  It is to show God’s love through compassion and mercy and being welcoming to those who are not typical.

Every time that we make church services inaccessible for the disabled, we refuse God’s call.  Every time that parents feel the need to sit close to the exits or they feel that it would be better for everyone if they just did not come to church at all, we refuse God’s call.  Every time that we abandon special needs parents to try to make it on their own, we refuse God’s call.  How the church deals with the marginalized, and especially the special needs community, reveals whether it deserves to exist or not.  The disabled and the church together are meant to testify to the love and power of God the Father.  The disabled have done their part. 

A moment to reflect:

How has God shown His power and love through your church and your child?

Refrigerator Art of the Day:

D age 12