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Proverbs 4:1-9
1 Hear, my
children, the instruction of a father, And give attention to know
understanding;
2 For I give you good doctrine: Do not forsake
my law.
3 When I was my father's son, Tender and the
only one in the sight of my mother,
4 He also taught me, and said to me: "Let
your heart retain my words; Keep my commands, and live.
5 Get wisdom! Get understanding! Do not forget,
nor turn away from the words of my mouth.
6 Do not forsake her, and she will preserve
you; Love her, and she will keep you.
7 Wisdom is
the principal thing; Therefore
get wisdom. And in all your getting, get understanding.
8 Exalt her, and she will promote you; She will
bring you honor, when you embrace her.
9 She will
place on your head an ornament of grace; A crown of glory she will deliver to
you."
Father God, convict us of our sins so
that we may repent and walk in your righteousness. We thank you for that! In Jesus name we pray, Amen!
Book of James 5:13-20 NKJV
In closing this Book of James, James
tells us what prayer can do. Prayer is a powerful thing and I believe in
prayer. Our prayers are heard and some prayers are answered right away while
others answered in the future, and some are not answered because some of the
things we pray about are not God’s will for us. We may not be able to handle
some of the consequences of what we ask for; or we may not realize in some
situations what we ask for could possibly lead us away from God. We can’t see
into the future and that is why we need Jesus to in our lives to guide us in
the right direction through the power of the Holy Spirit. God knows what is
best for us, so all we need to do is trust in Him for all things.
13 Is anyone
among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing psalms.
Is anyone among you suffering? Let him
pray; The word
suffering can also be substituted with affliction. The word used here refers to
suffering of any kind by sickness, bereavement, disappointment, persecutions, loss
of health property etc.
When we are troubled in
life we seek God to help us. Throughout the Bible people have sought God for
help in times of tribulation. If we recorded the times we prayed during hard
times and during good times which would receive the higher count? Good question,
and I don’t know for myself, I would hope that there would be more marks for
good times. 2
Chronicles 33:12 Now when he
was in affliction, he implored the LORD his God, and humbled himself greatly
before the God of his fathers. Psalms 50:15
Call upon Me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify
Me." Luke 22:44 And being in agony, He
prayed more earnestly. Then His sweat became like great drops of blood falling
down to the ground. Acts 9:11 So the Lord said to him, "Arise
and go to the street called Straight, and inquire at the house of Judas for one called Saul of Tarsus, for
behold, he is praying. Here
are just a few other verses pertaining to prayer. Psalm 77:2, Psalm 91:15, Psalm
107:6-13, Psalm 107:19, Psalm 107:28; 2
Chronicles 33:12-13; Job 22:27;
Zechariah 13:9; Acts 16:25; James
5:13.
Let’s take Acts 9:11 that
we just read and think about what happened to Paul on his way to Damascus. Paul
was persecuting the believers of Jesus because he truly believed he was right
in what he was doing. He was clinging to the old ways of the Jewish people,
customs, rituals, doctrine of the religion that he believed in. He was
practicing religion, faith in religion and not faith in Jesus death and
resurrection. He had to be knocked off of his horse and stuck blind by Jesus to
get his attention and then remain blind for three days before he was delivered.
Sometimes God has to go to some pretty drastic measures to get our attention,
and then we still refuse Him and stick to our opinions and beliefs because we
are too proud to humble ourselves. God calls us in many different ways trying
to get our attention. Romans
11:29 For the gifts and the calling
of God are irrevocable. Are
you still like the old Paul and still clinging to old heritage, customs, and
beliefs for salvation?
Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing
psalms; “Cheerful”, the
Greek word used here (εὐθυμεῖ
euthumei) means, literally, “to have the mind well” (εῦ eu and θυμὸς
thumos;) that is, to have it happy, or free from trouble; to be cheerful;
to be pleasant; to be agreeable, and is applied to a state of mind free from
trouble; the opposite of affliction.
Praise
is appropriate for a cheerful state of mind. The heart naturally gives
utterance to its emotions in songs of thanksgiving. Singing songs/hymns or
Psalms is a form of prayer provided it glorifies God. Paul speaks of this in Ephesians 5:19-20 speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and
spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord, 20 giving
thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus
Christ.
Again
there are many verses about being cheerful and merry heart throughout the Bible
and here are just a few of the verses; Proverbs 15:13, Proverbs 15:15; Proverbs
17:22; Isaiah 24:7; Luke 15:23-24, Luke
15:29, Luke 15:32.
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.
Is anyone among you sick; The word sick refers to physical and
emotional illnesses of any nature. Many think this verse doesn’t pertain to
living today, but it does. I felt the same way before I was saved, but after I
was saved I’ve experienced healings that have no explanation, but that Jesus
healed the individual or solved the burden a person was dealing with. Verse 14
is alive today if a person believes.
I
know a person that had a back issue and was healed; a person needing knee
surgery, but was healed before surgery; a person needing a stint but when it
was time for surgery the stint was not needed. Some people are healed while
others aren’t, why, it all pertains to God’s will because He is the one that
heals, not the person praying or anointing someone. All we can do is accept the
answer to prayer and keep believing because God has a plan for us.
Let him call for the elders of the
church; This phrase
is also referring to pastors, deacons, and a righteous person as well. One
thought of calling in the aid of others is to aid us in our devotions, because
one who is sick is less able to direct his own reflections and to pray for
himself than he is in other forms of trials. The person may be in so much pain
or sedated with drugs he is incapable of prayer, so it is only fitting to call for
someone to come and pray.
If
we need prayer, we need to ask for it. I have heard from time to time that
someone was in the hospital and their pastor never came to visit and pray for
them. A pastor is a human being and does not have a crystal ball to gaze in to
see who needs prayer. As this verse states it is our responsibility to call for
someone to come and pray for us.
And let them pray over him; Albert Barnes has this to say about
this phrase: “With him, and for him. A man who is sick is often little capable
of praying himself; and it is a privilege to have someone to lead his thoughts
in devotion. Besides, the prayer of a good man may be of avail in restoring him
to health, James 5:15.
Prayer is always one important means of obtaining the divine favor, and there
is no place where it is more appropriate than by the bed-side of sickness. That
relief from pain may be granted; that the mind may be calm and submissive; that
the medicines employed may be blessed to a restoration to health; that past
sins may be forgiven; that he who is sick may be sanctified by his trials; that
he may be restored to health, or prepared for his “last change” - all these are
subjects of prayer which we feel to be appropriate in such a case, and every
sick man should avail himself of the aid of those who “have an interest at the
throne of grace,” that they may be obtained.”
Anointing him with oil in the name of
the Lord; Oils of
various kinds, were used among the ancients, both in health and in sickness.
The oil which was commonly used was olive oil. In Scripture, oil was both a
medicine (see the parable of the Good Samaritan in Luke
10:30-37) and a
symbol of the Spirit of God (as used in anointing kings, see 1
Samuel 16:1-13). So
oil can represent both the medical and the spiritual realms of life.
James
tells us here, just like John, that our prayers are to be offered up in the
Name of Jesus. John
16:23 "And
in that day you will ask Me nothing. Most assuredly, I say to you, whatever you
ask the Father in My name He will give you.
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.
And the prayer of faith will save the
sick; This phrase is
referencing the faith of those praying and also the faith of the individual
being prayed for, believing they will be healed. Faith doesn’t heal Jesus is
the healer. Here again the question is why are some healed and some not? Is it
God’s will; people’s faith not where it should be; faith of the people praying
not where it should be; the result of a sinful lifestyle? All good questions,
which we don’t have an answer for! All we know is that life is in God’s hands!
The Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away!
And the Lord will raise him up; Meaning a sick person being delivered/healed
from the ailment.
And
if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven; This is a conditional statement
meaning, if the person’s illness was caused by a sinful lifestyle, and if God
wills a healing, then ones sins will be forgiven and they will be healed,
although repentance and faith are also a contributor as we will see in the next
verse. We know from reading the four Gospels that some sickness was caused by
sin, so if that was the case 2,000 years ago it is still the case today. Matthew 9:2 Then behold, they brought to Him a paralytic
lying on a bed. When Jesus saw their faith, He said to the paralytic, "Son, be of good cheer; your sins are forgiven you."
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.
Confess your trespasses to one another; This phrase implies that some sickness
is contributed to sin. The sickness could be a calling of God to repent and
come to Him. If we sin we are to humble ourselves and ask for forgiveness of
whoever we have wronged whether it be a person, a group of people, or God.
And pray for one another, that you may
be healed; If we are
to model our self after Jesus then we are to pray for each other. Praying for
one another demonstrates loving our neighbor! Through confession, prayer, and
God’s will, a person’s health may be restored. If God hears many praying for a
healing he may just restore a person’s life and give that person more years to
live as He did with Hezekiah. Isaiah_38:1-5
The effective, fervent prayer of a
righteous man avails much; This
phrase says nothing about an elder or pastor, but speaks of a righteous man,
any man living for God. It has been said that “prayer moves the arm that moves
the world;” and if there is anything that can prevail with God, it is prayer,
humble, fervent, earnest petitioning. We have no power to control him; we
cannot dictate or prescribe to him; we cannot resist him in the execution of
his purposes; but we may ask him for what we desire, and he has graciously said
that such asking may affect much for our own good and the good of our
fellow-men.
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.
These two verses James
uses as an example of what prayer can do when a righteous person prays in God’s
will. A Godly person walking within God’s will, their prayers will be heard.
Anyone with a close relationship with God will or should know what God’s will
is, so when they pray, God answers the prayer of the righteous. What I’m saying
is if a person has a right relationship with God, they will be praying in God’s
will. They won’t be praying to win the lottery; or for a good night at the
gambling boat; or to have a good night out on the town; etc.
19 Brethren,
if anyone among you wanders from the truth, and someone turns him back,
Brethren, if anyone among you wanders
from the truth; This
statement pertains to believer; Born Again believers; the truth meaning the
Gospel, teachings of Jesus and His Apostles. When a person wanders from the
truth it could be a situation where they don’t recognize they are sinning and
backsliding.
And someone turns him back; James urges Christians to help
backsliders return to God, by taking the initiative of helping the person see
their faults and guide them back to God and His forgiveness. Sometimes this is
most difficult to do and the person may reject you, but we need to try and if
rejected then all we can do is pray, pray, pray.
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.
This
verse can and is often times interpreted in two ways. First, is that a person
that points out to another that they are sinning and they repent, ask for God’s
forgiveness, and accepts Jesus as their Saviour, their soul will be saved and
all of their sins will be forgotten. Second, is when a child of God does brings
another person to Christ, this person will be doing the will of God and will be
rewarded one day for their good work.
In
reading verses 19 & 20 I believe it is talking about the person in sin and
when converted to Christianity, the saved person’s multitude of sins of past,
are all wiped away.
This concludes the Book of James and I
truly hope you have found this study to be rewarding. I also pray that you have
realized that you are a sinner and will be a sinner till the day you depart
this earth, therefore it is Jesus you need in your life as your Saviour to go
to Heaven. Today is the day to repent and accept Jesus. Pray the Sinners Prayer
below, mean it with all your heart, and believe Jesus will save you. Then
listen to the voice of the Holy Spirit and live according to God and not your
way.
Colossians
1:16 For
by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth,
visible
and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers.
All things were created through Him and for Him.
Romans
3:23 for
all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
Romans
6:23 For
the wages of sin is death, but
the gift of God is eternal life
in Christ Jesus our Lord.
John 3:3
Jesus answered and said to him, Most assuredly, I say
to you,
unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God."
The
Lighthouse Full Gospel Church
Sinners Prayer; Pray this, and if you
believe it with your heart, Jesus will save you!
“Lord
Jesus I know I am a sinner. I confess my
sins to you; I am sorry for my sins; I repent (Meaning, desiring to turn from a
sinful lifestyle.) of all my sins, and I am asking for your forgiveness. I believe that only you can forgive sin. I commit my life to you and ask you to come
into my heart, direct, and take charge of my life. I believe that you died to set me free from
my sinful lifestyle and you rose from the dead to give me eternal life, and
right now you are seated at the Right Hand of God Almighty. I believe you are
the Son of God; the only Way, the only Truth, the only Life, and my
Savior.” I believe this and have faith
you will make a new person out of me, by sending the Holy Spirit to dwell in my
heart and lead me in a new life. In Jesus name I pray Amen.” (John 3:16,17;
Romans 3:23; 6:23; 5:8; 10:9-13; Ephesians 2:8-10; 1
John 5:11-14; 1:6-10) (Sin: Rom.
1:22-32; Gal. 5:19-21; Eph. 5:3-7)
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