Here is a pressing question that was asked of me by a member of our congregation not too long ago: If God is loving and gracious, why does He allow people to be born with sickness or disability—whether it be asthma, or Down syndrome, or haemophilia, or being born without limbs or certain appendages?
The argument seems valid enough even though many people use it to maliciously antagonise God and turn Him into a power-hungry megalomaniac that He is obviously not. The issue of inborn sickness or any sickness for that matter should start first and foremost on the foundational truth that God's ways are much higher than ours and that even when we don't understand it, He works for the good of all those who love Him.
Because we live in a broken and sinful world, we will always face problems with sickness, disease, disability, and even death. Sickness is a result of man's sin, not God's justice. God's justice is only God's response to the wrong choices that we make so often. But even in our sinfulness, God shows us grace by allowing us to live life and experience His blessing even though that means some people might be born with certain disabilities. All this is made possible by the power of Jesus' sacrifice on the cross.
One scenario where Jesus meets a person with an inborn disability is recorded in John 9:1-3: "As he passed by, he saw a man blind from birth. And his disciples asked him, 'Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?' Jesus answered, 'It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him.'"
The thing about us is when we encounter someone with an illness or when we have one ourselves, the first question we ask is "God, what did I or this person do to deserve this?"
The answer is obviously clear that we, our parents, our ancestors and all mankind have done a lot of things to deserve sickness and disease. Romans 6:23 says, "For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord."
But when faced with sickness, what should really be emphasised is God's faithfulness despite of the sickness. God is faithful that He still allows us to experience and enjoy life when the fact is that we all deserve death. And even more than that, He even gives us the hope of finding healing. Millions of people with inborn diseases have experienced miracles of healing either through supernatural or medical means, and that's all because of the grace of God.
Suffering and sickness does not negate the graciousness and love of God. In fact, it only strengthens it more because even in the midst of great suffering, we know we serve a God who is more than able to heal if He wills it, and who will still make all things work together for our good.
