Sermons

Due to technical difficulties, this sermon was not recorded at Grace Chapel. The recording is of a similar sermon preached at Bethel Baptist Church, North Vernon, IN, on November 22, 2015.

I. Talk to God in Every Circumstance (James 5:13-15).

I. A. When we're suffering (v. 13a)--when mistreated and hurting from life and people (compare the same word in v. 10), we're commanded to pray to the God who brings justice and relief at the exact right moment.

I. B. When we're happy (v. 13b)--when we feel content and cheerful, we're commanded to sing praises, recognizing that any joy we find in life is an example of God's kindness and mercy to us.

I. C. When we're sick and weak (v. 14-15)--when our bodies don't do what they're supposed to do, and we find ourselves sick to the point of being bedfast, we're commanded to call the elders, who are to pray for us, anointing with oil in the name of the Lord as they do.
---Why elders? Most 1st century houses were too small to allow the whole church to gather to pray for the sick--it would be like the whole church going to someone's hospital room today. The elders represent the entire body praying.
---Why anointing? While there are a few possibilities, this word for anointing tends to be used in a context of basic physical care, cleaning off dirt and refreshing the body; with that care and refreshing comes an idea of restored joy (think of David when he stopped mourning for his and Bathsheba's son). Secondarily, in the NT anointing may refer to the indwelling Holy Spirit equipping someone for service (though this usually involves a different word).
---Healing and forgiveness? The word for "restore" in v. 15 is often translated "save"--either in a physical sense or a spiritual one. This verse points to both, not because all sickness is caused by personal sin, but because the Lord who made bodies is well able to restore bodies, and because a time of serious sickness may become an opportunity for us to think more extensively on who Christ is, and in turn to recognize where we don't look just like Him. The solution isn't to wallow in guilt, but to run to the God who has promised to forgive sin and to shape us into His Son's likeness.

II. Talk to God with Others (v. 16)--If we believe that God forgives sins as He has promised, we don't have to be afraid that others will know we have sinned. That doesn't mean we tell every person we meet everything we've ever done, but it does mean having real brothers and sisters that we know face to face who know our weaknesses so that we can pray for one another. And if we believe that God hears and answers prayers for physical healing, we will be praying for one another (see also 1 John 5:14-16).

III. Talk to God, Because He Hears (v. 17-18)--James wrote the end of v. 16, "the effective prayer of a righteous man..." to encourage us, but many of us fidget and figure he means someone else. But James points to Elijah as a faithful but faltering man, not a superhero, but a man who immediately after his prayers was on the run, despairing of life and asking to die (see 1 Kings 17-18). Yet God heard and answered him--and how much more will He hear and answer those whom He has declared righteous because we bear the righteousness of Christ? And so we pray with confidence--not in ourselves, but in a Father who keeps His promises, a Christ who holds us fast, and a Spirit who brings life and forgiveness to sinful people in a hurting world.