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Monday, August 20, 2018

Our Spiritual Disabilities


Rom 3:10  as it is written: "None is righteous, no, not one; Rom 3:11  no one understands; no one seeks for God. Rom 3:12  All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one." Rom 3:13  "Their throat is an open grave; they use their tongues to deceive." "The venom of asps is under their lips." Rom 3:14  "Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness." Rom 3:15  "Their feet are swift to shed blood;
Rom 3:16  in their paths are ruin and misery, Rom 3:17  and the way of peace they have not known." Rom 3:18  "There is no fear of God before their eyes."

Our world was not made for people with disabilities or real low IQs.  This is why we label them as special needs people and make ramps and devices that will help them get along in a world where one needs good arms, legs, minds, etc. to be able to function at full potential.  God made this world for people who can stand and reach and carry and think through problems and when we lose some of these abilities life becomes more difficult and in many cases impossible without help.  Such deformities and diseases are a result of sin and the curse.  And because sin affects our minds and bodies adversely we do things for those in need so they can get along in life.

As I was thinking about this reality the thought occurred to me that it might do us well to remember that we are all born with disabilities and are “deformed” in a spiritual sense.  We are all born spiritually and morally broken and it is not just our duty but it is imperative that we give ourselves special care by adhering to the Word of God.  It is only as we are recreated in Christ that we can begin to overcome the disabling effects of sin that makes it impossible to live life as the Lord intended. 

Too often we forget this because our sinfulness looks normal when compared to others.  When everyone is blind, crippled and “crazy” then it seems no one is.  Since everyone is born depraved we tend to think that sinning is normal and don’t see it for what it is.  So we think of ourselves as in a better condition than we are because our sin doesn’t look out of place; it looks like we are getting along pretty well in this fallen world because we have forgotten that the real “normal” is to be holy as God is holy. 

But it is easy to prove that all humans are “handicapped” when they come into this world.  Just look at the way we fight and steal and brag and ignore each other; look at all the unrest in society because sin makes it very difficult to love our neighbor as ourself.  The inability for us to find peace and joy and fulfillment only proves that there is a serious defect that we are all born with and this can’t be fixed apart from the Gospel.

The truth of the matter is that we are all born with disabilities that will destroy us without the grace of God to intervene.  When we see someone with a life-threatening disability that needs special and decisive action we need to be reminded that this is all of us spiritually and we need to take it even more seriously than physical deformities because our spiritual condition will lead us to Hell unless we are “cured” by the cross of Christ.

As it turns out the Lord has given us helps so that we can overcome our spiritual “disabilities”.  First of all he gives us a new nature at conversion so that we start loving God more than ourselves rather than the disability of loving ourselves more than everything else.  He has given us his Word to teach us how to live properly.  We might compare it somewhat to physical therapy.  It is only by constant use that our bodies can function properly and it is only by being saturated with the Word of God that anyone can get a handle on what life is all about.  In conjunction with the Word is the local church where God has ordained that most of our learning take place.  And then there is the fellowship of the saints where we get strength and support for serving the Lord as well. 

The problem I have found over the years is that our priorities are all out of whack.  When we see someone with a physical need we will do whatever it takes to try and help them overcome their disability.  They stand out from the norm and it is obvious they need help.  But because our spiritual needs aren’t as easy to spot since everyone has the same spiritual disabilities and so we think that sin and its destructive effects are normal, we have little concern for them and we get used to our spiritual “limp” or near-sightedness or weakness. 

But we need to take our spiritual needs with even more seriousness than we do our physical weakness.  Jesus said for us not to fear those that can kill the body but instead fear the one who can destroy your soul as well as your body.  We need to use the graces God gave us to grow strong in Christ and work for eternity and not worry so much about keeping this body alive for a few years.  Even Paul said that bodily exercise only profits a little, 1Ti_4:8  for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come. 

It might be good for us to stop comparing ourselves to those around us and instead compare ourselves to Christ so that we can see how “deformed” we are and how much help we need so that we might grow in grace.  And we need to realize that we are born with a zero spiritual IQ and grow in the knowledge of Christ so we can live effective and “normal” lives for the Lord.