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James 5.7-18b
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Praying with Power, Part Two James 5:7-20
Last week we looked at the first part of this message called Praying with Power. We would hope that our prayers would have some power. What happens when we are out of work and pray for a job—do our prayers have an effect on the outcome? How about when we pray for the sick and they get better? Did our prayers heal the person or was it the antibiotics? As we said last week, instances of so-called faith healing happen every day, and for the most part, make Christians look like silly morons. Perhaps you have heard of James Randi. He is a magician that has offered one million dollars to anyone who can give proof of a paranormal or supernatural event such as a faith healing. Here is some of his research. I investigated for my book 'The Faith Healers' 104 cases of people who said they had been healed by faith healers or about whom it was said they were healed. And I found out those 104 people belonged to three classes: first class is people who never had the disease that they thought they did. A quick example of that is a woman who said she'd been healed of throat cancer where the faith healer admitted he touched her on the forehead. So I questioned her further, and eventually got to talk to her doctor. And her doctor sort of shook his head and he said, 'I have examined her for throat cancer at least 15 times in the past few years. Her mother died of it some years ago and every time she gets a sore throat of any kind, or a frog in her voice or whatever, she swears she has throat cancer. She comes to me and I examine her, and say, "No, no trace of any abnormality there" but she still wants to believe she has throat cancer.' The second class of people that I examined in those 104 people, were people who still had the diseases of which they said they'd been healed. One gentleman, he said he'd been healed of diabetes. W.P. Grant, who had apparently treated this man by again hitting him on the forehead with his palm. There has never been a recorded case of diabetes being healed but it can be treated effectively either with insulin or other drugs that simulate the effect of insulin. He said, 'I'm aware of that, but I want to testify to my healing.' I said, 'OK, can I talk to your doctor?' and he said, 'Yes'. There was a pause and he said, 'By the way, my doctor won't agree that I've been healed.' I said, 'Wait now, either you are healed or you're not healed.' He said, 'Yes, but my doctor's not a Christian you see.' And he said, 'Oh I see, you're one of those skeptical people?' I said, 'Yes indeed I am, Sir, I admit that.' And he said, 'Well, I don't think I want any more of this conversation.' I said, 'One question more: are you still taking insulin?' He said, 'I thought you'd ask that.' He said, 'Yes, the Devil makes me take the insulin.' http://www.abc.net.au/science/correx/archives/randi2.htm How do we reconcile this research with the text in James 5 which says, “the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well.” Last week we explained that the “prayer of faith” is a clear and definite word from the Lord that the sick person will be healed. I had a similar experience when my dad was diagnosed with leukemia. We drove to Ohio and spent several days with him until his chemotherapy started. I will never forget what happened when I was entering the elevator to go home—not knowing if I would ever see my dad alive again. Through my tears I told my sister that I had a very strong impression that either dad would recover from the leukemia or he would become a Christian—or both things would happen. It was strange because I had an undeniable confidence that dad would be OK. It turns out that after 30 days in the hospital dad did go into remission and I believe he did probably did become a Christian before he died. Were my prayers a “prayer of faith” that helped heal my dad? I didn’t understand my prayers according to these verses in James 5 back then and I cannot say with confidence that is what happened, but it certainly seems like a possibility. My dad died four years later, but this does not mean that he was not healed by the Lord. Do you realize that every person who was ever healed in Scripture by Elijah, Jesus, Paul and Peter all died some time later? As much as we fervently pray for physical healings they are only temporary solutions.
But how does this prayer of faith affect our every day prayers for the sick? If we have not been given an assurance of healing from God, does that mean that we should not even pray for a sick person? There are several reasons why I think we should pray for the sick even if we do not receive an assurance of healing form the Lord. 1. The Lord may heal the person without a prior assurance. Just because you don’t have a lightening bolt from the sky does not mean that the Lord will not bring a healing. Pray anyway.
2. The Lord may heal the person through “natural” means. My dad credited his remission from leukemia to an oncologist and infectious disease specialist—both of whom worked with the latest drugs and technology. These things are all good gifts from the Lord and can be used by him to heal.
3. The Lord may have brought the illness for a specific reason. When Jesus disciples asked him why the man was born blind, Jesus said, “this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life”(Jn 9:3). If we want God’s glory and power to be displayed to others, then we have to consider that he might desire to do this through sickness and disease.
4. We can pray for things in addition to healing. Our standard prayer for the sick goes like this, Lord, please heal Aunt Betty and relieve her suffering.” I’m not suggesting that we not pray for these things, but why not pray for other things which are just as good. “Lord, please make your work known through Aunt Betty’s illness. Lord, teach her patience and perseverance so that she can encourage others and be a witness for you.”
5. Remember that all suffering can be useful for spiritual growth. There are an infinite number of things God can do through sickness and suffering. If we are always immediately looking for a way out of trouble, we will miss remarkable times of spiritual growth in ourselves and in others.
Now let’s move away from the topic of sickness and healing and get back to the larger topic of praying with power. James asked four questions. Is any one of you in trouble? Is anyone happy? Is anyone sick? And the fourth question is “Has anyone sinned?” This question is not explicitly asked, but is implicit in verses 15-16 and in 19-20. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven. 16 Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. In the context of answering the question about healing, James inserted this part about forgiveness of sins. It is obvious that James is linking some sickness with sin. In verse 15 the healing of a physical sickness was directly linked to the forgiveness of particular sins. “If he has sinned, he will be forgiven.” The raising up by the Lord, the physical healing is linked with the confession and forgiveness of sins.
This brings up another reason why the elders are called to pray for the sick. If some sickness is the direct result of sin, then the elders are prefect choices for listening to a confession of sin. Have you ever been visited by a pastor in the hospital and he asked you, “do you think this sickness is related to any sin in your life?” Does that sound like a harsh question to ask of a sick person? After all, a pastor or an elder is supposed to visit sick people to encourage them and make them feel better. Doesn’t it seem cruel to talk about sins when they are already so sick? Isn’t that just adding insult to injury? It might be harsh if you applied this principle in an uncaring manner by setting up an interrogation of the sick person. “Are you sure you haven’t sinned? I mean, you seem pretty sick and I remember that Bill had this same illness and then later we found out he was cheating on his wife—so are you sure you don’t want to confess some sins to me?” Now that would be harsh! But it is not harsh for an elder, who is called to shepherd God’s people, to routinely and gently inquire about sins that could be related to a person’s sickness. What percentage of sicknesses are related to sin? We have no way of knowing, but no matter what the percentage, it is worth asking.
But lest anyone think only the elders are qualified to listen to a confession of sin, James adds the next line—“Therefore confess your sins to one another and pray for each other that you may be healed.” James recommends a regular practice of mutual confession and prayer. We are afraid of mutual confession of sins for several reasons. The first reason is that we just don’t want to be exposed. All sin loves the darkness and will work against being exposed to the light. The second reason is that confession of sins to another person feels like the Roman Catholic practice of a daily trip to the confessional booth to see the priest. The Roman catholic practice of regular confession is a very good thing that got corrupted. It’s not the confession that is wrong, just the manner in which it is conducted. A third reason we balk at this command to mutually confess our sins is because we believe that only God can forgive sins so we should not have to confess to another person. Of course forgiveness only comes from God, but the confession can be made to God through another person. If I confess my sins to another person, then my confession is automatically made before God as well.
What happens when we confess our sins to one another? James says that when we do this our prayers become powerful and effective. When you confess your sins and clear the slate with God your righteousness is restored again. James said, “the prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.” Who is this righteous man James is talking about? The righteous man is the one who has openly confessed and repented of his or her sins. It is this man or this woman who can now have a powerful and effective prayer life. This is such an encouraging verse because most of us do not feel very righteous when we have confessed sins. Actually, we usually we feel a little bit dirty and unrighteous. But James is making the claim that confession of sins makes one uniquely qualified to offer prayers to God that will be powerful and effective. Do you want your prayers to be powerful and effective? Then we need to be in the habit of confessing our sins to one another and praying for one another.
If this is so important, how do we go about facilitating this shared confession and prayer? Should we build a portable confessional booth and bring it to the front each Sunday? Should we have a weekly airing of our dirty laundry and worst sins every week—you know, instead of a testimony or sharing time we have a weekly slot for confession. James does not give any practical suggestions or a list of prayer and confession programs from which to choose. We are just told to “confess our sins to one another and pray for one another.” It is up to us to figure out how and when to consistently do this. Last month we held our Annual Congregational Meeting. At that meeting we talked about several recent transitions, including two families moving away and the announcement by the Gordons that Jeff will no longer be working full-time at the church. We all agreed that, humanly speaking, these will be hard hits on our church. Even though I am convinced we have a solid foundation as a church—we’ve come a long way in a few short years and do many things very well and with honor to the Lord—we have not yet made the kind of impact on our community as we had hoped. For example, in four years we have only had a small handful of people enter into a relationship with Jesus Christ.
As we talked about this at the congregational meeting everyone agreed that prayer needs to be a priority, but what does that really mean? Does it mean that we should pray more as individuals and as families? At the very least it means this. I have yet to meet a single person who spends too much time in prayer. Does it mean that we should have more prayer time as a part of the worship service? Again, I would say this is a good answer. The two times we have held concerts of prayer on Sunday morning we they have been very well received. Should we form more prayer groups like the one organized by Chris and Sheila Eisermann? Absolutely—this is a great idea. There are an infinite number of ways we can add more prayer into our lives and body life, but how many of these prayer sessions involve confession of sin?
Listen to this powerful exhortation from Isaiah 58. This passage is talking about fasting, but fasting and prayer seem to be linked together here. 2 For day after day they seek me out; they seem eager to know my ways, as if they were a nation that does what is right and has not forsaken the commands of its God. They ask me for just decisions and seem eager for God to come near them. 3 ‘Why have we fasted,’ they say, ‘and you have not seen it? Why have we humbled ourselves, and you have not noticed?’ This passage is so relevant today because in times of need or crisis, churches often call for a time of prayer and fasting. It appears this is what these people were doing. They needed answers from God so they made fasting and prayer a priority. Yet, by itself, this was not sufficient. “Yet on the day of your fasting, you do as you please and exploit all your workers. 4 Your fasting ends in quarreling and strife, and in striking each other with wicked fists. You cannot fast as you do today and expect your voice to be heard on high. 5 Is this the kind of fast I have chosen, only a day for a man to humble himself? Is it only for bowing one’s head like a reed and for lying on sackcloth and ashes? Is that what you call a fast, a day acceptable to the Lord? 6 “Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke? 7 Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter— when you see the naked, to clothe him, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood? Do you see the missing ingredient in their prayer and fasting? They prayed—and were probably very sincere in their prayer efforts, but they lacked repentance and confession of sin. It almost sounds as if James could have written this passage in Isaiah. He would have told them that their religion was worthless. Confession and obedience were the missing ingredients in their prayer and worship. We want and need our prayers to be heard by God. Of course we want our prayers to be powerful, but without regular confession, our prayers will be hollow—even dangerous. Listen to what happens when confession and prayer are joined together. 8 Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard. 9 Then you will call, and the Lord will answer; you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I.
They confessed and prayed and then God heard and responded to them. Here I am. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective. A righteous person is not a perfect person. A righteous person still sins every day of their lives, but the difference is that righteous people confess their sins to one another and pray for one another.
Do you remember about two months ago when I told you the story of God’s conviction on me because of my self-sufficiency? If you recall, the moment of brokenness came during our Tuesday morning Pastor’s prayer breakfast. Through my tears, I confessed my sins to my fellow pastors and then they laid their hands on me and prayed for me. I know for sure that this was a powerful moment for me, but I also think it was good for the other pastors.
Rich Maurer September 19, 2004 |