James 5:13-20
13 Is any among you afflicted? let him pray. Is any merry? let him sing psalms.
14 Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord:
15 And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him.
16 Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.
17 Elias was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain: and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and six months.
18 And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth brought forth her fruit.
19 Brethren, if any of you do err from the truth, and one convert him;
20 Let him know, that he which converteth the sinner from the error of his way shall save a soul from death, and shall hide a multitude of sins.
A FIRST RESPONDER
If you have been watching the news, you probably heard about the shooting at the church in South Carolina. A young man walked into a bible study, surrounded by others who were studying God’s word. He sat there and heard discussions about how God is working in their lives and may have been asked to chime in with his thoughts about the scripture being presented. I can imagine that he was offered a bible when he walked in and given some loving hospitality. He sat there for around 30-45 minutes. I don’t know what was going on in his mind but the spirituality of the situation was clear. This man had an intent to kill folks just because they were black. He didn’t seem to care about the word of god even though these folks may have tried to love and accept him. Who knows what was going on in his mind. It is clear that this is a senseless tragedy. Afterwards, some folks showed up. Of course you have your political types who try to make this another issue. But I think there was something that was missed by the media just hours after this happened. There was a brief shot of some folks praying. They were men of god in the midst of the confusion, praying. They weren’t out complaining. They weren’t trying to make this about something else. They were praying. I call these folks first responders. There was, and still is, a spiritual battle going on that none of the folks around could see, save these folks who were praying. There was an attack on the spiritual fiber of this church. There was chaos going on but the real battle was happening in those spiritual realms. These folks who were praying knew this and got on the battle field. These folks were first responder. What is a first responder?
A job description of a first responder looks like this: With a limited amount of equipment, the CFR answers emergency calls to provide efficient and immediate care to ill and injured patients. After receiving notification of an emergency, the CFR safely responds to the address or location given, using the most expeditious route, depending on traffic and weather conditions. The CFR must observe traffic ordinances and regulations concerning emergency vehicle operation. The CFR:
¨ functions in uncommon situations;
¨ has a basic understanding of stress response and methods to ensure personal well-being;
¨ has an understanding of body substance isolation;
¨ understands basic medical-legal principles;
¨ functions within the scope of care as defined by state, regional and local regulatory agencies;
¨ complies with regulations on the handling of the deceased, protection of property and evidence at the scene, while awaiting additional EMS resources.
In a spiritual sense, this need to describe a saint of god who believes. This applies to a saint of god who has a heart for the people. This applies to Christians who knows to love their neighbors. James puts like this: Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing psalms. Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. Those who are suffering need to pray and the cheerful should sing psalms of praise to God. The sick should call for the elders of the church, asking them to pray for their need. First responders. James has the same advice for both the suffering one and the cheerful one: take it all to the Lord. In fact, the two commands could be reversed: sufferers should sing also, and the cheerful should also pray.
James clearly puts the initiative on the person in need: let him call. The hesitancy of people to ask for or to seek prayer from the leadership of the church in such circumstances is a true mystery. I am not sure why folks who are in pain, who are going through some sickness or who have trouble in their way do not go to the elders, the ministers of the church to pray. Maybe they do not feel it will do any good. Maybe they don’t believe they give enough money to deserve this. Maybe they believe that their stuff will get out in the street. Would you call a first responder if you were seriously injured? Would call 911 if you saw a neighbor laid out in his yard with a possible heart attack? Would you call a first responder if you child had injured himself? James clearly tells us to take out burdens to the first responders. Are you a first responder or are you the bystander who is waiting to spread gossip? Are you that first responder who someone can come to in confidence or are you the person who will turn the other way? Are you that person who someone can count on to pray with them right there, or do you shun prayer as a symbol of some sort.
The weapon of the first responder is prayer. The word of God is the shield that protects when prayer is going on. Please note that often, first responders do not care about what happens to them. Their focus is on the person in need. The focus is on the person who is so burdened down that they cannot move. Let them pray over him: James also says that the elders of the church, as they pray, should anoint the sick person with oil in the name of the Lord. This anointing with oil has been interpreted as either seeking the best medical attention possible for the afflicted (oil massages were considered medicinal), or as an emblem of the Holy Spirit's presence and power. Whatever the case, we need to pray for others. How often do we pray for others in our homes? How often do we pray for something outside of our home, like the incident in south carolina. We need to pray and pray some more. Folks are in need in our community and within the walls of this church.
And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much. Many have wondered if James "guarantees" healing here for the sick who are prayed for in faith. Some have interpreted the idea behind save the sick as not specifically being healing, and raise him up as being a reference to ultimate resurrection. The reference to sins being forgiven adding to the idea that James is considering a spiritual work and healing, not necessarily a physical healing. Yet, the context of the statement demands that James does not exclude physical healing as an answer to prayer, though he does seem to mean something broader than only a physical healing. We should pray for others in faith, expecting that God will heal them, then leave the matter in God's hands. Clearly, God does not grant immediate healing for every prayer of faith, and the reasons are hidden in the heart and mind of God. Still, many are not healed simply because there is no prayer of faith offered. The best approach in praying for the sick is to pray with humble confidence that they will be healed, unless God clearly and powerfully makes it clear that this is not His will. Having prayed, we simply leave the matter to God. It is not the job of the first responder to wait around for attention. They are not there to be interviewed or to gain glory. Their mindset is not first to be the hero. Their focus is on doing their job. As a first responder, our job is to give god the glory. We are to stay humble and leave it all to god for the outcome. We just need to do our part and show up as a first responder. We should remember that God is big enough to handle whatever is in the lives of His people. God uses ordinary people who are willing to be trained by Him to be this first responder. God’s Holy Spirit is the trainer for first responders. He leads the way for us to go. He goes into the burning building first to show us the way. He makes sure that we are trained and ready for whatever may come. He gives us the words to say and, sometimes, encourages us not to say. The first responder is not a lone wolf; they work as and on a team. They are not trying to be Rambo or the Rock. They work on a team with the Holy Spirit being the captain, Jesus being the Manager and God being the Owner!
The first responder also realize the dangers of being a first responder. They may get ridiculed. They may get talked about. The person they are trying to tend to may reject them, but that often comes with the territory. They realize though, that they have access to the right equipment while in the field. Put on the whole armor of God that you may be able to withstand the attacks of the evil one. Be prayed up prior to going into the field as a first responder. Make sure that you don’t fall victim to the whiles of the evil one while doing your job as a first responder
