Why Do People Have Disabilities

There are a few reasons people have disabilities, and most of them are not the result of the disabled persons actions themselves.  Lets explore a few of these reasons:

Sin

Yes, sin is a cause of many illnesses and disabilities.  Most of the time however these are generational curses and not the actions of the disabled person themselves.  However there is one example of someones sin resulting in a disability which is mentioned in Numbers chapter 12:

The Lord was very angry with them, and he departed. As the cloud moved from above the Tabernacle, there stood Miriam, her skin as white as snow from leprosy. When Aaron saw what had happened to her, he cried out to Moses, “Oh, my master! Please don’t punish us for this sin we have so foolishly committed.

An example of generational sins we see resulting in disabilities today are children born with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome, Genetic Conditions resulting from Incestuous Relationships, mothers who smoked or used drugs during pregnancies, and many others.

So That God May Be Seen

In John chapter 9, Jesus himself says when asked why a person was born blind.  Jesus answers:

“It was not because of his sins or his parents’ sins,” Jesus answered. “This happened so the power of God could be seen in him.

I think this is a very important statement for the many churches who say people with disabilities lack faith and thus are not healed.  Yes, faith the size of a mustard seed can move mountains but Jesus himself said God uses people with disabilities sometimes so people on earth can see the power of God.

Paul adds to this in 2 Corinthians about his thorn.  The nature of the thorn is often argued about, but I don’t think that’s the important part of the scripture.  I think the most important sentence in relation to that thorn is the fact that God told Paul

My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.

Paul was not told that the power of God is made perfect by the thorn in his flesh, but by weakness.

Be Careful

I think people, and churches need to be careful when saying what the cause of someone’s disability is.  Making such a judgment is impossible as we can never understand God’s full plan, and what he is doing 2 seconds from present time.