About Jesus Club Disability Ministry
(left to right) Members Adam, George and Bruce; members Rachel, Monica, Chris and volunteer Bec; volunteer Kelly Brackman, co-ordinator Mel Fung and visitor Andrew Draney.
Jesus Club is a group that caters for the needs of people living with intellectual disabilities, such as Down syndrome, autism and developmental delay. The main aim of the group is to share the good news of Jesus Christ with this group of people so that they can enjoy a relationship with God.
The God of Everyone
God is the God of all people: He created males and females, the sick and healthy, every race and every type of person. He desires that all people know Him and experience His love.
People with disabilities are no different from any other person. We are all sinners, as Romans 3:10-12 states:
"There is no one righteous, not even one;
there is no one who understands,
no one who seeks God.
All have turned away,
they have together become worthless;
there is no one who does good,
not even one."
Many people think that people living with disabilities will not face God's judgment, since "how could a loving God send such vulnerable people to hell?". However, the Bible says we are all unrighteous and salvation can only be found through Jesus. We know that God is fair and loving and He will deal with all people in a fair, loving way. However, this should not lead us think that people with disabilities are exempt from God's judgment. In fact, the opposite: God loves people living with disabilities, so he will treat them fairly and with dignity, just as He treats all people. Judgment is part of God's fair treatment of people.
God's love for people living with disabilities
God's love for the oft-rejected people of the world, such as people living with intellectual disabilities, is witnessed through Jesus's tender treatment of the poor, the sick, the lame, widows, orphans and despised sinners. In the New Testament we see many examples of Jesus having compassion for the sick and lame and healing them. In Matthew 4:34-36 it says:
When they had crossed over, they landed at Gennesaret. And when the men of that place recognized Jesus, they sent word to all the surrounding country. People brought all their sick to him and begged him to let the sick just touch the edge of his cloak, and all who touched him were healed.
Because Jesus loved and cared for the weak and the poor, we are also to love and care for them. The most loving thing we can do for people is to pray that they come to know Jesus Christ. It is not only the purpose of our existence to be friends with Jesus: but if we do not accept his gift of life, we will die. As Jesus says in John 5:24-27:
"I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life. I tell you the truth, a time is coming and has now come when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God and those who hear will live."
That is why all people, including people living with disabilities, need to know about Jesus and believe in him. In this way, we will receive eternal life and not receive what we truly deserve, which is death.
The aim of Jesus Club
It is a sad fact that people living with disabilities often miss out on hearing about Jesus, and hence miss out on accepting God and His gift of eternal life. Because of the specific attention needed to teach this population, the church often struggles to reach them.
Our aim at Jesus Club is to teach the members as much as they can learn about Jesus. Some of the members are quite capable and have a deep understanding of what is taught. Other members have such severe disabilities that they are unable to speak. Regardless, each person is a precious creation made by God and should know their creator to whatever capacity God enables.
While the goals of Jesus Club are constantly evolving, these basic aims remain.
What happens at Jesus Club
Jesus Club sessions are held every fortnight on Wednesday 6:30 - 9:30pm at Christ Church Gladesville (Sydney, Australia). The night begins with games such as musical chairs. A lesson from the Bible is taught, using a range of visuals and songs. Members then break up into volunteer-led groups to discuss what they have learnt. The night winds down with delicious refreshments and more fun games.
There are currently about 20 members at Jesus Club.
For some members, refreshments are the highlight of the night.
The future of disability ministry
What does the future of Jesus Club hold? Only God knows. Our vision is to see a culture change across churches in Australia: so teaching the Gospel to people living with disabilities is just as normal as teaching scripture to children. The team of Jesus Club volunteers is currently discussing the logistics of setting up other Jesus Club groups, and training Christians to run such ministries in their local church. Our prayer is that God will raise up more Christian workers with a similar passion. Our dream is to walk into eternity on the last day alongside Brad, Bruce, Julie, Monica, Lisa and all the members of the Jesus Club we're yet to meet.
