Through the Bible - Ezekiel 27-28, James 5
Good morning,
For today's verse we'll return to the book of James.
Over the years I had the privilege to serve on church boards at our previous churches and had the opportunity as a board member to lay hands on and pray for specific needs of members of the congregation who asked for prayer. Later, Jean and I were on the receiving end of such prayers in the days following Jeff's car accident.
In today's verse James gives advice on seeking the help of church leaders for prayer.
James 5:14 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. .....James 5:16 The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.
NKJV
or from The Message
James 5:14-15 Are you sick? Call the church leaders together to pray and anoint you with oil in the name of the Master. Believing-prayer will heal you, and Jesus will put you on your feet. And if you've sinned, you'll be forgiven — healed inside and out.
Annointig with oil may be a ceremonial action. I've heard Chuck Swindoll say that in this instance it may mean to pray and to use whatever medical means are available,( in New Testament times, oils and salves were used for various medicinal purposes). John MacArthur on the "annointing with oil" writes, "Perhaps it is better to understand the annointing in a metaphorical sense of the elders encouraging, comforting and strengthening the believer."
This week I've heard prayer requests from friends that asked for prayer for two family members, a father and a niece, both battling different stages of cancer. I had a prayer request from a friend whose college age daughter collapsed with symptoms similar to our son Jason a couple of years ago.
It brought me back to times in our lives when we coveted the prayers of family, friends, and churches in our sons lives. Knowing that they were praying did encourage, comfort, and strengthen us.
We pray for our merciful God to show mercy, for grace and the strength to stand In those times, and for hope that those in need of prayer would feel it "as an anchor of the soul" (Heb. 6:19). It helps, it does bring some comfort to know that somebody's prayin' you through.
Truly, the prayers of God's people accomplish much.
SOMEBODY’S PRAYING ME THROUGH
Pressing over me like a big blue sky
I know someone has me on their heart tonight
That's why I know it's gonna be alright
'Cause somebody's praying me through
Somebody's praying me through
It may be my Mother, it might be my Dad
Or an old friend I've forgot I had
But whoever it is I'm so glad that
Somebody's praying me through
Somebody's praying me through
Through the tears, through the rain
Through the sorrow, through the pain
It keeps bringing me through
Over and over again
So when you're drowning in a sea of hurt
And it feels like life couldn't get any worse
There's a blessing waiting to push back the curse
'Cause, somebody's praying you through Oh…
Somebody's praying you through Oh…
Somebody… somebody is, Praying
Oh… Somebody is, Someone Somewhere
Someone got down on their knees and prayed for me
Somebody's, praying
Somebody's praying… you through
I would ask for your prayers for the friends mentioned as well as strength and grace for my parents as they face new challenges.
Someone else has stood in the gap for us personally as well as we see from these verses in Romans 8. You can also find encouragement in John 17 in Jesus' prayer.
Rom 8:26-27 Meanwhile, the moment we get tired in the waiting, God's Spirit is right alongside helping us along. If we don't know how or what to pray, it doesn't matter. He does our praying in and for us, making prayer out of our wordless sighs, our aching groans. (from THE MESSAGE)
You can listen to the song "Somebody's Praying Me Through" on Youtube at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R_D19BZodUA It is accompanied by a girl conveying the message in sign language.
In Christ,
Mike
mikevw@bellsouth.net
James 5:6 - 1 Peter 1:1
All the workers you've exploited and cheated cry out for judgment. The groans of the workers you used and abused are a roar in the ears of the Master Avenger. You've looted the earth and lived it up. But all you'll have to show for it is a fatter than usual corpse. In fact, what you've done is condemn and murder perfectly good persons, who stand there and take it.
Meanwhile, friends, wait patiently for the Master's Arrival. You see farmers do this all the time, waiting for their valuable crops to mature, patiently letting the rain do its slow but sure work. Be patient like that. Stay steady and strong. The Master could arrive at any time.
Friends, don't complain about each other. A far greater complaint could be lodged against you, you know. The Judge is standing just around the corner.
Take the old prophets as your mentors. They put up with anything, went through everything, and never once quit, all the time honoring God. What a gift life is to those who stay the course! You've heard, of course, of Job's staying power, and you know how God brought it all together for him at the end. That's because God cares, cares right down to the last detail.
And since you know that he cares, let your language show it. Don't add words like "I swear to God" to your own words. Don't show your impatience by concocting oaths to hurry up God. Just say yes or no. Just say what is true. That way, your language can't be used against you.
Prayer to Be Reckoned With
Are you hurting? Pray. Do you feel great? Sing. Are you sick? Call the church leaders together to pray and anoint you with oil in the name of the Master. Believing-prayer will heal you, and Jesus will put you on your feet. And if you've sinned, you'll be forgiven — healed inside and out.
Make this your common practice: Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you can live together whole and healed. The prayer of a person living right with God is something powerful to be reckoned with. Elijah, for instance, human just like us, prayed hard that it wouldn't rain, and it didn't — not a drop for three and a half years. Then he prayed that it would rain, and it did. The showers came and everything started growing again.
My dear friends, if you know people who have wandered off from God's truth, don't write them off. Go after them. Get them back and you will have rescued precious lives from destruction and prevented an epidemic of wandering away from God.
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