Prayer for wholeness– Abraham Gin

James 5:13-18 Page 1

I.PRaying INdividual (5:13)

 13Is anyone among you suffering? Then he must pray. Is anyone cheerful(free in heart, happy)? He is to sing praises.

Prayer and suffering. Not my will but your will be done. Prayer may not remove the affliction but it most certainly can transform it.

Cheerful praise. It’s a condition of the internal emotion and not necessarily connected to external circumstance. Your will is good, perfect and acceptable; this is what you have done for me and I rejoice.

Call to prayer in all spectrum of emotions.

Pray and sing praises. NLT has a rendering “continually sing praises” which reflects the present tense verb (adds the nuance of a continual or repeated action). He “must pray” is also a present tense.

“He is reflecting all his life upward, acknowledging the sufficiency and sovereignty of God, practising the grace of acceptance and rejecting the disgrace of stubbornness. In this the voice of prayer and the voice of praise are at one, for alike they say that the will of God is good” (Motyer).

Our religion should cover all experience, finding expression in prayer or praise as the occasion may demand. Calvin puts it right: “there is no time in which God does not invite us to himself. He is a God in all our needs”. God is our sufficiency (Motyer).

II.Praying Elders (5:14-15)

14Is anyone among you sick? Then he must call for the elders of the church and they are to pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord; 15and the prayer offered in faith will restore the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up and if he has committed(r.s.)sins, they will be forgiven him.

Thank God for the divine gift of healing but also for the health services. Scriptures never despises physicians or medicinal properties; however, we must turn upon the Lord and His divine provision before we become a community that forgets that He is a Healer. The following are examples of Scriptures that look positively at the health services and medicines:

The Samaritan applied oil and wine ( Lk. 10:34)

Paul called luke the beloved physician (Col. 4:14)

Timothy was urged to use wine as an ailment (1 Tim. 5:23)

Trophimus, notwithstanding the healing power of Paul, was left behind at Miletus (2 Tim. 4:20)

“Sick” in Greek is astheneo, which is means ‘to be weak’, “…is applied to many situations in the NT: mental ability (Rom 6:19); spiritual condition (Rom. 5:6); general physical appearance (2 Cor. 10:10); the conscience (1 Cor. 8:7,9; Rom. 14:1, 2); or one’s bodily condition. However, James’ vocabulary and theology (the Gospels) use the word astheneo always denotes physical illness” (Moo). Furthermore, the words “restore” (sozo) and “raise” (egeirw) is used in the context of physical healing.

Called an elder. The individual must be weak and can’t pray for himself, worn ,weary, “sick”, and can’t exercise faith to be healed, thus, they must pray over him (may be confined to a bed).

The word “elders”, also known as “overseers” signifies an office that is “caring for”, “watching out for the welfare of” the church. Elder’s work: 1)guarding and 2)feeding God’s flock (Acts 20:28), 3)guiding through labouring in preaching and teaching of sound doctrine (1 Tim. 5:17, 1 Tim. 3:2; Tit. 1:9), and 4)healing the sick who call upon them (Jas. 5:14-15).

Two-fold ministry: 1)prayer (main verb) and 2)anointing in his name of the Lord

Name of the Lord: to act as a representative of God calling on His power

Annointing with oil: not used medicinal but is an outward sign of inward power of prayer. It is an act of consecration upon the Lord to do His work.

Two-fold promise: 1)restoration of the sick and 2)if sin is involved, forgiven from sins

Connects sickness with sin(15b). There are numerous accounts in NT: paralytic man (Mk. 2:5), pool at Bethesda man (Jn 5:14), and condemnation at communion (1 Cor 11:30). However, it is not the case for the blind man (Jn. 9:2-3).

5When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, "Son, your sins are forgiven." (Mk. 2:5-11)

30That is why many among you are weak and sick, and a number of you have fallen asleep. (1 Cor. 11:30)

Source of sickness: Divine visitation because of personal sin

Prescription: Period of lying down gives time for self-examination (recalling sins and repenting)

Results: Healing for the whole person – body and the soul

III.praying Community (5:16a)

 16Therefore, confess(p.m)your sins to one another, and pray(p.m)for one another so that you may be healed.

“James’s encouragment to the community to confess your sins to each other will have particular reference to those sins that might be hindering physical healing. The context of healing that we think carries over into v. 16 suggests rather that James thinks of sins that may have caused the illness for which prayers are being offered. We should note an important shift in emphasis in the passage: in v. 14 the elders are encouraged to pray for healing; now, however the whole church body is to pray. His focus is no longer on the specific case he mentioned in v. 14 (is anyone of you sick?) but on the general need for the community to be involved regularly (the present tense of the imperative verbs suggests this) in mutual confession and prayer as a way of treating cases of sickness that might arise. At the same time, James’s shift from elders to believers in general reminds us again that the power to heal is invested in prayer, not the elder. And while it is appropriate that those charged with the spiritual oversight of the community should be called to intercede for those seriously ill, James make clear that all believers have the privilege and responsibility to pray for healing” (Moo, The Letter of James, 246-247)

Healed (iaomai) is used in the context of physical healing, wholeness, and restoration of the heart and soul.

IV.praying prophet (16b-18)

The effective prayer (petitionary) of a righteous man can accomplish much(great power).  17Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly(passionately) that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the earth for three years and six months.  18Then he prayed again, and the sky poured rain and the earth produced its fruit.

Prayer is the truest response to problems (13), even to the problem of serious illness (14-15), and that it has power to heal the sin-sick soul and the sin-torn fellowship (16a). It is to drive home the truth of the power of prayer that he now first states the fact (16b) and then illustrates it from the story of the Elijah (17-18) (Motyer).

Prayer is mighty in what it is able to do, not in what it is enabled to do. Elijah’s prayer carries a mighty punch (Motyer).

Elijah could rise to heights of faith and commitments (1 Ki. 18:36-38) and fall into the depths of despair and depression (1 Ki. 19:4). He could be brave and resolute sometimes (1 Ki. 18:17-19) and then fly for his life at a whiff of danger (1 Ki. 19:3). He could be selfless in his concern for others (1 Ki. 17:19-24) and then filled with self –pity (1 Ki. 19:10). He is an ordinary guy, but he was right with God. Faith was active with works and it was reckoned to him as righteousness (Jas. 2:22-23) (Motyer).

Prayer produces supernatural results. It can master the forces of heavans (18a). Prayer (18b) is also the key to earthly blessings and fruitfulness. God the Creator orders the life of the world in the light of the prayers of his people (Motyer).

Prayer, James wants to make clear, is a powerful weapon in the hands even of the humblest believer; it does not require a “super saint” to wield it effectively (Moo).

V.cONCLUSION

Spirit of repentance – humility, confession within community

Spirit of reconciliation

Spirit of prayer, leading to healing

Calvary Korean Presbyterian Church EM Ministry

EM Updates: www.xanga.com/calvary_insight

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