A few years ago I had the privilege of baptizing a new convert, I soon realized that this would not be the typical setting of discipleship (as if there were), he is an old man who does not see well and, on top of that, they do not know how to read or write. We mustn’t worry about this situation. In fact, we must wait for these opportunities to challenge our current practices, leave the rule book, and use discernment to learn how to better care for these sheep. God wants these people to know his word and his ways in him in the same way as the doctors and lawyers in his congregation. Here are five practical ways we care about those who have difficulty reading or reading in some way:
Never assume that you can give someone a Bible, tell them to read the passages he recommends to newly converted Christians, and think he has done everything he can. As soon as I realized that this older brother couldn’t read, but that he had a CD. I went out and bought the audio CDs from a good translation of the Bible. The next week, when I went to visit him unannounced, he listened to them. He tells me he spends hours a day listening to the Word of God. God being read.
- If you can listen to the reading of the Bible.
- You can listen to the preaching of the Bible.
- Any good presentation and faithful sermon is beneficial.
- However.
- If this member does not attend church regularly due to physical illness.
- Be sure to provide audio sermons from their local congregation.
- In this way.
- You stay connected to the ministry of your church.
One of the reasons Richard Baxter was so faithful in visiting people at home was to make sure they understood what was being preached and to read to them. Many of them were simple people and could not read well. The scriptures are always fruitful ways to serve and encourage Church members. Imagine the fruits of their efforts to do the same with those they cannot read. You will notice that those who cannot read receive public and private scripture reading more fervently than those who can. Read.
Try calling and visiting those who have reading problems the day before they hear the word preached. Read the passage with them, share some flashes of the passage you have obtained through your own preparation to hear the word preached, and then pray that the Lord will do so. give you understanding when you know God’s people and hear the word. Read and preach. Any mature Christian in his local church can do it, and I assure him that anyone he serves in this way will hear the word more carefully.
I often offer good children’s books not only to those who read at a basic level, but to newly converted Christians in general. Good gospel-focused children’s materials don’t change the message, they just simplify it. I recently explained the Two Ways to Live booklet to a disbeliever and gave him the children’s version to take home. There are newly converted Christians in our church who read David Big’s The Big Picture Story Bible, and within a few months they have an understanding of the redemptive history that I believe most Christians do not.
Remember that you don’t need to be extremely creative or pragmatic to make these adaptations, just think of yourself as a shepherd who won’t rest until all his sheep have been faithfully cared for and you have everything you need to make good decisions in all the unusual circumstances of a newly converted Christian disciple.