LESSON #14

Good And Bad Times

James 5:13-20

The final passage of the Epistle of James contains some of the most controversial verses in the entire book. Faith healers frequently quote from this passage. The Roman Catholics try to defend their "sacraments" of "Extreme Unction" and "Confession to a Priest" using James 5. The passage need not be so controversial. Actually, it is pretty simple and straighforward. In these verses, James writes about three things that every Christian should do in good and bad times.

Prayer, 5:13a, 14-18.

A spiritually mature Christian knows the importance of being prayerful. James writes about three kinds of prayer.

The Prayer Of The Suffering, v, 13a. He asks a question, "Anybody afflicted?" The word "afflicted" means "having hardships, troubles, difficult circumstances." What are you suppose to do when you are suffering? Grumble? Complain? Criticize? Blame? No! The answer is, "Let him pray." Complaining to people about your suffering probably won't help the situation, but praying to God will! Listen to what the Old Testament has to say about prayer in times of affliction. II Chr. 33:12-13 "And when he (Manasseh) was in affliction, he besought the LORD his God, and humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers, And prayed unto him: and he was entreated of him, and heard his supplication, and brought him again to Jerusalem into his kingdom. Then Manasseh knew that the LORD he was God." II Kings 19:14 "And Hezekiah received the letter of the hand of the messengers, and read it: and Hezekiah went up into the house of the LORD, and spread it before the LORD." Jonah 2:7, 9 "When my soul fainted within me I remembered the LORD: and my prayer came in unto thee, into thine holy temple ... I will sacrifice unto thee with the voice of thanksgiving." Psalm 61:1-2 "Hear my cry, O God; attend unto my prayer. From the end of the earth will I cry unto thee, when my heart is overwhelmed." Psalm 50:15 "Call upon me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me." Anybody afflicted? Having hardships? Suffering? Under difficult circumstances? Anybody got troubles? Let him pray.

The Prayer For The Sick, vss. 14-15. Once again, James begins with a question, "Anybody sick?" There is a four step answer to this need. First, summons "the elders of the church." Request a visit from the leaders of your church. Biblical healing is a ministry of the local church not some out-of-towner evangelist! It is the responsibility initially of the sick individual to request a visit. Some times people are offended at their pastor because they were sick and no one came to visit them. Did they inform the pastor of their illness? Did they request a visit? Did they let him know that he was welcome to come and visit them? Initially, it is the responsibility of the sick to summons the elders of the church. Next, the elders are to go and "pray over them." Third, the elders are commanded to "anoint (the sick one) with oil in the name of the Lord." There are varying interpretations of this phrase. Just what James had in mind is difficult to know. Some think that it is to be taken literally. Frankly, the literal interpretation of this is hard to argue with. Others believe that the anointing of oil is making reference to getting medical help for an illness. There are two words in the Greek language for "anoint". One is a religious term, the other a medical term. It is actually, the medical term that is used here. Oil was often used for medicinal purposes, see Luke 10:34. Among the Jews, the priest was often involved in treating the sick. This interpretation would say, "If you are sick, get the church to pray for you and get medical attention."

Although men to do not possess the supernatural power to heal, God certainly is able to heal. Sometimes He uses medicine to heal the sick and sometimes He acts supernaturally in healing the sick. Somehow Roman Catholicism uses this verse to defend its sacrament of Extreme Unction (reading last rites). The text says nothing about that. The final step also is the responsibility of the sick person. It is confession of sin. Sometimes (James says "if" not "when" v. 15 "he have committed sin") sin and sickness are related, see I Cor. 11:30. The sick should confess his sins, "that ye may be healed." The results of following these steps (v. 15 - "the prayer of faith shall save the sick and the Lord shall raise him up") is not intended to be a blanket promise but a general principle. God heals in answer to prayer. Notice, the healing comes as an answer to prayer, not because of the anointing of oil.

The Prayer Of The Saints, vss.16-18. We are to "confess our faults one to another and pray one for another." Once again, Roman Catholicism uses this verse to defend the sacrament of the confessional booth. That is not what James had in mind. The confession should be as big as the sin. If your sin is private, known only to you and God, then you need not make a public confession. But whoever has heard about your sin, should also hear about your confession of that sin. It might be your family, or perhaps some close friends. It is possible that your sin is publicly known to the whole church. In such a case, you should make a public confession. Hearing someone confess a sin, should lead us to pray for each other. James wants us to know the incredible power of prayer. The fervent and earnest prayer of a righteous man makes a difference! Think of Elijah, vss. 17-18. James reminds us that Elijah was an ordinary man but his prayers had extraordinary results! He prayed that it wouldn't rain, and it didn't rain for three and a half years. He prayed again that it would rain and it did!

Praise, 5:13b.

James asks a third question, "Anybody merry?" The word "merry" means "of good cheer, happy, cheerful, excited." What should you do? Dance in the aisles? Speak in tongues? Shout? Applaud? No! The answer that James gives is to "sing psalms." Singing is the natural result of having joy in your heart. Sometimes the songleader must work so hard at getting Christians to sing. It shouldn't be that way. Singing is a natural form of praise from a heart that loves and worships God. Psa 95:1-3 "O come, let us sing unto the LORD: let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation. Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving, and make a joyful noise unto him with psalms. For the LORD is a great God, and a great King."

Prevention, 5:19-20.

Is the person spoken of in verses 19 -20 a backslider or an unbeliever? It is hard to tell. The man in verse 19 sounds like a backslidden Christian but the guy in verse 20 sounds like an unsaved man. Actually, it could be either. The person being described has "erred from the truth" (meaning "been deceived or gone astray) and needs to be "converted" (meaning "stopped; turned about") There are both backslidden Christians and unsaved people who have been deceived and need to be rescued. To rescue such a person would bring two positive results. You will save his life. For the backslider this means his physical life; for the sinner his eternal life. You will also hide his sins. They will be covered by the blood of Christ and forever erased. Rescuing is hard work and very painful at times. But the results are worth the effort.

James comes to an abrupt ending with these words. Hopefully, what you have learned for studying this epistle will make you more spiritually mature as a Christian and will show you how your faith can work.