Prayer – The Power That Changes the World – James 5:13-20 (Part 2)
Sept. 16, 2012
Prayer is the power that changes the world.
Sam Chadwick wrote, "The one concern of the devil is to keep Christians from praying. He fears nothing from prayer-less studies, prayer-less work, prayer-less religion. He laughs at our toil. He mocks at our wisdom. But he trembles when we pray."
Dr. A. C. Dixon said, "When we depend upon organization, we get what organization can do—and that is something. When we depend upon our preaching, we get what our preaching can do—that is something. When we depend upon money—we get what money can do — and that is something. When we depend upon education, we get what education can do—and that is something. But when we depend upon prayer, we get what God can do. And what all of us need is what God can do."
Do you want to see the power of God at work in your life and in the lives of others? Do you want to be used by God to change the world? Then, pray. This morning we will be continuing in James 5:13-20 and we will be continuing to look at prayer. Let’s look at the passage again (read verses). Pray.
A couple of weeks ago we looked at the first aspect of prayer mentioned in this passage: pray at all times. The second aspect is: pray to heal. This morning we will be looking at the final three aspects of prayer. The third aspect is: pray in mutual confession. Look at verse 16 (read verse). It is powerful to confess our sins to one another. I know as Protestants we may have problems with the idea of confession. When confession is mentioned we think of the idea of going to a confessional and repeating all of our sins to a priest who tells us to perform acts of penance. In fact, we’re afraid that such confession can do more harm than anything. It reminds me of the story of a young teenage boy who went to confession. He said:
"Bless me Father, for I have sinned. I have been with a loose girl."
The priest asks, "Is that you, little Joey Pagano?"
"'Yes, Father, it is."
"And who was the girl you were with?"
"I can't tell you, Father. I don't want to ruin her reputation."
"Well, Joey, I'm sure to find out her name sooner or later so you may as well tell me now. Was it Tina Minetti?"
"I cannot say."
"Was it Teresa Mazzarelli?"
"I'll never tell."
"Was it Nina Capelli?"
"I'm sorry, but I cannot name her."
"Was it Cathy Piriano?"
"My lips are sealed."
"Was it Rosa DiAngelo, then?"
"Please, Father, I cannot tell you."
The priest sighs in frustration. "You're very tight lipped, and I admire that. But you've sinned and have to atone. You cannot be an altar boy now for 4 months. Now you go and behave yourself."
Joey walks back to his pew, and his friend Franco slides over and whispers, "What'd you get?"
"Four months vacation and five good leads!"
We know that we don’t need a human intercessor to reach God. Jesus Christ Himself intercedes for us and we can take our sins directly to God Himself. But though that is true, there is power in confessing our sins to another human being. We need to share our deepest sins with someone with skin on. And we need to hear the words of forgiveness from a living person. Whenever we hide our sin it grows and rots. When we expose our sin and hear the healing words of God declaring forgiveness, then sin loses it’s power.
Richard Foster writes in the book, “The Challenge of the Disciplined Life: Money, Sex and Power,” the following story:
A friend of mine once counseled a 78-year-old woman. She had been a missionary for fifty years, but now her life, it seemed, was in shambles. She had fears day and night. She was afraid of crowds; she was afraid of stairs; she was afraid of everything. And she was depressed; a deep sadness hung over her entire life. So total was her misery that she was preparing to have shock treatments.
"My friend, who is very wise in the care of souls, asked if she had been happy as a child. “Oh, yes!” she responded. The next question was a simple one, “When did you begin to feel this sadness and depression? The reply was quick, “When I was sixteen.” And so my friend asked, “Why? What happened when you were sixteen that caused the sadness?” For the first time in her life, this woman admitted that at sixteen she had had an affair with a young man. Fortunately she did not become pregnant, and the young man soon went away, but she had carried this deep wound in her spirit for over sixty years.
My friend prayed for the inner healing of this dear woman, and, wonderfully, within a matter of weeks, the fears and depression began to disappear, so that as she put it, 'I am able to remember that I used to be afraid and depressed, but I can no longer remember what it felt like!'"
Now do you think this Christian woman prayed and confessed her sin to God? I’m sure she did. Do you think that God forgave her? I’m sure He did. But this woman needed to share her sin with another person and have healing prayer for her past hurt. That’s what freed her.
We need this ministry as well. We need someone who we can confess to and we need them to pray for us. And we need to offer this ministry to others. At the end of July our family spent a week up at Joy Bible Camp. I met a man who had been a missionary for many years as a medical doctor in Africa. He and his wife were back on furlough. In our conversation he shared with me some of his struggles with sexual sin and pornography. He was part of a 10 step program to help him get through his addiction. But what caught my attention was he related his experience with his church. He told me how he attended a men’s meeting at his church. During the meeting, the leader split the men into small groups and encouraged them to share their struggles and pray for each other. He said that one man in the group took control of the conversation and steered it away from anything personal or deep. In contrast he described a 10 step program meeting where the men shared everything with disarming honesty.
In the church we tend to penalize people who seem to be doing poorly or those who are struggling. We run away from transparency and stay away from any place where we are vulnerable. But that’s exactly opposite to how the church should be. I pray that BTBC can become a safe place where we can share with one another our deepest problems, struggles and hurts and where we can find healing through the prayers of others.
And by the way, the people here who seem to have it all together, they don’t. We all struggle and are tempted and fall. If we don’t have the courage to take our masks off, to be honest and real with one another, then how can the Spirit of God work in our midst? How can we really show God’s love to one another? I struggle with lust, pride, anger and laziness. And I totally battle with the fear of men. I love to be liked. I need your help. Won’t you pray for me?
We need each other. I urge you to find someone, someone you can share your heart with. Someone who you can trust. Someone who is close to God and who knows how to pray. Find someone from your own gender, someone who is available and who can keep a confidence and who won’t be too easy on you. If you can’t think of anyone like that, then pray and ask God to provide that person for you.
The first aspect of prayer mentioned in this passage is pray at all times. The second is pray to heal. The third is pray in mutual confession. The fourth aspect is pray earnestly. Look at verses 17-18 (read verses).
If we want to be effective in praying, then we need to learn to pray earnestly. Prayer is more than just presenting a list of requests before God and waiting for the answers. Let’s be serious. How can we expect our prayers to move God’s heart when they don’t move ours?
In this passage we have an example of a person who prayed earnestly. We talked a little about Elijah a couple of weeks ago. He declared that God was going to bring punishment on the people of Israel for their sins by bringing a drought. And then he disappeared. After three and a half years he reappeared to present himself before Ahab, the king of Israel. He had a showdown with priests of Baal and after defeating them, went back to Ahab to announce the coming of rain. 1 Kings 18:41-45 records what happens next:
And Elijah said to Ahab, “Go, eat and drink, for there is the sound of a heavy rain.” So Ahab went off to eat and drink, but Elijah climbed to the top of Carmel, bent down to the ground and put his face between his knees.
“Go and look toward the sea,” he told his servant. And he went up and looked.
“There is nothing there,” he said.
Seven times Elijah said, “Go back.”
The seventh time the servant reported, “A cloud as small as a man’s hand is rising from the sea.”
So Elijah said, “Go and tell Ahab, ‘Hitch up your chariot and go down before the rain stops you.’”
Meanwhile, the sky grew black with clouds, the wind rose, a heavy rain came on and Ahab rode off to Jezreel.
How did Elijah pray? What made his prayer earnest? First he believed. He told King Ahab to get ready for the rain before he had even prayed. Think of what would have happened if God hadn’t come through. Elijah had this faith because God promised him it would rain. Earnest prayer is believing prayer. R. M. Offered said, "Expect an answer. If no answer is desired, why pray? True prayer has in it a strong element of expectancy."
Second he worked. It says that he bent down to the ground with his face between his knees. Now I don’t think the Bible says one posture of prayer will be more effective than any other, but this image of Elijah, going down on his knees with his face to the ground symbolizes the attitude of the prophet. He knew that prayer was a solemn business that required his deep concentration and effort. Prayer requires real work and effort. Effective prayer asks for the best of our strength, will, intelligence and energy. E.M. Bounds writes, "Our praying, however, needs to be pressed and pursued with an energy that never tires, a persistency which will not be denied, and a courage which never fails." Sometimes I think we just play games with prayer. We think if we put our ten minutes a day in then we are covered. We think that a one sentence request will move God’s hand to heal cancer, or rescue someone from hell. Who are we kidding? E. M Bounds writes this:
“To say prayers in a decent, delicate way is not heavy work. But to pray really, to pray till hell feels the ponderous stroke, to pray till the iron gates of difficulty are opened, till the mountains of obstacles are removed, till the mists are exhaled and the clouds are lifted, and the sunshine of a cloudless day brightens-this is hard work, but it is God's work, and man's best labor.”
Real effective prayer is prayer that is born out of desperation. Often the Bible calls prayer, crying out to God. In Romans, prayer is called a groaning. Effective prayer is a heart cry for God to move in a situation that is hopeless without divine intervention. Jim Cymbala writes in the book “Fresh Wind, Fresh Fire”:
Prayer cannot truly be taught by principles and seminars and symposiums. It has to be born out of a whole environment of felt need. If I say, “I ought to pray,” I will soon run out of motivation and quit; the flesh is too strong. I have to be driven to pray.
Fervent prayer not only takes deep concentration, effort and emotional energy, it also requires much time. Elijah stayed on his knees praying for seven times as he waited for his servant to return. How long do you think he prayed for? I’m not sure, but it was more than five or ten minutes. The people who accomplished the most for God were the ones who spent the most time in prayer. Martin Luther said, "I am so busy now that if I did not spend three hours each day in prayer, I could not get through the day." John Wesley made this resolution: "I have resolved to devote an hour each morning, noon, and evening to prayer—no pretense, no excuse whatsoever." Is it any wonder that God used these men powerfully? Fervent prayer requires time and work.
Third, he persisted. According to this passage, how many times did Elijah pray? Seven times. Why do you think God made Elijah wait? After all when Elijah confronted the prophets of Baal, how many times did he have to pray before God burned up the offering? He only had to pray once and God acted immediately. But there are other times when God will wait before acting and He is moved by the persistence of His people in praying. This comes through very clearly in Jesus’ parable of the persistent widow in Luke 18:1-8. The point of the story is clear. If we keep praying and we don’t give up, then God will answer. I’m not sure of all the reasons why God chooses to wait before answering prayer. Possibly one of the reasons is that we value more the things that we work for the hardest. Maybe another reason is that God tests how serious we are by how willing we are to persevere. But whatever the reason, effective prayer is always preserving prayer.
How do your prayers measure up? Do you pray earnestly? Do you believe? Do you work? Do you persevere?
The first four aspects of prayer listed here are first is pray at all times. The second is pray to heal. The third is pray in mutual confession and the fourth is pray earnestly. There is a fifth and final aspect of prayer mentioned in these verses: Pray them back. Look at James 5:19-20 (read verses).
The final instruction in the book of James is this, to bring back the believer who has left the faith. If we do that then there is a great promise. They will be saved from death and their sins will be forgiven. Do you know anyone who has wandered away from the faith? I can think of many people in my life who have started out following Christ but who have left the faith. My brother Philip is a very gifted individual. I remember growing up always being compared against him. He was smarter, more industrious and self-motivated, stronger and more charismatic than me. The only advantage I had was I was always better looking than him. But after I became a Christian I always thought Phil would be a great person to be saved and I prayed for his conversion on a daily basis. With all of his gifts I figured that he could do great things for the kingdom of God. Well after graduating from university Phil went on a round the world trip. I got a letter from him when he stopped in Hawaii. He had met some Christian beach bums while he was surfing and he accepted Christ. I was so happy to get that letter. But a few months later I got another letter from him saying that he was in India and he had visited a Hindu Ashram and he had decided Christianity was not for him. But I never stopped praying. It was during his engagement that he went to an Alpha course with his fiancé. During the course they both received Jesus Christ as their Lord and Saviour. Today Phil is still following Christ and serving in the church.
Whoever you know, don’t stop praying for them. God is powerful to save. And He responds to the persevering prayers of His people. Jim Cymbala, the pastor of the Brooklyn Tabernacle tells the story of his daughter Chrissy:
Our Oldest daughter, Chrissy, had been a model child growing up. But around age sixteen she started to stray. I admit I was slow to notice this – I was too occupied with the church, starting branch congregations, overseeing projects, and all the rest that ministry entails.
Meanwhile, Chrissy not only drew away from us, but also away from God. In time, she even left our home. There were many nights when we had no idea where she was.
As the situation grew more serious, I tried everything. I begged, I pleaded, I scolded, I argued, I tried to control her with money. Looking back, I recognize the foolishness of my actions. Nothing worked; she just hardened more and more. Her boyfriend was everything we did not want for our child.
Once again, as back in 1972, there came a divine showdown. God strongly impressed me to stop crying, screaming, or talking to anyone else about Chrissy. I was to converse with no one but God. In fact, I knew I should have no further contact with Chrissy – until God acted! I was just to believe and obey what I had preached so often: “Call upon me in the day of trouble, and I will answer you.”
I dissolved in a flood of tears. I knew I had to let go of this situation.
One cold Tuesday night during the prayer meeting, I talked from Acts 4 about the church boldly calling on God in the face of persecution. We entered into a time of prayer, everyone reaching out to the Lord simultaneously.
An usher passed me a note. A young woman whom I felt to be spiritually sensitive had written: “Pastor Cymbala, I feel impressed that we should stop the meeting and all pray for your daughter.”
I hesitated. Yet something in the note seemed to ring true. As my associate began to lead the people, I stood behind him with my hand on his back. My tear ducts had run dry, but I prayed as best I knew.
There arose a groaning, a sense of desperate determination, as if to say, “Satan, you will not have this girl. Take your hands off her she’s coming back!” I was overwhelmed. The force of that vast throng calling on God almost literally knocked me over.
Thirty-two hours later, on Thursday morning, as I was shaving, Carol suddenly burst through the door, her eyes wide. “Go downstairs!” she blurted. “Chrissy’s here.”
I wiped off the shaving foam and headed down the stairs, my heart pounding. As I came around the corner, I saw my daughter on the kitchen floor, rocking on her hands and knees, sobbing. Cautiously I spoke her name: “Chrissy?”
She grabbed my pant leg and began pouring out her anguish. “Daddy – Daddy – I’ve sinned against God. I’ve sinned against myself. I’ve sinned against you and Mommy. Please forgive me."
My vision was as clouded by tears as hers. I pulled her up from the floor and held her close as we cried together. Suddenly she drew back. “Daddy,” she said with a start, “Who was praying for me? … In the middle of the night, God woke me and showed me I was heading toward this abyss. There was no bottom to it – it scared me to death. I was so frightened. I realized how hard I’ve been, how wrong, how rebellious. But at the same time, it was like God wrapped his arms around me and held me tight. He kept me from sliding any farther as he said, ‘I still love you.’ Daddy, tell me the truth – who was praying for me Tuesday night?”
I looked into her blood shot eyes, and once again I recognized the daughter we had raised.
Do you know someone who has wandered away from the faith? Don’t give up on them. Keep loving them. Keep believing. And above all keep praying.
The five aspects of prayer listed in these verses are: 1) Pray at all times; 2) Pray to heal; 3) Pray in mutual confession; 4) Pray earnestly; and 5) Pray them back.
Prayer is the power that changes the world.
