Jesus OBS Week 3 — Compassionate Physician

Great crowds came to Him, bringing the lame, the blind, the crippled, the mute, and many others, and laid them at His feet; and He healed them. — Matthew 15:30

Jesus went into the towns and countryside and sought out those who had been affected by all forms of ailments. And He healed them. Jesus was willing to reach out to anyone who came to Him in need. And He is still willing to reach out in compassion to those who are suffering today. ~ Max

Welcome to week three of the Jesus Online Bible Study! This week we’re studying one of the most exciting and yet baffling aspects of Jesus… His power to miraculously heal.

We need this timely message and study through Jesus’ healings in Scripture now more than ever.

Illness can bring us to the end of our ropes, can’t it? Both for ourselves and for those whom we love. Especially when sickness goes on and on or is diagnosed as terminal. Nothing is more desperate for help and care.

In comes Jesus. Jesus the Healer. The One who laid hands on the sick (Luke 4:40).

He didn’t have to, you know. The One who spoke the world into existence could’ve just healed with a word, or a thought, or a breath. But He touched people. He looked into their eyes, got close, and touched them. I wonder how much that ministry of physical touch alone healed gaping wounds in the sick.

Have you ever been through a really painful season and you’re just trudging and plodding through it until someone stops and looks. Asks. With empathy and understanding. And you just crumble into their hug. It’s healing just being seen and embraced.

No one touched sick people in that day. It was culturally unacceptable and it could be dangerous. But Jesus did.

How kind. How compassionate…

But, Jesus didn’t stop with just compassion. He healed!

This happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him. — John 9:3

So he went away and washed, and came back seeing. — John 9:7

It’s clear that Jesus understands our suffering and that He will use our pain for a purpose. Our problems, struggles, heartaches, and hassles cooperate toward one end… and that is the glory of God. ~ Max

Suffering for God’s glory? Long-suffering for His glory? That’s hard for us, isn’t it? We want drive-through healing, instant fixes, microwave cures. But, so often, as with the woman with the issue of blood, what we pray for takes time. And we don’t know why. And it’s painful. She suffered utter ostracization. She was driven to pennilessness. Some of us know that all too well.

But, at the end of her rope, she didn’t settle for sickness. And neither should we!

Keep praying!

Even if we never receiving healing in this lifetime because the world is still a fallen place, Heaven is coming, and we can still raise a roar of praise in that truth!

At the end of the rope, there’s Jesus.

Trust Me in your times of trouble, so I can rescue you and you can give Me glory. — Psalm 50:15

Surely He took up our pain and bore our suffering… But He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities. — Isaiah 53:4-5 NIV

This week in your study:

1. Watch the video for session three on our study home page and take notes in your study guide on pages 57-62 and then hang around for the discussion questions with our OBS community afterward.
2. Go through the study questions with your group or on your own on pages 62-66.
3. Review chapters 1-8 or catch up on your reading in the Jesus
4. Grab your Bible and enjoy your personal study this week on pages 67-78.
5. Join the conversations about the study and get to know fellow participants in our private Facebook group!

Scriptures this Week

Matthew 9:33
Matthew 15:30
John 9:2
Exodus 20:5
John 9:3
John 9:6
John 9:7
John 9:8-9
John 9:14
John 9:16
John 9:34
John 9:35
Psalm 50:15
Mark 5:25
Mark 5:26
Mark 5:28
Mark 5:29
Hebrews 11:6
Isaiah 53:4-5
Matthew 8:17
1 John 3:2

Prayer for the Week

Jesus, we love You, our Friend, our Compassionate Physician. Thank You for healing in a broken world. We can entrust our hurts and our heartbreak, our sickness and our suffering to You. Help us to be steadfast in prayer! We love You, Lord. Amen.