Prayer of Faith For the Community

[James 5:13-20]

Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praise. 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. And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working. Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the earth. Then he prayed again, and heaven gave rain, and the earth bore its fruit.

My brothers, if anyone among you wanders from the truth and someone brings him back, let him know that whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.

{Rev. Dan Whang}

This is the wrap up for our James series.

Call for the Individual to Pray

"Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray."

This is not a command. It assumes that one will pray. Are you going through tough times because you are a Christian? because you are trying to live a life of faith? It is an exhortation for prayer. This is not necessarily a prayer for the tough situation to go away.

"Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praise."

Cheerful doesn't mean a celebrating spirit. But rather having peace of mind, peace with God... as one who is content in the midst of severe trials. Are you able to find joy in times of trouble? This is the cheerfulness meant by the verse.

Call for the Community to Pray

"Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him"

The sick should be prayed over. We should ask for the LORD to raise him up.

"if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven"

But there is also a spiritual connection. Sometimes, God uses sickness to reveal our sin. Not always, but we need to be mindful that God may be showing us our heart. This also needs to be prayed over.

Promise of Results ins Prayer

We are told to pray for each other when there is sickness, there is peace, or there is sin.

"the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven."

"confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed."

The prayer of faith is not a prayer without doubt. It is a prayer rests on the person of Jesus and His power. I want us to picture the father of the demon-possessed child. "I believe; help my unbelief!" It is not our righteousness that brings power to our prayers. It is dependent upon Jesus' righteousness. He is the one who constantly intercedes on our behalf.

We must remember the root reason why we pray... to save. "whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins."