The Great Physician
The great Physician now is near,
The sympathizing Jesus;
He speaks the drooping heart to cheer;
O hear the voice of Jesus;
All glory to the dying Lamb!
I now believe in Jesus;
I love the blessed Savior’s name,
I love the name of Jesus.
His name dispels my guilt and fear,
No other name but Jesus;
O how my soul delights to hear
The charming name of Jesus.
And when to that bright world above,
We rise to see our Jesus,
We’ll sing around the throne of love
His name, the name of Jesus.
Sweetest note in seraph song,
Sweetest name on mortal tongue,
Sweetest carol ever sung,
Jesus blessed Jesus.

The Great Physician ministers with great compassion. Many professions do not require compassion for success. You probably do not care if the man who lays the bricks on your house is a kindhearted fellow or not. The NFL linebacker doesn’t need to list “compassion” on his resume. The mechanic who changes your oil or the girl who bags your groceries doesn’t necessarily need a compassionate heart. But physicians are different. We want our doctors to care about our condition and to sympathize with our pain.

The Word of God says repeatedly of Jesus that He was “moved with compassion” (e.g., Matthew 9:36). The original word from which this phrase is translated is a remarkable one. It is not found in classic Greek; it is not even found in the Septuagint (Greek translation of the Hebrew Old Testament). It seems to be a word coined by the Lord’s biographers themselves. They did not find a word in the whole Greek language that suited their purpose, and therefore had to invent one. It expresses deep emotion; a striving of the bowels—a yearning of the innermost nature with pity.¹

The Bible says, “For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need” (Hebrews 4:15–16). The term “touched” translates the Greek sympatheo, from sun (with), and patheo (to feel). Hence, it means, “to feel with.” Our English sympathy comes from this word. Michaelis notes that the term “does not signify a sympathetic understanding that is ready to condone, but a fellow feeling that derives from full acquaintance with the seriousness of the situation as a result of successfully withstanding the temptation.”² Jesus felt mankind’s griefs in Himself. He bore “our griefs, and carried our sorrows” (Isaiah 53:4). A tear brought a tear into His eye; a cry made Him pause to ask what help He could render.

Jesus came to help people. He was willing to spend and be spent for others (cf. 2 Corinthians 12:15). Often exhausted by His work, He still took time for others. He cared; He gave; He healed; He loved.
The Great Physician knows how to treat sinners. Many have had an experience with a doctor who misdiagnosed a condition, delayed treatment, and prolonged suffering. Others have gone to several doctors and nearly given up hope until they finally found one who knew what to do. Jesus knows.

John records, “He knew what was in man” (John 2:25). Jesus’ knowledge was not experiential—He never once sinned (He-brews 4:15). Still, He knew all about sin. A doctor is not required to be afflicted with cancer to know the best treatment for it. Jesus knew that sin originates in a man’s heart (Matthew 15:18–19), and eventually leads to a spiritual death (James 1:13–15).³

The Great Physician is still healing all the soul’s diseases. He still invites all to come (Matthew 11:28–30), regardless of the strain of sin they have (cf. 1 Corinthians 6:9–11). No condition is incurable, provided one will take His medicine (cf. Acts 2:37–38). Come, come to Jesus!

This means that those with a “regular case” of sin can come expecting cleansing—those guilty of lying, lusting, and laziness, for instance. “All have sinned” (Romans 3:23). But those who have a more severe case will also not go home disappointed—drug addicts, child molesters, the loose and immoral, and the murderers. We really mean it when we sing, “I was sinking deep in sin, far from the peaceful shore . . . love lifted me.” There are those from among the prisons of the land saved every week.

God gives a second chance, if we are willing to walk a new path (Matthew 7:13–14). It has always the Great Physician’s way to give a man a second chance (cf. Psalm 130:3–4; 2 Peter 3:15; cf. Acts 2:22, 41, 47). Consider these cases:

• Zacchaeus, who had been rejected by his fellow citizens (Luke 19:5–8);
• Peter, who did the very thing that he boasted he would not (Mark 16:7; John 21:15–17; cf. Acts 2);
• John Mark, who deeply disappointed Paul, so that Paul at first refused to accept his offer to help, but later extended an open hand (Acts 13:13;15:36–39; 2 Timothy 4:11).
• Paul, who himself had been a long shot at salvation, but the Great Physician saw his potential (1 Timothy 1:15–16).

God is kind to one who rises again (Luke 15:17–19). The door of repentance is left open to all (cf. Romans 2:4–5; 2 Peter 3:9).

Jesus still specializes in impossible cases. While on earth, He cured the thief on the cross (Luke 23:40–43), the woman taken in adultery (John 8:1–11), the publican Zacchaeus (Luke 19:1–10). Later, He cured Saul of Tarsus (Acts 9), the immoral Corinthians (1 Corinthians 6:9–11), and the very ones who had screamed for His blood to be shed (Acts 2:37–41). Another example is Mary of Magdala, a little village on the northwest of the Sea of Galilee. She was afflicted with seven demons, and Jesus had set her free. She had been a prostitute, and Jesus offered her forgiveness, giving her self-respect once more. The result? She became a new person, full of love and loyalty to Jesus who had transformed her life. Make your appointment with the Great Physician.

Endnotes:

¹ http://www.spurgeon.org/sermons/3438.htm.

² Bromiley, pp. 802-–803.

³ “The Great Physician,” Raymond Elliott, article