Our text for this morning's message is taken from James 5:13-18. From time to time, we will experience trials, troubles, and afflictions of all sorts. Perhaps this morning you are lying on your sick bed and not able to attend this worship service, or you may be struggling with some emotional issues, family matters, or medical conditions. In such times, what do we do? This is what we want to learn from today's passage. The title of our message is "In Times of Affliction."
Before we begin, allow me to say this: this passage has been debated for centuries because certain groups have tried to use this passage for their own particular beliefs. For example, the Roman Catholics have used this passage to support their teaching on the sacrament of extreme unction. Extreme unction means the Roman Catholic priests would anoint the sick person with oil for the purpose of administering the forgiveness of sins and to strengthen the soul for death. The Bible does not teach us that. No man can do that except the Lord Jesus Christ.
Charismatic faith healers would also use this passage as a guarantee that all sick believers would be healed through prayers. Yet others have used this passage as a basis for anointing the sick with oil. Many difficult questions have been raised from this passage: Are the pastors' and elders' prayers different from the other believers'? Do pastors and elders need to anoint the sick with oil so that they would be healed? Does the prayer of faith always restore the sick?
To answer all these questions, we need to understand this passage in its entire context. You see, the Book of James was written to the Jewish believers who were being persecuted, and they had to flee from Palestine. James began this epistle in chapter 1:2 with an exhortation to "count it all joy when ye fall into diverse temptations," which means when you fall into different trials or when you meet different trials, because he knew that the believers were facing tremendous hostility.
And here in chapter 5, he returned back to this topic about trials. The first six verses described the persecutions that the believers were suffering at the hands of the wicked rich, even to the point of death. From verses 7 to 11, he encouraged the believers to press on, persevere in times of trials by looking to the soon return of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Therefore, the context of this passage is about suffering.
And in discussing this matter of suffering, it will be strange for James not to mention anything about prayers. A strong commitment to prayer is the vital key to endure affliction. So this passage is in the context of suffering, and the emphasis is about prayers. In fact, it is not just the individual suffering believer who needs to pray—everyone needs to pray. The leaders need to pray, the church at large needs to pray.
You can see that very clearly here in verse 13: the individual believer needs to pray. Verses 14 to 15: the elders need to pray. And then finally in verse 16: the congregation needs to pray. This will form the outline for our message this morning.
Firstly, let us consider the individual, beginning with verse 13: "Is any among you afflicted? Let him pray. Is any merry? Let him sing psalms." The word "afflicted" means to undergo hardship or to suffer trouble. When we are afflicted, what is the thing we need? We need to be uplifted. We need to be strengthened. We need to be delivered. We need to be comforted. We need grace to endure, right? And who is the one who can help us? God. Therefore, we must pray. The only way to deal with afflictions is to pray.
When the Apostle Paul had a thorn in the flesh, what did he do? He prayed persistently. Three times he cried out to God to remove it, and God said to him, "My grace is sufficient for thee." (2 Corinthians 12:9) In 1 Peter 5:7, the Apostle Peter said, "Cast all your care upon him; for he careth for you." When the prophet Jonah was in the stomach of the great fish, what did he do? He cried out to God in prayer, and this is what he said: "When my soul fainted within me, I remembered the Lord, and my prayer came in unto thee, into thine holy temple." (Jonah 2:7)
The phrase "let him pray" is in the present tense. It suggests a continuous pleading with God. When life is difficult, when troubles come, we must pray, and we must continuously pray. This is a basic truth that most of us would know. Most of us would agree, but to know it is one thing—to apply it is another thing. Only those who really put this knowledge into application benefit from this wonderful truth.
Do you remember the beautiful hymn we always sing, "What a Friend We Have in Jesus"? It says, "Oh, what peace we often forfeit; oh, what needless pain we bear." We often forfeit peace, and we often carry unnecessary pain. Why? All because we do not carry everything to God in prayer.
My friends, are you afflicted? Are you going through some very difficult times? Are you facing difficulties that words can never express? If you are, you know that you are incapable of changing the situation or your predicament. You are not in control of life and death. Why do you want to carry this unnecessary burden—all the worries and anxieties? Instead, you should cast this burden to the one who is in control of all things. Paul says, "Let him pray."
Then he moved on to say, "Is any merry?" Those who are merry means those who are in good spirits, cheerful, or in a joyful attitude—happy. "Let him sing psalms." Those who are able to sing praises are those who are merry. Those who are merry are those who have experienced the merciful hands of God. Do you realize that praise and prayer are closely related? Praise is actually a form of prayer. Both the afflicted and the merry are to pray. The one who is afflicted prays by pleading with God for mercy; the one who is happy, who is merry, prays by praising God for mercy received. Both the afflicted and the merry are to pray.
My friends, maybe you have prayed in times of affliction. You have cried out to God for help. You have cried out for mercy—no doubt about that. But when God has answered your prayers, when God has showed you his mercy, his goodness, what have you done? Are you thankful to praise him? Have you given glory to him? We all know of the ten lepers; we are very familiar with that story. We are very quick to point our fingers at the nine lepers who have forgotten God's goodness. Only one returned to give thanks to God. So we are quick to point our fingers and say they are so ungrateful, so unappreciative, unthankful. And we are quick to compliment the one leper.
The question we need to ask ourselves is: What about me? Am I one of the nine lepers, or am I like the one leper? God has answered our prayers. Indeed, he is so good; he's so merciful; he's so gracious. Have we forgotten him? In afflictions, we cried out in prayers. But in joyful times, when we are happy, when we are merry, do we sing praises to him?
Now turning from the individual, James moved to the elders of the church. Verses 14 and 15: "Is any sick among you? 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 shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him." The word "sick" means physical illness or spiritual weakness as a result of suffering. Without understanding the context of this passage, at first glance, it appears that when the elders anoint the sick believers with oil and pray for them, they would surely be healed.
But remember, James was speaking to the persecuted believers. They were abused physically. They had lost the ability to endure in their sufferings. They were exhausted. They were depressed. Perhaps even fallen into sin. They might be so physically and spiritually sick that even if they wanted to draw strength from prayers, they had no ability to do so. They were so weak, having hit rock bottom, they were not able to pray effectively on their own. In times like this, these physically and spiritually weak believers would need strong believers to pray for them, right? Who else could they turn to but to call for the elders of the church and let them pray for him? The elders of the church are supposed to be spiritually strong, spiritually mature, spiritually victorious. They are the ones to help these weak believers to pray. They are the ones whom these weak believers can turn to for help.
Now, this is in line with what Galatians 6:1 teaches us: "Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual"—you who are more spiritual—"restore such an one in the spirit of meekness." In humility, you help this brethren who has fallen along the wayside. In Acts 6:4, the church elected the deacons to serve tables. Why did they do that? Why not the elders serve tables? The reason is because the elders may be freed to give themselves continually to prayers and to the ministry of the word.
That is how the church should function. The deacons serve tables, and then the elders will be committed to pray for the congregation and then to share and teach the word of God. It is the responsibility of the elders to pray for the congregation. If I may put it this way, when you are afflicted, you must pray on your own—you must pray as verse 13 says. But there may come a point in time whereby you are so exhausted, so weak, depressed, despaired, troubled, that you cannot pray. Even if you want to, you cannot pray effectively. So what do you do?
Of course, God has given to us the indwelling Holy Spirit to help us to pray. Romans 8:26 says, "Likewise, the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered." But God hears; He understands when the Holy Spirit helps us to groan, to cry out. But God has also given to us pastors and elders to help us in moments like this, in times of affliction.
Sadly, many weak and struggling believers would rather turn to secular counselors, psychologists, to help them, rather than the leaders of the church. I say this with sadness: oftentimes the pastors and elders are the last people to know of their struggles. They will tell everybody else but the leaders of the church. It's very sad—it should not be the way. Brethren are to pray for themselves, but when it comes to a point whereby they are so weak, so tired, so exhausted, so despaired spiritually and physically, they should turn to the elders of the church so that the elders would pray for them.
What about anointing the sick with oil? There are several different Greek terms used for the word "anointing." Sometimes, a special Greek word is used to refer to a spiritual anointing or consecration, like Luke 4:18, where the anointing is to preach the gospel to the poor. Perhaps the best example of such a meaning is the Lord Jesus Christ, who was known as the Anointed One, the Messiah, the One who was consecrated, set aside for God's purposes and plan.
Sometimes, another Greek word for anointing is used, like in the case of the women—they went to the tomb to anoint the body of Christ with sweet spices. Now, that anointing means to spread or to apply. So the women went to the tomb with the intention to spread and apply the sweet spices on Christ's body. Here in verse 14, Paul used another Greek word for anointing, which means rubbing—the rubbing of oil or ointment. Dr. Jeffrey Khoo, the principal of the Far Eastern Bible College, said this: In the Middle East, oil has often been used for medical purposes, and olive oil is abundant in that area. The people would often use the rubbing of oil to soothe the tired and weak body. In other words, it could be translated as the rubbing of oil in the name of the Lord.
So depending on which Greek word was used for anointing, it can mean a special anointing or consecration, it can mean spreading or applying, or it can mean rubbing, as in this case. Remember, in those days the persecuted believers had suffered physical injuries to their body. Tremendous hostility they faced; they had to flee for their lives. Many of them were beaten. Modern science was not in existence in those days, and very few doctors were trustworthy. Medicated oil was often used to rub on the wounds, and it would have been a gracious act of love when the elders of the church would take the oil and rub it on the wounds of those who had been beaten, and then to pray for this afflicted brethren, committing them into the hands of the Almighty God.
Why did the elders of the church do that? They did that in the name of the Lord. Whenever you say "in the name of the Lord," it means that they are doing something which Jesus Christ Himself would have done in that given situation. Just as when we pray in the name of the Lord, we are praying for something that Christ Himself would want. When we minister in the name of the Lord, we are serving others on His behalf.
Most likely, our Lord Jesus would do the same thing. When a believer is hurt, He would have come; He would have rubbed this most soothing oil on the wounds. Remember how He stooped down and washed the feet of the disciples? That is what our Lord Jesus would do. The elders of the church must follow the example of Christ, so in the name of the Lord, they would have done the same thing. The result is that the prayer of faith shall save the sick, which means the elders' prayers will deliver or restore the weak and suffering believers spiritually and physically—of course, by the grace and mercy of God.
The prayer of faith means a faith in the Almighty God who will sovereignly carry out His plan and purpose. When we pray in faith, we pray believing that nothing is beyond God—absolutely nothing. God can heal anyone. God can heal at any time, in any circumstances, and He works all things to His glory. If it is the Lord's will that you be delivered from your afflictions, Paul says, the Lord shall raise him up. Surely, the Lord shall raise him up to His glory.
Not all suffering is the direct result of an individual's sin. Please do not go around and say to someone who is sick that it is because you have done something wrong; that is why you have cancer or that is why you have this terminal illness. Not all sicknesses are directed to the individual's sins or connected.
Sometimes, initially, when a believer suffered an affliction—perhaps he suffered a heart attack or was diagnosed with a terminal illness—it might not be that he had sinned, but subsequently, in the midst of the affliction, he might have sinned. In those trying moments, he might have murmured and challenged God, he might have become so bitter and angry, or he might have made the wrong decisions and dishonored God.
In such times, the elders of the church can encourage the believer to do the right thing. When a sin is committed, the only solution is to confess your sins to God and repent, and God will forgive. 1 John 1:9 says, "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." That is why Paul says, "If he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him."
My friends, we must never take this passage out of context as a blank check, like the health, wealth, and prosperity gospel preachers would do. They will tell you that if you perform all these necessary steps—ask your elders to anoint you with oil and pray for you—you will surely be healed. Many Christians believe in that; they were sick but they had been deceived by this erroneous teaching. They had done everything they could, but yet they died, and sadly they went to their graves believing, "Something must be wrong with me," or, "I must have failed to do certain things," or, "The Lord must have something against me; he's holding something against me; that is why I am not delivered." How sad! No one ever told them that it may be the sovereign will of God that you would die and be with the Lord forever and ever. See, that is how some people will take a certain passage out of context, and you can see so much harm being done. So many Christians believed in that and died thinking that they have done something wrong or they have not done something which they ought to. Otherwise, why would God not heal them, forgetting that it is the sovereign will of God to take them home to a better place?
So firstly, James focused on the individual, and then the elders, and finally he turned to the congregation as a whole. Look at verse 16: "Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much." Here, James was exalting the believers to continually confess their sins one to another, and do not wait until it is too late. Do not wait until those sins would drag you to a point of total spiritual defeat.
My friends, do you know when sin is most dangerous to us? Sin is always dangerous to us, but when is it most dangerous to us? Sin is most dangerous to us when we are isolated. What sin wants to do is to keep it private, to keep it in secret. What God wants to do is to expose the sin and then deal with it, and oftentimes God will use fellowship to do that—the loving fellowship that the believers would have when they come together, mutually and honestly confess their sins one to another. That is the best protection; that mutual accountability is what God has provided for us to protect one another, that we will not live in sinful, secret lives.
Take a moment and consider this: What is the first thing a person would do when he or she lives in sin or falls into sin? Run away from church, leaves the fellowship, right? Most people who do that, when they fall into sin, whether it be the sin of adultery or immorality or any other sins, the first thought that will come into their minds is, "I'm going to leave church, I'm going to leave the fellowship." That is what the devil wants us to do. But God does not want us to do that. He wants us to remain in the church, confess our sins to one another, where there is this mutual accountability. It will help us by protecting us. When you and I confess our sins to one another, there's accountability, and then we will forsake our sins. That is why Paul went on to say that that is how the believers may be healed spiritually. So please, when you are struggling with sins, do not stay away from church. Church is the place to go. Church is the place where there's this mutual accountability, there's this mutual honesty, there's this mutual confession. And when we confess, then we take upon ourselves this responsibility to forsake our sins, and by the grace of God, we will be able to do it.
So the emphasis is on prayers. And then James went on to say this: "The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much." The word "effectual" is from where we get the English word for "energy." "Availeth much" means "accomplish much," or the literal meaning is "it is strong." Weak prayers come from weak people; strong prayers come from strong people. The prayer of a righteous man is strong. Why? Because his prayer is energized; it is effectual by the Holy Spirit. The righteous man is someone who has the indwelling of the Holy Spirit; he is someone who knows that in prayers, we rely on no one else but God; he relies on the power of God alone. So when you ask a righteous man to pray for you, especially when you are weak, you are struggling, you can be rest assured that this man knows that the only way to pray for you is to trust and rely on God's power and his power alone. That is why you turn to spiritual people—the leaders of the church and mature believers—to help you, share with them that they may pray for you.
To further demonstrate that the prayer of a righteous man is strong, James gave an illustration of one of the most popular Old Testament characters: Elijah. Most of us here are familiar with Elijah, right? He says this: "Elijah was a man subject to like passions as we are." In other words, Elijah was just like us; he was not a supernatural being. He has the same passions like you and me; he has the same emotional, physical, spiritual struggles like you and me. Yet, when he prayed earnestly that it might not rain, and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and six months, and he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth brought forth her fruit (verse 17 and 18). Elijah has the same passions as you and me. He's not a spiritual or supernatural being. If you read 1 Kings 18 onwards, you see how Elijah later on, when he faced trials, the wicked Queen Jezebel, he ran for his life. He was just like you and me, with like passions, but one thing he knew: when he prayed, he prayed trusting in the power of God.
When you and I pray likewise, we must pray trusting in no one else—not the eloquence of our prayers—but the Almighty God himself. Interestingly, 1 Kings 17 only records the drought; Elijah prayed that there be no rain, but here James tells us the duration—it is three and a half years there was no rain. Now, that is a clear illustration of how we need both the Old and New Testament; the New Testament explains for us what is in the Old Testament. Elijah prayed that there be no rain; James said he prayed for no rain, and it lasted three and a half years. Both were linked to the prayers of Elijah.
My friends, just like Elijah, you and I do not have any supernatural powers. In fact, we are very weak. Outwardly, we may appear to be strong, but we are all very weak; we can be very exhausted, we can be tired, we can be afraid, we can be depressed, we can be despaired. All it takes is just one affliction; you and I would fall. Afflictions will come; if it has not visited you, it will come. As a saying goes, "When you least expect it, the afflictions you least expected—to be sick—that is when you will fall sick." Afflictions will visit us. When it comes, what can we do? We must pray. Every one of us must pray. The individual must pray, the leaders must pray. When it comes to a point whereby you have no more strength to pray, turn to those who are able to help you, the ones whom God has given the responsibility to pray for you. Tell it to the elders of the church, "Pray for me. God has ordained you to pray for me; you pray for me."
The congregation must pray. The only way to protect every one of us in this church is to come together, confess our sins to one another. There's mutual honesty, mutual accountability, mutual confession. That is the best protection, and we pray for one another. And the Bible tells us, "The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much." It is strong; it can accomplish much. Why? Because all of us pray looking to the One who is all-powerful, the One who is all-knowing, the One whom we are now in His presence, trusting that He will help us. And this kind of prayers, trusting in the Almighty God, is strong. May the Lord help us.
Let us pray. Our Father in heaven, we thank thee for Thy precious word—Thy word that Thou hast preserved for us
through the ages. Even as we read, we thank Thee for how Thou hast taught us that afflictions will come. In times of affliction, what can we do? We are so weak, but we can be strong because of our prayers. Through prayers, it is the only key to endure affliction. O Lord, help us to remember that, and help us always to be in prayer. As an individual, we must pray; as leaders of the church, we must pray for the members, for the people in the church. The congregation must pray. And we thank Thee for every opportunity Thou hast given to us, that we may come together to pray. Indeed, Thou hast reminded us once again, "The effectual, energized, fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much." Indeed, it is strong; it is strong because of Thee. O Lord, be gracious, be merciful to us, hear our prayers, for we trust in Thee with all our hearts, with all our strength, and with all our souls. We give Thee thanks, and we pray all this in Jesus' name. Amen.