Shepherd's Corner (October 1, 2025)

Shepherd's Corner 10-01-25Brian Lee

0:00

Seeing the Kingdom More Clearly Through Disability (Not Disabled) Theology

“In fact, some parts of the body that seem weakest and least important are actually the most necessary.” (1 Corinthians 12:22, NLT)

This Saturday, October 4th at 6PM, Riverside has the privilege of hosting the Musical Feast with Milal Mission. It is more than a concert. It is a glimpse of the Kingdom of God breaking into our midst. Through songs offered by brothers and sisters with disabilities, we are invited to hear the Gospel in a fresh way and to see the beauty of Christ’s body more clearly.

When we speak of disability theology, we do not mean theology about disabled people, as if they were an object of study. Instead, it is theology through disability—a lens that reshapes how we understand God, ourselves, and the Gospel itself.

Scripture never equates disability with punishment or shame. Instead, God delights to choose the weak and overlooked for His purposes: Moses, who could not speak well, Paul with his thorn in the flesh, and above all, Jesus, who entered into weakness and bore wounds for our salvation.

Every person fully bears the image of God. People with disabilities are not objects of pity or projects for charity. They are disciples and leaders, indispensable members of Christ’s body. Their presence calls the church to reorder community life around grace, not ability or social norms.

True inclusion means more than “helping.” It means welcoming and learning. It means rethinking worship, fellowship, and mission so that brothers and sisters with disabilities are active participants, often the very ones who teach us most deeply about dependence on God and the beauty of His grace.

And our hope is not that weakness will be erased, but that it will be redeemed. In the resurrection, what is sown in frailty will be raised in glory. Weakness itself will be transfigured into strength. That is the hope we share together in Christ.

So, Church, I invite you: come this Saturday to the Musical Feast. Support with your presence, your prayers, and your hearts wide open. Come ready not only to listen but to be taught by the Spirit through the voices of those the world too often overlooks. You may discover that in their song, you hear the clearest notes of the Kingdom.

“Real religion, the kind that passes muster before God the Father, is this: Reach out to the homeless and loveless in their plight, and guard against corruption from the godless world.” (James 1:27, MSG)

In His Grace Alone,

Pastor Brian Lee