D is for DOCTOR

For a period in my life, I viewed doctors at best with suspicion and at worst with a degree of scepticism and a certain fear. Maybe it was the fact they were the men in the white coats who always seemed to carry a big black briefcase full of injection needles, little bottles and a stethoscope. Maybe it was also something to do with the fact that our own doctor never wore a white coat, but usually a sports jacket and while he was a very affable character, he wore these silver spectacles that seemed to allow him to view your inner soul as well as your sore throat. Maybe it was also because one day he died and I began to think if he couldn't cure himself, how could he possibly cure me. Maybe my blinkered view was also affected because I knew some guys at school who chose medicine for their careers and I wouldn't have left myself in their care, based on their track record beyond academia. Maybe too because one of our rugby team, who was a doctor, in the middle of a match, diagnosed a sore arm suffered by one of our perpetual rest takers as nothing more than the inflicted seeking an extra few minutes to recharge his lungs, only to discover that by the beginning of the next week, the whole arm was encased in plaster as the result of a break. And maybe I reached my conclusions because a doctor once chose to ignore my symptoms of tiredness and lethargy as nothing more than stress and prescribed a course of Valium. Talk about creating anxiety!

Anyway, for whatever reason , I remained unconvinced, though this was probably an individual thing rather than a blanket condemnation of the medical profession. In the past few years, however, I have come to appreciate the difficult job they have to do, not least of which involves breaking unwelcome news to patients and relatives. And sometimes they have to make an immediate diagnosis that can be the difference between life and death. I have also become more aware that not all doctors have the same skills nor can all do the same jobs but the beauty of the system is that when they need a second opinion or realise that a patient requires help beyond their boundaries, they are quick to enlist the support of a colleague in exactly the right field. And I have also appreciated that some times it is just good to talk to your doctor, even when there is no personal need of medical help, but only comfort and reassurance. Yes, doctors have a lot more to do than just administer injections, take blood pressure and prescribe medication but I wish they would learn to write! Yet I think one of the greatest features of the medical profession is the Hippocratic Oath that most doctors still adhere to and which not only stresses confidentiality but also encourages them to live uprightly and also give of their best in their workplace.

Luke, the most famous of all physicians and writer of two New Testament books, gives very clear medical reports of Jesus during His Passion. Recently I have been reading a medical account of the Crucifixion that I found on a web page and which probably puts into perspective, in words, the pain and suffering of our Lord, more so than Mel Gibson's film on the subject could ever have portrayed. And yet in some way, Jesus likened Himself to a physician when he responded to the Pharisees who voiced their approval of Him eating with sinners, when He said 'It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick.' Yet later the teachers and elders of the Law would mock Him on the cross by saying 'He saved others but he can't save himself.' Jesus' response was to forgive them and through His death and resurrection to become the Great Physician who can heal all spiritual disease and save all souls. And just as doctors have undertaken to honour the oath that they have taken, Jesus has made a promise to us that He will never break. I think it's best summed up in that little word from John 3 v 16, 'whosoever'. And that's why, often before He healed someone of their physical ailment, He took the time to cure their spiritual sickness by forgiving their sins. Make an appointment to see Him today. HE won't keep you waiting.