Scripture reading: Psalm 19:7-14.

Sermon text: James 5:7-20.

Any list of prayer warriors in history would include George Mueller, the nineteenth century German minister who operated an orphanage in Bristol, England. When he opened the orphanage, Mueller had a grand total of 2 shillings (roughly 50 cents) in his pocket. Mueller resolved to provide for the orphans by prayer alone. Over the decades before his death, Mueller received and spent more than $7 million on the orphans without ever asking anyone for money or contributions. On one occasion, Mueller actually said grace at breakfast for 300 children with no food on the tables. Within minutes, a baker and milkman brought bread and milk for the orphans.

Of all the benefits of the Christian life, prayer ranks as the greatest advantage we possess. Christians possess a relationship with Almighty God, a relationship that allows us the privilege of communicating with God. This communication gives us the blessing of speaking with our Creator as our loving Father, not as a harsh judge or impassive deity. Scripture clearly teaches that God listens to the prayers of His children and actively works to answer those prayers. The sermon text today tells us about both the working of prayer and the results of powerful prayer by those who confess Jesus as Lord and receive God’s adoption as His children (Romans 8).

St. James, the half-brother of Jesus, wrote this passage before his martyrdom in A.D. 62. As leader of the church in Jerusalem, St. James knew about prayer. He had witnessed firsthand the power of prayer as God answered the requests of the church. I believe we can safely include the conversion of Saul the persecutor of the church among the prayers answered. St. Paul recorded the response of the Jerusalem believers to his conversion: “They glorified God because of me” (Galatians 1:24).

St. James opened the sermon text with a key part of prayer: “Be patient, therefore, brothers, until the coming of the Lord.” The Apple dictionary defines patience as “the capacity to accept or tolerate delay, trouble, or suffering without getting angry or upset.” Patience brings peace in our lives as we learn to deal with trouble without becoming angry, but I’ve rarely met anyone willing to endure the trials that result in patience.

We have a popular joke in the Church: “Lord, give me patience, and I need it now!”  While God definitely answers prayers, He doesn’t answer quick prayers for patience because He knows how patience comes to us. Patience doesn’t come quickly, nor does it come easily. St. James used the example of farming to make his point regarding patience. “See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient about it, until it receives the early and the late rains.” Farmers can’t bring rain; they can only wait for it. As the farmers demonstrate patience, St. James wrote, “You also, be patient.”

How long must we show patience? St. James wrote that we must show patience “until the coming of the Lord.” God’s greatest work will come when Jesus returns and makes all things right. We may think that God has waited long enough for Jesus’ return, but as St. James wrote, others also had to wait for the coming of Jesus. “As an example of suffering and patience, brothers, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord.” Moses prophesied about the coming of Israel’s greatest Prophet in c. 1406 B.C. Isaiah prophesied regarding Jesus’ coming in the eighth century B.C.; Daniel prophesied about the coming of the Messiah in the sixth century B.C. The people of Israel had waited for a prophet for over 400 years between Malachi and John the Baptist.

Patience doesn’t come easily to us. We don’t like to wait. However, “We consider those blessed who remained steadfast.”  Patience helps us endure trials, overcome temptation, and look at the troubles of life from a different perspective. “You have heard of the steadfastness of Job, and you have seen the purpose of the Lord, how the Lord is compassionate and merciful.” The New Testament books list Job as the paragon of patience. A reading of the book of Job tells us that he patiently waited for God to vindicate him and deliver him from the trials he endured. In spite of our questions about His actions, God shows compassion and mercy as He brings us through our trials and produces patience in the process.

St. James knew that God’s answers will always stand as the truth in every situation. Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6). Because Jesus stood as the truth, Christians must also speak the truth. St. James reminded his readers of Jesus’ admonition against swearing:

1. “Again you have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform to the Lord what you have sworn.’ But I say to you, Do not take an oath at all, either by heaven, for it is the throne of God, or by the earth, for it is his footstool, or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. And do not take an oath by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or black. Let what you say be simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything more than this comes from evil.” — Matthew 5:33-37
   

St. James wrote, “But above all, my brothers, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or by any other oath, but let your ‘yes’ be yes and your ‘no’ be no, so that you may not fall under condemnation.” Christians should always speak the truth in every situation, even in those times when the truth will bring trouble to us. Only those with patience can speak the truth in these circumstances, because those with patience know that trouble in this life will bring joy in the life to come.

After writing about the necessity of patience in prayer, St. James wrote of the great power of prayer. “Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praise.” Remember that prayer includes both petition and praise. We petition God for the requests we need Him to answer, and we praise Him for the requests He answers in our lives.

St. James then addressed the power of prayer in illness and forgiveness in our lives. “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. And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven.”

This passage has both puzzled and challenged theologians and Christians for centuries. Does St. James mean that every sick person in the Church should expect healing from prayer? Does St. James imply that only the elders of the church can pray for healing? What role does the oil play in healing?

I believe we can safely say the following about this passage.

First, we must note that God expects us to pray for one another, especially in cases of illness. I know that many people today treasure their privacy. You don’t have to give all the details of your illness, but I believe God expects us to seek prayers from our fellow believers in our spiritual family.

While we can ask each other to pray for us, St. James specifically requested that people ask the “elders” for prayer. The “elders” in the early Church served as the teachers and preachers, akin to pastors and associate ministers in most Southern Baptist churches. Some Southern Baptist churches have re-instituted the office of elder in their congregations. Some denominations, especially the Presbyterians, have recognized and filled the office of elder for centuries. Regardless, I believe St. James expected the leaders of the congregation to possess the faith necessary to pray for the parishioners in all circumstances.

We can also say that the oil, in itself, has no healing properties. We may not understand why St. James recommended oil in the process, but we know that oil (usually olive oil) has long played an important role in the rituals of the faithful.

You probably recognize the most prominent ritual that resulted from this passage: The Sacrament of Extreme Unction (more popularly known as “Last Rites”) in the Roman Catholic Church. In the Roman Catholic Church, Extreme Unction occurs usually at the moment of death.

The following verses tell us that St. James also expected everyone in the congregation to pray for each other. “Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed.” Again, I know some people don’t like the thought of confessing sin to someone else, but confession accomplishes at least 2 functions.

For one, confession heals us emotionally. I can’t explain how, but we somehow feel a sense of relief when we confess to someone else. You’ve probably heard the old saying, “Honest confession heals the soul.”

Confession also results in something we all need: Accountability. We all stand accountable before God, but accountability to another human helps us avoid temptation. We somehow seek to avoid sin when we know we’ll have to tell someone else when we don’t.

Notice St. James’ words here: “The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.” This sentence gives us the key to effective prayer: Righteousness. Righteous living keeps us in the place of blessing before God. God blesses the righteous, a lesson consistently taught in Scripture.

We now come to St. James’ greatest example of prayer. “Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the earth. Then he prayed again, and heaven gave rain, and the earth bore its fruit.” Elijah’s prayer (recorded in 1 Kings 17) stopped rain for three and a half years. If Elijah’s prayer can stop rain, our prayer can bring blessings to all those for whom we pray.

St. James closed his letter with a great promise. “My brothers, if anyone among you wanders from the truth and someone brings him back, let him know that whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.” We bring people back to the Church by loving them and encouraging them to remain strong and faithful.

Do you want to know God will answer your prayer? First, you must live in a relationship with God, a relationship that comes only by confessing Jesus as Lord and believing in His resurrection (Romans 10:9-10). You must also remember that God expects us to live rightly before Him and in the lives of others.

I must include an admonition in any discussion about prayer. We must never forget that God answers the prayers of His people, but only in a time and manner of His choosing. This would greatly distress us, but as believers in Christ, those adopted into His family, we know we can trust God to answer our prayers in a way that blesses us and those for whom we pray. We must demonstrate patience in our prayers, knowing God will answer our prayers in a way that will result in eternal joy for all those who live in relationship with a loving Father who always protects and provides for His children.

Sources for George Mueller:

“George Muller Evangelist, Orphanages, Bristol, England - Christian Biography Resources.” http://www.wholesomewords.org/biography/bmuller2.html, last accessed 29 September 2012.

“George Mueller, Orphanages Built by Prayer - Church History and Timeline.” http://www.christianity.com/churchhistory/11634869/, last accessed 29 September 2012.