Prayer - 3
LET’S PRAY LIKE THIS
based on The Acts 4:23-31
How many of you have ever had a character sketch drawn of you? … They say that character sketch’s date all the way back to Leonardo da Vinci. Here’s one that was done of me around 30 years ago.
Now what character sketches usually do is accentuate prominent traits of the individual being drawn. Let’s put a couple up on the screen.
• Albert Einstein … what’s his main trait? (bad hair)
• Elvis … (snarl)
• President Obama … (big ears)
Those are things that a character artist picks up on.
Now let me give you another one which will be a little harder because you never saw this fellow in real life. His name is James, and he’s the author of one of the books in the N.T.
If a character artist were to do a sketch of James, what he/she would exaggerate would be his … knees!
According to the 1st century historian, Josephus, James prayed so much that he had knees “like camel’s knees.” In fact, that was his nickname … “camel knees.” I’m not making that up. But isn’t that a wonderful image? James’ knees were visibly calloused from spending so much time on them!
Today is the 3rd of a 5-part series on prayer. And if you’ve missed any of the sermons, they’re on our website. We’ve talked about praying alone, and praying together.
Now James writes a very practical letter. In many ways, it’s the most functional epistle in the N.T. It’s just chalked full of useful stuff to apply to our daily Christian living. And James concludes it with instructions about prayer. In fact, in the final 8 verses there are 7 specific references to praying or prayer. Old “camel knees” is explaining to followers of Jesus the practical ways that they’re to be engaging in prayer.
This morning we’re going to look at 4 different kinds of prayer. So as you’re listening and taking notes, I want you to be particularly aware as to which areas of prayer you need to be working on.
So, Good News this morning, from Jesus’ ½ brother, James, to you who have gathered here at Community Church. Within your hearing, now comes the Word of the Lord …
“Are any among you in trouble? They should pray. Are any among you happy? They should sing praises. Are any among you sick? They should send for the church elders, who will pray for them and rub olive oil on them in the name of the Lord. This prayer made in faith will heal the sick; the Lord will restore them to health, and the sins they have committed will be forgiven. So then, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, so that you will be healed. The prayer of a good person has a powerful effect. Elijah was the same kind of person as we are. He prayed earnestly that there would be no rain, and no rain fell on the land for three and a half years. Once again he prayed, and the sky poured out its rain and the earth produced its crops.
My friends, if any of you wander away from the truth and another one brings you back again, remember this: whoever turns a sinner back from the wrong way will save that sinner’s soul from death and bring about the forgiveness of many sins.” (James 5:13-20)
May the Lord grant that we may engage in contemplating the mysteries of His Heavenly wisdom with really increasing devotion, to His glory and to our edification. Amen
We’re going to start this morning in the middle of our passage rather than at the beginning.
We need to learn something about the power of prayer before we talk about various kinds of prayer. Don’t you want power in your prayers? Do you want to know that your prayers are making a difference?
Scripture teaches that prayer can be powerful. Prayer invites God to intervene in human situations. But there are 2 qualifications that must be met for our prayers to be effective.
“The prayer of a good person has a powerful effect. Elijah was the same kind of person as we are. He prayed earnestly that there would be no rain, and no rain fell on the land for 3½ years.”
In the original text the word order here is a little different. In Greek if we want to emphasize a word or thought, we put that word at the beginning of the sentence. And guess what word is at the beginning of the passage I just read? … (powerful)
James literally writes, “Powerful is the prayer of a good person.” Unfortunately English translators come along and try to make the sentence read better; and as a result, they miss the emphasis that James is making. James wants us to pray with power.
Would you like to pray with power? Do you want your prayers to make a difference? Well, James says that there are 2 essential qualifications.
1st, we need to be a good pray-er. “Powerful is the prayer of a good person.”
What are the requirements to be “good”? Does “good” mean sinless? “Powerful is the prayer of a ‘sinless’ person.” Well, I hope that’s not what “good” means, because my prayers will never be powerful … and neither will yours … because we’re not sinless. (Romans 3:23)
The word “good,” as it’s used here, describes people who have surrendered their lives to Jesus Christ, and are now striving to walk in obedience to Him.
Have you ever surrendered your life to Jesus Christ? Have you ever asked God to forgive your sins?
(1 John 1:9) When we give God our sins, He exchanges them for His goodness. This is an incredible swap. Stop and think about it. Jesus invites us to give Him our sins, and what He gives us in exchange is His goodness.
(2 Corinthians 5:21)
Have you ever done that? … If you have, then Jesus credits His goodness to your account. (Romans 4:5)
If you’ve come to faith and are striving to live for Him then your prayers are going to have a powerful effect. And if you haven’t done that … then just save your breath, because your prayers aren’t going anywhere. They’re not going to accomplish a thing.
So the 1st qualification is that the pray-er is “good.”
The 2nd qualification is … we must be an earnest pray-er. James uses the example of Elijah here.
Elijah was a superhero to the Jews of James’ day. In fact there are no less than 29 references in the N.T. to this O.T. prophet. Elijah was a big deal. And most of James’ readers could recount stories about his exploits.
There was the time he went toe-to-toe with the 450 wicked prophets of Baal on the top of Mt. Carmel. Elijah was a superhero in Jewish history. (1 Kings 18:20-40)
One of the things that Elijah was particularly known for was his powerful praying. On one occasion God brought a drought because of Elijah’s prayer. 3½ years of drought. And then Elijah prayed again and rain came. (1 Kings 17:1-7,18:41-45) How many of you have ever gotten results like that from your prayers? …
So we’re tempted to say, “James, can you give us another example of powerful praying besides Elijah, because we’re not in his league? He was a superhero.”
James responds, “Not really, Elijah was the same kind of person as we are. God listened and responded to his prayers because he prayed ‘earnestly.’”
I love the literal Greek here. “He prayed with prayer.” In Jewish understanding if we want to emphasize something … we repeat it.
So the prophet Isaiah writes,
“Holy, holy, holy!
The LORD Almighty is holy!” (Isaiah 6:3)
Isaiah is highlighting the holiness of God!
And here James wants us to know that Elijah was a fellow who knew how to pray. “He prayed with prayer.” There was intensity about his conversations with God.
Is there an earnestness in your prayers that convinces God that you really mean what you’re praying about? Scripture teaches that God doesn’t take our prayers seriously if we pray them ½ heartedly. (James 1:6)
If we want our prayers to be powerful, to make a difference, we must be “good” pray-ers, and “earnest” pray-ers.
Now James is going to give us 4 types of prayers, and God wants us to be actively involved in each one.
The 1st is the singing prayer. (Our choir especially likes this one.) “Are any among you in trouble? They should pray. Are any among you happy? They should sing praises.” Praying and singing praises go hand-in-hand.
It doesn’t matter if you’re having a good day or a bad day … express yourself to God in singing. And when you do you bring Him into your situation. Augustine, a 5th century theologian, said … “He who sings – prays twice.”
When we sing praises we’re not only worshipping God, we’re also praying. So if you want to double your prayer … just sing. And by the way, it doesn’t matter if you’re a soprano, alto, tenor, bass, baritone, or a monotone.
Scripture says …
“Make a joyful noise unto the Lord.” (The Psalms 100:1)
So, James tells us to become a singing pray-er … because when we sing, we pray twice.
#2 … the healing prayer. “Are any among you sick? They should send for the church elders, who will pray for them and rub olive oil on them in the name of the Lord. This prayer made in faith will heal the sick; the Lord will restore them to health.”
Let’s look at the 3 steps of the healing prayer that James lays out for us. This way, when you need it … you’ll understand how it works.
Step #1 … the sick person contacts the elders. “Are any among you sick? They should send for the church elders, who will pray for them.”
In our congregation we don’t have elders … but our Deacons assume this role. They’re the spiritual leaders of this congregation. They have committed themselves to pray for each of you. All of you are being prayed for throughout the week by our Deacons. That’s a given.
But James wants to take us to a deeper level. If you’re sick, and want God’s healing, then you’re to contact the Deacons, (and each of you have a Deacon contact), and they will come and pray specifically for you. But you have to initiate it.
What’s going on here? Why does God want you to contact the Deacons? Very simple … He wants you to display some faith. God wants you to show that you really believe that He can bring healing.
At your invitation, the Deacons will come and anoint you with oil. “They will rub olive oil on the sick person in the name of the Lord.”
What’s that all about? The oil serves as a symbol. It’s not medicine … it’s a symbol. It’s, in some ways, like when we take Communion. We get a piece of bread, and a cup of juice, which symbolize the body and blood of Jesus, who died on the cross to pay for our sins.
(1 Corinthians 11:26) It’s a physical reminder of Jesus’ death.
Oil in the Scriptures is a symbol of The Holy Spirit. When Jesus was beginning His ministry, in His hometown of Nazareth, He read a passage from Isaiah.
“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed me to bring good news.” (Luke 4:18)
“The Holy Spirit has been poured out on me,” Jesus says, “like oil.”
Oil becomes a symbol of the outpouring of The Holy Spirit. If you contact the Deacons to pray for healing; they’ll come and rub some oil, like I do at the Ash Wednesday service, on your forehead as a physical reminder that we’re asking The Holy Spirit to get involved in your healing.
Once again, there’s nothing magical about the oil, and there’s nothing particularly special about the way we pray; we’re just being obedient to what Scripture teaches as we ask God to intervene.
This brings us to the 3rd step. The Deacons pray in faith. “This prayer made in faith will heal the sick.” They pray a prayer in faith.
When we pray, when I pray, I pray with expectation. I believe that God is going to do something. (Mark 11:24)
So does this mean that God will always heal the person? … Not necessarily. Praying in faith simply means that we believe certain things about God. And one of those things is that He has the power to bring healing to this person.
The other thing that we believe, when we pray in faith, is that God is sovereign and knows what’s best. So at times He may withhold healing for reasons known only to Him. (John 9:3) But regardless, we pray like crazy for the person to be healed.
And if it doesn’t happen we say … “God be praised” … because we know He has a better plan. (The Psalms 33:11)
But the obedient step is that we give the Deacons the opportunity to pray the healing prayer. So, if you’re ill, and you’re wondering why God hasn’t made you better … maybe He’s waiting for you to follow His instructions.
#3 … the restoring prayer. “This prayer made in faith will heal the sick; the Lord will restore them to health, and the sins they have committed will be forgiven. So then, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, so that you will be healed.”
James makes a connection in these sentences between sin and sickness. So, what do you think? Let’s take a poll here. Is sickness a result of sin in your life?
How many of you say “yes”? Sickness is a result of sin? … How many of you say “no”? Sickness is not the result of sin? … How many of you say, “maybe?” … The “maybes” win.
Because what we learn in Scripture is that sometimes sickness is the result of sin. And sometimes sickness has nothing to do with sin.
Let me illustrate this with 2 incidents from the life of Jesus, both from the Gospel of John. Jesus is in Jerusalem for a religious festival.
And He comes across a fellow who had been sick for 38 years … and He heals him on the spot. Now later that day Jesus runs into him again in the Temple, and He tells him, “Listen, you are well now; so stop sinning or something worse may happen to you.” (John 5:14)
In other words, “That sickness that I healed you from this morning was connected to a sin in your life. So don’t go back there or you’re going to get sick again.”
Now lest we think that’s always the case, a different story is told several chapters later. This time Jesus heals a man who has been blind since birth. And His disciples are remembering the lame man’s story, so they’re wondering, “Teacher, whose sin caused him to be born blind? Was it his own or his parents’ sin?”
“Jesus answered, ‘His blindness has nothing to do with his sins or his parents’ sins. He is blind so that God’s power might be seen at work in him.’” (John 9:2-3)
“God’s going to do a miracle here. It has nothing to do with anybody’s sin.”
So sometimes sickness is the result of sin in our lives, sometimes it isn’t. And that’s why James wants us to examine our lives when we’re sick to see if there’s any sinful pattern going on that we need to confess.
God may be using sickness to get our attention so that we’ll confess our sins. I want to say that again.
God may be using sickness to get our attention so that we’ll confess our sins.
“Confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, so that you will be healed.”
Ultimately, of course, we confess our sins to God, but here James tells us to “confess our sins to one another.” Why does he say that? What’s the possible benefit of confessing our sins to someone else? Well, remember the context … this is all about prayer.
So when I confess my sins to somebody, I say, “I’m really struggling in this area; I’m not doing too well.” And the next line out of my mouth is, “Will you pray for me?”
By the way, this is where our Roman Catholic friends get the idea that sins must be confessed to a Priest. But you don’t see any mention of a Priest here. “Confess your sins to your Pastor” … that’s not what it says.
Believers are to confess sins to other believers. It may be a Pastor or Priest, it may a spouse, it may be a close friend. It may be the Deacons … because this whole passage is about Church leaders.
We’re to call the Deacons if we’re sick to come and pray and anoint. And we may have to confess … “The reason I’m sick is because I’m run down and my schedule is just all out of whack.”
Or, “I have bitterness in my life toward a certain person, and I just can’t forgive them.”
And the Deacons will say, “Let’s pray. We’ll pray for your physical healing, and we’ll pray for your spiritual healing, that you’ll experience God’s forgiveness and the breaking of this pattern of sin in your life.”
This is the Scriptural model. “Confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, so that you will be healed.”
One of my favorite passages of Scripture is 1 John 1:9. “If we confess our sins to God, he will forgive us our sins and purify us from all our wrongdoing.” (1 John 1:9)
How long has it been since you prayed the restoring prayer? Has it been 48 hours? Has it been a week? A month? Do you ever invite someone else to pray for you concerning a particular sin? To “have your back” as it were. You’re missing out if you don’t.
#4 … the retrieving prayer. “My friends, if any of you wander away from the truth and another one brings you back again, remember this: whoever turns a sinner back from the wrong way will save that sinner’s soul from death and bring about the forgiveness of many sins.”
When Kathy and I were in England last month we got a GPS on our rental car. Best money I ever spent.
We came home from our vacation still speaking to each other!
Well, we named our GPS appropriately, “Kate.” And Kate guided us perfectly all around Great Britain. However, occasionally I’d make a wrong turn, which Kate was quick to point it out … “Turn around as soon as possible.”
James is telling us that followers of Jesus are to be like Kate. This command is for each of us. If we see someone wandering from God … tell them to turn around!
You know, we pride ourselves in caring for each other … and yet we’re not willing to say the hard things.
Let me give you 3 resources to use when you have to do this. The 1st is prayer. We never approach retrieving without a lot of prayer, otherwise we’re going to be doing things only in our own strength and power … and that’ll never work.
The 2nd resource is Scripture. James describes the person as having “wandered away from the truth.” This is a really important point. We live in a culture that no longer believes in the truth. We live in a culture that no longer has an absolute standard of right and wrong. Our society believes it would be intolerant to insinuate that a person has wandered from God and needs to turn around. “How dare you suggest that? Mind your own business!”
“Who are you to think that something is wrong and needs to be changed in my behavior? Who are you to say what’s right or wrong?”
Well, if we know God’s Word we can identify bad behavior. It’s not based on our opinion, but on what Scripture says. God tells us what is right. (John 17:17)
And James was certainly not timid when it came to getting into a friend’s face. Throughout his letter, he says, “You’ve got to stop doing that.” Or, “you’ve got to start doing this.”
Which leads us to the 3rd resource … love. All the way through his letter James addresses his readers as “my friends.” In fact, that’s how he starts this final section, “my friends.” “Hey, I love you guys. And I have to say something hard here, but I want you to know that it’s motivated out of love.”
This is not a guy who’s doing this to show that he’s right and they’re wrong. This is a guy who loves you and the goal of his turning you around is to save the “sinner’s soul from death.” Now that may in fact include physical death, but his real concern is spiritual. “Get right with God. Confess sins that need to be confessed.”
If this person is a nonbeliever then they’re headed for eternal separation from God. They’re going to spiritually die. They’re headed for hell and destruction.
If the person is a believer, and has temporarily wandered off the path, there’s a spiritual deadliness that’s taking place in their relationship with God, and we can save them from that. Don’t you want to do that?
Besides that James says, it’ll “bring about the forgiveness of many sins.”
We confront the person with Scripture, and they acknowledge … “oh yeah, I need to get right with God.” And they confess their sins, and then the blood of Jesus Christ covers them. (1 Peter 4:8) This is wonderful!
Does it work all the time? No, sometimes the person becomes extremely defensive … but doing nothing won’t bring them back to God either.
So, how’s your prayer life when it comes to these 4 kinds of prayer?
• The singing prayer? Be bold and sing out.
• The healing prayer? Has it ever occurred to you to go to the Deacons for prayer?
• The restoring prayer? Is there stuff going on in your life that needs to be confessed?
• The retrieving prayer? If I asked you to write down the name of somebody who has wandered away from God, every person in this room could bring someone to mind. Start praying for that person right now.
MARANA THA
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