“Faith That Works: A Beautiful Body”
James 5:13-20
Life is certainly not lived on an even plain. The path is never level for very long. We’re constantly in a state of flux. We fall from the peaks to the pits; we slide from the heights to the depths; we shift from the sunshine into the shadows.
And much of this movement is beyond our control. We cannot prevent it from happening. We are victims of unexplained moods and unplanned circumstances. For example, we may have an outstanding day, get a good night’s sleep, and yet wake up in the morning feeling lousy. Or the opposite occurs; it was a lousy day, nothing went well and we ought to be feeling rotten – but we feel great. Such is life.
In light of all this, how do we react to life? How can we be stable in the midst of this instability? James reminds us (16), “The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.” Prayer is the key to stability. It is the axle around which life can move meaningfully. As such, prayer is the core of a caring community, the key ingredient to a beautiful body.
In verse 13 James refers to our INDIVIDUAL RESPONSIBILITY. We are to pray whether enduring suffering or experiencing success. To those ENDURING SUFFERING James says “Is anyone among you in trouble? Let them pray.” We’ve all had to endure hard times, and will again. You may know real, physical pain, be seriously ill, or fighting to hang on. Or perhaps a dearly and deeply loved family member is in grave trouble and you can’t seem to help. Maybe a person who holds a special place in your heart is wandering from the way and you wonder if she will ever return to the fold. It might be that you feel rejection, persecution, bullying, or shunning because you are a Christian. It could be that you have lost your job, a prized possession, or even a loved one. Whatever it is, you hurt. You cry out for help. You know you cannot make it alone.
James says “Pray.” It’s not just a simple “When all else fails, pray,” nor is it “The least we can do is pray.” For James PRAYER IS THE FIRST RESOURCE, NOT THE LAST RESORT. The first thing to do when you realize your resources are depleted or powerless, is pray. Give our Lord a chance to renew your strength. The Psalmist understood: “LORD, how many are my foes! How many rise up against me! Many are saying of me, “God will not deliver him.” I am a worm and no man, scorned…and despised…all my bones are out of joint…Why are you so far from helping me?” Jeremiah similarly lamented, “You deceived me, LORD, and I was deceived; you overpowered me and prevailed. I am ridiculed all day long; everyone mocks me…Give heed to me…hearken to my plea…Why did I come forth from the womb to see toil and sorrow and spend my days in shame?” Even Jesus, in Gethsemane cried out, “Let this cup pass from me.”
WHEN IN TROUBLE, PRAY. God wants you to bring your suffering and hardships to Him, just as children bring hurts and pains to their parents. Whether the suffering or hardship is caused by self-pity and despair, or actual attacks – God wants us to turn to Him. He’s given us a standing invitation. That’s why Jesus’ blood was shed and the curtain in the Temple torn in two – God wants you to come into His presence. You may kneel weakly but you will rise powerfully and in strength. When in trouble, pray.
But life is not all suffering. There are times we have the joy of EXPERIENCING SUCCESS. Life has its great moments. What a joy to have those days when nothing goes wrong, everything is okay and you’re filled with vim, vigor, and vitality. Nothing can get you down! James knows it’s easy at such times to get wrapped up in the moment and in ourselves. So he says “Is anyone happy? Let them sing songs of praise.” If in suffering we tend to leave prayer as a last resort, in success we tend to forget prayer altogether. Remember the 10 lepers who were all in dire need? Jesus healed them all. Yet only one returned to thank Jesus for his new life. Only he was truly healed and free. As Dr. William Brownson put it, “PRAISE THROWS OPEN THE WINDOWS OF A SELF-CENTERED LIFE AND LETS THE FRESH AIR OF HEAVEN IN.” (1)
The Psalmist shared the same spirit: “It is a good thing to give thanks to the Lord, to show forth loving kindness in the morning, and his faithfulness every night…Every day I will bless thee, oh Lord, and will praise thy name forever and ever.” Praise keeps life in perspective. Times of success are tremendous times for worship, for counting up blessings, for committing to the work of the Kingdom, for serving in new ways, for re-investing yourself. When you’re fortunate enough to experience the thrill of success, GIVE CREDIT WHERE CREDIT IS DUE and worship and serve the Lord with gladness. Come into His presence with singing.
James leaves no doubt that you are to always come to God. Let your experience and circumstances dictate whether you come praying or praising. You may not always get out of suffering, and your success may not last forever; but you will receive the help and presence of God. Then you will be stable even amid the changing tides of life.
But James was well aware that there are times when personal praying and praising are not adequate. There are times we need an INTIMATE RESOURCE. His first illustrative scenario is of someone who is ill. Verse 14: “Is anyone among you sick?” The language implies it’s someone who’s gravely ill – one who’s drained and unable to go it alone. Whether it’s physical, emotional, or spiritual illness the person is like parched earth that needs rain from heaven to recover. James points them to A BEAUTIFUL BODY – A PASTORING COMMUNITY. “Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise them up.” While we offer opportunities like this morning for prayer and renewal, and while our Elders sometimes take the initiative to contact people about the possibility of prayer, notice James puts the responsibility on the individual – on you. WHEN SICK, CALL THE ELDERS.
And they will come with oil and prayers. Oil was widely used in the first century for medical reasons but eventually became symbolic as the sign of God’s protecting love. Psalm 23 pictures the good shepherd anointing the sheep’s head with soothing oil. The oil now represents the soothing, healing presence of the Holy Spirit. The Elders represent the body of believers, the church. There are times people need the prayer and support of the whole body. It’s not that the Elders and the oil are a charm or potion that guarantees recovery; it’s not some sort of hypnotic suggestion which allows the person to ‘feel better.’ But through the Elders the power and presence of both the Holy Spirit and the body of Christ’s people brings comfort, strength, and renewal to bear upon the person. The Elders place you into our Lord’s hands in confidence and faith. Physical and emotional healing may result; it may not. But the person is always changed and strengthened and made whole. That’s the promise of God. Through such praying and anointing I have on occasion seen people literally healed; I always see wholeness and peace.
Harry Peelor, a Methodist pastor, told about Mrs. Cook (2) – a terminally ill patient he visited at the San Diego Naval Hospital. Despite her decaying condition, she possessed a resilient faith. On one visit she said to him, “I think of my life as a tapestry I am weaving. Often I use the wrong color of thread, and the design is spoiled with sins and knots of pain. But I like to think that God is constantly at work on the other side of this tapestry. He takes my wrong colors and blends them into the pattern. He takes the knots and smooths them out. Someday, He will turn the tapestry around and show me the die He has been working on, and I know it will be beautiful.” Prayer is the healing activity by which we weave the tapestry of our lives in accordance with the artistry of God, who shall take our weak and imperfect threads and create his masterpiece of permanent beauty.
What a tragedy, then, when someone never calls and can only wonder what might have been if they had. How sad that some stay away from this beautiful body and suffer in silence, only to blame the church for not being around. Let us all hear James admonition once again: “Let them call the elders of the church…” They will come, with oil, and pray.
James adds another dimension to life in this pastoring community. (15-16) “If they have sinned, they will be forgiven. Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed.” WHEN SINNING, CONFESS TO ANOTHER. When you realize that sin is getting a strangle-hold on you, seek out another Christian – a trusted partner in the faith – who agrees to hear your confession. Then confess, which means to ‘speak the same as God’ speaks about your sin. Condemn it and offer it up.
Does it make you uncomfortable to think of doing this? Why not just confess in private, straight through Jesus, or to the priest or minister? There are at least three reasons for this mutual confession. First, confession to another brings SUPPORT. Think of your physical body. If you go blind, the rest of our senses come to the rescue and compensate; the get stronger. So with Christ’s body, the church – when you sin it can complement and rescue you. It provides a special strength. Second, it provides a powerful DETERRENT. Once you have confessed, your partner engages in praying for and checking up on you. There is an accountability built into your life that deters you from sinning again. Third, confessing to this trusted partner RELEASES A BURDEN. It frees you from the weight of your sin.
It’s all part of what the New Testament calls ‘bearing one another’s burdens’ and so ‘fulfilling the law of Christ.’ How in the world can we share each other’s burdens if we do not share them with each other? Only when you share can the power of forgiveness be launched into your life.
The third benefit of this pastoring community is WHEN SINKING, SAVE ONE ANOTHER. (19-20) “My brothers and sisters, if one of you should wander from the truth and someone should bring that person back, remember this: Whoever turns a sinner from the error of their way will save them from death and cover over a multitude of sins.” What’s the saddest thing you can imagine? A physically or mentally handicapped child? Contracting a dreaded disease? I believe it’s spiritual death. Imagine someone walking away from a heavenly inheritance. It’s someone who’s gone from truth to error, obedience to sin, from Christ to self. For whatever reason, they have slipped and are headed in the wrong direction. We’ve seen it in the pages of the Bible and we’ve seen it in our circle of relationships, and within our churches. You cannot just shrug your shoulders and feel badly when a fellow member of the Body is sinking. You must work to bring him back. That’s right – you. Not the preacher, nor the Elders – though they work at it too – but you. Paul’s letters – especially Galatians – talk about restoring people in gentleness and love. It is your task to go after them in love, to persist in love. All the while, pray – pray some more – and pray again.
If, claims James, Elijah could evoke such great things through prayer, surely we should pray for wandering sheep. Dr. Brownson shared how he would meet with members of his church every Saturday morning for the expressed purpose of praying for inactive and wandering members of their congregation. He related the thrills of the months that went y as one by one they could check names off the list as people returned to the body and to the Lord.(3) If the Lord wills something, we can have it by prayer; and surely He wills the return of His wandering children. And what a joy when they return! You have saved them from death.
Only in the Body of Christ can it happen: when sick, call the Elders, when sinning confess to another, when sinking save one another. What a beautiful body! And that’s how James ends his letter. So our study of James is over. It’s been invigorating, challenging, and humbling. James makes it all sound to simple. He says, bluntly, “You know it; now live it!” And we can. We can be perfect and complete in the midst of trials; we can be doers as well as hearers of the Word; we can be merciful and not prejudicial; we can control our tongues; we can be instruments of peace; we can live faithfully in this moment; we can be a beautiful body; we can have a faith that works. All it takes is tapping into the resources of the risen Lord Jesus Christ. You have been bought with a price; you are His; let Him have you. Each morning, give Him your heart; each night give Him your rest. This morning, in the company of this beautiful body, give Him your prayers. After all (vs. 16 MSG), “The prayer of a person living right with God is something powerful to be reckoned with.” Let the reckoning begin!
(1) Dr. William Brownson, ‘When to Pray’, ‘Words of Hope’ 10/7/79, p.8
(2) Harry Peelor, as quoted in Pulpit Digest, May/June 1995
(3 )Dr. William Brownson, ‘Bringing Someone Back’, ‘Words of Hope’ 10/28/79, p.9
