Former U.S. Sen. Tom Coburn, a staunch conservative and an outspoken Evangelical Christian, passed away Friday in Tulsa. He was 72.

“Because of his strong faith, he rested in the hope found in John chapter 11 verse 25 where Jesus said, ‘I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in Me, will live, even though they die.’ Today he lives in Heaven,” his family said in a statement to the outlet.

Coburn, a Republican, finally lost his battle with cancer. Coburn, a medical doctor, retired from the U.S. Senate in 2015 while battling cancer. Coburn served in the Senate from 2005 to 2015. He honored a campaign pledge by retiring from the U.S. House after serving three terms (from 1995 to 2001).

Coburn was dubbed “Dr. No” because of his devotion to fiscal conservatism in government. He published a Waste Book every year that spotlighted outrageous examples of government waste.

“We’re running trillion-dollar deficits. The way you get rid of trillion-dollar deficits — a billion at a time,” Coburn said in 2012.

 Coburn was born in Casper, Wyoming, on March 14, 1948. He grew up in Muskogee. After graduating from Oklahoma State University, he went to work at his family’s business in Virginia, Ophthalmic Division of Coburn Opticals, from 1970 to 1978.

 He then attended medical school at the University of Oklahoma.

Coburn delivered more than 4,000 babies while an obstetrician in Muskogee, where he treated patients for free while in the Senate. Political opponents filed a complaint against him for that charity work.

“You cannot negotiate with Coburn,” former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, a Democrat, said in 2008. “It’s just something you learn over the years is a waste of time.”

Coburn was criticized by some Republicans for his close friendship with former president Barack Obama.

“I’m not aligned with him politically. I don’t know what people back home in Oklahoma would be worried about,” Coburn told the paper. “But you need to separate the difference in political philosophy versus friendship. How better to influence somebody than love them?”

“Very, very sad to hear the passing of my dear friend Tom Coburn,” said U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-South Carolina. “He was truly ‘Mr. Smith goes to Washington.’

“Very glad his suffering is over and he is now with the Lord. Tom was a great senator, a terrific husband and father, and a dear friend.”

“Senator Tom Coburn was a great conservative voice in the United States Congress and American physician whose legacy will live on,” said Vice President Mike Pence. “Karen and I send our deepest sympathies and prayers to his family during this tough time.

Sen, James Lankford, R-Okla., who followed Coburn in the Senate in 2015, called Coburn a “tremendous leader” and a “great friend.”

“He was unwavering in his conservative values, but he had deep and meaningful friendships with people from all political and personal backgrounds. He was truly respected by people on both sides of the aisle,” Lankford said in a statement. “Dr. Coburn will be remembered by many around the country for his work in Congress, but in Oklahoma, he will be remembered as a physician, a Sunday School teacher, and a mentor.”

“Oklahoma has suffered an incredible loss,” said U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe, R-Oklahoma.. “Dr. Coburn was a respected conservative voice, a principled leader, a fearless advocate for what was right and was resolute in his faith in Jesus Christ. I had the distinct honor of serving with him.

“We lost a giant today – an Oklahoma legend,” said Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt. “Dr. Coburn devoted his life to serving others both by way of his career as a physician and by tirelessly fighting for our country as a true statesman. Our state and our nation are better because of the lessons in fiscal responsibility we’ve learned from Dr. Coburn and I pray especially in these trying times ahead of us that we can find ways to ensure his legacy lives on.”

State Sen. Rob Standridge, R-Norman wrote the introduction to Dr. Coburn’s book, Smashing the DC Monopoly: Using Article V to Restore Freedom and Stop Runaway Government.

“In 2011, I lost my father to prostate cancer, and now a few years later I lost a great friend and one of my greatest political heroes, Tom Coburn, to that same disease,” Standridge said.

Standridge  joined Coburn in his battle for an Article V Convention of States in order to check the power of the federal government.

“Dr. Coburn continued to lead that fight nationally up to the day he died, and when an Article V Convention happens, and I firmly believe it will, it will be because of Dr. Coburn’s tireless efforts in his final years that made it so,” Standridge said.

Oklahoma Senate President Pro Tempore Greg Treat said, “One of the greatest honors of my life was to have known and worked for Dr. Tom Coburn. He was a mentor to me and lived out a great example of how to serve with conviction, honor and compassion.

“Whether it was fighting for the unborn or the next generation of Americans, he was unshakeable in his convictions, regardless of the extreme political or public pressures, and was successful in pulling America back to its core values and principles.”

Treat said in college he earned an internship in Washington, D.C, and went to work for Coburn, who served as congressman for the Second District of Oklahoma at the time. In 2004, Treat served as regional director on Coburn’s successful run for U.S. Senate and went on to work as state government liaison for Coburn in the U.S. Senate.

U.S. Rep. Tom Cole, R-Okla., said,  “He was an Oklahoma original – a politician who hated politics. He disliked campaigns, but he never lost an election. Voters appreciated his strong conservative views, his candor and his honesty as a person.

“Tom felt a strong call to serve his fellow Oklahomans as both a physician and an elected official. He did both with genuine personal integrity. In Oklahoma and far beyond, Tom became a legendary figure who fiercely fought for what he believed in and what he thought was best for future generations of Americans.”

“Senator Tom Coburn was a great leader and a great man,” said Rep. Kevin Hern, R-Oklahoma. “More than that, he was a dear friend and mentor to me long before I ever dreamed of entering politics. He lived a truly Christ-centered life, for this I am glad that his suffering is over and he is at peace with our Lord.”