When Jesus heard it, He said to them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.”
Mark 2:17*
Cancer, heart disease, and aging are as much a part of the human condition as are sin, suffering, and self-destruction. That certainly wasn’t God’s original plan for creation, but sin and sickness escalated through the years, causing the misery index to soar. Life expectancy dropped from over 900 years before the flood to somewhere between 30-40 years during the first century. It is no wonder that when the Sun of Righteousness finally arose over planet Earth that He had “healing in His wings” (Malachi 4:2). The Lord Jesus was moved with compassion and healed multitudes.
Christ was able to do things that modern medicine can’t come close to achieving. Lepers were instantly healed with a touch, and high fever disappeared at His command. Muscles that had wasted away through atrophy in the body of paralytics were immediately restored. Even the dead came back to life. Such healings were proof that Christ was the Son of God and had power over the consequences of sin.
Although not officially in scripture, for centuries, His people have referred to Him as the “Great Physician.” The Lord still heals through answered prayer, and it’s always exciting to see the modern medical profession hard-pressed to give an answer for an unexplained recovery of a terminal patient.
However, this sin-cursed world continues to be in rebellion against its Creator and previously unknown diseases seem to appear every year. Sickness and death are the direct result of the human sin nature, and the main objective of Christ is (and has always been) to bring sinners to repentance. His death on the cross enables each believer to have eternal life and dwell forever with Him, free from disease and disability. He is both the Christian’s Savior and Physician.
*also see Matthew 9:12; Luke 4:23, 5:31-32
February 18
