New Life Burbank

5:13 Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praise. 14 Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. 15 And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. 16 Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working. 17 Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the earth. 18 Then he prayed again, and heaven gave rain, and the earth bore its fruit.

Reflect

I remember as a 12 year old, I prayed to God, asking for an Atari home video game console, which was very popular at that time. I told my parents I was really praying hard. They told me to keep praying because they weren’t going to buy me one. I prayed and still no Atari. I felt that God was just not impressed with how I was praying. I prayed even more fervently and still no Atari. I eventually gave up, mostly because my interest weakened on the Atari and moved onto a telescope set instead. I thank the Lord that He has allowed me to realize the fallacy of my immature understanding of prayer.

The Bible tells us to pray constantly (Rm 12:12; 1 Thess. 5:17-18) and there are numerous areas where God hears our prayers and instructs us to pray (i.e. 2 Chron 7:12-14; Mt 5:4, etc..). Christ taught us to pray the Lord’s prayer (Mt 6:9) and He taught by example (Luke 11:1). So we know we have to pray. But have you ever wondered why our omniscient God wants us to pray when He knows everything already? Well, James gives us a glimpse into the answer.

These verses deal in part with suffering and sickness. Theologians have some different opinions on whether the sickness in verse 14 refers to physical or spiritual. But the means to the end is the same, prayer. If it’s physical, the end is healing from the ailment. If it’s spiritual, the end is strengthening of faith. Both ends come from God, not us. If healing doesn’t occur on earth, the ultimate healing will be consummated in glorification—this must be qualified however…..that we’ve actually already been healed when Christ died on the cross, guaranteeing our salvation (the true healing).

Verse 15 hits it home when it deals with “prayer of faith.” Faith exercised in prayer is what God desires. It is faith in the God who accomplishes His will because He is sovereign. We have examples in the Bible when prayers for physical sicknesses are not answered (i.e. Paul’s prayer for physical healing not answered in 2 Cor 12-7-9). Ultimately, we must take into account the will of our supreme Lord, which is often veiled in mystery, at least for now.

James starts the verses with calling the elders of the church to pray. Elders have been given the responsibility to be overseers who help guide the spiritual development of the local congregation. But there is a deliberate shift where James starts to exhort all Christians to pray, even giving Elijah as an example. Elijah is mentioned, not necessarily as the great extraordinary prophet, but as “a man with a nature like ours.” This point is made so we can identify with even Elijah, a man of prayer. Hence, prayer is the responsibility of all Christian brothers and sisters.

Let us strive to continue to pray for the sicknesses of others. We believe in the power of prayer, not in any mystical way where we have been given the gift of healing, but rather that we are exercising our faith in the Almighty God who will exercise His good will all in His good time. I encourage you to try something practical this week: to choose one person that you know is fighting a physical ailment. Pray for them specifically.

Memorize

James 5:15a And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up.

Pray

Heavenly Father, thank you for healing our souls through Christ’s ultimate sacrifice on the cross. Help me to abide by your will and to pray fervently for the sicknesses of others. I especially pray for __________________ who is currently in the midst of suffering. Give him/her peace and may it be your will for the restoration of his/her health. In Jesus name, Amen.