THE GREAT PHYSICIAN

As I think over what I have read this past week, the title “The Great Physician” catches my eye. It leads me to think of Doug, Wendi, and all the team members who are in Peru for the next two weeks using their God given talents to service and physically heal those in need. Even though they can not heal their souls, the One they speak of and the One they share – Jesus, is the only one who can save the souls of those who will listen. Our prayers are for the folks in Peru who the team is able to meet, that they will hear the Good News of Jesus Christ – The Great Physician. May you enjoy this message from “Our Daily Bread”

(taken from “Our Daily Bread,” October 19, 2007, RBC Ministries, www.rbc.org )

He Himself took our infirmities and bore our sicknesses. —Matthew 8:17

In reflecting on his deteriorating health, John Donne (1572–1631) described his feelings as physicians examined him to find "the root and occasion" of a serious illness. In hushed tones, they discussed their conclusions outside his room.
At first Donne was afraid, but in time he saw compassion in their faces and began to trust them. Their concern reminded Donne that he could trust the Great Physician. As he read the Gospels, he saw God the Father’s face in the tender, compassionate face of Jesus.
Many of us struggle with our thoughts about God, especially during illness. Perhaps we grew up attending a church that portrayed an angry God who inflicted sickness on us. Can we trust Him? Like Donne, we turn to the Gospels for our reason to trust God. And we find it in His Son Jesus, who was unfailingly compassionate toward those who were afflicted, regardless of the reason.
So we pray as Donne prayed, "Deliver me, therefore, O my God, from these vain imaginations"—the belief that by our sin we have forfeited God’s goodness and mercy. As Donne wisely said, the Great Physician "knows our natural infirmities, for He had them, and knows the weight of our sins, for He paid a dear price for them." —David H. Roper
The cross of Jesus is the supreme evidence of the love of God. —Oswald Chambers