Prayer and Healing
James 5:13-20
In any circumstance of life we ought to come to the Lord:
a) when suffering we are to pray, or to keep on praying. We are not required to put on a false front and sing pretending that we are glad if deep down we are weary and afflicted physically or mentally.
b) when cheerful we are to sing psalms. Originally to twang a chord as on a harp, to sing praise to God whether with instrument or without (1 Corinthians 14:15; Romans 15:9; Ephesians 5:19). "Let him keep on making melody", expressing gladness in praise to God, who is pleased to be addressed in this way.
c)when sick we are to call for the elders of the church. "Elders", "bishops" or "presbyters" are names given to the same people, of which we notice there was always a plurality in each of the churches where they are mentioned in the New Testament.
To be sick, or weak (without physical strength), is not an anomaly among believers. In a general way, sickness is the result of sin having entered the world and our bodies are not immune to sickness after we are saved, just as we are not immune to physical death.
Besides the natural vulnerability of the body, there are other causes: the righteous Job was made sick to prove his faith (Job 1:8); Epaphroditus was sick because of his tireless work for the Lord (Philippians 2:30); Gaius was spiritually healthy but apparently physically weak (3 John 2).
Satan is sometimes given power to touch the physical health of people, as in the case of Job (Job 2:7), to cripple a woman (Luke 13:10-17), to put a thorn in Paul's flesh (2 Corinthians 12:7).
Sickness can also be a direct result of sin in a person's life (Mark 2:5; John 5:14; John 9:2; 1 Corinthians 11:30).
God overrules our universe, and that includes sickness in the human body. He has provided our natural bodies with defences which alone, or with the assistance of chemicals, can avert or combat diseases.
In verse 15 we find God working through medicine, applied "in the name of the Lord": the use of olive oil was one of the best remedial agencies known to the ancients. It is clear here and in Mark 6:13 that medicinal value was attached to the use of the oil. They used it internally and externally. Some physicians still prescribe it today. There is nothing here to do with any rite of anointing, such as the much later practice of "extreme unction" rather like pagan magic.
Physicians have been learning to treat diseases with natural and artificial chemicals throughout the ages, and their work was acknowledged by the Lord Jesus (Matthew 9:12). God uses the doctor, and that is precisely where we are today. The best physicians believe in God and want the help of prayer.
Surgeons have been contributing also, mostly in recent years by cutting out diseased or defective tissue, grafting and transplanting. A famous surgeon called Paré is remembered as saying "The surgeon dresses the wound; God heals it."
Nature is God's creation, and He may also intervene to change its course when He wills to do so. God sometimes intervened in the Old Testament times, and the Lord Jesus gave ample proof of His divinity by intervening, and healing the incurable, and He gave the apostles the gift of healing as a sign of their authority on His behalf.
Healing is not something we can demand from God. In Philippians 2:27 it is spoken of as a mercy, not something which we have a right to expect. He is able to overrule, and sometimes does, but it may be His sovereign will not to interfere with the course of nature. Weakening of the body is part of the dying process.
Failure to be healed is therefore not an indication of lack of faith. Paul, Trophimus and Gaius, for example, were men of faith but they were not healed.
Prayer for the sick is clearly instructed here. It acknowledges our dependence on God as the giver and sustainer of all life.
If these were the only verses in the Bible on healing, we might be right in assuming that prayer by the elders of the church accompanied by medicine would automatically heal any ailment. They are used as a basis for Charismatic churches, "faith-healers" and other notorious "miracle" workers to attract followers.
Because of the evidence in other portions of Scripture, of which we have mentioned some examples, we are led to the conclusion that these verses do not apply to all illnesses, but only those related to their context. The entire context concerns a person whose sickness is a result of sin. It implies repentance, for upon the prayer of faith sin will be forgiven by the Lord, who will also heal him.
Prayer of faith is the prayer based on the promise of God's word. It does not depend on the degree of faith of the sick person, nor on the degree of faith of those praying for him: it is the prayer the result of which is assured because the Word of God says so, when its conditions have been met.
Sins are to be confessed to God, but our faults are to be admitted one to another that we may be healed. If we have injured a brother or sister, by word or deed, then we ought to confess it to them and ask for their forgiveness. But we are not to confess our sins to one another, or to a pastor, or priest, for forgiveness. Only God can forgive sins, and He does it freely (1 John 1:9).
Pray for one another, or keep praying for one another, for healing. Probably bodily healing, though healing of the soul could also be meant (Hebrews 12:13). Instead of holding grudges and allowing resentments to build up, we should maintain our fellowship with other believers by admitting our bad thoughts, words or deeds and praying for them.
Confession, prayer and healing are linked. Spiritual restoration comes before physical healing. Personal problems are often the cause of physical ailments and they should be cleared by admitting our fault to the people concerned. Sins like gluttony, worry, anger, an unforgiving spirit, intemperance, jealousy, selfishness and pride can be the source of illnesses. All sins should be confessed to God. With prayer, this is the way to be healed.
The prayer of a man who is right with God works wonders, a paraphrase of verse 16, second part. Elijah is held up as an example: he was a mere man like ourselves who believed in the true Lord God of Israel, and he prayed earnestly that it should not rain as punishment on his people because of their idolatry.
God answered this prayer of His faithful servant: it didn't rain for three and a half years, until the people were convinced of their sin and turned back to the Lord. Then Elijah prayed again asking for rain and the rain came immediately after and the earth began to produce once more.
Through prayer the elders of an assembly are used in the restoration of mind and body of a sinning believer, through prayer a prophet is instrumental in bringing a wayward nation back to God, and we are exhorted to minister to those who are astray from Christ. Some commentators think it refers to believers who have wandered away from the truth, and are turned back to fellowship with God by our prayers.
In view of the last verse, however, which clearly has to do with the salvation of the sinner from his sins, it can only refer to an unsaved person who has not yet come to the truth. He has been introduced to the Gospel and has been coming to the church meetings, for he is "among you", but wanders away from the truth.
When he comes to a saving knowledge of Christ, his sins, no matter how many, will be covered by the blood of Christ. The wonder of justification by faith is that once God has pardoned our sins, they are gone forever.
R David Jones
13 Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing psalms.
14 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.
15 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.
16 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.
17 Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain; and it did not rain on the land for three years and six months.
18 And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth produced its fruit.
19 Brethren, if anyone among you wanders from the truth, and someone turns him back,
20 let him know that he who turns a sinner from the error of his way will save a soul from death and cover a multitude of sins.