James 5:13-16
Is any one of you in trouble? He should pray. Is anyone happy? Let him sing songs of praise. Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven. Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.
Several years ago I agreed to meet with a woman who had never attended FBCG but called me on the recommendation of a friend. As I recall, the woman was Jewish although she was not active in her faith.
I no longer remember the details of what led her to seek my counsel but I do remember how the conversation ended. I offered to pray for her as I almost always do in pastoral conversations. She looked a bit surprised but indicated that would be fine. So I bowed my head and prayed for her and for whatever her difficult situation happened to be. When I said, “Amen” and looked up she was staring at me with her eyes wide open. I realized that she had not bowed her head or closed her eyes and it suddenly occurred to me that she had never seen someone do that before; that she had never had anyone pray for her.
I remember feeling both stunned and saddened that someone could live into adulthood without knowing or experiencing the blessing of prayer!
Throughout this letter written to some of the earliest followers of Christ, James has been applying the gospel to everyday life and here he turns his attention to what might be called the “gospel of prayer.”
Is any one of you in trouble? He should pray. Is anyone happy? Let him sing songs of praise. Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven. Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.
Remember that the “gospel” is the good news that God saves sinners through he life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The gospel tells us that through Christ God has done for us what we cannot do for ourselves. The gospel tells us that by faith we who are sinful, selfish and hopeless can become children of God, secure in the knowledge that we are loved, forgiven and granted the great hope of eternal life in Christ!
James is telling us that prayer is also part of the gospel because God makes himself available to us in every dimension of our lives.
Are you in trouble? Pray for God’s help.
Are you happy? Sing songs of praise (certainly a form of prayer).
Are you sick? Pray for healing.
Are you struggling with sin? Pray for forgiveness!
James wants us to know the good news that God not only created us, loves us and saves us, but that he is available to us every moment of every day through prayer!
When I was about 11 years old our family lived in a wing of the small church building where my father was pastor. One day I was playing with my brother and I burst through the door that led to my Dad’s church office thinking no one was there. I charged right into the middle of a pastoral counseling session that my father was having with a member of the congregation.
I stopped dead in my tracks but before I could exit the room my father said, “Come here,” and motioned for me to come to his side of the desk. I was expecting to be reprimanded for interrupting an important conversation. But, instead, he simply turned me around to face his guest and said, “This is Brian, my oldest son.” Then he turned to me and said, “What do you need son?”
I realized that not only was I not in “trouble” (he probably reminded me later to knock before coming into his office!), but I had a special relationship to my father. He not only allowed me to come to him; he wanted me to come to him! I had access!
Do you know God feels that way about you? Do you know that you can come to him when you are in trouble? When you are happy? When you are sick? When you have failed?
James wants us to know the door to God’s office is always open!
Brian Coffey
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